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Preview  NFL Madden 2002
- By Travis Coats
Neal Gittens' Impressions
While attempting to soak up all that I could from the Cube Club this past weekend, I had the chance to play the first Madden incarnation for the GameCube. It has promised much for itself, and it delivers on what it claims it can.
The control scheme is pretty similar to the previous versions of the game. The GC controller was still a new experience for me, but as I got used to it, I got into the flow of the game. My favorite parts of any football game are running the ball and playing defense. Both of these aspects are very intuitive in this version. Some games provide too little opportunity to run the ball, which drives me insane. If every play is stopped within a few yards, it's too frustrating. Madden strikes a good balance between the defense's A.I. and the ability to execute the plays well. Most plays work the best if they are run the way they are intended to be run. If you run a dive play up the middle, the hole will open up where you are supposed to run it. If you try to bounce outside instead of running up the middle on the same play, there is likely to be a loose defender ready to bounce you into the ground if you can't shake him with a good move. It seems true to football to get this kind of feeling. Plays are designed to be run a certain way; step outside that plan and you are on your own.
Defense plays very well, too. Whether playing a defensive back or a lineman, the feel is different for each. When you patrol the defensive backfield, you actually get anxious when you see the ball go up to a reciever and you think you have a chance for it. (As a former defensive back, I really like pass defense.) Linemen on the other hand, have a different task. They have a variety of moves at their disposal to try to get past the behemoth offensive lineman blocking them. I didn't get a lot of opportunities on the line, because I was too enamored with playing strong safety, but the few plays I did definitely felt quite different from trying to pick off the passes.
The graphics looked great on this game. It isn't a huge step beyond the PS2 version of the game, but it is improved. I didn't get a lengthy chance to check out some of the replay features, since the guys I was playing against always just skipped over the after play replays. However, the game runs smoothly and looks very pretty. I look back at the SNES versions of Madden and realize how far we've actually come.
In all, this looks to be part of a great start to the GameCube sports library. As a first generation title, Madden sets a high bar for its competition to go up against, ensuring that we will continue to see better and better games in the future. This is definitely one to watch, and one for fans of football, and the Madden franchise to get excited about.
-11.07.2001
Camp EA Impressions
Not much has changed in the build I played today from the one at that was at E3. However, a few new features were apparent. The most noticeable (and by far the most interesting) was the point of view effects that EA had enabled for replays and close-ups.
When this effect happened only one player on the field was in focus. In contrast, the other players were blurred in the way that a camera does when it zooms in on something. To get an idea, look at something near you and you'll notice how everything else becomes blurred and hazy. This is very natural to experience in a real life situation or on a televised game, but in a video game it is near unheard of. Bravo to EA, as this small effect has added layers upon layers of realism to the title, and I hope that many more GameCube games will make use of it.
Overall, this game is looking better every time I see it, and if this latest build is anything to go by, the finished product will be worth every penny.
Travis -07.25.2001
There was one third party game playable for GameCube at this year’s E3, (that wasn’t in the Nintendo booth), and that game was Madden 2002 from Electronic Arts. In what I thought was a very interesting setup, EA had all three versions of Madden 2002 running next to each other. Xbox, PS2, and GameCube versions were all side-by-side for the participants of the show to compare and contrast. Truth be told, the GameCube version, while not nearly as complete as the PS2 setup, was by far the best graphically. Now I know that others have stated the PS2 version was better as it was much further along, but I am referring to the overall look, not the small details. For example on both the PS2 and Xbox versions when the camera pulled back and panned across the crowd, shimmering effects were in abundance. On the GameCube however, the same camera angle revealed the crowd to look exactly like it should, no shiny and sparkly people as with the other two. This shimmering effect is usually caused by a lack of anti-aliasing, but as I understand it all three of the versions were not running it. Now don’t take that as fact I am just going by what I saw, and the Cube’s graphics were superior.
Although the common consumer will not notice any graphical differences between the three machines with this game, the EA rep said that in future Madden titles, they would develop according to each console’s strengths and weaknesses. In my opinion this is when the GameCube will take the lead.
Regardless, I’m getting ahead of myself. The gameplay between the three versions was identical. This is a straight port of the PS2 version, and it shows. The main advantage of the GameCube is once again the controller, as passing, running and play selection are so much more intuitive with the Cube, than on the Xbox and PS2.
Madden 2002 is the first in what will hopefully be a long line of excellent 3rd party sport titles for the new Nintendo GameCube. If this is the case, then sports fans and Nintendo loyalists alike will have reason to celebrate.
Travis -05.21.2001
- 11.7.2001 |
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INFO |
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Release Date:
11.15.2001
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