Madden NFL 08  Review - Page 1

- Alan Ham, " mastacheef ", Staff Writer

Friday, August 17, 2007

Title: Madden NFL 08 .............................................. System: Sony PSP .............................................. Genre: Sports .............................................. Publisher: EA Sports .............................................. Developer: EA Tiburon .............................................. Release: .............................................. Online: No .............................................. ESRB: Everyone (E) .............................................. Once this time of year comes around, you can tell that football is just around the corner. People suddenly need you for their fantasy football, segments of SportCenter are devoted to NFL contract holdouts, and the whole city of Buffalo goes into a mass frenzy, only to be disappointed 4 four months later. Another telling sign is the frenzy over Madden games, the most popular sports game franchise and for the most part the biggest seller in the month of August. On the PSP, Madden has been hit or miss since it first started on the portable console. Because of it's limitations, many features are added or subtracted each year, depending on which works well with portable gaming. You have your usual quick play, mini-camp mini-games and the very deep Franchise mode. The latter can be a little slow at times when simulating, which does not bode well for a portable game. Then there is the new Superstar Challenge mode which is perfect for on-the-go football. The mode has you playing in certain situations from last season such as scoring on a late game drive or hitting a winning field goal. These relatively short tasks work great because they are very easy to get into and replay over again, unlike the franchise mode which can be a little too complex for playing while in transit. Another new addition is the Weapons system, found on the console versions of the game. It does not work as well as it does on the console version as it seems more like a label on the player than an actual difference on the field. Sure, there is a difference between an accurate arm and a strong arm or an elusive running back versus a power runner, but this can be determined by reading a player's uniform. The reason the Weapons system works on the console is because it adds a different level of strategy in play, however on the PSP, the strategy element is not implemented well, making the feature an afterthought. Aside from the weapons system, the on field gameplay is great. There is balance between the running and passing games, although rolling out with the quarterback seems to confuse the defense a lot more than it should. Also, the cornerbacks tend to slack off a bit, usually leaving a man wide open over the middle and leading to big yardage. On the defense side of the ball, not much has changed, with the exception of the Hitstick 2.0. The Spotlight Receiver option on the console versions did not make it on the PSP version. Another complaint would be that the camera overseeing the action is still too closed in on the QB, making it hard to see where the receivers are, not only before the snap but afterward as well, leading to some interceptions thrown, or most of the time, a ball thrown to no one. The overall gameplay could be quicker to match the hurried nature of PSP players, compared to those 4-hour sessions of sitting down on the console iterations. There are a few bugs here or there, but nothing too disrupting. One in particular, where the blockers tend to push the opponent into the runner instead of away is pretty bad, and leads to a large crowd in the middle of the field with the ball holder having nowhere to go. This even happens when receiving a punt or kickoff and can be frustrating when you begin to think of all those yards lost. The animations are nice enough, especially the tackles, and the overall look of the game is pretty sharp and detailed. John Madden and Al Michaels take over again for the commentary. Much, if not all, of it recycled material, but it still is better than the radio commentary on the console versions. The online multi-player has received a lot of complaints for the laggy play. The two or three seconds of delay between commands, especially when selecting a play definitely does make the experience a less enjoyable one. A common arguing point for those who do not get the whole Madden fever is the recycling of the gameplay making the newest version nothing more than a roster update. This rings a little true for this PSP game, with no significant changes to warrant a new purchase unlike the 360 and PS3 versions which have nice new additions. On the other hand, features that were added are pretty darn good and a little more fun than last year's. It is pretty much a toss up on whether or not to buy this game, but if you like the sound of the Superstar Challenge, go for it. Pages 1   The Core Score Overall 7.3 Fun 8 Gameplay 7 Graphics 6.5 Audio 6 Replay 7     Kid Safe Score      8  Great    It's football.   How we score games