Madden 2005

Madden 2005
Game: Madden 2005
Platform: PS2
Studio: EA Sports
Rating: 9.5/10

GAME STUDIO DESCRIPTION: In its 15th year and with close to 37 million copies sold, Madden NFL Football continues to dominate as the most popular football videogame franchise of all time with a combination of innovative new features and the most authentic football gameplay. Madden NFL Football is currently displayed in the Pro Football Hall of Fame-the only videogame to receive this honor.

In the tradition of EA SPORTS™ innovation, Madden NFL 2005 introduces the Hit Stick. By giving players the ability to turn a game around with a crucial tackle, the Hit Stick delivers the power to take control of the game from the defensive side of the ball like never before. Along with all-new defensive pre-play controls and defensive AI enhancements, the defense now has a diverse arsenal of weapons available. The incredible depth of Franchise Mode grows with the addition of Storyline Central.
Madden NFL 2005 delivers unprecedented depth and upgrades, with hundreds of new animations, even more Franchise Mode additions, major enhancements to EA SPORTS online, and the ability to create your own NFL super fan in the all-new Create-A-Fan feature. This is the deepest, most complete and authentic sports videogame ever made, making Madden NFL Football the ultimate judge for gamers.

GRAPHICS: There is nothing new to report on the graphics end. There are new animations and tweaks here and there but no major graphical leap forward and where NFL 2K5 moves ahead of Madden. Only the marquee player models look like their true counterparts—otherwise the rest of the players are mostly generic. Some of the worst models are of the coaches–Buffalo’s Mike Mularky looks like he is ready to cry and looks nothing like himself. One major improvement is the venues. The stadiums look fantastic and very accurate. The fans are much improved–Bills fans know that Elvis is a Bills fan and comes to every game in Buffalo—you have to love that EA put him into the game—I bet that made Elvis’ life.

PLAY: Gameplay has been given a significant boost. Defense received the biggest upgrade this year with the hit stick. If you tap the right analog stick toward your opponent you’ll lay a big lick on the offending player. Be careful however, if you push because you could go from causing a fumble to knocking yourself out of a play and opening up a huge gain. Another great addition to defense is the hot route which is a lot like the hot routes on offense. You can pick the defensive player and move them into position for a potential big play.

If isn’t broke don’t fix it and that is what EA decided to do with the offense on Madden. Essentially the offense is the same and that’s the way it should be. Running does appear difficult especially against stout rush defenses. Defensive numbers mean more in Madden than in NFL 2K5 bring a greater element of realism.

Players are better or worse depending upon their ratings and if they are slumping, put on the bench, etc. Some players suffer from the slump faster and a few of the superstars seem immune to the slump. The new storyline feature offers a lot of interesting aspects that go deeper than the occasional player slump. We all know some players have a tendency to get into trouble, others hold out for money, and many other scenarios can hurt a season and that takes the franchise mode to a whole new level.

Player drills have been tweaked although it would be nice to have a little more direction on certain drills. Sometimes you get one run at a drill and you do a slow time or make a mistake because you aren’t given a layout for the drill and totally blow it. The free agent market and trades have been given an update that is much closer to reality. Madden has become the Sim City of football and a very accurate one at that.

SOUND: The commentary is still held back by its dry, repetitive announcing by Madden and Michaels. Honestly Michaels is more enjoyable to listen to than Madden who rarely offers any interesting insight without the usual cliché.

Madden offers EA Sports Radio where Tony Bruno interviews coaches, players, and talks to fans. Sure much of it is generic but there are the occasional stories that impact games—a great touch. Bruno is ten times more interesting to listen to than the commentators.

The music that plays during the menus and occasionally in game isn’t bad per se however they don’t always seem to fit football. After you’ve heard a song a few times you can’t wait to shut it off for good.

FRANKLY: Because online play has been tweaked and EA has set up league play with tournaments, message boards, and more, there is an entirely new reason to buy Madden—that is if you needed another reason. Madden 2005 is what you’ve come to expect–greatness. If this were the first version of the franchise you’d give it a perfect ten—but because we expect so much out of EA it’s hard to up the ante each year. Gameplay is getting to a point where you wonder how it can be improved upon however graphically there are things that can be improved upon. All things said, Madden NFL 2005 is rock solid and will have you playing well into the spring. Ready, set, hike!

+ Richie Wright


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