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Madden is back and he may be better than ever. The brand new Madden game has the same old formula we have all come to know and love and with some new off-season aquisitions.
One new feature that has been implemented by not only this year's title, but all new EA sports titles is the new EA Sports Bio. Nothing major, it just keeps track of the amount of time a person has played a EA sports title as well as major accomplishments. You will recieve new unlockable bonuses in evry title , but what you get and how much depends on how long you have played. If you read my NCAA 2004 review I mentioned it there.
Also there is a deeper franchise mode. Keep track of all your team's expenses, set ticket prices, merchandise prices and even parking prices. It's a nice little diversion thats adds another dimension to the game.
Also present in the game is the new package option. Each time before you select a formation you can choose different personel to plug in and play. Maybe a big physical reciever is just mauling your small speedy corner on one side while your big strong corner is getting burned on the otherside by a small speedy reciever. Before picking a formation you can switch your backs with a press of a button. Thats not the only case. You can also put in your speed package and so on. The same thing can be said on offense.
Bsides the new plays the only real new addition this year that has not been mentioned is the playmaker control system. It's a neat option that really puts you in control of your blocking, pass routes,and various other things on both defense and offense. Are you trying to run the ball but the side you are running to is jammed with linemen and linebackers? Well before the play just flick your right analog stickand with out tipping away the defense you can run the opposite way. Maybe you are scrambling with your QB and you want a reciever to go deep and get open. Just flick the stick and it will happen. On defense flick the stick down after the snap to have everyone swarm in on the run. Flick the stick up after the snap and defend against the pass. Nothing all too difficult or revolutionary, but effective nevertheless.
Also different is the play of the CPU. It is much tougher this time around. Blitzes put constant pressure on you, balls are swatted down, recievers WILL find a way to get open in a zone defense. This is a good thing to since last year's title consisted of throwing hail mary's all game long. No joke either. The hail mary was too effective. The pass was often completed so the game ended on many occasions with ridiculous scores. This year's title greatly improves on that. No more money plays for you.Interceptions are plentiful in this game. Passes are caught off the deflection many times as well.
So should I get it? If you're STILL playing madden 01 then yes. There are many new feature and updated plays and rosters. But last year's owners may want to take a pass as this year's version. It improves slighlty on seemingly perfect gameplay but the new features are only marginal at best. However if you always wanted to price your own hot dog then this games is for you.
