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NCAA Football 10
Release Date: July 14, 2009
Reviewed On: PlayStation 3
Also Available On: Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PSP
Developer: Tiburon
Publisher: Electronic Arts
ESRB Rating: Everyone
Like clockwork, Electronic Arts released another edition of NCAA Football a little over a month prior to the college football season. To many, the game remains the same, with only a few changes to ratings, rosters, and school schedules. EA highlighted several changes that they made this year, including Season Showdown. However, are these changes enough for gamers to feel the need to fork over 60+ dollars for this game?
Another year, more endless tackles.
Story:
NCAA Football 10 continues the long series of college football games developed by EA. When it comes down to a story, it is completely in the players' hand. EA does a great job of allowing players to grab the reigns of a college dynasty and work through the progression of building a programs prestige. The pre-season options focus on gaining talented players from high school and working them into the roster. As gamers progress through the season, they have the opportunity to call recruits and strategically sell or sway those players on why they should attend. Dynasty mode is also available online for giving gamers a chance to not only play against their friends, but also competitively recruit against those triple A players.
My all time favorite player, New Player.
Another option for college football fans is "Road to Glory." In this mode, gamers take a single player from the high school playoffs, to attending a college for their four year college football career. This mode mirrors the "Superstar Mode" that was added to the Madden franchise in Madden NFL 06 and some of the previous iterations of the NCAA Football series. The journey of a player’s career is narrated by Erin Andrews and Kurt Herbstreit, who give periodic recaps and display highlights. However, this year all the highlights are taken from the in-game footage that is saved after each of the player’s games.
Gameplay:
The core elements of the gameplay for NCAA Football have not changed. There are enhancements that make the game more strategic, rather than the straight forward running and defending plays. Prior, and during a game, players can adjust the game plan from aggressive, balanced and conservative. These different settings can be customized on the offense and defense in accordance to the team that gamers are playing. The direct impact is evident as I found my defensive giving up the long ball frequently when I used the aggressive settings for my defense.
Another new feature included in this year’s game, is setting up plays. When choosing offensive plays, various plays are highlighted with the word “Setup” flashing over the play name along with a percentage. These plays can be chained together multiple times, making the defense more likely to jump on the play action.
College Football fans can now show their pride with their NCAA Football 10 skills.
Finally, the replay value of NCAA Football games was never a really big problem. Now, Electronic Arts has introduced another amazing meta-game to this series. "Season Showdown" is new this year. Gamers can set up which school they would like to represent (go Spartans!) and then gain credits through playing games against the CPU and opponents online. Also, extra points are given for playing strategically, showing skill, and being a good sport. The inclusion of this meta-competition changes the dynamic of the game. Although there is no way to negatively affect your team, some may second guess going for it on 4th and long, or running up the score.
Graphics:
Electronic Arts do a good job with creating visual authenticity in this series. NCAA Football 10 shows packed stadiums, flag runners after touchdowns and cheerleader celebrations. There are also new in-game animations making the game look more fluid as running backs are bursting by the offensive line.
The new animations create life-like interactions with the players on the field.
Although the visual authenticity is there, it is still hard to differentiate NCAA Football 10 from the previous versions of the game. This isn’t a bad thing, as the game still looks amazing when zooming into individual players.
Audio:
From the cheering crowds to the color commentary by Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit, NCAA Football 10 has the sounds to tide you over until the regular college season starts. Erin Andrews has also been brought on to provide the status of injured players. The fight songs also add a personalized touch to playing and scoring with your favorite college football team.
Erin Andrews adds more to the repetitive audio.
However, the sound can tend to feel a little redundant. Nearly all the color commentary and injury reports repeat themselves during a single sitting, and sometimes in a single game.
Multiplayer:
Multiplayer is where NCAA truly shines. With countless options of match-ups, gamers can battle on the same couch or online. The regular exhibition and online match-ups will keep friends, and rivals, busy for hours. Custom online dynasties also give more longevity to these friendly encounters. Since players are able to create their own conferences, there are endless mix-and-match situations that can bring together teams that would not regularly meet.
"Season Showdown" also brings another aspect to multiplayer. Once the regular season begins, gamers can participate in duels between other gamers from schools that are on the schedule of their favorite team. These games all work towards a 32 team tournament that will occur at the end of the season, giving college football an alternative to the BCS system that is in place currently.
Summary:
Electronic Arts has given a good shot at enhancing this franchise. They managed to give more incentive to play the game prior to the release of Madden and during the regular college season. However, the dynamics have not changed enough. The game still feels like a roster, schedule, and stats update. This game is great to keep college football fans thirst for fight songs and rivalry games quenched for the time being. The normal gamer may want to pass on it if they are still enjoying previous iterations of this title.
Story: 7/10
Gameplay: 7.5/10
Graphics: 8/10
Audio: 7.5/10
Multiplayer: 8/10
Total Gaming Network Rating: 7.8/10
Gameplay: 7.5/10
Graphics: 8/10
Audio: 7.5/10
Multiplayer: 8/10
Total Gaming Network Rating: 7.8/10
~yetweallfalldown