Madden NFL 2002

"Continuing the tradition of excellence on the ‘Cube"

I must be honest, when I picked up this game, I was almost afraid that the Madden franchise would have trouble making leaps to the new platform. True, they have done it quite a few times, having a football game (or four) on every console since the 16-bit era, but every time, I wonder if the transition will be for the best, or the opposite. Allow me to set any of these fears at rest: this game is exactly what it should be, and the tradition of whipping realistic asses all along the football field only shines brighter as the franchise makes the leap to the next generation of gaming platforms.

Gameplay: 9/10 As with every new release of a new Madden title, I have to go out and buy the game, just to compare it, and this time I MUST say that I am pleased. There are quite a few features that I must say I am glad to have in this game (create-a-player is probably the most notable, since I love to stack the teams with my friends and myself hehe). Needless to say, I created quite an awesome team (which I put on the Redskins for lack of other inspiration).
The next thing that I have always noticed in almost every football game that this one tries to remedy is the obvious slowdown while the ball is in play. If you really think about it, every football game, including this one, has had to slow down the speed of the gameplay if for no other reason than to allow the player to have a chance in the case of reactions. This game, however, has some of the smallest slowdown I have ever seen. I love it!! You’ll probably notice how every quarter seems to last less time at first, but then you’ll notice that the scores are still realistic, and the players are jetting across the grass, or turf in the right fields, at speeds much faster than games past. Then, you ask, what else is different from the PS2 version of the game in terms of gameplay? Well, on some smaller notes, many of the rosters are updated, as well as adding in the Texans, and those pointless Madden Cards return from the PS2 counterpart. All in all, this game toes the line of excellence and goes even beyond it.

Graphics: 10/10 Just further proof that the ‘Cube is one of the two foremost machines on the market today in terms of graphics. No matter how much I was expecting this game to improve over both the N64 (astronomically) and PS2 (a little), I was not prepared for what greeted my eyes when I first stepped out onto the field. However, as with all my other GCN games, I was sent on a gorgeous visual journey even before jumping into a game. The menus navigate smooth, which is, as usual, no surprise, and there is little to no wait for loading at any point in the game. Only when the game first begins to spin do you even notice a true black, load screen, though it won’t admit to being such. But then you notice that every aspect of this game is as smooth as silk, from player animations and movements to the way the ball moves. Each player also has an individualized face, and most of the bigger celebrities are instantly recognizable, even behind some of their helmets. Still, nothing prepared me for when I decided to have a lot of fun with this game and just test everything out. It was my first game, so I thought it would be fun and crazy to just go wild and see things happen... Well, I did. The first play, I sent my tailback (who I created with my best friend’s name) around the outside left in a sweep, and before I knew it, he had gone 12 yards and gotten smacked into the ground by the free safety. It was a rush, it was fast, and it was as real as watching a pro game from behind the QB. The next play I threw a long bomb to one of my best wide receivers. The ball flew fast, flew easily, and went easily 30 yards in the air, but by that time, my wide receiver was already there, he had been sprinting, or so I thought, and made a routine, one handed, diving catch. It must have been at this point that I paused the game, hit the instant replay, and said, “holy ****! That was just the second play!” Ever second was smooth, crisp, and a step above anything the PS2 had to offer. I was in love with the graphics.

Sound: 8/10 How much does it complement this game to say that the producers finally figured out that a constant commentary isn’t needed for every single action and play? This is just one of the many small, yet huge, improvements made in this title. Another notable one is the fact that, when the announcers DO talk, they don’t just go on in a generalization (as most fans know well from past generational games). In Madden 2002 for the ‘cube, the announcers actually throw in segments about the actual plays, little things that show that the game isn’t just looping some random clip because they think it should be played. Then, add to the fact that Madden himself doesn’t feel the need to make a stupid joke after every play, and I love the changes in announcing, heh.
The next, most noticeable change (at least to me) is the increased quality of sound effects in general. Madden has always tried to make its products seem as lifelike and real as possible, but now they have seemingly hit yet another plateau. They throw in a few realistic sounds, especially the many different noises for hits. Those you will love by the end of just one game. Throw in with that some of the taunts, touchdown celebrations, and overall quality of sounds throughout the game (even the wind you can hear if in an outside stadium) and you understand why this game is so good. However, some of the background tracks also live up to the Madden games of past and are very loud, very annoying, and very repetitive. Oh well, the game had to have a flaw.

Overall: 8/10 How can I describe this game? All I know is that it’s already a step above any other football console game out there, and this is only the first of the new generation of games. The trend has always been that the first was the worst of the newest batch of games, and expecting that this trend will not end with the GCN, I can’t even imagine how spectacular the next incarnations of the Madden franchise will be. You have the options to create your own teams, full of your own characters, the ability to switch between computer assistance (easy mode) or a normal, comp-free game (normal), and you can even play up to 30 straight seasons in a row with the franchise mode, which is almost incredible in the depth of the gameplay. If you have a Cube and you want to play football, don’t even hesitate to pick this one up. With tight graphics, great, and unobtrusive, commentary, and some of the best gameplay tweaks I have seen to date, this game is phenomenal. I can’t imagine what 2003 will be like…

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/20/01, Updated 11/20/01