Madden NFL 2004

"Wow, EA does it again..."

Madden has once again blown it's competitors out of the water. On Tuesday I got the game and all I can say is, purely awesome. It has nearly everything you'd want in a game and some things that you don't want. Here are the four factors that make this game great.

Graphics: 9- I never thought the graphics could get much better but if you compare 2004's graphics to 2003's then you can easily tell that they have made many improvements. Everything is so very detailed and smooth but there is always ways to improve a game so I gave this a 9.

Sound: 8- The commentary is great just like it's always been except for a few mistakes where if you pick a play too soon, they might comment on the wrong thing. I'm not a big fan of Punk or Rap but the music is such an improvement to what they had last year. You can choose from about 20 songs and there were a few songs by Alien Ant Farm and other bands that I didn't mind listening to you. It is a little annoying having to go to the help menu and switch tracks though.

Control: 9- The control is really good although there are a few changes and this time you can no longer just take off and run like crazy if you're Vick. It stops cheesy plays like those and actually promotes skill as you have to choose the right play to break open the defense. Everything runs smooth but there are a few things you might have to look in the instruction booklet to find out what certain controls do.

Gameplay: 10- It's unbelievable. SO much gameplay in one game. The owner mode goes into such depth as well as any other mode. The training camp makes you suddenly love the offseason as you can finally improve players based on how YOU do in a drill. Not to mention the Computer AI is no longer unbelievably great at passing no matter how much coverage is on them. Passing is a lot harder and you will have many defense-dominated games. I give this a perfect 10 and I won't regret it.

Overall: 9- Overall I give this game a 9 because there is always room for improvement on any game in my mind although there are perfect games out there. I suggest you buy this game if you're willing to put up $50 but if you're not sure if you want to spend that much money then you can afford to wait until it is down to $40 or so.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/15/03