ESPN NFL 2K5

"20.00, or Roughly 1 cent per bug"

After seeing the high reviews and press this game recieved, I could not help but rush out and pick up a copy for only 20 bucks. A few weeks later, I have come to decide.

I was overcharged by 20 dollars.

I wanted to believe there was a contender for the NFL game fanbase that would make EA sit up and take note, but its definitely not this budget software release. This game is flawed on many fundamental levels, and has few redeeming qualities.

First, the good stuff. The physics are impressive. Running with the ball is tough, because you can't turn on a dime, and shoot up to maximum speed at the touch of a button. You lose momentum as you would expect in real life situations, and running for 6 yards feels like the accomplishment it is in the NFL. The stadium atmosphere is awesome, and the the way players behave after plays is very similiar to what you'd expect from real life. The stadium music sounds like stadium music, and the players trash talking is kind of humourous, if repetitive after awhile. And as much as I hate to admit it, The Crib feature is an interesting way to spend points you earn in gameplay.

Now, the bad stuff, which will just refer to things that seem like they may have been intentional, but don't add to the game at all. The 25 greatest moments feature lacks a lot of the more famous and interesting moments (The 1958 Greatest Game Ever Played, the Music City Miracle, and the Fog Bowl spring quickly to mind) while featuring other, bizarre ones that aren't really that memorable. The cinematic breaks in the game at the ends of the 1st and 3rd quarters are long, and unskippable, creating minorly annoying breaks in the action. The commentary is done by a pair of nobodies, and is dull and unintersting. Signing Free Agents can be a bit tricky, if you don't know where to look for the free agents. Player trades are bizarre and random, done not of need but rather out of randomness. The Sportscenter bits are poorly done, with berman's animation having no relation to the words he's saying. The commentary on the games is incredibly generic, and the highlights from the weeks games are ugly, and the commentary for them is flat and generic. The rate at which injuries occur is ludicrous. The Crib movie feature, which plays the movies on a 1 inch by 1 inch square the screen, eliminates any reason to unlock the movies. And, Finally, it adds the completely unnecessary challenge the call feature. It's a computer simulation for petes sake. Just make the refs always get the call right.

And now, the bugs.

Oh lord, the bugs....

Where to begin...First off, stats sometimes go haywire, randomly adding zeros, or reseting to lower totals. The game clock sometimes keeps running during challenges, which leads to getting called for delay of game on the offense after the challenge is over. Players sometimes disappear from the league after you cut them. Players in FA will not sign with you, even after you offer them exactly what they want for a contract, and no other team has made an offer. The front office AI for most teams has no apparent plan. The drafting AI is a joke (as an experiment, I gave a team two picks in the top ten. It took two HB's with them, despite the team already being loaded at HB. I have never seen a WR, Safety, Guard, or DT taken in Round 1) You cannot trade when you're on the clock. The game sometimes freezes for no reason.

Simply put, this game is only worth it if you have acouple of friends to play it with. Its alot of fun to play with your buddies, but other then that, there is no value to this game. Its flawed, its repetitive, and its boring.

Its budget software all the way.

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 08/10/04