NCAA Football 06

"Wonderfully addictive, despite minor flaws."

Introduction
Crowd roaring. The line stares you down, gritting their teeth. You know only one thing is on their mind, and that's putting you face down on the turf, twitching. Hike. This is where it all happens. Do you run the ball? Is it a long bomb? Or do you pull out the option or trick play? It's your call. NCAA 06 is EA's latest installment of the wildly popular series, and it's just as fun as the previous; even moreso with the new features, namely the Race for the Heisman mode. Let's see what it boils downs to.

Graphics: 9/10
EA has outdone themselves with this. NCAA 2005 was already a very pretty game, but they found a way to make it sharpen it even more. From the grass stains on the jerseys to real-time dynamic lighting. Very, very well done.

Gameplay: 8/10
This is the good solid football sim you've come to expect from EA. The controls are quick and solid. It's frustrating at times when you have wide-open receivers and they can't find a way to catch a ball that the cheerleaders on the sideline could. And then sometimes your players will catch impossible balls. Strange. The halfback also seems to be a bit over-empowered, especially when he's an impact player.

Which brings us to the new features in the game. First and most obvious is the Race to the Heisman mode, where you start out as a kid just graduated from highschool looking to play some college ball. You'll start with some drills (some im-freaking-possible to get good scores on, some ridiculously easy) then you'll be offered some scholarships. You can pick that, or you can try to walk-on to another team. This mode of play is very fun and will take quite a few hours to completely guide your player all the way to your senior year (or junior, should you decide to go pro.)

Dynasty mode, where you make a school and guide it to greatness also makes it reappearance, just as stellar as ever. The final major difference is the addition of impact players. These are a select few players that each team has that have the ability to make spectacular impact moves, like an amazing tackle or crazy stiff-arm. Each team is usually given somewhere between two and four of these players. However, these players are usually still balanced and won't make an overpowering difference, seeing how every team has at least two.

Story: 5/10
There's nothing huge here, seeing as this is a sport sim. There is Race to the Heisman and Dynasty mode, where you kind of make your own story, but it's not intended to have one. Since this is a sport game and doesn't much require one, this score will not be factored into the final score.

Sound/Music: 9/10
Mixed reviews from a lot of people here, but I love this soundtrack. With bands like Guided by Voices and The Clash, you can't go wrong. However, this was already my taste in music to begin with, so it may not be your shtick. The in-game sound is appropriate and well-placed and completely meshes with the game. No issues there. Well done, EA.

Replay Value: 7/10
Tough call here, as this will seriously vary from person to person. Some people will play this to death until 07 releases, and some will drop this as soon as they get the Heisman, and still more just bought this to tide them over ‘til Madden is released. I personally will probably will play this until I've been all the modes through at least once, maybe a few twice. It's got enough stuff to do play a few times to try a few options.

Buy or Rent: Buy
If you're reading this, you're likely already considering buying this game. If you've come this far as to research it, I'd say buy it. A rent won't sate your hunger for action this game offers. However, if playing 200 football games doesn't entice you, you're best spending money elsewhere.

Conclusion: 8/10
NCAA 06 is a solid football sim and is worthy of your attention. Even people who don't count stats for their football teams will enjoy this game. I'd recommend picking up this game, it's truly a lot of fun.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/20/05