Madden NFL 06

"Looks Great. Unfortunately... That is all."

Much like they did when the PS2 first came out, EA has released a second edition of Madden NFL 2006 for the X-Box 360. And much like the previous game, this game stepped up the graphics from the previous version a great deal, and you will notice that almost instantly. But once you actually try to play the game, you will also notice that this is not Madden, this is just a demo, and that is honestly what it feels like.

Game play: 8/10: The game looks great, it runs great, everything looks really good. There are almost no bulky movements, and all the animations look really good together. One of the first things I noticed was that for the first time really in any NFL game, I could feel the speed of the NFL. The speed of a player bursting through a hole. Those types of experiences you never did get with the previous generation games. So I can firmly say that was a very nice addition. The controls are fairly difficult to get used to, but after 2 or 3 games your good to go. All that stuff is great. But, NO REVIEWS. You can't challenge a play, thats ridiculous. Thats just wrong. Terrible. And while you play, officials are not on the field. Yes there are penaltys but the officials do not appear in game play. There are no measurements, just a stupid looking scoreboard that tells you weather its short or a first down. All in all, game play is still very good.

Graphics: 9/10: Don't get me wrong, these are by far the best Madden graphics ever, but some of the things just are not right. Some players just do not even look close to real, take Jake Plummer as an example off the top of my head. On replays you can still see guys sticking there arms through other guys and stuff like that, but you wont notice that playing it live. Stadiums look AMAZING. If you are an NFL fan like I am, you will love this feature because the stadiums look as they do in real life. I am very impressed by this. If you have never been to an NFL game, then this wont matter to you.

Presentation: 3/10: This was a big let down. Sideline reporters? Gone. Al Michaels? Gone. John Madden? Yes, hes gone too. There is just a really crappy radio announcer that does it. That does not make too much sense to me because you do not listen to a radio broadcaster if you are watching a game. And the guy has almost no personality. He calls certain players by there nicknames, such as calling Michael Vick "Superman" but that is about as far as it goes. But I can deal with that, and Madden was annoying. The menus are really annoying. They are boring and so hard to navigate. And once you learn how to do it, its just way too time consuming compared to the old ones. There is no half time show, which ESPN used to do VERY well, there is no pre-game analysis, there is no nothing. On a next generation game, that really sucks. Thats the best way I can put it.

Franchise: 5/10: Are you kidding? No owner mode? No assistant coaches? No mini camp? No fantasy drafts? Or super star mode? (Which was stupid anyway.) No Tony Bruno? Too much is lacking, it feels like a franchise mode from 2001. This to me was the most fun part of the Madden games and its just gone. EA calls it "advanced franchise mode" but it clearly is a step or two backwards.

Music: 6/10: The music is the same from the older versions of Madden, and if you have play those, you are already probably sick of those songs. No custom soundtracks, and mostly its not great. I love the NFL Films music though, that never gets old.

Replay Value: 5/10: I would honestly rather play the X-box version of this game just because there is so much more to offer. You will want to show all your friends this game, because it does look so good at first glance. I probably played 10-15 games of this, and I am ready to move onto bigger and better things.

Final Score: 6/10: To me, this game feels like a demo of a Madden not yet released. It is worth a rent, because it a site to be seen where EA is going with this game. They have the right idea, they just need to insert those features that made Madden Football one of the most popular games with gamers everywhere But this is a good start, it really is. With the addition ESPN license, EA should make the best football game we have ever seen in the coming year.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 01/04/06