"Not even close to Madden"

Over the years, SEGA has released many different sports titles. These games go all the way back to Master System days. Their premiere franchise of their sports games has been their football games. Ever since the Joe Montana Football days, SEGA has done a stellar job with their football games. Now in the 2K era, SEGA has released their latest football title on surprisingly. the Nintendo GameCube, NFL 2K3.

Unfortunately, SEGA has dropped the ball with this one. They must really hate Nintendo down to the bone, because on their first GameCube sports title, SEGA has made their worst sports game yet. This game is filled with many flaws. Electronic Arts, the makers of the Madden football games will have nothing to worry about anytime soon, because SEGA has a long way to go.

Gameplay: 7/10: This is probably the only redeeming factor in this game. The Gameplay, while nowhere as good as Madden's gameplay, is still not that bad. You select plays with the analog stick, and then make the plays happen in a very simple layout. One big problem, however, is sometimes while selecting a play, the analog will move the cursor too fast, and you end up selecting the wrong play. SEGA has created a good system here, but it does need some work.

Graphics: 4/10: Unfortunately, the graphics here aren't that special. Most of the time, it looks very grainy, and the field looks like it could have been done smoother on the Nintendo 64. One good thing, however, is the instant replays. The replays in this game even rival the ones shown in the Madden titles. They show each play perfectly with some amazing camera angles, and they follow the play extremely well. Unfortunately, the replays won't save this game, however, as the rest of the game looks terrible.

Sound: 1/10: This has to be the worst sound I have ever heard in any sports game. Even 10 Yard Fight on the NES had better sound than this. You can never hear the commentary over the crowd noises, which are way too loud. This, however, could be a good thing, because the play-by-play is absolutely dreadful to hear anyway. After about 5 minutes, you will want to mute the TV. All of the hits and crunches of the game sound average here. SEGA, you need to change this in the next installment big time.

Overall: 3/10: While this isn't the worst football game I have ever played, it is still a very poor effort by SEGA. The horrific graphics and sound make this an awful addition to the GameCube library. If you own a GameCube and want a football game, look elsewhere.

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 05/22/03, Updated 05/22/03