No one comes close to touching Madden in Game Modes. Mini-camp mode is very fun and addictive. Football 101 explains how to play the game, Create-a-Playbook is a great way to learn how to set up plays, and various other modes will keep you playing for hours on end.
Game sounds are realistic, and really help the game. The music is awesome. There are 11 songs, not just one, so you don't get one annoying song stuck in your head.
Overall, Madden is the best football game for any system right now in existence. There are so many ways to enjoy this game, so go buy it and try to find them all.
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Madden NFL 2003 is a definite improvement over last year's offering but a few minor flaws will keep the game from earning five stars.I'll discuss what I don't like about the game first. There are three main problems: the music, the graphics, and your profile manager. For some reason EA has decided to drop standard menu music and use a host of tracks all straight from the latest beer comercials. Non-standard menu music is potentially a good thing, but a poor selection of songs is not. Don't get me wrong, not all of the music is terrible and you can skip over songs you don't like, but the feature is screaming out for the ability to play songs from the hard drive.
Graphically speaking, 2003 is sharper and clearer than 2002 with much better and more varied player animations. The crowd looks much better as well (before it was so bad it was distracting). Unfortunately though, the graphics engine is optimized to the lowest common denominator of the multiplatform world and doesn't take advantage of the immense power of the Xbox.
A final complaint is that in last year's edition of the game you could save your playbook choice to your profile. Now you can't and have to choose your playbooks before every game.
Of course, what makes that such a problem is the absolutely fantastic new playbook editing features. You can completely customize your playbooks for offense and defense, drawing from any of the playbooks in the game and you can create your own plays and even entirely new formations. Of course you can also edit any existing play or formation. I believe it is this feature and its astounding depth that will keep fans of franchise style simulation football playing this game until the 2004 edition is released. There is so much room for creativity on the offensive side of the ball that is just unbelievable. It is much harder to design a new defensive formation that really works well against the computer beyond the standard 4-3, 3-4, 46, Nickel, Dime, and Quarter formations, but trying to do so will teach you why those formations work and help you to design new plays for them. Overall, the editable playbooks will really reward you for understanding your team on its deepest levels. You will need to change it constantly as your team changes and you face different opponents with different styles. On offense, if you have a multi-dimensional talent like Marshall Faulk, you can design formations that exploit the mismatches he creates. On defense you can design plays that optimize the talents of your different players. So, for example, if you have a great coverage linebacker who tackles poorly and a fast, hard-hitting safety who covers poorly, you can design a few plays that allow them to switch responsibilites and catch an unwary offense off guard. Of course, where the editable playbooks will really shine is in head to head confrontation with a friend as the better prepared will have a huge advantage. I really can't say enough about how cool this feature is and how much it adds to the simulator experience.
Another new feature to the game is the Minicamp. There are 30 camps (although only about ten or so totally different drills) that try and teach basic football skills through drills and applied game situations. The feature is nice and finally provides a good way to learn how to play defense effectively.
The franchise mode is where a Madden fan will likely spend most of his or her time and it has been improved as well. You now get four preseason games that you can use to evaluate and even improve your players. So if you've got a hot new rookie you can actually make him a lot better if you're willing to risk injury by exposing him in all the games. The only annoying part of the preseason is that the computer will keep starters in for unrealistically long periods early in the preseason. Another new feature to the franchise mode is the Scouting Combine which goes a long way towards making the draft more of a game within the game. However, they still haven't quite gotten the true feel of a draft...you will basically never find sixth or seventh round gems. The talent is mostly gone by the end of the third round.
Finally, the gameplay in 2003 is much improved. It is fairly obvious the folks at EA listened to our complaints because the defenses are, overall, much tougher and smarter. You can no longer rush for 200 yards and throw for 400 yards on any difficulty in every game at will anymore. You have to work for your yards. Fifty yard field goals are not automatic. The end result of this is a much more realistic game of football, with more realistic scores, stats, 3rd down percentages, and so on. The audio commentary is definitely improved even though they recycled way to many lines from last year. Al Michaels is a nice change of pace and does a fine job in his debut here.
So, in the final analysis, if you liked last year's Madden, you're going to love this one.
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Another year, another Madden. One really can't go wrong this year, as both Sega and EA sports have put out 2 great games. Here is my take on Madden:PROS: Very deep gameplay, multiple modes (great new Mini-camp option lets you work on specific aspects of football), realistic football simulation. Graphics are quite good, although a good bit of clipping happens, especially during replays. Game sounds are pretty good, too. Overall, a lot of fun.
CONS: Computer can still pick you apart with the passing game. QB's are hard to sack, even with the best D-line you can have, and average receivers will routinely make spectacular grabs while triple covered by pro bowl defensive backs. CPU clock management is better, but the computer will still call a play and line up with only 2 seconds to go before the 2 mnts warning. The control is good, but a bit jerky and unrealistic when tackling. The voice commentary gets old FAST. The good folks at EASports recycled at least half of Madden's "unique" sayings from last year's game, which is ... cheesy.
Overall the positives outweigh the negatives, but I just wish someone could get pass coverage right for a change...
Honest reviews on Madden NFL 2003
NFL Fever has prettier graphics, but neither Fever nor Sega NFL 2k3 can beat Madden 2003 for its gameplay, options, and ability to control the abilities of both individual players and entire groups of players.Graphics: The quarterbacks look a little malnourished compared to Fever and NFL 2k3; otherwise the graphics are excellent. In contrast, I was not as impressed with Sega's version of the game. In Madden, the crowds and the stadiums were drawn with more detail than Sega's game. The crowd really gets into the game and is very vocal.
Gameplay: The AI is superb. It adapts to your style of play including your tendency to throw to a particular receiver or use a certain play. In addition, the officials on the field actually spot the ball after each play. This makes the two minute drill much more fun and realistic. The guys holding the yard markers are an outstanding touch. They actually run out of the way or get knocked down when a ball carrier runs at or into them. In pass coverage, the secondary is very good at keeping receivers in front of them.
A huge plus is the ability to downgrade or upgrade a particular skill of the players such as passing accuracy, tackling, blocking, or running the ball. You use sliders on one of the menu screens without having to go through EVERY running back, quarterback, or receiver and change each player's attributes. By the way, you can do that too if you choose.
Playbook: The playbook is excellent and is tailored for each team. Customer playbooks and plays can also be made. Plays can be set in a predefined formation. Custom formations can also be made. Player routes can be precisely drawn on a gridsquare, and a variety of moves such as breaking in and out of a turn at a certain angle can be added.
Computer simulation of league games: The computer also accurately simulates all games that you choose not to play based on the player attributes that you assign each team. I don't see quarterbacks throwing 55 TD's in a season with only 4 int's or running backs averaging 8 yards a carry and over 2500 yards a season like I used to on Sega's game. By the way, in Sega's game, you can't alter all of the players' attributes. It also doesn't have as many choices for changing different skill sets as Madden does. If you can only buy one game or have time to play one, Madden is the one to get.
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PROS:The mini-camp games are fun and addictive. They basically consist of passing, running, tackling and kicking skills. Depending on your performance during these drills, you will either earn a bronze, silver, or gold trophy. Earning a gold trophy will unlock certain cheats which makes the replay value of these games very high.
Better tackling animations including gang tackles.
Running plays are more challenging. On Madden 2002, I would always gain huge chunks of yards by running around my tackles and guards rather than going through the holes that are created at the line of scrimmage. Now, the linebackers are more smarter and intuitive and will more than likely stuff me for a no gain or loss unless I mix up the type of running plays.
Passing remains just as callenging as ever. Corner backs will stick to recievers like glue. I've also noticed that when controlling the defense, my defensive backs are more likely to snag an interception when the ball is thrown right to them. Gone are the days that a ball would bounce off my defender's helmet.
I liked the game presentations included at the beginning of a contest. Al Michaels and John Madden now give their thoughts as to key matchups and what both teams should be looking for to win.
CONS:
The player models are very cartoonish. Heads and hands are bigger in proportion the the body and the uniforms give the appearance that they are made of plastic due to the shiny reflections that are given off. I get the impression that the Xbox version is a direct port from the PS2 version. Players lack much detail and seem a little jagged and blurry.
The franchise mode is basically the same, with the exception of a combine mode that allows a gamer to assign 15 players he or she wants to scout. Once you have chosen these 15 players, more detailed information will be provided such as individual ratings and potential. Given NFL 2k3's total and awesome makeover of their "franchise" mode, Madden 2003 seemed a little underwhelming.
The real question to football fanatics that own an Xbox is which game to buy? Personally, I would have to go with Madden since they cater to the true football connosieur. The gameplay is tight and smooth. The presentation is exciting and awesome. Additions such as the mini-camp games make the game more addicting as it is. I didn't even mention the further addition of a playbook creator since I have yet to try it out. But the idea of having six recievers going downfield seems pretty inviting. NFL 2k3 is amost there. In my opinion, another year of seasoning for that franchise might just completely snatch the crown away from EA Sports.
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