Shawnwhann
Banned
Hey guys, spent a few hours playing both Madden 10 and NCAA Football 10 at E3 today.
For clarity's sake, I'll address each component of the game separately as I played a couple of games (Cowboys vs. Eagles and Cowboys vs. Skins)
Madden 2010
The Much Hyped Speed Reduction
The reduction in speed was very jarring when I first picked up the controller. I know the developers claimed that it's only been reduced by 5%, but it felt much slower than that. I can definitely see some polarization on whether this was a good move, but I adjusted just fine by the second quarter. I'm a decent player and all, but the reduction is speed actually made the game feel easier as I felt like I had all day to make a decision on what I was going to do offensively and defensively. I suspect I'll love the speed change when I get used to it, but the jury's still out...
Passing
It felt soooo good hanging out in the pocket waiting for plays to develop. Hopefully this change makes people less apt to sprint outside of the pocket to get some time to throw the ball. When you throw the ball, a little red reticule appears on the screen highlighting where the ball is going to land. As the ball drew nearer to the target, the reticle shrinks until it arrives at its destination.
While I didn't have to use the right analog for maneuvering as the QB in the pocket much, the animations for are pretty slick when you use it. EA didn't have Dual Shock 3 controllers at the kiosks (or rumble was disabled), so i didn't feel the vibration.
Sideline catches aren't totally shored up yet. Receivers didn't appear to make an effort to drag their feet in the 5 or 6 instances I tested out sideline patterns. I believe this was something that was supposed to be implemented from the Inside EA blog, but I didn't see it in the game. Boooo!
Running
The reduction in speed immensely helped out my decision making in the running game. You can see the blocks open up really good and hit them with aggression. The gang tackling is implemented very nicely as the piles up felt organic in nature. Outside of one scenario where Sheldon Brown made an unrealistic solo tackle on Marion Barber, it consistently too a few defenders to take down Barber. I'd like to try a few different backs to test if the running backs are overpowered, but it felt damn good running over DeAngelo Hall in route to a 23 yard touchdown on an HB Counter. The way Barber and throws that stiff arm is exactly like he does on Sundays. I didn't encounter any Mario running, but again, I only played 2 games.
Last thing to note is that homemade juke moves are no more. There is a great sense of momentum to the running that essentially means you have to use the actual dedicated juke maneuvers to make your moves. This is slightly disappointing as I was a master of my own custom fakes, but I guess it's more realistic.
Defense
The Cowboys new playbook is massive and I imagine that every team would get the same treatment. There were so many sub packages of the 3-4 defense that is was staggering. The adjustment in speed and greater empahsis on momentum has changed the way you defend as well. No longer can you turn on dime full speed to make plays on the ball. Through painful experience, you have to better anticipate what's going to happen vs. playing Polomalu ball with any NFL linebacker or safety.
Man coverage is an issue I'd like to explore more before I anoint it as being usable again. After i set up my defensive adjustments (which work great!), my guys were beat more often than not. Washington and Philly both have above average receiving corps, so it wasn't completely bullshit to see them burning my team's green 2nd year corners. The difference in speed is something I definitely felt though. When Brain Westbrook outran Keith Brooking on a screen play, I was happy to see the game recognize that Brooking should have no chance to catch Westbrook. LB/DL adjustments and blitzes felt more random as it players didn't appear to run or roam by the numbers at all.
I was very pleased with observing the line play as you can see the big boys using their hands and technique much more than ever. Using Igor Olshansky, I got pancaked and double teamed pretty good by the Iggles in one particular series.
Special Teams
Nothing much new to convey here, but there being a new kick meter. While the same "pull and push" mechanic is still there, the meter has a different look making it slightly harder.
I didn't see any issues with blocks being missed on my end.
Presentation
It took about 5 years, but NFL 2K5 is no longer the champion of football presentation. From the opening coin flip to the ending whistle, Madden 2010 is dripping with presentation touches to enhance up the experience. With going back to the 3 play layout for the play selection screen, you have more of an opportunity to catch these moments.
To give you a sense of the various presentation touches I saw in my two games:
I can go on and on, but the presentation touches were nice. The best thing is that none of these extras cause choppy loading sequences, and they can all be skipped with smooth fade transitions. Some of the character faces are a little janky, but it's forgivable considering the amount of players on screen.
360 VS. PS3
I played both of my games on the PS3 (the kiosk was wide open) and watched a quarter of game being played by others on the 360.
Both versions look absolutely amazing running at a perfect 60FPS. The reduction in game speed really helps play up the improved animations in the game. The differences I saw are fairly standard when comparing 360/PS3 cross platform titles. The PS3 version looked better to me because it had a "cool" and sharper image (with a slight bit of aliasing). The 360 version looked much more saturated and a bit blurry to me. I'm not sure if the TVs were the difference makers, but it appears that both games are finally on the same level from a technical perspective.
NCAA Football 2010
I also took some time to check out how Madden's sibling was coming along as well....
I'll keep this one short as the changes in 09 to 10 on the NCAA side aren't nearly as substantial.
Gameplay wise, not much has changed outside of the increase in defensive effectiveness. Unlike Madden 2010, NCAA 2010 is obviously running on an optimized version of the Madden 09 engine which means that it plays much differently from the slower paced Madden 2010.
The biggest change I saw was the complete blowout of timeout strategy adjustments. You can select conservative, balanced, and aggressive modifiers on a staggering amount of considerations in between timeouts. I didn't obviously see my choices manifest itself on the field, but it's a nice addition if it works as planned.
The biggest disappointment is the clunk factor from all of the presentation touches. NCAA 2010 has the same problems as Madden 2009 in terms of 1-2 second delays between transitions, and it's annoying as hell. Hopefully it gets shored up before launch
I didn't get a chance to play with any of the menu features here, but I did come away bummed that the on field action felt a little too familiar. As a result, I see no reason to pick up this year's version as I can't imagine playing both games in parallel. More than ever, they are two different kinds of football games.
Tomorrow...
I'll be going back tomorrow with my wife as she's never been to E3, so I plan on digging into the menu features tomorrow to answer some questions folks had there. Given the line of people waiting to play the game, I didn't have much of an opportunity to dig in like I wanted to.
To conclude on a slightly hilarious tip, The Game (Hip Hop Rapper) came in with an entourage of 8-10 guys laced in all red gear. It was like watching the Piru Street gang take over a whole 360 kiosk daring someone to do something about it...good times!
For clarity's sake, I'll address each component of the game separately as I played a couple of games (Cowboys vs. Eagles and Cowboys vs. Skins)
Madden 2010
The Much Hyped Speed Reduction
The reduction in speed was very jarring when I first picked up the controller. I know the developers claimed that it's only been reduced by 5%, but it felt much slower than that. I can definitely see some polarization on whether this was a good move, but I adjusted just fine by the second quarter. I'm a decent player and all, but the reduction is speed actually made the game feel easier as I felt like I had all day to make a decision on what I was going to do offensively and defensively. I suspect I'll love the speed change when I get used to it, but the jury's still out...
Passing
It felt soooo good hanging out in the pocket waiting for plays to develop. Hopefully this change makes people less apt to sprint outside of the pocket to get some time to throw the ball. When you throw the ball, a little red reticule appears on the screen highlighting where the ball is going to land. As the ball drew nearer to the target, the reticle shrinks until it arrives at its destination.
While I didn't have to use the right analog for maneuvering as the QB in the pocket much, the animations for are pretty slick when you use it. EA didn't have Dual Shock 3 controllers at the kiosks (or rumble was disabled), so i didn't feel the vibration.
Sideline catches aren't totally shored up yet. Receivers didn't appear to make an effort to drag their feet in the 5 or 6 instances I tested out sideline patterns. I believe this was something that was supposed to be implemented from the Inside EA blog, but I didn't see it in the game. Boooo!
Running
The reduction in speed immensely helped out my decision making in the running game. You can see the blocks open up really good and hit them with aggression. The gang tackling is implemented very nicely as the piles up felt organic in nature. Outside of one scenario where Sheldon Brown made an unrealistic solo tackle on Marion Barber, it consistently too a few defenders to take down Barber. I'd like to try a few different backs to test if the running backs are overpowered, but it felt damn good running over DeAngelo Hall in route to a 23 yard touchdown on an HB Counter. The way Barber and throws that stiff arm is exactly like he does on Sundays. I didn't encounter any Mario running, but again, I only played 2 games.
Last thing to note is that homemade juke moves are no more. There is a great sense of momentum to the running that essentially means you have to use the actual dedicated juke maneuvers to make your moves. This is slightly disappointing as I was a master of my own custom fakes, but I guess it's more realistic.
Defense
The Cowboys new playbook is massive and I imagine that every team would get the same treatment. There were so many sub packages of the 3-4 defense that is was staggering. The adjustment in speed and greater empahsis on momentum has changed the way you defend as well. No longer can you turn on dime full speed to make plays on the ball. Through painful experience, you have to better anticipate what's going to happen vs. playing Polomalu ball with any NFL linebacker or safety.
Man coverage is an issue I'd like to explore more before I anoint it as being usable again. After i set up my defensive adjustments (which work great!), my guys were beat more often than not. Washington and Philly both have above average receiving corps, so it wasn't completely bullshit to see them burning my team's green 2nd year corners. The difference in speed is something I definitely felt though. When Brain Westbrook outran Keith Brooking on a screen play, I was happy to see the game recognize that Brooking should have no chance to catch Westbrook. LB/DL adjustments and blitzes felt more random as it players didn't appear to run or roam by the numbers at all.
I was very pleased with observing the line play as you can see the big boys using their hands and technique much more than ever. Using Igor Olshansky, I got pancaked and double teamed pretty good by the Iggles in one particular series.
Special Teams
Nothing much new to convey here, but there being a new kick meter. While the same "pull and push" mechanic is still there, the meter has a different look making it slightly harder.
I didn't see any issues with blocks being missed on my end.
Presentation
It took about 5 years, but NFL 2K5 is no longer the champion of football presentation. From the opening coin flip to the ending whistle, Madden 2010 is dripping with presentation touches to enhance up the experience. With going back to the 3 play layout for the play selection screen, you have more of an opportunity to catch these moments.
To give you a sense of the various presentation touches I saw in my two games:
- Cutaways to stadium fans
- McNabb chatting with Reid after a failed 3rd down completion with McNabb's helmet half off
- "Did you know" facts sprinkled throughout the game
- Cutaway shots with facts (Jason Campbell has just thrown his first interception of the game)
- Halftime show with video highlights and text overlays
- Stand up whistle on a gang tackles
- "Frozen" parts of the television screen on snow games.
- Chain Gang with referee using his hands to indicate the distance till the first down
- Pre-game breakdowns of match-ups per position vs breakdowns general sections (e.g. Offense, Defense, Special Teams)
- Prominent MVP callout near the end of the game
- Kickers warming up
- Field goal nets going up and down
- Etc.
I can go on and on, but the presentation touches were nice. The best thing is that none of these extras cause choppy loading sequences, and they can all be skipped with smooth fade transitions. Some of the character faces are a little janky, but it's forgivable considering the amount of players on screen.
360 VS. PS3
I played both of my games on the PS3 (the kiosk was wide open) and watched a quarter of game being played by others on the 360.
Both versions look absolutely amazing running at a perfect 60FPS. The reduction in game speed really helps play up the improved animations in the game. The differences I saw are fairly standard when comparing 360/PS3 cross platform titles. The PS3 version looked better to me because it had a "cool" and sharper image (with a slight bit of aliasing). The 360 version looked much more saturated and a bit blurry to me. I'm not sure if the TVs were the difference makers, but it appears that both games are finally on the same level from a technical perspective.
NCAA Football 2010
I also took some time to check out how Madden's sibling was coming along as well....
I'll keep this one short as the changes in 09 to 10 on the NCAA side aren't nearly as substantial.
Gameplay wise, not much has changed outside of the increase in defensive effectiveness. Unlike Madden 2010, NCAA 2010 is obviously running on an optimized version of the Madden 09 engine which means that it plays much differently from the slower paced Madden 2010.
The biggest change I saw was the complete blowout of timeout strategy adjustments. You can select conservative, balanced, and aggressive modifiers on a staggering amount of considerations in between timeouts. I didn't obviously see my choices manifest itself on the field, but it's a nice addition if it works as planned.
The biggest disappointment is the clunk factor from all of the presentation touches. NCAA 2010 has the same problems as Madden 2009 in terms of 1-2 second delays between transitions, and it's annoying as hell. Hopefully it gets shored up before launch
I didn't get a chance to play with any of the menu features here, but I did come away bummed that the on field action felt a little too familiar. As a result, I see no reason to pick up this year's version as I can't imagine playing both games in parallel. More than ever, they are two different kinds of football games.
Tomorrow...
I'll be going back tomorrow with my wife as she's never been to E3, so I plan on digging into the menu features tomorrow to answer some questions folks had there. Given the line of people waiting to play the game, I didn't have much of an opportunity to dig in like I wanted to.
To conclude on a slightly hilarious tip, The Game (Hip Hop Rapper) came in with an entourage of 8-10 guys laced in all red gear. It was like watching the Piru Street gang take over a whole 360 kiosk daring someone to do something about it...good times!
