sirtayls's Full Review: Madden NFL 2002 for PlayStation 2
This game is just unreal. The heart of the game is franchise mode, so that is where i spend most of my review, but of course there is more to it then that...
The graphics are incredible. They really put a lot of effort into the details, down to the pads on each player. It is very smooth, with no frame-rate slow down that I have seen.
The graphics are very accurate as well. Tackling is handled very nicely. If you don't hit a player straight on, they may stumble, they may fall, or they may just bounce off of you and keep going.
The game offers many modes, the best of which is franchise mode (see below). All modes allow you to pick any of the current NFL teams and / or stadiums.
two minute drill : pick a team and see how many points you can score in two minutes. Best if done against a friend.
Quick start: your typical "lets get two teams and a game on now" mode. Pick your teams and start the game.
Season : Pick a team (with optional draft) and see if you can lead them to the promise land.
franchise mode:
This is the meat of this game and so I focus my review here.
Ever want the realism of actually being a president / GM of a team? Well now you do. Franchise mode removes the old style of having the same roster every single season, and actually ages the players after each year. Sure, you have that STAR quarterback now, but what happens to your team when he decides to retire? Hopefully you have drafted some youth player to take his spot.
This mode has thought of everything. After a season is completed, you get a step by step checklist of off season tasks. First, you see who has retired, and what positions need filling. Then you look at your free agents and negotiate their new contracts (salary and length in years). You may even have a player or two holding out for a new contract even though they are not free agents. After that you go to the free agent menu where you bid on free agents with the 31 other GMs (usually computer players).
After all that money is spent, it is time for finding the stars of tomorrow. You have an eight round college draft after each season. These "kids" can then either be signed to your club, or if they are asking for way too much money, you just dump them into the free agent market.
The season then begins anew, and the 30 year cycle starts again (I am in season 6 currently.)
The lovely part about this is that you do not have to play any games. This is great if you are not a fan of playing every game during the season. You can simulate any or all of the games, handling only the "off field" part of the sport.
Trading: During franchise mode you can trade players of any teams, as well as draft picks from the next years draft. They really did think of everything.
Create a player : If you want to handle the responsiblity, you can create yourself as a player, give yourself attributes, and sign yourself to a team.
Create a team : You can create your own NFL team via an expansion draft, complete with your own uniform, logo, helmet, even sock color.
Hire a Coach : Each team needs a coach. You can hire a current NFL coach for your team, or create your own. The better the coach is, the more likely your team will pull out that important win.
the downs....
If I had to knock this game a bit, it would be for the instruction booklet. With the huge amount of options in this game, the book is lacking in explanations. A stronger definition for some terms would help non football fans. The role of the coach and coach points is never really explained either.
The sound also is nothing to brag about. They have a couple of music clips (one that repeats a rap again and again and again..etc) which gets annoying quickly. And as always, madden commentary gets very old very VERY quickly (I tried to listen to it, but ended up turning it off at the first half of the first game.)
Don't let this deter you though. This is among the best games I have played ever! Definately give it a rent then a buy if you enjoy it too!
This item is in Like New condition with all original artwork and materials. This item may never have been used, but does not meet our criteria for Bra...More at Amazon Marketplace
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