rjcalnan's Full Review: Madden NFL 2002 for Game Boy Advance (GBA)
Madden 2002.
This year is the MOST exciting for me to watch and play football. I live in Rochester NY and am all caught up in the Buffalo Bills QB Controversy. I, just like the rest of the world, LOVE Doug Flutie, and hate Rob Johnson.
So, one of the things I wanted to do was to get a good football game for my computer that would allow me to play as the San Diego Chargers (Flutie's new team)
Now, before you dig into my review too far, please realize that I am a video game player, not a "General Manager" type player. I want the action. I don't mess around with schedules, seasons, etc...I just want to play a football game. So my review will NOT go into the management aspects of the game.
I installed the game, and the intro movie was exactly like previous incarnations of the Madden series. But that's okay. I like it, and it was a comforting feeling, as it was something I was used to.
The graphics...my gosh...the graphics. They are amazing! I have a TNT2 Ultra card, and they look GREAT!!! The players movements, replays look like TV, and the effects (weather, night/day). Everything just looks right.
Sounds...the sounds are good. I mean, this is football, so how "perfect" can you really make it. That said, every sound effect is right on, until you tackle someone, and then it gets even better, because every hit on a RB or a WR sounds like you're breaking their bones, and they react accordingly. I don't know how many times I've taken out a WR by the knees when they catch the ball! haha
Gameplay: this is where the game suffers just a little bit. PC sports games have ALWAYS been much harder to control than console games. Which is understandable, because a PC isn't really made to play video games, such as a PS2 or Xbox is. It's not annoying though, it just takes some time to make the changeover, and get used to the "delay" of button pushing. It's tiny, you won't even notice after time, and it's really only noticeable on the play choosing and the hiking of the ball to the QB.
Motion: I don't know who or what they used for motion capture, but these guys act JUST like the real ones on the field. The players walk, run, get hit, swim, exactly like they do in real life. Rob Johnson gets sacked and he RAILS the ground! haha
Replay value: I will probably play it once in a while until next years Madden 2003 comes out. It'll be even better when I move into my house, and my neighbor and I play over the Internet.
Overall: 8 or 9 out of 10. The gameplay stops me from giving it a solid 9 or even a 10. Everything else is right on.
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