Bill Abner posted some things in his blog. Since there's no discussion there, I thought I would post it here:
http://sportsgamer.blogspot.com/2004/07 ... tions.html
I re-rented NCAA 2004 and have been playing some online games. Although Bill's focus is on singleplayer games, a lot of his complaints about gameplay apply to online games. Maybe more so.
You have ALL DAY to pass in NCAA 2004 so all passes open up, not only the deep ones Bill pointed out but also the short underneath ones. All the zone defenses are vulnerable deep and underneath to the sidelines. The suction blocking not only seems to hold the DL, it sucks in blitzers, even CB blitzers.
Guy I was playing the other night agreed with these problems, even as he took advantage of them. I haven't looked at too many of the NCAA 2005 videos but he said he saw a lot of the same problems.
EA has been pimping mostly the Home Field Advantage and Matchup Stick as gameplay enhancements. They decided to NOT pick up some of the Right Analog controls in Madden 2004 or 2005 (I would really have liked the Contain Def. Hot Route against NCAA QBs who benefit from suction blocking).
NCAA rightly gets praised for having better presentation and atmosphere than it's big brother Madden. But could it be that it's too preoccupied with atmospherics (HFA) at the price of gameplay improvements?
A lot of people here seem to forgive NCAA more for the gameplay problems it has because of the presentation (while at the same time mercilessly shitting on Madden for the same gameplay probs). It seems EA believed that the NCAA gameplay was fine (even though scoring is just as bad if not worse than Madden) so they went after more atmosphere things.
Things to look for in NCAA
Moderators: Bill_Abner, ScoopBrady
Steve's been posting beta impressions over at OS. It does seem that the defense has been beefed up, especially zone coverage, and passing seems more varied among QBs and that throwing while moving is not as accurate.
However, he had a troubling comment that the CPU once again seems to abandon the running game too soon. He mentioned he was playing on All-American defaults and hoped sliders would help, but sliders have never really fixed this long-standing problem. Just like Bill, this problem really impacts my enjoyment of the single-player game. The CPU playcalling in this series has always been very spotty. The atmosphere and overall fun factor have helped hide it, but I've found it more and more difficult to ignore each year.
Still pretty excited about the game, but really hope the CPU is not so pass-wacky this season as it has been in the past.
However, he had a troubling comment that the CPU once again seems to abandon the running game too soon. He mentioned he was playing on All-American defaults and hoped sliders would help, but sliders have never really fixed this long-standing problem. Just like Bill, this problem really impacts my enjoyment of the single-player game. The CPU playcalling in this series has always been very spotty. The atmosphere and overall fun factor have helped hide it, but I've found it more and more difficult to ignore each year.
Still pretty excited about the game, but really hope the CPU is not so pass-wacky this season as it has been in the past.
Good points and most everything he mentions is something that the NCAA fan base has been complaining about for years. I would have to add a few graphical issues to the mix like fixing the horrendous clipping and of course the issue of mario running/ping pong running game.
From early reviews and the videos those problems still exist.
NCAA gets it's rave reviews because it is the only college football game out on the market. It has nothing to be comapred to and when it had competition, those games were not very good. It was like taking a fat friend to a bar to make you look better to the girls. One day reviewers will see beyond the name and review Madden and NCAA for what they provide. Both are solid games, yet IMO neither has evolved during this generation in graphics and gameplay. I am still keeping my fingers crossed for College Football 2K6 to have two college games to play. Competition is a good thing.
From early reviews and the videos those problems still exist.
NCAA gets it's rave reviews because it is the only college football game out on the market. It has nothing to be comapred to and when it had competition, those games were not very good. It was like taking a fat friend to a bar to make you look better to the girls. One day reviewers will see beyond the name and review Madden and NCAA for what they provide. Both are solid games, yet IMO neither has evolved during this generation in graphics and gameplay. I am still keeping my fingers crossed for College Football 2K6 to have two college games to play. Competition is a good thing.
I have to agree with Bill's post. I have a lot of the same issues. It will be interesting to see how the game plays and how long the glitz keeps me interested. The potential lack of an AI running game is particularly distressing as it is the bread and butter of college football.
It also bothers me that special teams may not have been addressed. Blocked kicks and blocked punts and issues in the kicking game happen every Saturday, but you never see them in NCAA Football. EA even uses a blocked FG by FSU over ND in their 2 page advertisement. Let's hope that blocks are in the game and Steve just hasn't seen any yet.
It will be harder to test the AI running game this year. I am used to loading up the game and then playing against Nebraska and seeing how much they run the ball. Guess I will have to use another team this year as Nebraska is a West Coast offense now!
If ESPN fixes their issues and it plays a better game of football, I wonder how long my love of the college game and the excellent presentation will keep me playing NCAA over ESPN football??
The good news is that we have 2 big releases coming out over the next 2 weeks and I won't even have to feel guilty over spending too much money with ESPN being only 20 bucks.
It also bothers me that special teams may not have been addressed. Blocked kicks and blocked punts and issues in the kicking game happen every Saturday, but you never see them in NCAA Football. EA even uses a blocked FG by FSU over ND in their 2 page advertisement. Let's hope that blocks are in the game and Steve just hasn't seen any yet.
It will be harder to test the AI running game this year. I am used to loading up the game and then playing against Nebraska and seeing how much they run the ball. Guess I will have to use another team this year as Nebraska is a West Coast offense now!
If ESPN fixes their issues and it plays a better game of football, I wonder how long my love of the college game and the excellent presentation will keep me playing NCAA over ESPN football??
The good news is that we have 2 big releases coming out over the next 2 weeks and I won't even have to feel guilty over spending too much money with ESPN being only 20 bucks.
That is the what plagued me last year and I fear will be the same this year.If ESPN fixes their issues and it plays a better game of football, I wonder how long my love of the college game and the excellent presentation will keep me playing NCAA over ESPN football??
ESPN NFL Football kept me from playing NCAA 2004.
Inside Drive 2004 kept me from playing College Hoops 2K4.
I found time to play both NCAA and ESPN.............after I had played the hell out of ESPN .....I switched games and played the hell out of NCAA.....bdoughty wrote:That is the what plagued me last year and I fear will be the same this year.If ESPN fixes their issues and it plays a better game of football, I wonder how long my love of the college game and the excellent presentation will keep me playing NCAA over ESPN football??
ESPN NFL Football kept me from playing NCAA 2004.
Inside Drive 2004 kept me from playing College Hoops 2K4.
The game that was treated like a step child was Madden( I did play a couple of seasons.......but not the decade the othe games got)..........just couldnt fit in the 3rd wheel......
Alot of the issues in EA football can be addressed thru sliders.Zeroing out pass blocking and defensive break block help the line play alot,and pancake stats are pretty normal.Time in the pocket is reduced.Reducing QB accuracy to 2 or 3 negates alot of the improbable back foot throws and the darts thrown when being hit.Routine throws when set are completed normally.The cpu QB seems to "feel" the pressure and will throw the ball away on occasion.Zeroing out the int. and deflection sliders help the DB play in Madden a bunch.Interceptions happen,but not by the bucketful.Stats for these seem in line.These don't make the games perfect by any stretch,but they really keep the arena type scores from happening.