Madden 09 Review

I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed. My intial take on the game is that its very good, but not great. Madden has been my favorite video game for about 10 years, but my fear is the Madden franchise peaked around 2003 or 2004. Since then, improvements have been few and far between. My main concern with this years edition is the gameplay, which I will detail later.

All things considered, Madden 09 is still an outstanding game. But it could've been so much better. Maybe my expectations were too high, but that can't hide the fact that many gamers will clearly be disappointed. This is my take on the game:

GAMEPLAY: To me, gameplay is the most important part of Madden, and I really feel like they missed here. The game is very difficult and complex. Running is nearly impossible, and passing isn't very easy either. I guess its a little more realistic, but we have to remember its still a video game. I'm a pretty good Madden player, but I am really struggling so far.

Rating: 6/10

GRAPHICS: It appears that EA Sports really focused in on graphics, and they were highly successful here. It sounds ridiculous, but I can't say enough about the grass. It just looks so real. The same could be said for the uniforms and player animations. Simply outstanding. One of the few areas of actual improvement.

Rating: 10/10

PRESENTATION: I'm not a big fan of Colinsworth or Hammond, and I really think they detract from the game. They constantly repeat the same, stale lines and don't really add much to the experience. That being said, I like the overall presentation of the game, and it feels a lot like a game on TV.

Rating: 8/10

GAME MODES: I really like the Madden Moments feature. Its surprisingly fun and very challenging. And of course, I really enjoy the Franchise mode and the Superstar mode. My only problem is that they did very little to improve these game modes. Actually, I don't think they improved them at all. Still, I will spend 90% of my Madden playing time in the franchise mode and its still a good experience.

OVERALL: For sports fans, Madden is the ultimate video game. The framework of the game alone is enough to sell, and please gamers everywhere. But I'm really growing tired of the same game year in and year out. Its still an outstanding game, but if they continue to produce the same game I might think twice about spending $60 on it.

RATING: 8.5/10

Insomnia

I'm finding it hard to sleep after such a busy day in the sports world. Here's whats on my mind:

• My take on the Brett Favre trade: Everybody loses. I couldn't agree more with Mike. Favre certainly will make the Jets a better team, but are they a playoff caliber team? Not in the AFC...I see them going 8-8 or 9-7. I truly believe Brett loses too, because if reunited in Tampa with Jon Gruden, he would make the Bucs a legitimate super bowl contender. The only real winner here is Jets ownership from a business prospective. No doubt the Jets will profit from this move. Unfortunately we as fans really don't care.
• Ryan Ludwick is an absolute monster, homering in his 5th straight game tonight. Yet another "feel good story" in St. Louis, I really hope he isn't just a one year wonder. He is carrying my fantasy team.
• After trying out NCAA Football 09 today, my excitement for madden has grown exponentially. The gameplay looks outstanding.
• Did Jeff Karstens really come within 4 outs of a perfect game? Wow. The change of scenery is doing wonders to almost every single player moved before the deadline (Sabathia, Harden, Bay, Manny, Griffey, and even guys like Brandon Moss and Karstens).
• The Beijing Oylmpics are underway (sort of), and the US has already experienced its first defeat. I'm pretty surprised by the poor showing of the women's soccer team, but I'm sure the defending gold medalists will bounce back.
  
• I have mixed feelings about this upcoming fantasy football season. It seems like there are just so many boom or bust type players this year. I think I'm going to be a big time risk taker this year.
• Be on the lookout for me and Mikes inaugural fantasy football player rankings. We're anticipating sometime next week.

Thats really all I've got for tonight. I'm looking forward to turning on the T.V. sometime in the near future and not hearing the words "Brett" or "Favre". But as long as ESPN exists and Brett Favre is breathing, we all know this is impossible.