Madden NFL 09
© 2008 EA Sports (Electronic Arts Inc.)
Realistic football action on the game console is hardly new these days, but EA's Madden series, now in its 20th year, keeps getting better. One reason is because the game adapts to you. As you play, your performance is continuously assessed and the gameplay is tailored to you to provide you with a competitive game experience, regardless of your skill level. You can also build on your strengths and improve your weaknesses through a series of training drills, customized feedback and in-game hints. When you start the game, you are greeted by Coach John Madden, who introduces you to the Madden Test, where you are challenged to complete a series of drills across four key skill areas of football: rushing, passing, rush defense and pass defense. This will determine where you are strong and where you need improvement. After you complete the Test, Coach Madden assigns you a Madden IQ score (ranging from 200 to 800), which will move up or down depending on how you perform throughout the actual games. Madden NFL 09 then tailors difficulty levels across several facets of gameplay, based on your Madden IQ. The game also features in-game hints, and an all-new Sports Backtrack feature lets you know where you went wrong on a particular play. In addition, there is an EA Sports Rewind feature that allows you to literally rewind the play and do it over again, so you can learn from your mistakes immediately. Another feature of the game is that there are now multiple skill levels, allowing players of different abilities to compete against each other and have a competitive game. Although the packaging shows Brett Favre on the cover in his Packer's uniform instead of his new, New York Jets uniform, you can download new Madden NFL 09 packaging and print it out. In addition, players can get the new online roster download, available for Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, and Wii versions of the game. This new roster download features Favre as the starting quarterback on the New York Jets and is available as an automatic download when you play an online game. If you are not playing online, Favre is on the "NFL Greats" roster. In Franchise Mode, players can transfer Favre to the free agent roster pool, and pick him up on any of the 32 NFL teams for the 2008 season. The only drawback? The price. For $60, you could probably sponsor your local football team. Prices are $60 for Xbox 360 and PS3, $50 for Wii, $40 for PS2 and PSP, and $30 for Nintendo DS.
$60, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS, PSP
Teaches: sports, football
CTR Rating: 92%