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NCAA Football 10 review
Available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PS2, PSP
Publisher: EA Sports
Developer: EA Tiburon, EA Canada
Official website: ncaafootball.easports.com
Game summary from EA Sports:
"True to college football, in NCAA Football 10 every game counts! In its newest mode, Season Showdown, fans declare their loyalty to a favorite school and give the ultimate show of support in a nationwide competition for pride. After choosing a school to represent, players will earn credits in-game through head-to-head online match ups and single player modes. Credits not only accumulate in-game but players can also earn credits for their school via new web-based games. Millions of college football fans around the country will be on a mission to prove their school is number one with NCAA Football 10's Season Showdown."
Review summary:
NCAA Football 10 has truly innovated the animation, graphics and gameplay of football games. The game plays smooth, gives you a "real-life" feeling, and it shows the quality has grown exponentially over previous years. The large amount of online functionally will keep you very busy. The new additions to this online functionality go way beyond the game and allow you to create your own team and import it into your own experience. The game does still have horrendous CPU play selection in the Road To Glory mode, which can take you out of the experience. This limited issue doesn't detract from the overall fun you'll have playing this game. EA Sports has done a great job in bringing the football fan a very solid game this year with NCAA Football 10.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Read the full review below.
NCAA Football 10 review
Football is a very important part of my life. Having played it for five years of my life gave me an appreciation of the quality and issues contained in NCAA Football 10. If you've played last year's version from EA Sports, then you know what this game is all about. For those who haven't played it recently, you're missing out. The visuals in this year's version are downright gorgeous and the fluidity of the tackle animations seems more human than any other football game ever released. If you're a fan of college football and own an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3, then you should have already purchased this game. The new TeamBuilder functionality, Season Showdown, the online Dynasty modes and the improved Road to Glory mode (also known as "Be a Legend" mode from other EA Sports games) will keep you busy for the next year.
Road to Glory starts you off playing for the "Tiburon" High School team and following the state playoffs. You get an "out of five" rating depending on how awesome you break ankles (yards, touchdowns, catches). This also determines the schools that try to recruit you. I luckily got a 5 out of 5. The playbook is similar to most years, but the play selection by the CPU coach is still atrocious. I never understood why it would choose a play action play from the three yard line going in for a touchdown. This is my only complaint because the various difficulty modes can make the challenge as big as you want it to be. I just like running over people or side stepping them on the lower difficulty mode. It keeps the frustration elements to a minimum. If you play as Iowa, your defense sucks and you will lose a bunch of games because of them. This may only be team specific, when you simulate while playing Road to Glory, but it can lead to many controller throws.
I should get past the single player modes because the reason you buy this game is the online franchise modes and the new season showdown modes. Although this is not why I personally would get NCAA Football 10, I tried to test it out for a couple games. I got dominated in both of the games that I played, but the online abilities are great. There was little to no lag and the hate I got from the guy I played was typical for an Xbox LIVE game. If you aren't looking for online franchise modes with your buddies, you can always try out the Season Showdown modes. This is a totally new four month long competition between you, the school you root for and the rest of the country. By playing against the computer and online against people, you earn credits that go into a pool of all other folks who support your team over the full four months. Then, the top 30 teams move onto the final competition, which has not been revealed. EA Sports has got something with this new mode and hopefully there will be some sort of national recognition or prizes. I will not be participating in this Season Showdown because I just don't have enough time.
Reviewing NCAA Football 10 has me super-excited for the upcoming College Football season. I actually prefer this game over last year's Madden 09 due to extensive improvements in graphics, animation, features and fun. I can't seem to stop playing the Road to Glory, not just because it is fun, but because they now have my last name in the game. This adds only to my experience and didn't have any effect on my score. Non-football fans can look past this game, but for anyone who is remotely interested in a video game from the most popular sport in the country, this game is a must. I have been spoiled lately with such great games to review, but this one is right up there with Red Faction: Guerrilla. NCAA Football 10 could fulfill your sports game addiction at least until the 2011 version is released. The CPU simulations and coach will frustrate you to no end, but it doesn't totally ruin the experience. The amount of online modes and extensive Road to Glory mode will help you build a great legendary player that can be migrated into Madden 10 when it is released later this year.
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