ic-games Review - ESPN NFL 2K5 - Reviews, Previews and Interviews for PC, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3 and Wii

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ESPN NFL 2K5

Information
Reviewer: Andrew St.Denis
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Take2
Reviewed: Xbox
Genre: Sports Simulation
UK Release: 28th Jan 2005
Article Date: 21st Feb 2005
Difficulty: Medium
Retail Price: £19.99
Price Comparison:
0

Score Breakdown

Experience:
Game Play:
Graphics:
Sound:
Overall Score: 95%

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Pros

Good graphics

Good commentary

Good fun

Cons

Possibly the last ESPN NFL title, due to EA's recent exclusive rights purchase

Screenshots

10 of 14

It’s the late 80’s a pretender to the throne appears, Joe Montana finally has to start looking over his shoulder and watch Steve Young gaining ground fast. Well, that now seems to be the case with NFL games, with EA’s ‘Madden’ series finally getting some competition, the name of this pretender? ESPN NFL 2K5, the question is, has this pretender got the same abilities as Steve had? Is the end in sight for Madden as the only American Football title?

Well, this ESPN title certainly has some backing, while not having the same clout as the great John Madden (who works for rivals ABC) perhaps the best wide receiver in the game today, Terrell Owens, has put his signature on the box. That right away tells you that ESPN have also used the correct teams and players in their title.

As a fan of the sport, it’s only right that the games you buy have the correct teams and players/coaches, you recognise the names, and immediately know the strengths of these people. One name that most Europeans won’t be familiar with though is that of half/full time studio commentator ‘Chris Berman’ who hosts ‘Sports Center’ which we don’t get in the UK (not sure about elsewhere). The ‘Sports Center’ show allows post game analysis of all the rest of that weeks NFL games’, not just the one you just played.

The commentary team ‘Dan Stevens’ and ‘Peter O’Keefe’ on the whole are very good, the banter between the two can after a half dozen games get repetitive, but there are still gems that are found that make it all worthwhile. For side line reports there is ‘Suzi Kolber’ who gives injury reports and halftime reports from the head coaches. The rest of the sound effects, including the on-field sounds make the game more immersive, hearing the physio’s calming down the injured player or an defensive player telling Tom Brady he’s ‘gonna get him’ next play all adds to the game. The menu music isn’t too bad, although it got turned off fairly quickly (but that might just be me).

By playing the game and making certain ‘goals’ for example rushing touchdowns in a game or yardage gains, or even winning a game by a shutout you are awarded ‘Crib Points’ these can then be used to buy items for your ‘Crib’ eventually you also gain specialities like out-takes or interviews with celebrities involved with the game, which really adds to the playability of this title.

Graphics are impressive, the player animations are without doubt the best seen in a sports game. The attention to detail, such as the way the players move their feet when changing direction, just makes ESPN NFL the best game out there for making the game as realistic as possible. The one plus to this though is that they actually made sure the gameplay kept up.

The play calling is also better defined, especially in the defensive part of the playbook. You don’t just decide on the entire play, you actually get to choose the defensive line set as well as the backs and safeties, this gives you unparalleled control over the defensive sets. For the offensive side of things there are several different sets and in some cases variations on these. For example if you look at the ‘shotgun’ set you can then choose different positions for the wide receivers.

The way in which you set the plays up is just like in ‘Madden’ and if you know anything about the game of American Football you should know the differences between the play options, but in case you are new to the sport ESPN have thoughtfully added a glossary so you can find out what everything means. Once a play is decided on, there are still options available, audible calls can still be made, from a set that you can change. Also, in passing plays there is the choice of receiver to throw to and also the ‘scramble’ option, so the quarterback can run, unlike in other NFL games though, this isn’t a set choice… You can use this to get away from the pursuing defence and still come out and be able to throw the football.

What you end up with, is an American Football game that while looking like the previous Madden titles adds so much more to them. Not only do you have a game that you can play with friends, but one that can be played solo with goals that make the game last a long time. So are EA worried about the ESPN franchise? Well, since EA have gone out and bought exclusive rights to the NFL (so this will be the last ESPN title or at least the last with correct teams and names) you could infer that they were concerned at least. With good reason too, since ESPN NFL 2K5 is without doubt the best game of this genre, ever.

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