The big new addition this year is the "Run to Daylight" feature. Before the hike, players can select anyone on the offense to designate as the lead blocker. At the hike, the player becomes the blocker and the computer takes control of the halfback and follows the player's lead. Flick up on the right analog stick and steamroller over opponents. It's a refreshing change of pace from the previous games - it actually becomes fun and rewarding to smash into the defense rather than avoiding them.
Another addition, one which will be welcomed by those who prefer finesse over bulldozers in their football, is the highlight stick, an addition to last year's truck stick. While the bigger backs will still truck their way over opponents, smaller players respond by spinning and sliding past defenders, or ducking and escaping their tackles. Returning in this season's Madden is the Superstar Hall of Fame mode, where players create a player of their own and control his career from rookie status to Hall of Famer. Select your player's parents, whose traits hopefully will combine to form the perfect combination of brain and gridiron brawn. Run your player through physical conditioning and timed IQ tests to prove to the teams you're the pick of the draft. Hire or fire agents (or go free agent), manage your career, and above all else, play the game you were born to play in the first place.
Your player's performance affects your player's influence and relationship with the team. Play well on the field, and the team will rally around you, passing the ball to you more often, for example. Greater influence also means the option to improve not only your stats, but your team's as well. Great plays also build up a Hall of Fame meter, which is essentially how you keep score on your career. The challenge is to fill it up before retiring to earn your spot in the Hall of Fame. There are also actual Hall of Famers in the Hall of Fame which could be unlocked for play in the game's franchise mode.One problem the review found with '07 was what they didn't see in '07. Again, while the flaws aren't so blatant as to justify a lower review score for the game (for example, the lack of features in the Xbox 360 '06 that were present on the current-generation versions of that year's Madden), they were noticable enough to mention. An example are the missing Hall of Famers who should by all rights be in the Hall of Famem like Montana, Elway, or Marino.
Other absences in this game are Owner Mode and the fantasy draft, but perhaps the big bug that's bitten the IGN review is the same bug that has bitten us when we reported on it: the fatigue issue. It seems that fatigue is working in the game as it should have been, the review states - it's just that the icons that are supposed to communicate just how tired the players are aren't updating properly. Yes, a patch is thankfully on the way to fix this.
Online also left a few things to be desired. The good news is the Live Opponent feature in franchise mode where your opponent on the other end of that online link can play the role of the CPU team in your season game. The bad news was that when IGN tested the online feature of the game, there was "significant" lag - not enough to make the game unplayable, but enough to cause a few missed plays. A nice addition is the Madden Gamer Level where the game keeps track of your performance on the field and scores you in terms of levels. Play more, play better, earn a higher level (up to 50) and give lower-ranked players a reason to shake in fear when you come strolling down the 50-yard line.
Animations in Madden NFL '07 were judged pretty solid. Player animations were more fluid, and incorporated the signature styles of their real-world counterparts. The review mentions that "the game is still only moving at 30 frames per second, but even at that, it's a superior, more solid 30 frames than you saw in previous titles" from the game's developer, Tiburon. Even the field takes as much a beating as the players: the 3D grass gets torn up with each play it endures. The sounds were just as respectable, with the usual trashtalking across the scrimmage, the grunts from the colliding players, the audibles from the QB. The announcer was the only drawback in this department: greeting a great play (and its replay) with silent commentary too many times.IGN gives Madden NFL '07 an 8.5/10. The new features and the return of Superstar mode definitely won them over, especially given their disappointments with last year's installments. If you've finally gotten your own copy of '07, and you're not busy creating the next Montana - or busting down defensive lines left and right - tell us what you think of the game.
Via IGN.com
Today we feature IGN's review of Madden NFL '07 for the 360, and the short-and-sweet version of this is that they're mighty pleased with this installment, especially given their disappointments with last year's Xbox 360 offering from EA. Sure, they nitpick on a few flaws - who doesn't? - but they weren't enough to hold back the pleasure of playing the game.The big new addition this year is the "Run to Daylight" feature. Before the hike, players can select anyone on the offense to designate as the lead blocker. At the hike, the player becomes the blocker and the computer takes control of the halfback and follows the player's lead. Flick up on the right analog stick and steamroller over opponents. It's a refreshing change of pace from the previous games - it actually becomes fun and rewarding to smash into the defense rather than avoiding them.
Another addition, one which will be welcomed by those who prefer finesse over bulldozers in their football, is the highlight stick, an addition to last year's truck stick. While the bigger backs will still truck their way over opponents, smaller players respond by spinning and sliding past defenders, or ducking and escaping their tackles. Returning in this season's Madden is the Superstar Hall of Fame mode, where players create a player of their own and control his career from rookie status to Hall of Famer. Select your player's parents, whose traits hopefully will combine to form the perfect combination of brain and gridiron brawn. Run your player through physical conditioning and timed IQ tests to prove to the teams you're the pick of the draft. Hire or fire agents (or go free agent), manage your career, and above all else, play the game you were born to play in the first place.
Your player's performance affects your player's influence and relationship with the team. Play well on the field, and the team will rally around you, passing the ball to you more often, for example. Greater influence also means the option to improve not only your stats, but your team's as well. Great plays also build up a Hall of Fame meter, which is essentially how you keep score on your career. The challenge is to fill it up before retiring to earn your spot in the Hall of Fame. There are also actual Hall of Famers in the Hall of Fame which could be unlocked for play in the game's franchise mode.One problem the review found with '07 was what they didn't see in '07. Again, while the flaws aren't so blatant as to justify a lower review score for the game (for example, the lack of features in the Xbox 360 '06 that were present on the current-generation versions of that year's Madden), they were noticable enough to mention. An example are the missing Hall of Famers who should by all rights be in the Hall of Famem like Montana, Elway, or Marino.
Other absences in this game are Owner Mode and the fantasy draft, but perhaps the big bug that's bitten the IGN review is the same bug that has bitten us when we reported on it: the fatigue issue. It seems that fatigue is working in the game as it should have been, the review states - it's just that the icons that are supposed to communicate just how tired the players are aren't updating properly. Yes, a patch is thankfully on the way to fix this.
Online also left a few things to be desired. The good news is the Live Opponent feature in franchise mode where your opponent on the other end of that online link can play the role of the CPU team in your season game. The bad news was that when IGN tested the online feature of the game, there was "significant" lag - not enough to make the game unplayable, but enough to cause a few missed plays. A nice addition is the Madden Gamer Level where the game keeps track of your performance on the field and scores you in terms of levels. Play more, play better, earn a higher level (up to 50) and give lower-ranked players a reason to shake in fear when you come strolling down the 50-yard line.
Animations in Madden NFL '07 were judged pretty solid. Player animations were more fluid, and incorporated the signature styles of their real-world counterparts. The review mentions that "the game is still only moving at 30 frames per second, but even at that, it's a superior, more solid 30 frames than you saw in previous titles" from the game's developer, Tiburon. Even the field takes as much a beating as the players: the 3D grass gets torn up with each play it endures. The sounds were just as respectable, with the usual trashtalking across the scrimmage, the grunts from the colliding players, the audibles from the QB. The announcer was the only drawback in this department: greeting a great play (and its replay) with silent commentary too many times.IGN gives Madden NFL '07 an 8.5/10. The new features and the return of Superstar mode definitely won them over, especially given their disappointments with last year's installments. If you've finally gotten your own copy of '07, and you're not busy creating the next Montana - or busting down defensive lines left and right - tell us what you think of the game.
Via IGN.com