Madden 07: Review

[CokeZero]

Madden 07, after the big sucess of it's predecessor it would be hard to get up to the same rating without the game being exactly the same. anyway IGN give it 8.3 a reader average of 8.1 but the press average is below par 7.9. Moving on to the gameplay, instead of focusing mainly on offence or defence they've made it a 60/40 split so it's not like Fifa 07 which is 90% attack, Shaun Alexander (MVP) is on the front cover this year which means out of the attack HB running and speed is just about the key thing, last year they had Donovan Mc Nabb on the front which meant that there was a quarterback tinge to the game. This Year there is a new lead blocking system in place although it was there in previous titles it meant more on the AI Controlled line and backs to give out some lumber o your opponent, but for most of the time your team mates were playing patty cake instead of getting you a hole. That's been whiped out with the new lead blocking feature, before the snap you can change to one of your lead blockers, no matter if that's a Tight End, Running Back, or Linemen. When the ball is snapped you can create a hole for your AI controlled Half-Back to run through once your through the hole you can change back (like a matrix slow motion) to your Half-Back and carry on running. Lead blockers have a variety of moves to help you Jam in a defender and score a TD. You can try Impact Blocks (basically a Rugby Tackle) you can take out their legs, by cut block or a Diving Tackle, finally you can drag your opponent intenoinally, but if thing fail then you get penalised. There is a definite Risk/Reward system which players have to know about. You can accuratley set your block which results in an icon popping up onscreen when you hamper a defender, However blow your timing and you'll stumble badly around the field resulting in a "lead block whiff" icon. Even worse you can ***** it up entirely (lead block fail). Apart from inepitude on your part, AI can also fail by not taking the hole you made. Madden player will also notice the minor tweaks to the ball carrying movements, last years truck stick is now a highlight stick. Now when you hit up on the right thumbstick, the game takes into account what kind of back you are for the specific moves: power runners will drop their shoulder and try to go through a defender, while faster backs will dodge incoming tackles. There are some backs, like Alexander, who have the designation of being both, so the specific move will vary radically from step to step. This tweak joins the familiar back juke and left and right jukes on the right stick. Speaking of left and right jukes, players can now use them to setup quick stutter steps to the left or right to evade tackles. If you do get in a clinch, an icon will now pop up on the screen directing you to pound on the sprint button to escape and gain additional yardage. The same icon will pop up on the defender's side of the ball, turning the event into a kind of button mashing mini-game. Finally, quarterbacks have the ability to scramble without having to pull down their targets, just like NCAA Football 07. Oh, and in case you were wondering, vision cones are still in the game, but you can turn them off if you don't like them, just in case you were wondering...


all together its a pretty good game