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Written by Craig Gonzalez
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Saturday, 16 June 2007 |
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 I wanted to let you guys know that PastaPadre gave me the opportunity to particpate in his "PadreCast" regarding the NCAA 08 Community Day on his PastaPadre.com website. We talked a bit about the Community Day as well as my impressions from playing NCAA 08. It's about 25 minutes long and we get right into it. It was really my first interview and I tried to cover as much as I could about the game. Of course, afterwards I forgot about a couple things, but I think it came out pretty well. Anyway, you can check it out here..
CLICK HERE FOR PODCAST
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 16 June 2007 )
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Written by Craig Gonzalez
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Wednesday, 13 June 2007 |
I know I already posted the answers to the questions you guys sent me to EA with, but due the fact that we weren’t in our hotel room very much and didn’t have access to the internet, I didn’t really get a chance to really talk about what I saw with the game. I personally feel that for the first time since the 360 came out, we have our football game back. From what I could tell by playing all day yesterday, there has been a lot of work done with the game and it seems pretty polished as far as the gameplay goes. I definitely think it’s a step up from NCAA 07.
The first thing you will notice when you starting playing is just how responsive and tight the controls are. You no longer feel like your stuck in an animation and you really feel like you’re in control with your player. For example, I recovered a fumble near the sideline and I wasn’t stuck in an animation that took me out of bounds, like NCAA 07 would have you do. What I did do was recover the fumble, turn it up field and actually negotiate my way up the sideline with a couple jukes to gain some yardage. I didn’t score, but the mere fact that you can work your way through some tight spots without having an animation totally screw the whole action up was really nice. The sticks are really responsive and the controls are tight, so much so that I think it’s a nice blend between what we were used to in the current gen versions and what we saw in the next gen versions. I think people really notice how much easer it is to control WR’s and actually get a few user catches because the timing is a lot tighter. If you’re a screen pass fan, like I am, you can actually throw one without the back or WR taking three steps towards the sidelines or running out of bounce. I’m a big fan of that one, that’s for sure.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 13 June 2007 )
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Written by Craig Gonzalez
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Tuesday, 12 June 2007 |
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Guys, I only have a quick second, but I did get a chance to get a bunch of the questions you asked answered. So, these should hold you over for the night. However, this only pertains to Next Ge thus far. Gameplay
What new improvements are being added to the on-field gameplay?
Basically, the game feels like a nice combination between current gen and next gen. The branch animation is fantastic and the players are really responsive. I really felt like I had control of my players on the field. Also, they totally rewrote the blocking AI and it’s REALLY nice.
Tell us about the new "Motivation" system, and how it will work.
Didn’t really get too into it, but it’s basically the next gen version of the dynamic ratings system where a players attributes can change throughout the game.
Will NCAA and Madden be sharing the same improved engine across the board, as well as defensive hot routes, etc... etc.
YES. Both games feature the branch animation, gang-tackling, and improved blocking system. NCAA does have defensive hot routes this year as well. It finally feels like both teams for Madden and NCAA are definitely working together.
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Written by Craig Gonzalez
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Tuesday, 12 June 2007 |
Well, there’s not really much to report tonight unless you really want to hear about the hellified traffic I faced on I-4 on the way to the hotel. ;)
Anyway, today was pretty much a travel day, but we all of us here did have a nice dinner with Will and the fine folks from EA Sports. We ate at the Hard Rock Café in Universal studios. I had the chicken fajitas as well as a couple pints of Stella Artois. I arrived at the hotel at about 6:45, which was just in time to catch the shuttle to dinner. Not really any info to report because tomorrow is the big day. Not only do we get to get our hands on NCAA 08, but after spending a couple hours with it, we will be competing in a tournament and the winner receives an XBOX 360 Elite.
From the conversation I’ve had during dinner, NCAA really sounds like it’s going to be solid. I’ve heard good things about the OL/DL play as well as how responsive the controls are. The branch animation sounds like it’s really going to make a difference as well. It was really nice to be able to pick the brains of some of the other website owners and just get a chance to put faces with the names I see online. There's a really good group of guys here and I think between us all, we will be able to get all the bases covered as far as what to look for and check out.
So, tomorrow will be the day that I will have some good stuff to tell. They don’t have WiFi there, so I don’t know if I will be able to post updates throughout the day or after I get back to the hotel after it’s all said and done. I gotta go catch some Z’s. We’ve got an 8:45 start time tomorrow morning for a little breakfast, then it’s off to EA Tiburon! I will be reporting more tomorrow. I really think it's going to be an exciting day tomorrow!!!
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 12 June 2007 )
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