Sega Genesis
Released in 1993 by Sega
Grade: C-
There are flashes of fun lurking in this game. But you’ll deal with a lot of frustration trying to find them.
Where it falls in the series
This series is almost as confusing as this game’s terrible playcalling interface, so I just write the whole thing out:
- Joe Montana Football
- Joe Montana II Sports Talk Football
- NFL Sports Talk Football ’93 Starring Joe Montana
- NFL Football ’94 Starring Joe Montana
- NFL ’95
- Prime Time NFL Football Starring Deion Sanders
- NFL 98
And there are two college games, College Football’s National Championship in 1994, and College Football’s National Championship II in 1995.
Praises and gripes
This game uses sort of a “double-camera” system. The view is very wide as the play begins, then zooms in closely once the ball is either handed to a runner or is arriving to a receiver. It’s a novel concept, but it’s disorienting.
The real problem though, is that you hardly ever feel in control. Quarterbacks shuffle through receivers with one button and throw with another. A tap of the button fires a bullet, holding the button tosses a lob (the opposite of most other football games), but either way, it just feels off, never quite the pass you want.
Receivers don’t always follow their routes, and they’re often standing still in a mosh pit when the ball arrives, or the ball sails way past them. It’s hard to tell why a play works or doesn’t work.
The running game is better engineered, allowing you to follow blocks and maneuver around the field like a football player. Playing defense can be fun, especially making tackles in tight spaces. The zoomed-in graphics have some nice animations. The game defaults to a vertical view, but provides a sideline view as well.
It’s hard to deny the excitement of a successful play, as the crowd roars and that horribly monotone announcer perks up. But these moments are like tiny bits of candy, while the game’s meat and potatoes are spoiled. You’ll get sick of it fast.