PlayStation 2
Released in 2004 by EA Sports
Grade: A-
Using Madden’s great football engine, this game is exciting, deep, and easy to play.
Where it falls in the series
PS2 versions went from NCAA 2002 to NCAA 2011, but the focus was on the next-gen starting with the 2007 edition.
Praises and gripes
Before this review becomes a “why this isn’t as good as Madden” spiel, let me tell you what this game does right.
The action has a great sense of fluidity and speed. Twenty-two dudes dash around the screen with sound football logic. They clash realistically and create natural looking chaos, but the control is tight, responsive, and easy to handle.
The plays are very well engineered. You should mix up your play calls, know the situations, and counter your opponent’s tactics. There’s a deep array of strategic nuances, like hot routes, defensive adjustments, and hurry-up offense. On the downside, the playbooks are smaller than in Madden.
The game has enough depth to feel like a simulation, but EA was smart to dial back some realistic elements that are annoying, like bad snaps, missed calls, and certain penalties. Only an uptight jerk would complain that there aren’t any penalties for illegal procedure in a video game, right?
To recreate college football, there’s a lot of variation in players’ skills. Quarterbacks are less precise than the pros in Madden. Passes often miss their mark, but defenders aren’t as disciplined, so you can often pick up big yards with dumb luck, heaving the ball way down the field.
There are of course college-style pitch and option plays. These are nicely designed and easy to grasp, but they’re also pretty dangerous, leading to fumbles a little too often. You should learn your team’s specific playbook to avoid catastrophic mistakes.
Kicking field goals is also much harder, especially with lower tier teams. In fact, playing with lower tier teams can be pretty tricky overall. There are almost 200 teams!
In theory, this should result in the wild unpredictability that gives college football charm, but I don’t think that’s the case. I played quite a few games, and most were low-scoring and methodical. The engine is precise and fair. It’s a good thing, but if you’re hoping that Madden’s college brother would be seem like a wild child by comparison, you might be disappointed.
There’s other college-focused stuff, like mascots and cheerleaders and pep band songs. There’s a “pump up the crowd” function that makes the screen shake to disorient the visiting team, but you’ll probably turn this feature off quickly.
I’ll admit that I prefer NFL football over college football, but this game is a legitimate step behind Madden, with slightly less care in the game design and polish on the presentation. The game logic that makes this more like college football also takes it further from that perfect balance seen in Madden 2005.