PlayStation 2
Released by EA Sports in 2004
Grade: B-
NFL Street is like a gritty version of NFL Blitz. It’s got physics more grounded in reality and it involves much richer football logic. The problem: I simply don’t enjoy it.
Where it falls in the series
It’s the first of three installments, all in the PS2/Xbox generation. NFL Street 2 is generally regarded as the best in the series.
Praises and gripes
It’s hard to find technical faults with NFL Street. It does what it does well.
The 7-on-7 action fits well on the small field, making areas about as cluttered as in real football. The controls are crisp and logical. The graphics are solid for the time. The playbooks are robust by arcade standards, and the plays are well engineered.
There are bits of silliness sprinkled through it. Once you’re in the open field, you can pull off some wacky juking moves. Players wear shirts and shorts, with superhuman physiques to compensate for the lack of pads. The fields are unconventional. Players talk a bunch of crap and generally have style out there (robotic style, but still style, if that makes sense).
What doesn’t it do well? I don’t even know! I’m kind of stumped reviewing this game.
The game seems good, but I’m always relieved to put it down. It’s like the U2 of video games: seems to have merit but does nothing for me.
I stayed interested in this game for a very short time: the time after I learned the basics, but before I got good. Once I learned to be competent at this game, I didn’t think it would get more fun if I got really good at it.
Certain plays work best, and you’ll learn to resort to your trusty tricks. The game logic is so consistent it gets stale. It’s never slow, yet also doesn’t feel as fast as real football. On each play, you tactically find the open man and time your pass, then suddenly you’re running like a cartoon character. It’s jarring.
That’s at least my opinion on it. Most other people seem to think NFL Street was a breath of fresh air when it came out. For me, it’s just not too fun in the long run.