Madden 2003 or NFL 2k3? Any reviews? (1 Viewer)

[Jeff Adams]

Don't know what happened there. I was typing and must of hit the enter button. Anyway, I have heard alot of people say that the AI in Madden cheats in the 4th and puts together 3-4 play scoring drives. I have seen nothing like that in the 2003 edition. Most of the scoring drives are 10-14 play drives for both myself and the AI. Like the last game I played last night. I was Denver and was playing against KC I was beating the 28 to 17 in the 4th when they put together a 13 play drive that ended with the second string QB throwing a pick to Deltha O'neal who ran it back about 25 yards. Trent Green was hurt from a sack by Trevor Pryce in the first half. This game was actually pretty close until the 4th where I put together a couple of long scoring drives for 14 points in the. I was finally able to run the ball when I took sorry ass TD out of the game and put Gary in. At the end of the game I looked at the stats and it looked like stats from a real football game. Nothing too crazy. 140 yards of total rushing, 258 yards of passing. Griese did have 3 TD'S and no picks. This game is so addictive and so much fun. The play calling is great. I played a few games of 2k3 but did not enjoy it as much as I did with Madden 2003. I did like the players faces in 2k3. They were more realistic and looked more like the actual player tham in Madden. The new training camp mode in Madden is also very fun. There are all kinds of things to do in Madden 2003. I can't wait to get home and play some more! That is after the Bronco game tonight.

 

[PatrickM]

Well, I seem to be the only one with Madden 2003 on a Gamecube. I don't know what its like on a XBox or PS2 but on the Gamecube its great.
My last system was an N64 so I was a little out of date so my comments may reflect that but I love all the play modes in Madden. The Franchise mode is great but the Football 101 and the Madden Mini-Camp are great ways to get used to the controller interface and practice all aspects of the game.
The graphics are excellent as I expected and the gameplay is very good as well. I find it significantly more realistic than the Madden 2000 I played on N64. In that game any contact on the runner and he falls. This one gives a little bit more bounce and the chance of a botched tackle.
Overall if this is any indication, I can't wait for NHL 2003!!!!
Patrick

 

[Rob Varto]

My Jets are now 11-0 having just beaten the 10-1 Raiders

No offense, but that is EXACTLY why I hate Madden. It's old hat when ANY team can run the gamut undefeated - this just doesn't happen "in the game". I haven't played Madden 2K3 yet, so take my comments with a grain of salt.

That said, I've played two games of NFL 2K3 and it's tough... tough as in I don't think I could go 8-8 in my first season tough. Im using the lowly Lions so 8-8 is probably impossible anyways. So far I like 2K3 - but Im not a fan of trying to figure out what buttons do what. I still can't call for a fair catch and the opposition tends to run the ball all over me. I also wish the sliders were explained better. When I push them to the left, does that help or hurt me?

 

[Dean DeMass]

Rob,
Decrease the sliders to make things easier and increase them to make things more difficult. To call a fair catch, make sure the return man is highlighted and press "Y" on the X-Box version or "triangle" on the PS2 version.
So far I am 8-2 in my 1st season, but I am playing with the Rams.
I have lost to the Bucs and Raiders though. So far the game is very realistic. My drives consist of 8-12 plays, with the occasional 4-6 play drive. However, the A.I. is competitive and the games are pretty good. I have blown out a couple of teams though.
-Dean-

 

[Andrew Grall]

I bought NFL2k3 for X-Box because of all the hype over their improvements and because of the X-Box Live capability. I played it for a couple of days, but it just never felt "right". I know I should have given it more time, but I didn't have the patience. I ended up trading it in for Madden 2003. So far I am very happy with the game. In the preseason, I went 1-3 with the Packers on All-Pro with very minor slider adjustments. Of course, before even starting the game, I tried to get the rosters as close to perfect as I could using projected depth charts, etc.
If I had more time, I would play both, and maybe even grow to like the gameplay of NFL2k3... but alas, my football gaming time is so limited as it is...

 

[Jeff Adams]

Patrick, I am totally with you. I have the PS2 and Madden 2003 is the BEST football game of alltime! I also like the fact that when the player who has the ball gets hit he does not go down with the first initial contact. You can break some tackles and get a few extra yards. And I am so Anxiously waiting for NHL 2003, if it is as good as Madden 2003 then we are going to be some spoiled gamers this year. Please,please give us some better commentary for NHL. Some blood would be nice too but I know they have to keep it clean for the kids.

 

[PatrickM]

And I am so Anxiously waiting for NHL 2003, if it is as good as Madden 2003 then we are going to be some spoiled gamers this year. Please,please give us some better commentary for NHL. Some blood would be nice too but I know they have to keep it clean for the kids.

Jeff, I'm with you. Waiting for NHL 2003 is driving me nuts. Its even worse for me since the Gamecube version won't arrive until October compared to September for you PS2 and XBox guys. I'm eventually getting an XBox, just not right now. The Gamecube was supposed to be for my son. He's just shy of three and is pretty good with the machine but he keeps complaining to his mom that daddy won't let him play his game.
The commentary has been kind of off on the NHL games. I think with a fast paced game like hockey its hard to have good commentary. With the sounds of their Gamestory 2 game analysis may become better.
I wonder who the announcers are this year. As long as its not Bill Clement...
Patrick

 

[Jeff Adams]

Patrick, even if they would commentate on stuff about hockey or the gane at hand. Something useful. Not just the garbage they were spouting off last year. I think they thought that it was funny. Maybe they didn't actually listen to the sound clips before they put it in the game. And I also hope they tone it down a little. It had a circus like atmosphere to it. Almost like an NHL Hitz type of atmosphere. I guess we will soon find out. Yeah, get yourself an Xbox or a PS2 and you wont have to wait another month for it.

 

[Todd Terwilliger]

Madden is not without its quirks. One huge one I just discovered: during the offseason following my first franchise season, Marshall Faulk was either dropped or not resigned by the Rams. Are you kidding me??
Well, I signed him up so I now have a backfield of Curtis Martin and Marshall Faulk and I used no cheats, codes, or anything. I went to find a 3rd string QB and there was Faulk, rated 96 overall, sitting there at the top of the free agent pool. C'mon Madden! If this is widespread, I don't even want to know about some of the sick teams that are going to start popping up over internet play.

 

[Jim Tressler]

just thought i would throw my 2 cents in.. I too am looking forward to nhl 2003... will it have online play?

jim

 

[Dan Keefe]

Todd,
if you had the franchis mode in auto it tends to spit out old expensive players...Don't let the computer make any of your offseason changes or that won't be the only time you see something like that happen.


dan

 

[Todd Terwilliger]

Dan,

I'll be sure to go manual. The problem was: the Rams are a CPU controlled team. I'm playing the Jets. My fear is that even when people aren't trying to rig the game to have super teams, if the CPU spits out megastars like that every off-season during franchise mode, then it will be the inevitable result.

 

[GaryP]

Guys,
Just thought I'd weigh in with a few more thoughts on online play (Madden). Game play is top-notch, a damn sight better than dial-up 2K1 as there is almost no lag, maybe just a slight hesitation now and then. One complaint I have is the chat option. In order to fire off a message, you have to pause the game and select the message option. It's pretty much a hassle, so the trash talk is kept to a minimum for the most part. During my 2K1 days the chit-chat during the game play was what made the experience so enjoyable, maybe EA will tweak some stuff when the network adapter arrives.

My only other complaint is the quitters. Still rampant as ever. Five or six times today I went up 14-0 and the guys would just bail. The only redeeming quality is that you can finish up the game against the CPU and still get the win. Anyway, my screen name is Pine Rider. My record is 15-9 and I'm sitting somewhere around #160 in the rankings. Hope to see you guys tooling around in the lobbies when more of you get an adapter.

Gary

 

[Dean DeMass]

and I'm sitting somewhere around #160 in the rankings.

How many people are ranked Gary, 170?
-Dean-

 

[GaryP]

"Thanks, I'm here all week, tip your waiters"
- Dean DeMass

 

[Dean DeMass]

 

[Seth Paxton]

Guess I'll chime in late.

Madden 2003 (PS2) for me. I love Madden so I've had no reason to jump ship. But I have nothing negative to say about 2K3 either.


Some comments:

I've been playing the hell out of Mini-Camp. I love it. You know what's so great about it, it forces (helps) you to learn the various skills needed to be good at the game, so that success is based on all-around ability rather than some gimmick.

Like DB work, normally the area where a smart player WON'T take control for fear of getting burned. But with the DB mini-camps I am getting much better at it. Same with the other skills, even passing which I've always been strong at.


Screens and hook patterns, MUCH better than in 2002. In 2002 the RB would get hit in the back on screens more often than anything, now they run a better route. Same with the WR hook patterns. Very reliable, though short, routes. In 2002 they'd come running back to the ball so hard you'd have a bunch of negative momentum. You might not lose yards on forward progress, but you could hardly ever turn a hook pattern into a decent gain. Now the routes run a lot more realistic.


I like Michaels commentary and I've never had a problem with Madden, even the repetitive stuff.

So far the play has seemed pretty balanced (or more so that 2002 for sure). I've yet to really get into my franchise (Colts) since I've been pushing all the other bells and whistles first.

Pre-season had me confused because I forgot about it. I started my franchise and was playing the "first" game when all my starters were suddenly out. Took me awhile to figure out that I was still in pre-season. I sim'd the rest of it just to see the results. It's a cool thing and hopefully it will get those rookies up to decent levels better than 2002 was able to.

The movements threw me off at first, but the new animations are definately better. Lots of subtleties in the movements so that you get every type of hit, catch, dive, flip, tackle, and broken tackle.

I don't like the "forced" soundtrack though. I'd save the space next year and leave that out.

 

[Brian O]

Seth, well said. I second those comments, but for the PC version. Just the best football game to ever be released during my 20+ years of gaming IMO.

There are so many gameplay/AI/animation improvements over 2k2. It is so nice to have screens be a part of my offense again. The running with the ball animations/moves are top-notch and all usable. Well done EA!

By the way, dont let system specs...or lack of, scare you away. I am still using my old Celeron 300a overclocked to 464. The key is the Radeon 8500 video card and the 512 Megs of RAM. Turn off crowd animations, turn down shadows to flat, and player models to medium and it is butter smooth. Everything else is maxed!

 

[Dan Keefe]

Gary,
I'll be lookin for you next weekend...Maybe we should set up a challenge thread here and rank ourselves...Anyone interested???



dan

 

[Seth Paxton]

MADDEN 2003 PS2 primarily

Has anyone got the GOLD on the running back drill with Anthony Thomas. That thing is kicking my ass and I was hoping for some hints or at least hope. I want to unlock Barry Sanders.


Also, what's the deal with some cards being unlocked unless you have an EA game. I have F1 2000 and Madden 2002 but I guess those don't count as an "EA racing game" or an "EA football game" because the cards are still locked and I think my memory card has saves from both of these games on it.

Any clarification on this?