Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

40 to 100 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Almost, but not quite"

My first real encounter with a game of football. I've briefly tested Joe Montana (back in the day) and some mid 90s Madden but never really got into them. Maybe the sport itself has something to do with it. But anyhow now I got the Madden '07 and it was quite fun actually. Too bad I still didn't find the actual sport to be very intriguing - but the sheer amount of statistics kept me playing.

This game looks, sounds and plays nice. Although it tends to load those replays quite a bit with PS2 but that's not very surprising. Gladly the game runs smoothly when it counts the most, during the action. Controls where sharp and accurate but sometimes it felt strange that a skinny little wide receiver couldn't make a quick turn unless using the special move buttons. And as a newbie to the sport I liked how the commentators explained a little about what strategies to use in different situations. And the game itself is fun to play and that's what counts the most.

The superstar mode

This was the main reason I got this game. I've always wanted to try a commercially successful single player solo campaign in a sport game and wondered why they haven't tried this much earlier. (New Star -series have done it quite well for some time now)

One thing that struck me as weird was to be a part of a team that relies heavily on passing game - according to its playbooks - where the QB has very little passing yards (under 200 per game) or even pass attempts so playing as a wide receiver it's not fun to watch the running backs make league records on rushing yards in every game.

The way superstar mode ended as I reached to the hall of fame was disappointing. Why couldn't my jersey be hanging on the wall? Or why couldn't they compare my stats with the greatest of them? Or anything other than: "Congratulations! You've made it!" Woo-hoo. Did I just play a virtual career that has no meaning to the people in virtualville. In conclusion; I don't think I'm going to give this mode another try since the kicker/punter character really has nothing to do during games... but could I be the winning quarterback?

Franchise mode

I have to be honest I haven't played this mode all that much. But it sure seems interesting and a whole lot better than the ones in EAs hockey games of that era. I find it very intriguing that I'm not restricted by a short period of time where I'm supposed to do my heroics as a manager of the team. I'm bound to get back to playing this mode just as soon as I recover my need to play American football. And in I really enjoyed listening to the sports radio while making important decisions about the seat warmers.


So, I found this game to be much more interesting than the actual sport and that's definitely a good thing. Too bad the superstar mode didn't feel as rewarding as I hoped it to be. But the longevity of both of the modes are definite pluses. This is a good sports game.