It's not the next Madden, and it doesn't try to be. It's just a solid game of football...
The Bad - No licensed teams; Very small default playbooks; Players are a bit stupid; A few missing features here and there; Stat tracking is a bit off; No way to recall league history other than basic stats on the players; No trading in franchise mode...
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When most people think of football video games, they usually think of John Madden. Madden this, Madden that. Put a bunch of football video game fans in a room, and you'll start to hear a few names fly around. While the name "Madden" will usually be the dominant sound, a few other names, such as the ESPN NFL 2K series, NFL Fever, or even NFL Blitz will surface.
All of these games were loved by many over North America, and Europe, but there is one, very small problem. All of the games mentioned above were arcade games. None of these games involved any real strategy. Each game did have its own physics, plays, announcers, colours, player ratings, and such, but they did have one thing in common. The easiest way to win was to simply drop back 50 yards, throw it to T.O., Jerry Rice, Daunte Hall, pray that they catch it, and then run the remaining yards to the endzone. Scores for people who had mastered this art were usually in the 40's to 50's, with the Quarterback throwing over 500 yards. Despite how varied the NFL games were, the strategy for them ended up all being the same. Most people liked this, as it was possible to waste the CPU in almost any game, but there were a few who just didn't like it. It was too easy. They wanted strategy...
People wanted change. Soon enough, EA released NFL Head Coach for the PC, XBOX, and PS2. It was supposed to bring the strategy element of football to the table, but the game was too flawed, and the players were too dumb to know how to play football. The game received a very small fan base...
Maximum Football is the result of years of development and beta testing. It was followed by the people who were left out in the cold after football management sims had simply stopped being produced. Fans of the "Football Pro" series had nowhere to go except to Maximum Football. They took a chance on one man. Despite the odd flaw here and there, they made the right decision. People looking for an alternative to Madden or ESPN NFL 2K5 should look no further than Maximum Football...
Upon loading up Maximum Football for the first time, you'll be greeted with only three options. "Quick Game", "League Game", and "Quit". "Quick Game" is a simple exhibition game. "League Game" is the Maximum Football equivalent of Madden's franchise mode. "Quit" obviously quits the game.
Loading up "Quick Game" presents you with only a few options. You'll get the standard options, such as picking your teams, your jerseys, the stadium, and the weather conditions. Clicking "next" will take you to the controller setup, where you'll have the option of choosing sides, the controller, and your playbooks. Sounds like Madden, right? It's about to change...
Hitting next once more will take you to the rules setup. Nope, it's not like Madden, with a bunch of sliders. It's actual rules! Everything can be changed. Wanna use a CFL-Like ball on an indoor field....with 12 Men? Go ahead. I'm not going to go into detail about the amount of rules you can adjust, but there are tons of options that you can play with. Field size, amount of men, rouges, ball type, strictness of the ref, rule set, ability to call for a fair catch....and many more! The possibilities are endless!
So, does it actually play out on the field, or is it just a big mess? To tell you the truth, it is awesome on the field! The game gives you two playing types. "Arcade" mode lets you actually control the players on the field, just like in any other football game. "Coach" mode is a whole different story. You call the shots, but the players act it out for you. Depending on how the players are rated, the play is either successful or unsuccessful. Running a toss play with a poor Running Back will get you around 2 or 3 yards. Running the same play with the best Running Back in the league might go for a Touchdown.
Under the "Arcade" setting, the game becomes ridiculously easy. 60 yard passes can be completed with ease. Because of the games mediocre Human vs. CPU AI, it is incredibly easy to turn a goal line toss play into a 90 yard marathon. The game is a lot more fun under the "Coach" setting, mainly because the players are a lot more evenly matched.
The players themselves play quite well for a game designed by one man. Running Backs will look for the open hole. Quarterbacks will scramble if no one is open, or if they are getting chased. Defensive linemen try to plug holes as best as they can. It's not perfect football, but it isn't to the point where it gets frustrating because the Quarterback is being a moron and running all over the backfield...
The game itself is quite fun to play in "Quick Game" mode, but all of those games are meaningless. "League Game" takes things to a whole new level. The game comes with three default leagues, resembling the three major football leagues in North America. A 5-Team indoor league, 10-Team canadian league, and a 16-Team American league round out the selection of leagues and teams. All of the teams were very smartly created, as they closely resemble teams that are in either of the three major football leagues. The Houston Wildcats of the default american league have almost identical jerseys and colours compared to the defunct Houston Oilers of the NFL. If the 31 default teams don't satisfy your tastes, extra uniforms are extremely easy to find on the internet, and even easier to make by yourself. In fact almost anything is editable in Maximum Football, but I'll get to that a bit later...
The meat of "League Game" mode lies in the infinite amount of seasons you can play, the unlimited possibilities of extra teams you can create, and the huge amount of ways that the conferences can be set up. It is very easy to change how any of the default leagues can be arranged. This makes making real-life leagues even easier. You can rename any of the conferences or divisions, and there seems to be no limit on how many teams can be put into a league. A player with a lot of time on their hands would be able to recreate the entire NCAA! This blows away some of Madden's best features...
Other than the customization options, the "League Game" mode is pretty basic. Players are drafted onto teams, some are released after training camp, the season is either played out by the user, or simmed. The season then ends, and then the player can choose how the playoff format works. After the championship game ends, a neat little screen shows the helmet of the team that one the championship. Once that is over, a new draft begins, and the process repeats itself. In between each season, it is possible to add and remove teams from the league to simulate franchises folding. While it does seem like a very basic mode, "League Game" ends up being very time-consuming...
The final feature in the game would be the "Play Development System". It works a little bit better than the play creator in Madden, as you can create any routes you like. It is perfect for creating trick plays, or for just adding a few extra plays to the neglected Indoor and Canadian playbooks. It is a very addicting feature and gives the game life after many seasons have been played in the actual game...
So, what is bad about Maximum Football? Well, there are some minor glitches here and there, but they have been fixed along the line with numerous patches. The biggest glitch would have to be with the sim engine. Way too many games that are simmed in "League Game" end up resulting in ties. Some teams will finish with 6 Wins, 5 Losses, and 2 Ties. Also, there is no salary cap, or trading for that matter. While it is easy to cut a player from one team, and sign him to another, trading would make that process faster. The only flaw I have found in the actual field action would be the fact that Running Backs can't seem to run outside. They always run to the nearest defender on a toss play. They still pick up good yards, however. Maybe it was put in for a balance issue, as it is quite easy to score Touchdowns by running outside. Other small things, such as not being able to pick jerseys in "League Game" mode round out the list of glitches...
In all, Maximum Football is a great game that should not be missed by any hardcore football fan. While it does have some glitches, it is a great alternative to Madden, and provides a decent challenge for anyone looking for something that isn't as easy as throwing Hail-Mary's for 60 minutes... - - - Score Summary - - - Gameplay - 7 - Throughout each game, you'll encounter a few glitches, but most of them are minor. Maximum Football plays solid. You'll never have the same game twice. The players are quite smart, and it is a blast to sit back and coach a game, rather than play it like in the EA games. It's a different perspective through the eyes of a coach...
Graphics - 8 - Maximum Football looks a lot like Madden from a few years ago, which isn't a bad thing, because it looks really good. The field textures are fine, and the fictional teams in the game do a great job of hinting at the real life teams and mascots. It runs well on any computer, too! Sound - 6 - Crowd noises are dull, no menu music, the on-field sound effects sound extremely lame, and on top of that, almost all of the sound is barely noticeable...
Value - 10 - Unlimited types of leagues, countless teams and stadiums available for download already, and it is very easy to make your own teams out of the box using uniform templates. Creating any football league that has ever existed is possible. Wanna go try and re-create the XFL?
Nah...wait a minute...that's actually a bad idea...
Oh well... no stupid commercials, no dumb commentary, no cheerleaders....
Anyways (Gettin' a little off topic there)...
Reviewers Tilt - 8 - I really enjoy playing Maximum Football. It's a whole different ball game from the coaches eye. Lots of add-on artwork kept me coming back for more. It's a heck of a lot of fun! I'll leave it at that...
Final - 7.8/10.0 - Maximum Football is a great alternative to Madden, or whatever football game you've been playing for the past few years. It's simplicity in the design make the game approachable to almost any football fan, but it's limitless editing abilities will keep you coming back for more, month after month. It's not Madden by any means, and it doesn't try to be. However, those looking for a football game with a little bit more of a point to it can't go wrong by getting Maximum Football...