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Madden NFL 06 E3 2005 Hands-On

We go hands-on with EA Sports' venerable football franchise.

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Earlier today, we got a chance to play a couple of games of the Xbox version of Madden NFL 06 on the show floor. The game has evolved visually from the previous iteration, most notably with fresh camera angles on replays that bring you closer to the action, and new tackling animations. The person we were up against seemed to be quite an accomplished defensive player, so our ball carriers suffered quite a few brutal hit-stick tackles. This brought our attention to what appeared to be some new "de-cleater" type of takedown, where our player was literally knocked off both feet before hitting the ground.

As far as gameplay goes, the most notable new feature in the game is the passing cone, which requires you to control your quarterback's field of view as he drops back to throw. After the snap, your quarterback looks, by default, at the primary receiver on the play, who is denoted in the list of plays by a different-colored passing arrow. You swivel your quarterback's head (and thus, his cone of vision) by pushing the right analog stick left and right. You also have the option of holding down the right trigger and pressing a receiver's button to snap your view to that receiver. This allows you to look off a computer-controlled safety or even fake out a human opponent (who can also see the quarterback's cone of vision). You can always choose to throw at any receiver on the field by pressing the corresponding button, without regard for the cone. But throws to any receiver not within your quarterback's cone of vision are less accurate. This was demonstrated to us when our opponent, using Eli Manning of the New York Giants, got picked off by San Diego Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards on an ill-advised toss to Tiki Barber in the flat. Our opponent had Eli staring at a wide receiver over the middle. Our overall impression of the new feature is that it will definitely make passing more of a challenge, as it's one more task you'll need to do in the few seconds you have before the pass rush gets to you. But this could be a good thing, as most players probably pass the ball far more often in Madden than is realistic. It's also possible to shut off the feature.

Other new features worth noting in the game are the addition of a "truck stick." It's basically the offense's version of the hit stick, allowing you to drop your shoulder or throw some nasty forearm shivers at would-be tacklers. Of course, the truck stick is much more effective when the ball carrier is a bruiser like Jeremy Shockey as opposed to a slight wideout like Todd Pinkston. There's also a new audible option at the line of scrimmage, which allows you to slide your linemen to overprotect one side after the snap. This gives the offense better protection against defenders who like to stack safeties and linebackers at the line to overload one side.

The other big new feature in this year's Madden is the superstar mode. This mode is much like playing a football role-playing game, as you'll take the role of an NFL rookie who's about to get drafted into the league. Your stats are determined by a DNA system, where you get to choose traits of your parents, which will then be combined to create your unique avatar. It will be very easy to "reroll" a new character if you don't like what you end up with. Once you enter your name into the draft, you'll go through typical preparations, such as taking a Wonderlic-style aptitude test. You'll then sign an agent, whose responsibility will be getting you endorsement deals, acting gigs, and more in order to build your fame. Different agents have different strengths as far as contacts and negotiating with teams and the media, so at first you will have to settle for a less-accomplished agent. As your player gains fame and notoriety (through your performance and actions on the field), you'll be able to hire and fire better agents and get on your way to reaching All-Pro, and, eventually, Hall of Fame status. Details on superstar mode are still being hashed out, but from what we've seen so far, it's already quite detailed and promises to keep gridiron geeks busy for quite a while.

Madden NFL 06 is scheduled to ship this August on PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube. Keep an eye on GameSpot Sports for more information on Madden throughout the summer.

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