@underoath83 You do realize the $20-pricetag for 2k5 had nothing to do with quality, right? It had everything to do with marketing. 2k Sports knew it would be tough to ultimately win Madden fanboys over since the series had been around for so long. Therefore, they released it with a cheap pricetag, because they knew people would buy it regardless. And guess what? It worked.
2k5 sold a crapload of copies and til this day people go on and on about how it's arguably the greatest football game ever made. It was well ahead of its time. There are still numerous features in that game that EA has yet to implement into its next-gen version.
Unfortunately, the $20-pricetag is exactly why we're where we are today. The NFL thought 2k was "cheapening" their brand and thus the exlusivity went up for a bid. Obviously there was no way in hell 2k was going to outbid EA.
Yes, Madden '05 was also a good game. But it was the last great effort EA put towards the Madden franchise. Why? Simple answer: competition. Every year they claim they fixed occuring issues and every year we are left with a similar experience.
It's sad to say that a whole console's lifespan will pass us by without receiving a quality NFL title. Maybe EA will one day wake up and figure it out. But as the popular saying goes amongst disgruntled Madden consumers everywhere, "Maybe next year . . . "
@Xman4787 I'm not necessarily saying that 343 is better than Bungie. I'm just saying that 343 seems willing to take a chance and push the game in little bit of a different direction. They're ideas seem to be a breathe of fresh air for the franchise.
Plus, 343 is composed of a lot of developers who worked on previous Halo projects. Therefore, they're extremely familiar with what goes into its development and what the fans expect.
I like what I hear from them so far. I like their ideas for online play and I'm hoping they don't disappoint with the campaign.
I'm buying a Vita, but I do have my concerns. The fact that it's struggling in Japan is beyond worrisome. I've heard so many Vita-enthusiasts claim that a Monster Hunter game would save the system in its homeland. But that's just impossible for me to believe. There is no way one game could totally turn around its success. The only thing that keeps me optimistic about the longevity of the Vita is Sony's past. The PS3 and PSP both got off to horrific starts, but Sony remained patient and loyal to both systems. Most companies, like Nintendo, would have quickly dropped the price of the PSP after its lackluster release. But Sony stuck it out, kept developing decent games, and didn't drop the price until a year after its release. There's no doubt Mario Kart and Super Mario 3D Land helped boost the 3DS' sales. But let's not kid ourselves; the price-drop was the main cause of the surge. Consumers thought, "I can now buy a 3DS, Mario Kart, and 3D Land for roughly \$250." The drop in price is what made it possible. Sony will absolutely have to drop the price of the Vita's games and peripherals (namely memory cards) if they really want it to succeed. One-hundred dollars for 32Gs is absolutely obsurd. But as mentioned before, Sony can be a bit stubborn at times, so I don't think that will happen for a while. For the time being, I think you'll see retailers coming up with exclusive bundling packages in order to move them out the store. Only time will tell . . .
I don't think any of them are going anywhere anytime soon. But if I were to pick one, then I'd have to go Sony. They have launch issues with their systems on a consistent basis. It took a couple years for the ps3 and psp to get going; and as impressive as the Vita's hardware looks, high-priced games and peripherals could lead to yet another rough start for Sony . . .
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