NCAA Football 2003

THE BAD:
No Major Weaknesses!!!!!

SUMMARY:
The best football game ever! I will get the new one every year it comes out until I die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THE BAD:
No Major Weaknesses!!!!!

SUMMARY:
The best football game ever! I will get the new one every year it comes out until I die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THE BAD:
If there is one bad thing about this game, it is the freezing. In NCAA 2003, there is a bug that causes the game to freeze every so often. Sometimes this will make you happy (since your losing 34-0 in your bowl game) or give you some anger problems (winning a crucial game). Other than that, the game is very good. Some of the announcing becomes repetetive after awhile and will stick in your head, but

SUMMARY:
Presentation: (4.8)
Graphics: (4.8)
Sound: (4.9)
Gameplay: (4.7)
Lasting Appeal: (4.8)

If you are stuck between NCAA 2003 and NCAA College Footall 2k3, go with NCAA 2003. Its a decision you won't regret.

THE BAD:
Hard to find controller info without the book

SUMMARY:
I rented this game and really enjoy it. Unfortunately it does not come with a book and so it is hard to find all the info. The graphics and teams are extremely realistic. This is my first foray into the sports genre since the Super Nintendo and I don't intend on putting these games away to gather dust on the shelf.

THE BAD:
No player names. . . BUT wait, if you know your team, and you enter their names, the announcers will say them. So if you put them in manually, it will work.

SUMMARY:
Um, in case you didn't notice read up above again!!! WHOO! ok. The create a player is so much better than maddens. Do you know how in Madden your player is twitching around and moving is head and arms just when your trying to look at them. IN NCAA the player corresponds with what your editing, changing gloves, he'll lift up his hands and hold them their and so on. The create-a-team is spectacular!! I made the Anaheim Lions, and the annoucer actually said "The Lions" not "The home team" like in Madden. The option play is the THE ABSALUTE BOMB SUCKAS!! Why don't they include being able to laterall in Madden, this is the funnest part about NCAA, QB bout to be tackled and. . . WHOOP, toss it too your half-back and have him run for an extra 13 yards. ANd yes, you can actuall yplay manual defense in NCAA, unlike in Madden where your for the most part controlling you defensive linemen. In NCAA you can take control of your FS and actually make plays. When the game flashes "User Pick" you feel like hugging your mother. Dynasty mode is better than franchise mode cuz it IS. If your team, "like the UCONN Huskies" is low in prestige and rank, your games wont be telivised, which means no Announcers!! Theirs non-televised, local, cable, and satalite broadcasting depending on your schools prestige. HOW REALISTIC IS THAT! How good you feel when climbing the ranks as a no-name to Bowl champions. Crowds come alive. . . ALIVE, like no other. if i had to choose between Final Fantasy X and this game, it would take me a week to decide. BUY this game. No rental, BUY. Sell your food, and buy this game. "RPG" oh yeah, cheerleaders are sweet too.

THE BAD:
Uses the Madden engine?

SUMMARY:
Written by netnut746 for netjak.com

But take a deeper look into it. Released before Madden 2003, NCAA Football 2003 hit the shelves early in August, following up the successful 2002 edition. EA Sports struck gold when creating the first Madden game on PS2, creating an engine that may very well be the best one out there right now. So you can look at this in two ways - EA decided to stick to what works, or EA was too lazy to come up with something new.

What makes it Madden?

Well it's obviously structured in the same way, with pretty much identical player models and the controller layout. The players react in pretty much the same way, and of course you'll have similar features, like the Campus Challenge (you know, the Madden Challenge), and the Franchise Mode (only called Dynasty here).

But wait!

Before you write this off as just a cheap clone, there are things to consider. Like the pro's and college, it's a different game. Yes, the game does run off the Madden engine, but this game is distinctly NCAA, not NFL. For starters, there are 144 teams in the game, representing every Division 1-A and 1-AA team. So whether you like Oklahoma, Notre Dame, or (::gasp: Rutgers, you can rest easy knowing that your team is represented.

Before I go further though, I have to reiterate a well-known fact - since this is a college game, there are NO player names. Instead everyone is known by their number and position, like every other NCAA game. But don't worry, you'll know your Dorseys from your Grossmans.

Even though the players are only numbers, they behave very much like their real-life counterparts. Play Oklahoma, and their tailback will run all over you. Play Florida, and expect an aerial assault. Take a trip down to Texas and try to find out exactly why Chris Simms left New Jersey. But not only do you have a representation of all the players, the game also comes with all 144 stadiums! Play a game at your home stadium, and you can very easily tell where you are. Unlike Madden, which is more or less a generic stadium for each team, NCAA Football 2003 has VERY distinctive stadiums. And to make the college experience even more realistic is that every team has their own fight song. Rather than hit you with Andrew W.K. like this game's NFL counterpart, you'll hear "Boomer Sooner" on first downs in Oklahoma. (Pick Rutgers, and go against them at home, and you'll get sick of that song very quickly.) Cheerleaders, mascots, and the fight songs play an important role in the game, which as the game says, brings the pageantry of college home.

It's the little things

Yes, little things that make this an obvious NCAA game. They made sure to include all the differences from the pros, making sure that the game was as unique as possible. Field goals will be harder in this game than in Madden, as the hash marks are wider in college. Players only need one foot in bounds for the catch to count. And I suggest you get used to running the option, because it plays a big part in this game.

Game Modes

They come in bunches. NCAA Football 2003 offers all of the standard modes, as well as some of their own.

Season - Play through a team's schedule, trying your luck at cracking the top 25, and see if you can get into a bowl game. Also, your players will compete to be All-Americans and Heisman winners. You also have the ability to redshirt freshmen. At the end of your season, you have the option of converting it into a...

Dynasty - An expanded season, that adds in the element of multiple seasons, graduations, and recruiting. Rebuild your team after every season, trying your luck at a national championship. The more successful your team is, the more appealing your school will look to possible recruits, and you may very well lure in the next Heisman winner to your team. As an added bonus, for those who own Madden, you can export your draft class into the game for drafting in franchise mode.

Rivalry - In every sport there are rivals. But not like college football. Pick this mode, and literally hundreds of games will be available for you to pick from. Choose a team, and scroll through their available rivals. Then duke it out for bragging rights, or one of the 20 trophies assigned to specific rivalries.

Mascot Game - Just for fun and games, but why not lead a team of Fighting Irish against a team of Buffalos?

And more - You can create a school, create a player (or a whole team of them), and change rosters and playbooks. Another feature is the Trophy Room and Pennant Collection, which display trophies earned or pennants (cheats, much like Madden cards) that you've been able to collect.

So that's what you can do with this. Now how does it stand up?

Graphics

As is already well-known, the game runs off the Madden engine, so similarities are expected. Like Madden, the players are very detailed and realistic in appearance, however they aren't as refined as in the professional offering. Players seem a bit rough around the edges when compared to those in Madden, which can be expected due to the large amount of teams and stadiums. Animation is excellent, and feels a lot looser than that game it resembles. Rather than have the players respond with utmost precision, they have more amorphous routes. The best analogy for the gameplay would be comparing Mega Man 2 to Mega Man 3. Like Madden, Mega Man 2 has a very tight control scheme, with his reactions and animations down to precision. NCAA Football 2003 is more like Mega Man 3, as he has more liberal actions in the later offering.

Stadiums however are very detailed. Each is distinct, in which you will quickly pick up on their little nuances. A nice little touch is that in each stadium, the players run out differently. In simpler ones, they'll just huddle up and charge, while in a bigger one, they'll arrive to the accompaniment of smoke and the like. Little details were added as well, the players will have stickers on their helmets, and you can see mascots and cheerleads between plays.

As nice as the game looks, it still doesn't seem as refined as Madden. The players are a little rougher around the edges, and lack the depth and shading that you can readily pick up on in Madden. Close-ups looks beautiful however, it's just in the normal game play where the slight drop-off between this game and Madden appears. Some interfaces aren't as nice as those in Madden, most notably the kicking meter, as a cruder version appears in this game. There's also some minimal write-in and jaggidness (like part of a leg can disappear sometimes) which is most likely due to the fact that since it was released a bit sooner than Madden, it wasn't given as much tweaking. But it still looks excellent nonetheless.

Sound

Fight songs are where it's at. This is definitely one advantage this game has over Madden. Rather than having Bon Jovi in between plays, you'll hear the actual songs that will be played at the stadium. Instead of those annoying tracks they threw in Madden, the college feel is captured with these fight songs. And thus, the pageantry is brought home.

Commentary works with a three-man team, which both works and doesn't work. I can't remember their names, but during the game, one guy will usually call the game, while the other two take shots at each other. Like any other game, the commentary WILL grow on you, as it's as basic as any other game. But rather than bland catch-phrases, they concentrate on the game itself more. There is less talking here, as the fans and band carries the game along beautifully.

The Verdict

Madden with pageantry, that'd be a nice place to start when describing this game. But the creators made sure to add in enough differences to make this game unique, and they definitely succeeded in doing so. But unless you're a die-hard NCAA fan, I recommend getting Madden over this, as Madden feels more refined and I think more enjoyable than this game.

Graphics - 9/10

Looks good, but a little rough around the edges when compared to Madden. Stadiums look great, but some jaggies hurt the appearance.

Sound - 8/10

Commentary is a bit better than most games, but is pretty much the same as the rest once you've gotten deep enough into the game. The real plus comes in the form of over 200 fight songs, truly completing the college experience.

Realism - 10/10

Unless you're very good, you'll find trouble beating Miami with Rutgers. Implementation of all college rules and the addition of the option make this game distinctively NCAA.

Control - 9.5/10

The scheme is perfect, but player response is a bit looser than Madden's.

Overall (not an average) - 8.5/10

Still a very good game, but geared more towards the die-hard NCAA fan. You'll probably find more enjoyment in Madden, as I feel it's more refined than this, and has the online play that this game lacks. You'll most likely enjoy this, but if you've only got enough money for one football game (after all, Mario's out) right now, rent this, Madden, and NFL 2K3, and make your decision then - each is strong in their own right.

THE BAD:
I've played 2 seasons so far and my copy has froze 7 times, usually with less than 3 minutes left in the game. Harder to get sacks.

SUMMARY:
I would have givin' this a 5, but the freezing really kills it for me. I know everybody's doesn't do this, some people in the thread have complained of this. EA should have caught this and tried to fix it, but it's no big deal. As soon as I get Madden, I'll send NCAA to EA and get a replacement. I have two seasons of madden to play so I can be even with NCAA 2003.

THE BAD:
THE CB BUMP THE WR TO MUCH AND THET DON'T CALL PASSINTERFERINCE.

SUMMARY:
ITS BETTER THAN LAST YAER I THINK ITS MORE REALISTIC.

THE BAD:
BCS and Polls, Difficulty Levels, Player Names

SUMMARY:
Well EA Sports has actually improved on their football franchise with the release of NCAA Football 2003. This game has all 117 NCAA IA teams with much more detail than last year's game. Each team has a beautifully designed helmet, uniform, and even the stadiums are realistic (since I've been to a few). I was surprised when my favorite college football team even had its fight song playing. This game really in depth and allows even the most mediocre college football fan to really get into the game!

Added features to NCAA 2003 include create a school (team), fan attendence in dynasty mode, more tackle animations, and best pass defense. Your CBs are smarter and make a lot (and I mean a lot) more plays on the ball leading to some exciting gameplay! As for gameplay speed, NCAA 2003 delivers with crisp and clean animations and game control. There are no slowdowns like in last year's game.

A lot of players have been complaining about the Poll and BCS systems in dynasty and season modes. It is all opinion and up to you whether or not you agree. The game difficulty has also come under fire. All American allows too much running yardage, but Heisman is too difficult. Again this is up to the player and can still be fine tuned like in last year's game with AI sliders. NCAA 2003 will not come with any player names, but with a Sharkport and a quick download from the internet, you'll have them (worth the $30.00 investment). You can always enter the player names yourself.