E3: Madden NFL 06 Hands-On

Does Madden still own football? We get hands-on the ball inside.

The yearly EA Sports release of the updated version of their flagship title, Madden NFL, is expected and taken for granted. Also taken for granted is the quality of the game. Madden has been so consistently good, that no other football game has been able to compete since the early 90's.

--> Although "next gen" Madden could look like this...

Electronic Arts' dominance of the market continues with Madden NFL 06. The panconsol sports game maintains the superior gameplay that made Madden famous. No glitches or awkwardness, as far as I could tell. The NFL players in the game remain freakily hyper realistic with both the character modeling and fluid movement.

The play by play, which just keeps significantly improving with every game, along with the crowd noise and detailed stadiums really make you feel as if you are playing in an actual NFL game. This certainly allows players to feel better as they correct their home team's mistakes as they take the controls and show how the previous Sunday's game should have been played.

--> ...current-gen Madden (Xbox shown) looks um, like this.

Each year EA tries out some new feature on the Madden games. Some eventually fade away, while others become a permanent part of the series. The new feature for this year may be one of the latter. The spanking new Quarterback Vision Control is. interesting. Basically, this makes for a more complete quarterback. You are now able to look off and lead receivers.

Also, this feature involves a quarterback's field of vision; so a QB's rating will effect how large his field of vision. What does this all mean? It will be harder to hit your receivers. Personally, I felt this just made the game more frustrating. The passing game has become significantly more difficult as the series has progressed. Still, I am sure that with some practice, it will become a second nature.

Madden '06 also boasts improved features in all aspects of the games. These include better online features, a practice mode that allows you to run against opponents' plays and strengths, more commentary and an improved radio show.

In the end, what is there to say? It's Madden Football. If you're a fan of sports games, there isn't anything else out there. The only thing that you have to do is wait for the expected August release later this year.

Mike Knowlan
Contributor, Kikizo Games