
The official website for NFL Head Coach 09 has gone live and it includes new details about the game. IGN also posted an early preview of the game which includes some good info which you can check out here. It seems as though they’ve really attempted to get away from the procedural monotony of the original Head Coach and have introduced some live elements that will keep the pace up and make things interesting.
I also have posted up the first 25 screens from the game. There are a few below which you can view full size by clicking the thumbnails and the rest can be found in the screenshot gallery. I’ve summarized some of the more notable aspects of the game to be mentioned:
The draft will allow for trading of future draft picks. This is something that the community had asked for in the previous Head Coach as well as in Madden.
It looks like NFL Network and ESPN integration will actually be present. Adam Schefter and Todd McShay of their respective networks will provide commentary all year long on upcoming draft picks. They have created 21,000 rookies with their own unique ratings, stories, and personalities.
The CPU will propose trades as well as trade between themselves
Scouting will unlock more information about a player. Scout during the regular season, Senior All-Star Game, NFL Combine, Pro Days, and individual workouts.
Trade negotiation in a live environment with a timer in negotiation with CPU general managers
“Ebay like” bidding process for free agents
Dangle restricted free agents in the hope that another team will give up a draft pick/s for them
February 26, 2008 at 12:38 pm
what i cant understand is they cant make uniforms correct what the coach wears or anything that anyone wants in madden but yet they can put all the practice facilities and everything in this game….? i question logic at times…
February 26, 2008 at 12:42 pm
[quote comment="14349"]what i cant understand is they cant make uniforms correct what the coach wears or anything that anyone wants in madden but yet they can put all the practice facilities and everything in this game….? i question logic at times…[/quote]
Well I agree with you to a certain extent. Perfect example is the sidelines which is the first thing I noticed as being such a significant improvement over Madden’s.
This is one of the benefits of having it as a separate game. I’ve seen people suggest it should just be rolled into Madden but if that were the case it would just be a secondary mode/feature.
There is much more concentration on the sideline enviornment in the Head Coach game so they’ve worked on that area. Clearly to the Madden devs the sideline is very low priority because there isn’t much action taking place there.
February 26, 2008 at 12:44 pm
[quote comment="14350"][quote comment="14349"]what i cant understand is they cant make uniforms correct what the coach wears or anything that anyone wants in madden but yet they can put all the practice facilities and everything in this game….? i question logic at times…[/quote]
Well I agree with you to a certain extent. Perfect example is the sidelines which is the first thing I noticed as being such a significant improvement over Madden’s.
This is one of the benefits of having it as a separate game. I’ve seen people suggest it should just be rolled into Madden but if that were the case it would just be a secondary mode/feature.
There is much more concentration on the sideline enviornment in the Head Coach game so they’ve worked on that area. Clearly to the Madden devs the sideline is very low priority because there isn’t much action taking place there.[/quote]
if you say so… just dont make sense and thats what the people ask for like sideline tickers and such for other games and everything..pasta this isnt like this is new suggestions..they had it in madden 02 and stuff this is all nice and good but madden will still have the same issues and the same lacking of stuff that should come with it for another year..if i am wrong please tell me and i will stand corrected.
February 26, 2008 at 12:50 pm
[quote comment="14351"]
if you say so… just dont make sense and thats what the people ask for like sideline tickers and such for other games and everything..pasta this isnt like this is new suggestions..they had it in madden 02 and stuff this is all nice and good but madden will still have the same issues and the same lacking of stuff that should come with it for another year..if i am wrong please tell me and i will stand corrected.[/quote]
I’m not disagreeing with you. I’m just saying its more of a focus in HC than it is in Madden which is why its getting the attention in those areas.
I don’t think its wrong to ask for those things in Madden as well, I’m just saying that they obviously don’t see those things as high priority (FG nets?). There are more elements in that game that they have to deal with. Plus Madden works off the yearly schedule which is much more restrictive.
February 26, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Could be good, the last one was boring as boring could be. I hope this one improves on that. I guess we’ll see.
February 26, 2008 at 1:25 pm
Some of the off season features are awesome. The question is why can’t they be in madden.
February 26, 2008 at 1:31 pm
I don’t know how much code overlap there is in HC and Madden (they mentioned that there was very little), but one would think they could cross-pollinate each game. For example, Madden’s sidelines SHOULD look like the one in the HC screenshot… if they shared development ideas and code (if possible), we’d have deeper games.
In my ignorant view, developing one engine and then tweaking each to the particular games needs/ wishes/ features/ style/ etc would seem to make sense.
February 26, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Nothing to do online?
February 26, 2008 at 2:25 pm
While this SOUNDS promising, so did the 1st Head Coach. I am gonna take a wait and see approach here. Cautious optimism may sum it up best though after reading the 1st looks
February 26, 2008 at 2:41 pm
it sounds like they really looked at wishlists and feedback thats a good sign
February 26, 2008 at 3:23 pm
I’m sorry but when I rented the 1st one I was excited but as soon a I played it I was bored out of my mind.Some offseason stuff was alright but overall one of the most boring games Ive ever played.I dont know if I can even give this game a chance.
February 28, 2008 at 7:08 am
I, quite honestly, am totally stoked. It sounds as if it’s a fairly vast improvement over the original. I’m concerned that I’m seeing what appears to be a 3rd quarter kickoff with the clock set at 5 minutes. I’m hoping we’re allowed more than 5 minute quarters. I’m also not hearing as much about assistants and the ability to hire/fire, etc. They can’t have removed that, in favour of the other new features, surely. Anyway – this will result in Sony getting more of my money in the form of a new PS3. Can’t wait for this.
February 28, 2008 at 9:22 am
so are the ratings still have a range 75-86 I tought that was a cool feature in the first game
February 28, 2008 at 10:52 am
I agree with Pasta to an extent. Here is my point. HC has features many of us have been clammering for to have in Madden for years. How about scrapping Madden and have HC be the feature game that includes the on the field action as well…. Also a quick question for you pasta. I’ve heard that the devs are actually looking at somehow linking HC with Madden this year is there any truth to this?
February 28, 2008 at 12:49 pm
[quote comment="14350"]Clearly to the Madden devs the sideline is very low priority because there isn’t much action taking place there.[/quote]
Then the Madden devs should not be working on an NFL game.
Very low priority? Not much action taking place there? On the sidelines of a football game? Take a look at All-Pro Football 2K8 which managed to get it right.
The Madden devs get excited about showing us the exterior of the stadium over and over and over between plays. How much action is going on there?
The Madden devs just don’t get it.
Having the sidelines occupied by ridiculous, synchronized dancers takes away from the experience.
Having to see players do the tomahawk chop behind a head coach who is performing the same bewildered gesture every time we see him even if his team is up by thirty points is LUDICROUS.
March 2, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Any hope at all of this being released for Wii at some point in the future?