NCAA Football 10: Pocket Protection
by 
One of the first reactions to the earlier screenshots for NCAA Football 10 was concern over how it appeared to have some of the same flaws as previous years. There was no sense of a pocket or pass rush evident and the QB was able to scramble out at will. Granted those screens were intended to show off something else completely and are early work-in-progress looks at the game. Still though it is good to see EA respond with a blog posting concentrating on the formation of a pocket.
We are still in the process of working how often the defender vs. the offensive line will win. Like how much does Finesse Moves factor against Pass Block Footwork? Or how often will AI defenders attempt special moves? And a number of other tuning issues. It is a high priority to the team right now to ensure our line play is balanced on both sides of the ball.
It appears this is a bonus in addition to the scheduled weekly blog on Thursday. You can check out the full posting on the Inside EA Blog here. It includes four new screenshots and explanation of what is being displayed as improvements within them.
March 25, 2009 at 1:11 am
cool
March 25, 2009 at 1:24 am
wanted to be the first comment. it seems like ea is taking its games seriously. I usually only buy Live and Madden but this year I'm tempted to buy possibly 4 EA games this year. (Live, Madden, FNR4, Tiger Woods)
March 25, 2009 at 1:24 am
I have no confidence in easports in regards to this game, NCAA hasn't been good in a while this game will be madden 09 covered in college FOOTBALL colors with a little stuff added here and their to make it seem different from last year. EAsports has access to espn and they don't use them. the crowd MODELS are lame no college atmosphere whats so ever NO REFS NO YARD MARKERS NO ACTION ON THE SIDELINES JUST A FUCKING TEAM MASCOT YOU CAN GO HUG AFTER A TOUCHDOWN WHICH IS A PENALTY IN REAL LIFE etc etc. COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS ALL ABOUT EMOTION !!!!! BUT HEY THATS WHAT I EXPECT WHEN IT COMES TO EA A HALF ASS JOB !!!!! I have to admit madden 10 so far looks good{ CAUTION ] BUT WHY CAN'T THEY ADD THE NEW MADDEN 10 FEATURES TO THIS GAME COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WEAR TOWELS TOO!!! RAT BASTARDS!!!!!
March 25, 2009 at 1:27 am
Now that we finally have pockets whats the next big thing wrong with the game? Only thing i can think of is cheese plays and and the speed problem. If they address this I think we have something special here.
March 25, 2009 at 4:22 am
Uh they still haven't added refs, chaingangs, coaches on the sidelines, etc…If Madden could add these things this year then why the hell couldn't NCAA 10? I love college football but I just can't take the game serious without detailed presentation. Yea I know gameplay is most important but since I don't play online I get bored of the game without detailed presentation. I can't really get into franchise mode without detailed presentation. It's not like I'm trying to notice these things when I'm playing but when I look over at the sideline & see NO COACH or when I see players walking through players on the sideline I don't get that immersion feeling. Or when I'm passing across the field & see NO REFS on the field only to see them magically pop up out of nowhere on penalties I'm like WTF? Go ahead & flame me but I've been playing football games since Madden '92 & even with all this advanced technology I don't get that immersion feeling that I used to get when playing. Now I'm hoping, after seeing that screen shot of Madden 10, that things will change this year.
March 25, 2009 at 3:32 pm
amen!!!!!
March 25, 2009 at 1:33 am
Hey pasta a while ago you had a thread that was to get your last name in NCAA 10 when will we get the winners?? I'm sorry if you have already posted the winners somewhere but I was just curious
March 25, 2009 at 1:52 am
I've asked if they're going to release a list of names but they're uncertain how they're going to do that (if they do). It may just end up being to check the game for the names once its out.
March 25, 2009 at 2:13 am
HELL YES. can we get more pass rush special moves animations tho?
March 25, 2009 at 2:43 am
A true pocket? Finally! I love realism in games. Throw in create-a-team and FCS and this game will be unbelievable (probably not going to happen tho).
March 25, 2009 at 2:49 am
They are working on the OL/DL interactions in Madden NFL 10 too. This is what Ian said over at OS.
"I am really happy they posted this. I know that the NCAA faithful were starting to get really upset with all of the new Madden stuff dropping and them feeling stuck with just having that one old shot of the line all stuck in the middle of the field.
We're waiting a little longer to unveil some of the real nitty-gritty details and tech behind OL/DL interaction (because it's still very much in progress), but at least with them dropping this now, it should confirm to you all that we are definitely not going to let this area go untouched…we are hoping to make major strides here just like so many other areas.
In short, it might be a while before you get more detail on how it all works…but now you all can at least know it is very high on our list."
-Ian_Cummings_EA
March 25, 2009 at 3:00 am
This is great, but the NCAA game still has a LOT to work on. So much is still missing from this game and will be in NCAA 10 as well.
March 25, 2009 at 3:03 am
I love how EA is going for realism this year, its not all about cheerleaders and snow games like last year
March 25, 2009 at 3:14 am
What about the team entrances??? have you heard anything yet pasta?
March 25, 2009 at 3:58 am
am I the only person who can't get a pass rush with the DLine (without slider help) on the next gen system?
March 25, 2009 at 4:22 am
this is very cool sports games get more authentic every year and i feel that since ea listens to the people they know what to fix and what to ditch and what to revamp like i cant see how they can make nhl 10 any better than 09 maybe show two other refs and have girls in the stands besides just a dudefest 09
March 25, 2009 at 4:22 am
I'm not a huge 2K fan but I still get amazed to this day on how detailed NFL 2K5's presentation was & how far ahead of it's time it was. Who would've thought at the time that ESPN 2K5 would've been the peek of presentation in football games? This might be the 1st year that I don't buy NCAA after seeing that screen shot from Madden 10 I'll probably just wait for Madden. I'll have MLB the Show 09 & Fight Night 4 to tie me over. That said, it's good to see that EA is finally starting to understand that details do matter 5 years into Next Gen. Better late then never!
March 25, 2009 at 4:57 am
Im just praying Ncaa improves the defense or makes playing offense harder (like toning down the cuts when running like madden 10 is attempting to do)… so there arent 56-52 point games every game and the game being decided on who has the ball last
March 25, 2009 at 5:06 am
Wow. Great blog. The game looks amazing too. The depth of field makes the game look so real.
March 25, 2009 at 6:43 am
POCKET PROTECTING? 2009/2010, and they are trying to get down POCKET PROTECTING?
March 25, 2009 at 8:34 am
sounds promising…..looking forward to more details! ….same goes for madden!
March 25, 2009 at 10:19 am
yo pasta im not seeing any improvements in the screenshots. pocket protection?? this is something that should have happened when you created a football game!
March 25, 2009 at 1:14 pm
everything but defensive assignments from madden will be on ncaa 10
March 25, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Dude, they ain't adding in chain gangs and refs so they can do it next year and say "Groundbreaking new feature" LOL I'm still surprised everyone hasn't caught on.
March 25, 2009 at 2:22 pm
College football is all about atmosphere. It's really what separates it from the NFL. In addition to gameplay improvements, they need to bring the various stadiums to life. Amplify the crowd noise, highlight the big rivalry games, other than a comment and a graphic during the intro. They really need to step up the overall presentation to bring what is unique to the college game to the forefront. And I'm not just talking about showing the mascots more.
Updating the commentary would really help. If I have to hear Corso say those same sayings again this year I'm gonna scream. They need to leave him in the studio and just have a two man team during the games.
March 25, 2009 at 8:38 pm
I really am looking forward to this game. I didn't really buy any NCCA games until I baught NCAA Football 09.
March 27, 2009 at 6:00 pm
I dont understand why they can't add refs, coaches and the chain gangs….it would bring so much more excitement to the game.thats how u make the game realistic. to be honest they should have been added it like in 09.thats was a dumb idea to put in a mascot game anyway. its a waste of space and no one gets excited about playing the mascot game. rather than having something sooooo stupid add refs, chain gangs and coaches…and not only that but bring dreadlocks in the game…it's sooo many players that have dreads.that would bring more of a realistic factor in the game…dont put dumb things in the game…i dont understand whats so hard about that. just do it please…surprise us!!!!