Madden and NCAA Football screenshot update

EA Sports will be releasing a screen of a new alternate jersey every weekday. With the stated 50+ alternates that should run it all the way up to around release time. The first came out yesterday and displayed the Kansas Jayhawks red jersey. I won’t be doing a post for each screen but they will be added into the gallery on a daily basis or you can check the NCAA Football 09 website for them as they go up.

*Notre Dame now added to the gallery.

I have the full size Madden 09 snow screenshot which offers a much better look than the “micro” one that Gamestop decided to run with. Both “Madden Monday” full size screens can be found in the gallery.

NCAA Football 09 hands-on time this week

Later this week I will be in NYC for an event surrounding the unveiling of the NCAA Football 09 cover athlete. Also attending is Chris Jacobs from NCAA Strategies and David Wales from PSU. While there we will have an extensive amount of hands-on time with the game which should occur on Wednesday and Thursday. I’ll be coming back on Friday evening and then holding a live blog during the NFL Draft on Saturday.

We are expecting the latest build and we have been given free reign to discuss anything about it. Originally I had imagined a restricted build similar to what we used to get at E3 but apparently it will be the full thing. That means we’ll be able to dig into aspects such as online dynasty menus, campus legend changes, ect.

Keep in mind that this will still be an early build and I wouldn’t expect everything to be fully implemented and certainly the gameplay won’t be tweaked and balanced the way that it will by release time. While there should be a sufficient amount of time with the game it will still be somewhat limiting (please don’t expect extensive reports on Dynasty mode for example). The good thing about the timing is that our feedback will be directly considered and potentially acted upon. So given the circumstances look for the reports to be more informational than opinionated with full details of the feedback that has been given.

If you have any questions or areas you’d like to hear impressions or information on feel free to leave them in the comments. I can’t promise that I’ll get to all of them but I’ll definitely take them into consideration.

NCAA screenshot update: EA is releasing a new alternate uniform screen every weekday. The first one is Kansas which can now be seen here.

Gamestop Madden Monday: Inclement Weather

The Gamestop blog is back again this week with its “Madden Monday” entry. Last time it covered the user controlled celebrations and now they go over the topic of inclement weather. You can read it in full here.

Unfortunately the screenshot they posted originally was so small that it was difficult to really examine it for what they were describing. So I got ahold of the full size screenshot.

Update: Clicking the thumbnail below will bring up the image. Then click full size to view it as originally intended.

You’ll see deeper snow on the fields, with dramatic accumulation and realistic wear from play. Player’s footsteps will leave imprints, snow will be piled on the sidelines and the yardage lines will be shoveled, just like in a real game.

Improved color correction and stadium light bloom mean that you’ll see the steam of a player’s breath on a frosty night, as well as splashes of water when his feet hit the rain-covered turf. And the 3-dimensional interaction that snow and rain particles have with the wind may tempt you to bundle up when you play. You’ll see it all at a movie-quality 60 FPS rate on the Xbox 360 and PS3.

No mention is made regarding weather being a factor in online games this year which (along with night games) is something that has been sorely missing.

MLB 08: The Show roster update 4/21

This week’s (4/21) roster update for MLB 08: The Show is out and contains 114 player movements. There was also a patch released at the end of last week. What it affected is still unknown although it doesn’t appear to have improved online play and may just have applied to some of the minor issues the game had. Highlights of the roster update below. Those without online access can grab the file manually from here.

LF Wily Mo Pena moved from Nationals Minors to Nationals Position.
CF Shane Victorino moved from Phillies Position to Phillies Minors.
CF Jayson Werth moved from Phillies Bench to Phillies Position.
SP Dontrelle Willis moved from Tigers Starting to Tigers Minors.
SP Francisco Liriano moved from Twins Minors to Twins Starting.
3B Ty Wigginton moved from Astros Position to Astros Minors.
3B Geoff Blum moved from Astros Bench to Astros Position.
3B Nomar Garciaparra moved from Dodgers Minors to Dodgers Position.
RP Kazuo Fukumori moved from No Team to Rangers Minors.
3B Mike Lowell moved from Red Sox Position to Red Sox Minors.
1B Sean Casey moved from Red Sox Bench to Red Sox Position.
SS Royce Clayton moved from Red Sox Minors to Free Agent.
RP Josh Sharpless moved from No Team to Giants Minors.
RP Vinnie Chulk moved from Giants Minors to Giants Relief.

Madden 09 producer interacting with community

Madden 09 producer Phil Frazier, who took over for the departing David Ortiz, is actively responding to questions on the official forum for the game. While there are some things he obviously can’t go into detail on there have been several interesting pieces of information to come out of it.

After discussing the errors with uniforms in Madden in the interview I had with Peter Moore he stated he would make it a priority to get right. It appears that he has followed through on that promise.

We just did a comparison of the Madden uniforms vs. the uniforms that teams wore last year. As many have noted, we had several mistakes. We’re on top of this now and are working to make sure the teams in the game wear the uni’s that they most often wore during last season.

There won’t be refs on the field however it is something that will be looked at for next year. Apparently the poor online performance is a well known issue (how couldn’t it be?) and they are attempting to improve that situation. It sounds as though the video and screenshot feature for EA Sports World found in NCAA Football has been added. Offensive line slide protection will be returning. Also John Madden will be used in the game but supposedly not in the way we would expect (eliminate his possible return as commentator).

Those are just some of the topics touched on in the thread. Click here to read through it in its entirety or ask questions of your own.

Madden Mock draft picks 24-26

The Titans, Seahawks, and Jaguars are now up in the Madden Mock Draft. Tennessee has several areas where they could use immediate help while the other two teams are pretty well set at the majority of positions but could use either an additional playmaker or some depth.

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EA GameShow now web playable

Yesterday EA GameShow launched a flash version to go along with the downloadable version which has been available since October. That means you’re now able to play GameShow online without having to download the program. It can be launched directly from the official website. I haven’t yet been able to test it out to see if it is as responsive and as fully featured as the downloadable version.

This is another in a string of updates to the very addictive live interactive trivia game and there is a lot more in the works. While they have concentrated mostly on upgrading the functionality and look in previous updates (lighter CPU requirements, adding text chat and 360 controller support, improving avatar options) they will be attempting to address other areas in future ones (such as the 6X Chicken powerup being the only one worth using).

As has been the case all along they continue to actively seek feedback. You can leave your thoughts in the thread on the GameShow forum or here in the comments and I can pass them along. For anyone new to GameShow check out all of my articles on it by visiting the tag page.

EA Football World site launches

A few days ago EA Sports launched the EA Football World website. If you have already registered on EA Sports World then the same log-in will access Football World. Normally I wouldn’t take much interest in a site that is dedicated to soccer games (right now it is used solely for UEFA 2008). However it actually provides a look at some of what the Sports World website will offer when it relaunches this summer.

Immediately noticeable improvements include the removal of heavy flash elements which leads to the pages loading much quicker, widgets to customize your personal page, and the addition of ratings and comments on videos.

There have been many gripes with Sports World. Log-in issues, Gamertag/PSN linking issues, slow loading times, and not being able to upload videos to popular hosting sites are the most most commonly mentioned. Certainly having embeddable videos that could be stored permanently would be desirable. It also appears Football World is still missing a much needed password reminder/reset option.

I’ve been told that feedback regarding the EA Football World website could potentially be applied to Sports World. Since the site will play a part in upcoming titles such as NCAA Football 09 and Madden 09 the community feedback could be of huge benefit. So feel free to leave your thoughts and suggestions in the comments and I’ll make sure they’re passed along.

Who will be the PS3 NCAA Football 09 cover athlete?

On Tuesday I went over the top candidates for the Madden 09 cover. That, along with the PS3 cover of NCAA Football 09, are expected to be announced late next week. With the most obvious cover athlete candidate Darren McFadden already announced as exclusive to the 360 it opens up the opportunity for another high profile player to take the PS3 cover. EA Sports has stated that each cover will represent a different region so with McFadden the south is already taken. Lets look at the most likely candidates.

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Another Prizefighter preview

Eurogamer has posted up their preview of Prizefighter. You can check it out in full here. This follows the IGN preview which expressed some gameplay concerns but seemed encouraged by the story mode and presentation.

The alarming thing that came out of this preview is the news that losing a fight will result in your career being over.

As interesting as the documentary style of the game is, it’s also a somewhat limiting factor, since the developer hasn’t created any branching storyline elements within the format. Lose a fight, and you don’t get to stage a comeback - you just get a Game Over.

That basically means it would leave people resetting their console at the signs of it happening or going back to a previous save. Not exactly an ideal way to play a game. I believe there will be at least one scripted loss in the story (citing the corrupt judges) so it won’t necessarily mean a 50 win streak. I didn’t mind the linear storyline as it seems quite intriguing as is, but knowing it all ends due to an unscripted loss is bothersome to hear.

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