With Operation Sports having released a video which displays team rankings and ratings I feel comfortable in going forward with listing out the top 25 teams in NCAA Football 09 (I’ll continue to hold off on the toughest places to play and top player ratings). When it comes to the actual team ratings I wouldn’t put much stock into those. I began taking them down before realizing that the numbers were different each time I viewed the team.

While the top 25 may not be finalized (LSU will probably drop) this should at least offer an idea of how the best teams in the game will fall in place.

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Through an interview with producers Justin Withers and Ronnie Morales I was able to get a good idea of everything involved with the setup/procedures and new features that are being rolled out this year with EA Fantasy Football. The confusion created by the previews that have been released on it should be taken care of thanks to this discussion.

First of all the website based leagues remain. Drafting through the websites will function as normal. They are still completely free including the live web-based drafts and even the live stat tracking. The exporting of teams into Madden 09 will work for all types of leagues regardless of whether they use the website or live console draft.

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Though it was known to be in development, EA Sports has made official that Fight Night Round 4 will be coming to the 360 and PS3 in 2009. They’ve also revealed the first details on what to expect. This is the first time in nearly a decade that Mike Tyson will be featured in a boxing game. You can check out the full press release here. The important info from it can be found below.

Featuring a re-written gameplay engine, EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 4 will add a variety of fighting styles and boxer differentiation to authentically emulate the greatest fighters of all time. Pressure your opponent with the brawling inside style of young Mike Tyson, bobbing and weaving to set up powerful hooks and uppercuts. Capitalize on Muhammad Ali’s reach, hand speed and fleetness of foot to bewilder your opponent with lightning fast jabs and straights from the outside. For the first time in history, EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 4 gives you the opportunity to pit these legendary heavyweights against one another and name a true champ.

No fight will be the same with an all-new physics-based animation system that recreates the full spectrum of true-to-life punch impacts, giving boxers a devastating arsenal of punches, blocks and ring movement. The new physics system allows for missed punches, glancing punches, knockout blows and for the first time ever, rough and tumble inside fighting. Fatigue, adrenaline, footwork and timing all come into play as you hammer away at your opponents.

Taking a page out of the wildly successful customization aspect in Forza 2, EA Sports is bringing the “Paint Booth” feature to Nascar 09. This will give players a way to completely customize their cars and race with them in the game. They’ll even transfer into online racing.

Utilizing the all-new Paint Booth feature, NASCAR fans can now take in-game personalization to the next level by giving users the ability to completely customize their car from start to finish. In addition, for the first time in franchise history, a car customization template is available online which creates endless possibilities for personalization. Players will be able to see their friends custom designed car skins when racing against them online.

The online connectivity of Paint Booth allows players to download a car template from easports.com and import it into editing programs, such as Photoshop, giving users a multitude of design options. They can then upload those images into the game and show off their dream machine on the track.

You can check out demos of the feature here at the game’s official website.

It’s that time of the year when the cover athletes for the upcoming NBA games become a topic of discussion. Given that the NBA Live cover is expected to be announced first and that 2K has shown the tendency to stick with one guy for multiple years (considering the season Chris Paul had that seems likely to continue) this will be a breakdown of the most likely candidates for the NBA Live 09 cover.

Over the past three years the cover of NBA Live has been announced between late April and mid-June. In 06 it was Dwayne Wade (May 9th), in 07 it was Tracy McGrady (June 21st), followed by 08’s Gilbert Arenas (April 28th). Typically they’d like to announce it when interest in the NBA is high and that certainly is never more than during playoff time. It wouldn’t be surprising if the news came out as early as this week.

The Live covers have generally gone to players who have been high profile, successful, and relatively young. With that in mind lets take a look at the top eight possibilities for the cover of NBA Live 09.

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Earlier I posted my general experience and thoughts on things more related directly to the gameplay. Now in part two of my hands-on with NCAA Football 09 I’ll detail some of the new features that have been added. There are some big ones that should be really well received and others that will greatly enhance the overall gameplay experience.

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After getting a significant amount of time with NCAA Football 09 I’ve compiled my initial thoughts on the game and details on features. The games were played on All-American difficulty and five minute quarters and I took part mostly in head-to-head. You can check over at NCAA Strategies and PSU for more hands-on details as well.

Because of the vast amount of info there is to lay out I’ve broken it into two parts the second of which can be found here. Part one goes over things that relate more to the gameplay and part two will concentrate more on the new features (homefield, online dynasty, ect). Keep in mind that this is an early build still very much a work in progress and that some of the issues mentioned can be improved on or fixed by release time and hopefully the feedback will help lead to that happening.

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This morning’s press release announcing Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 included some details of what to expect this year. Tiger Woods’ personal coach Hank Haney will assist gamers and contribute to dynamic personalized gameplay along with enhancements to Gamernet and online play. The game will be releasing on Tuesday August 26th.

Looking to drive the ball long and straight? Trying to nail the pin with the approach shot? An all-new addition to this year’s game, Haney will assist gamers as they hit the links and try to advance their career to win the FedExCup. In Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 09, a player’s skill level is dynamic, constantly adjusting throughout the round just as it would during a real afternoon out on the links. Following each round, Haney will deliver customized feedback on a player’s performance. This feedback system allows all gamers, rookies or PGA TOUR pros, to compete and enjoy the game at any level.

This seems to be a trend in the 09 titles. From the QB challenge after interceptions in NCAA, to Madden 09’s backtrack feature, to this EA is attempting to assist players in learning how to play the games and improve their skills the right way.

EA SPORTS GamerNet is a ground-breaking online innovation that features a refined, easy-to-use interface in Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 09. EA SPORTS GamerNet challenges, such as long drive, approach shots and putting will be delivered instantly throughout all game modes and players will have the ability to post their challenges from the fairways. EA SPORTS GamerNet also features an all-new daily leaderboard and challenges customized to fit an individual’s playing style.

I don’t remember specifically the issues people had with Gamernet last year, outside of the frustration of knowing most of the shots that were up could not be replicated.

Online play has also been enhanced with Simultaneous Play. This all-new online engine gives up to four players the ability to play each hole at the same time, allowing players to get in a rhythm, swing when they are ready and make one round of golf even faster and more competitive than ever before possible.

This is certainly a positive change. No one wants to sit around doing nothing for half the time. Keeping the pace and action up will make online games much more enjoyable.

Thanks to the official press release regarding the selection of Brett Favre for the cover of Madden 09 we now have the first idea of some big features in the game. The likely NFL Network duo of Tom Hammond and Cris Collinsworth will be featured as the commentators for Madden 09 and online leagues have been added.

Madden NFL 09 strives to take authenticity and depth of gameplay to an new level with more than 85 new features and enhancements, including the all-new Total Control Animation system. This system will allow players to perform combination moves like never before and includes an innovative picture-in-picture playcall window. In Madden NFL 09, the game engine is continually assessing the player’s performance and will adapt a custom experience to every type of gamer, from newcomer to the veteran Madden NFL player.

Madden NFL 09 will also feature a network-inspired broadcast presentation. Players will benefit from the authentic football knowledge of an in-booth play-by-play and color commentary team featuring Cris Collinsworth and Tom Hammond. In addition, numerous graphical enhancements have been made, including realistic weather and grass, sleeker player models and exterior stadium views.

Madden NFL 09 gives gamers the ability to create online leagues. Fans can now take their rivalries online and compete in leagues with up to 32 teams. Online league play will feature in-depth stat tracking and a flexible scheduling option.

Seems like a good choice for commentators. Regardless of who they went with some people weren’t going to like them but there were some possibilities that would’ve been much worse. After finding out all the details regarding online dynasty in NCAA Football 09 I’m encouraged that the online leagues in Madden will have all the options and flexibility that would be necessary.

He may be retired but Brett Favre is the cover athlete for Madden NFL 09. This is the first time a non-active player has been selected for the cover. The news comes out of an appearance on the David Letterman show tonight (which tapes earlier in the day) and has been confirmed by GameDaily. There is also a show on the NFL Network scheduled for Saturday at 10am ET that will showcase the history of Brett Favre and the Madden franchise. The official press release is expected Friday morning.

It is fitting that Favre will represent the 20th Anniversary of Madden. His long and storied career can be revisted in the same manner that EA Sports will be doing with the 20th anniversary of Madden.