Madden NFL 2003

by Electronic Arts

Product Features

• Platform: Xbox
• ESRB Rating: Everyone
• Genre: Sports

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000690ZV
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: August 12, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,829 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

EA's Madden NFL 2003 maintains the series' status as one of the most engaging game franchises ever. This perennial favorite has updated everything from the spanking new venues (including the Seattle Seahawks Stadium) to the ability to now list pre-existing injuries to current players. If you haven't played previous versions, learning all the controls can be a daunting task. You can control everything from calling audibles to throwing a touch or bullet pass--all while the play clock runs down. But half the fun of this game is in the level of detail you can control, including off-season drafts and free-agent signings, game time, weather, and sensitivity to penalties. Madden NFL 2003 has taken video sports gameplay beyond the action on the field--although the gameplay is seamless and the graphics are impressive on the Xbox. They've created a world where you are equally the owner, general manager, coach, and player. The time and attention you must dedicate to creating your team, along with superbly realistic gameplay and sportscasting, immerse you in your team's fate, making the action all the more compelling. --Sung Nicholas Kim

Product Description

Madden NFL 2003 teams up with Xbox to deliver one of the best gaming experiences in the history of football gaming. EA's smash-hit franchise gives you new power, authenticity and excitement. You can control every in-depth aspect of the game and experience an interactive audio and visual environment like never before. Poised to become the competitive standard for interactive football gaming, Madden NFL 2003 promises a big year for football fans and video gamers everywhere!

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Madden/2K3/Fever Debate ends here, August 27, 2002

By 

Thomas LaPlant "kaemyr" (seattle wa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Madden NFL 2003 (Video Game)

Madden 2003 is the best football game out there in every aspect except possibly one; Graphics. Sega's NFL 2K3 takes that category, but not bu much. However, Madden takes everything else. Gameplay is tight, so when you press a button, it corresponds instantly. Realism is amazing. Players act and move like actual NFL players. The 'Ask Madden' feature is great, and it actually relates to the game. So if it's 3rd and 18, Madden will tell you to pass.

No one comes close to touching Madden in Game Modes. Mini-camp mode is very fun and addictive. Football 101 explains how to play the game, Create-a-Playbook is a great way to learn how to set up plays, and various other modes will keep you playing for hours on end.

Game sounds are realistic, and really help the game. The music is awesome. There are 11 songs, not just one, so you don't get one annoying song stuck in your head.

Overall, Madden is the best football game for any system right now in existence. There are so many ways to enjoy this game, so go buy it and try to find them all.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So you want to coach in the NFL..., August 23, 2002

By 

Gabriel Perdue (North Aurora, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Madden NFL 2003 (Video Game)

Madden NFL 2003 is a definite improvement over last year's offering but a few minor flaws will keep the game from earning five stars.

I'll discuss what I don't like about the game first. There are three main problems: the music, the graphics, and your profile manager. For some reason EA has decided to drop standard menu music and use a host of tracks all straight from the latest beer comercials. Non-standard menu music is potentially a good thing, but a poor selection of songs is not. Don't get me wrong, not all of the music is terrible and you can skip over songs you don't like, but the feature is screaming out for the ability to play songs from the hard drive.

Graphically speaking, 2003 is sharper and clearer than 2002 with much better and more varied player animations. The crowd looks much better as well (before it was so bad it was distracting). Unfortunately though, the graphics engine is optimized to the lowest common denominator of the multiplatform world and doesn't take advantage of the immense power of the Xbox.

A final complaint is that in last year's edition of the game you could save your playbook choice to your profile. Now you can't and have to choose your playbooks before every game.

Of course, what makes that such a problem is the absolutely fantastic new playbook editing features. You can completely customize your playbooks for offense and defense, drawing from any of the playbooks in the game and you can create your own plays and even entirely new formations. Of course you can also edit any existing play or formation. I believe it is this feature and its astounding depth that will keep fans of franchise style simulation football playing this game until the 2004 edition is released. There is so much room for creativity on the offensive side of the ball that is just unbelievable. It is much harder to design a new defensive formation that really works well against the computer beyond the standard 4-3, 3-4, 46, Nickel, Dime, and Quarter formations, but trying to do so will teach you why those formations work and help you to design new plays for them. Overall, the editable playbooks will really reward you for understanding your team on its deepest levels. You will need to change it constantly as your team changes and you face different opponents with different styles. On offense, if you have a multi-dimensional talent like Marshall Faulk, you can design formations that exploit the mismatches he creates. On defense you can design plays that optimize the talents of your different players. So, for example, if you have a great coverage linebacker who tackles poorly and a fast, hard-hitting safety who covers poorly, you can design a few plays that allow them to switch responsibilites and catch an unwary offense off guard. Of course, where the editable playbooks will really shine is in head to head confrontation with a friend as the better prepared will have a huge advantage. I really can't say enough about how cool this feature is and how much it adds to the simulator experience.

Another new feature to the game is the Minicamp. There are 30 camps (although only about ten or so totally different drills) that try and teach basic football skills through drills and applied game situations. The feature is nice and finally provides a good way to learn how to play defense effectively.

The franchise mode is where a Madden fan will likely spend most of his or her time and it has been improved as well. You now get four preseason games that you can use to evaluate and even improve your players. So if you've got a hot new rookie you can actually make him a lot better if you're willing to risk injury by exposing him in all the games. The only annoying part of the preseason is that the computer will keep starters in for unrealistically long periods early in the preseason. Another new feature to the franchise mode is the Scouting Combine which goes a long way towards making the draft more of a game within the game. However, they still haven't quite gotten the true feel of a draft...you will basically never find sixth or seventh round gems. The talent is mostly gone by the end of the third round.

Finally, the gameplay in 2003 is much improved. It is fairly obvious the folks at EA listened to our complaints because the defenses are, overall, much tougher and smarter. You can no longer rush for 200 yards and throw for 400 yards on any difficulty in every game at will anymore. You have to work for your yards. Fifty yard field goals are not automatic. The end result of this is a much more realistic game of football, with more realistic scores, stats, 3rd down percentages, and so on. The audio commentary is definitely improved even though they recycled way to many lines from last year. Al Michaels is a nice change of pace and does a fine job in his debut here.

So, in the final analysis, if you liked last year's Madden, you're going to love this one.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Same strengths, same flaws, September 17, 2002

By 

Matthieu P. Raillard (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Madden NFL 2003 (Video Game)

Another year, another Madden. One really can't go wrong this year, as both Sega and EA sports have put out 2 great games. Here is my take on Madden:

PROS: Very deep gameplay, multiple modes (great new Mini-camp option lets you work on specific aspects of football), realistic football simulation. Graphics are quite good, although a good bit of clipping happens, especially during replays. Game sounds are pretty good, too. Overall, a lot of fun.

CONS: Computer can still pick you apart with the passing game. QB's are hard to sack, even with the best D-line you can have, and average receivers will routinely make spectacular grabs while triple covered by pro bowl defensive backs. CPU clock management is better, but the computer will still call a play and line up with only 2 seconds to go before the 2 mnts warning. The control is good, but a bit jerky and unrealistic when tackling. The voice commentary gets old FAST. The good folks at EASports recycled at least half of Madden's "unique" sayings from last year's game, which is ... cheesy.

Overall the positives outweigh the negatives, but I just wish someone could get pass coverage right for a change...