Amazon.com: NCAA 05 Football: Xbox: Video Games

63 Reviews

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3.9 out of 5 stars (63 customer reviews)

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54 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not a review, just a summary of new features., June 6, 2004

By	W. C. Bryant (Columbus, OH USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As I said in the title, this is not a review. I just want to save like-minded people some time, and summarize what makes 2005 different from the 2004 title. While this isn't platform specific, the biggest upgrade this year is for the Xbox, as EA and Microsoft have finally settled, and online play has finally arrived via XBLive. I'd like to not assign stars at all, but Amazon doesn't allow for pre-release non-reviews. So I'm assigning 5 stars based on NCAA 2004, and the promise of the following new features.

That aside (despite it being a huge issue), the following changes come directly from EA Sports announcements. What follows is verifiable on their website or with a few well-placed Google searches. I present it for convenience. These 'pre-release reviews' that always pop up for titles might as well serve a real purpose, besides of course the all-important "tHIs gAme iS dEFiNaTEly (sic) gOInG tO RAwK!!!" proclamations. But I digress, the summary follows, I intend to keep my personal commentary to an absolute minimum;

GENERAL GAMEPLAY IMPROVEMENTS:
- Big hits: The option to take a chance on really plastering another player. Increases the chance of a fumble or dropped pass, but also the chance of you whiffing on the tackle.
- Improved run blocking and new run animations: No more getting stuck against or behind your own linemen. Good offensive lines now open better holes and routes.
- Home Field Advantage: The bigger the stadium, the louder the crowd, the greater the impact. Pumping up the crowd carries more meaning and response. Visiting teams have to fight an uphill battle against the environment, based upon the strength of the home team's stadium and crowd.
- Interactive Timeouts: You're now given a choice on which group to coach, it can directly address ratings and composure levels depending on those of your team captains. You can now "ice the kicker" with timeouts, as composure is an issue for all players.
- Match-Up Stick: Player ratings (in game) can now change based upon the individual's ability to handle pressure. You can now check composure and mismatches pre-snap.
- Custom fans: Set up your own 'crazed' fans with a variety of options, accessories, appearances, etc. To add to the college gameday atmosphere, and...
- Custom celebrations: Choose to play a mascot, fan or player animation, decide between mild and extreme.
- More "user" stats: User pick tracking was well received, now more stats are tracked in this form in your record book.

DYNASTY MODE IMPROVEMENTS:
- Roster expansion to 70 (according to the producer, although 75 has been reported elsewhere). It's been down at 55 for years, which has been a source of frustration for those who enjoy dynasty mode.
- Top 25 Stadiums tracking: In dynasty mode, you can build home field advantage where there was little or none before, the top 25 places to play are tracked.
- Team Captains: As part of a deeply enhanced dynasty mode, you can now name captains.
- Program integrity: Dynasty depth - keep tabs on your players, you can now suffer academic issues and/or team rule violations. You choose how to discipline, and you can now actually lose scholarships, television exposure, and post-season play if you don't run a clean program. It also speaks to;
- Player transfers: You can now lose athletes to transfers if they're unhappy, and feel like they should be seeing the field more. You can also have players from other programs request a transfer in if you're not deep at their position.
- Recruiting pipelines: You can now build your presence outside of your immediate geographic region.
- Improved scouting: You can now unlock prospect attributes without offering a scholarship first.
- Better defined offensive/defensive coaching strategies: Speaks to play-calling, simulation and recruiting.
- Accurate conference schedule rotation.
- Athletes: You can now recruit a kid just for his athletic ability, and define or switch his position on the roster later. If you have a QB who would make a better FS or WR, you can switch him, and he will progress according to his new position, not the old.
- More/improved Sports Illustrated stories, magazine covers and insight throughout the season.
- More trophies. Added support for the Rimington and Doak Walker. 28 bowl trophies, 49 rivalry trophies.
- All-Conference teams. To supplement 1st and 2nd team All-American tracking.

ONLINE PLAY IMPROVEMENTS:
- Opponent scouting: They've added a new scouting report that allows you to check any player's (online) tendencies. You can look at their favorite playbook and formation, as well as look at how much they no-huddle, call hot routes, and audible. It's meant to try and cut down on the number of games wasted to opposition that cheats or otherwise plays in a manner you're not interested in.
- Quick tournaments: 4 or 8 player tournaments built right into the online system.
- Even team mode: An option that will allow an even playing field, regardless of the `real world' strengths and weaknesses of two programs/teams.
- Improved leaderboards.
- Minigames.

That's all I've come across so far, but it's a factual aggregation of information, all directly from the source. Either Electronic Arts, and/or Rod Moye the producer via an interview on EASports. None of this comes through third parties, or speculation. Given that, this looks to be one of the biggest leaps forward this franchise has enjoyed in some time. Particularly for Xbox fans as they finally get online play, but really for everyone. But enough, I now return you to your regularly scheduled, "tHiS gAMe iz dA bOMb!" 'reviews'.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best football game ever, Until August..., July 13, 2004

By A Customer

NCAA Football 2005 is the best football game out on the market since the beginning of the video game era. I purchased this game yesterday and havent even though about stopping from playing it! especially now with the feature of xbox live for EA Sports, Xbox has taken over Sony's Playstation 2(which i also have). Anyways, as you all know, the story to this years game is home field advantage. Home field advantage is EVERYTHING in this game. Especially when you go to kick a field goal. Make sure its not too far out because your controller is going crazy!

Another HUGE difference in this years game is the running system. It is WAY realistic. A little too realistic if i must say so. Much harder to return kickoffs for Touchdowns compared to last year when i could put Marlin Jackson back there and take 10 kicks back a year. Now your lucky to get out to the 30 yard line on a return.
Still with a decent runner in the low 80's rating, you can pick up a good 100 yards per game. Running is just a tad bit slower.

DEFENSE!...BIG part of this years game. The final scores of one of my regular season games was 7-0. Defense is really what sets this apart from Madden, which could be the deciding factor in my vote of the better game between Madden 05 and NCAA 05. The defense in last years Madden game was nearly non existant. You will notice a lot less interceptions than last years game. But pressure on the Quarterback comes up alot more.

Features...Same features as last year with the addition of the match up stick which shows how good the other players are in the match up and who has the better match up on defense or offense. Also online play really puts this game on a new level. College classics are still here tho they kept alot of the same ones from last year. Dynasty mode has changed a little bit with an addition of players getting in trouble i.e. not showing up for class or practice, etc. This gives you the choice of how long or if you want to suspend them.

Anyways this is the gist of the new features and gameplay in NCAA Football 2005. This could end up being better than Madden 05. But with the new hit stick and new rookies, itll be close. But this game is deffinitly worth atleast 50$. Go out and buy it or ill be forced to do the stunner. and GO BLUE!

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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars EA Hubris = Sucky Game, August 4, 2004

By	B. Dunn (SoCal, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Fun:2.0 out of 5 stars

So, even moreso than in years past, EA has figured out that the best way to make a football game is to make it impossible for the user to influence games' outcomes. (Ah, yes computer, why don't you just go ahead and play and I'll sit back and watch? Yes, that's worth $50.) Quarterbacks take off on their own, ignoring your inputs. Runningbacks override your juke commands. Your defensive linemen can't spin without falling down (and when they fall down, it's like raising the Titanic trying to get them back up). Most abhorrently, for some reason EA also decided that receivers should no longer be able to catch passes, which makes for some ridiculous statistics (receivers end up with more drops than catches).

There are some ridiculous slow-downs in the piece-o-crap title now as well. Last year's slowed down when the ball was near the goal line. Now it slows down at various random times, but especially when the vibration is going thanks to the "homefield advantage" nonsense. The game is now MUCH slower to let you escape out of its various celebrations/replays/other crapfests. Beyond that, the company has the gall to whore out its games even further -- you can no longer score a touchdown without finding out about Pontiac's fine employees and their horrible tag line.

The commentary and in-game stats displays are a complete mess. EA added virtually no additional commentary content, so you're still stuck listening to Nesler, Herbstreit, and Corso say essentially the EXACT SAME CRAP that they have over the last three years, much of it irrelevant to the gameplay. Additionally, this year's version has introduced some new bugs in the in-game stat displays. Sometimes, if you're inside your OWN 20, it starts going on about how bad your team is in the red zone -- and it counts that possession as a red zone trip. Beautiful, well-thought out, and meticulously tested. Obviously.

Someone else mentioned the colors are washed out. They are. The fields are a weird pale green color now, whether they're grass or turf. And for some reason, when your unis get grass-stained, the grass is day-glo green. You know, just like real life. Awesome design there. Oh, and playing on HDTV resolution doesn't work AT ALL as doing so causes massive frame-rate slow-downs.

As for the new features, sure the match-up stick is interesting enough, though it would be more interesting if your receivers were still allowed to catch balls thrown to them. The homefield advantage, though, is horribly implemented. In order to get your crowd pumped up, for some reason you have to hit the white button repeatedly. It's not challenging. It's not interesting. It's like being transported back to the mid-80's and playing Track and Field at the arcade. Ever wonder why there weren't more games where success depended on your ability to repeated tap the same button? Because it sucks. It's ridiculous.

I was pleased to see that this year's version allows you to create a custom playbook. Unfortunately, they seem to have eliminated most of the "good" plays that have existed in past years. There are very few plays going over the middle and all your wideouts are ever asked to do is run fly patterns. (In honesty, they DID fix the problem with playaction passes -- they no longer automatically result in sacks as they did in 2004.)

Playing Live isn't worth your time, since you can't adjust the sliders (remember that your receivers have no hands any more), so you're stuck with the game's worst-mongrel brand of default crap settings. Plus, if you accidentally unplug a controller in the middle of an online game, you get booted from the game. Just like in real life, again.

Absolute unbelievable EA Sports "we're the only game in town, so if you don't like it, take a hike" hubris-driven infinite pig tripe. The previous years' games were addictive and fun -- some of my favorite games I've ever played, though they got a little too easy after a few seasons. This one is much, much worse.

I got one for sale if you're interested. Relatively cheap.