 Do you like football video games? Do you like EA Sports' Madden franchise? If you don't and you wish that NFL 2Kx would return, I've got some bad news for you. EA Sports, the NFL, and the NFL Players Association have extended the current video game exclusivity contract by three years. Now there will be no other pro football game other than the one EA makes until the end of the 2012 season, which ends in February of 2013.
Yup. The only professional football game on the market for the next five years will be Madden. Sad news for those of you who loved 2K's football series before the contract in 2005, or if you liked NFL Blitz when it had pro teams.
Peter Moore, head of EA Sports (formerly head of Microsoft's Gaming Division, and Sega), stated in a press release: "For nearly two decades, EA SPORTS has been bringing sports fans closer to the great game of football through the breakthrough interactive experiences of our videogames. Game quality is our top priority, and we're committed to pushing our gameplay innovation, connecting football fans via rich online experiences and delivering the most visually stunning sports games on the market." Yeah. Game quality is their top priority...
In that same press release, the head of NFL Ventures, Eric Grubman declared "This is all about bringing authenticity and realism to NFL videogames...EA SPORTS continually works to maintain the cutting edge for NFL products across a variety of gaming platforms. We like the fact that they never rest." You know who else never rested? 2K Sports and Sony's 989 Sports. They both had good games (in fact, 989 was reworking NFL Gameday before the EA contract), but unfortunately, the NFL license had to go to the highest bidder.
However, the most worrysome thing to arise out of this development is a quote Peter Moore said in an interview with Kotaku: "Sports has that opportunity... to have levels or different types of teams delivered digitally, but I think we are a long way away from that...The model we currently have, where we have the game on the disc and updates every few weeks and some micro-transactions works for us. We continue to look at that, but we're still away from truly episodic." Oh boy, that might mean what all of you here love so much, DOWNLOADABLE EPISODIC CONTENT! Why do I think he's alluding to a future in which you will not buy Madden at a store, but rather over the internet and bulding your own game? An interesting concept, but I don't think it would work well with a football game, nor would it go over well with many gamers.
So, are you ready for some EA controlled football?!
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Tiger Woods 2008, released on multiple platforms this past September by EA Sports, has endured a beating normally reserved for rent-a-cars on most forums. Most of the complaints revolve around game freezes, instable EA online servers, lack of character clothing options and most importantly the hair-trigger analog controls. To the delight of old-school gamers, and possibly a welcomed addition to frustrated analog video golfers, EA (Electronic Arts) has brought back an old friend, the 3-Click swing meter. This article is not necessarily a full review of Tiger Woods 2008, but more of reflection on the reintroduction of this swing meter interface.
I admit I am an older gamer, and have been a fan of video golf games for some 30 years. I started out playing Computer Golf for the Odyssey II at home and Birdie King at the arcades. I was thrilled with the evolution of the golf game genre on all platforms including Big Event Golf (arcade), the PGA Tour series on the Sega Genesis, and the Links series for the PC. My virtual golf life ended with the release of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2001. The new analog stick swing interface replaced my tried and trusted ways. This was devastating for me. I did not have the time (due to work), to master this new video swing technology. I became frustrated since my drives off the tee went only 167 yards and usually in the trees or the muck bordering the fairway (on a good day, it being my fairway). Sure, there was Swing Away Golf for the PS2 that was the one game that still employed the 3-Click swing meter for the next generation systems (at that time) . It was just not the same game as my beloved PGA Tour series.
I first downloaded on the Xbox 360 the demo of Tiger Woods 2008 once I read that the 3-Click swing meter was brought back from the dead. Obviously I was very happy to be reacquainted with an old friend. I could once again compete off/on-line with a certain degree of competency right away. Naysayers will argue that the 3-Click swing meter makes things too easy and does not truly test the video golfers skill. I can not say that I completely disagree with this. However, EA did reopen up a market to all of the people that grew up playing and loving the original PGA Tour series.
Most of the complaints on this game have been addressed through two (2) game updates. Remaining issues mostly revolve around computer player AI and online play/server performance.
Overall, I am thoroughly enjoying Tiger Woods 2008 (Xbox 360 version). Though there are some problems with it, the reintroduction of the 3-Click swing meter has made me a born-again follower of the series.
Life on the links has been revived for us old-school video golf gamers!
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Earlier in the day, a vicious rumor began to surface regarding Peter Moore, the head honcho over at X-Box station. It was rumored that Mr. Moore would be resigning his position in order to take over the helm at EA sports. Well, after about 4 hours speculation this nasty rumor has been confirmed -- Peter Moore is leaving Microsoft for the publishing giant known as EA.
Of course, you may be wondering who will be taking over Peter's previous job. That person would be Don Mattrick. Previously he was an outside adviser for Microsoft, and oddly enough before that he was President of EA. Strange isn't it?
We here at RF Generation wish the best for Mr. Moore, and we certainly hope he finds himself at home at EA Sports. Somehow, I think he'll be rather quick to adjust from one monster of a company to another, but certainly we can't wait to see what Peter Moore does in his new job, or if he has any insightful comments he'd like to say about Microsoft's X-Box business.
Source: Kotaku
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