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IGN Review of NCAA Football 10
As we enter into the month of August the college football season is just around the corner. As they do every year, EA Sports has inundated just about every system – less the Wii – with a new version of NCAA Football. Such is the case on the PSP where handheld fanatics will find the new Road to Glory mode, the super-sim ability that console fans have enjoyed for years, and a new progression system designed specifically to move your fledging star through the ranks.
But does all of that amount to a game worth its sticker price or is the gameplay still stuck in the rut set by last year's effort? Read on for the answer.
It's no surprise that TeamBuilder and Season Showdown didn't make it into this version of NCAA Football 10. The infrastructure required to support those features simply doesn't make sense on the PSP. What you will find is a slightly trimmed down version of Road to Glory, the mode where you craft an incoming freshman, run through a series of specialized drills, and then build him up into the campus legend that we all wish we were in our college days.
Unlike the console versions, Road to Glory begins with drills rather than the high school playoffs. The drills you run through are dependent on your position for the most part. After you're done earning a solid stable of attribute points, it's time to pick from a list of schools that offer you a scholarship. I found that, as a quarterback, my attribute points were relatively limited compared to when I was, say, a defensive lineman. The drills were much easier as a defender compared to the QB position. As a defensive end I earned a scholarship to #1 ranked Florida, while as a quarterback I was relegated to #30 Miami for my best offer.
Once you've selected a school it's time to decide on a major, hit the books and make your way to the practice field to improve your player. I have issues with every aspect that I just mentioned. For starters, your major. You select from easy, medium and hard subjects to study. They range from college football knowledge to actual majors like mathematics and world geography. Why things like "ESPN" are included on the list doesn't make much sense, but it is a videogame so I guess it gets a pass in that regard.
When you have an evening event you're presented with a list of activity options. You can either hit the books in the library, meet with a tutor, meet with one of your coaches or engage in an "evening social gathering" (party your face off). When you attend to your studies you're typically given a practice exam to take and it has questions that match your field. It's a pseudo-mini-game of sorts but it's more an annoyance than anything else. Practicing also makes very little sense. As a quarterback I was penalized points for a running play that went awry. As a defensive back, putting pressure on the quarterback didn't amount to a damn thing if he made a solid pass. Why are my coaches not giving me individual credit for a job well done?
Thankfully things get a bit better once Saturday rolls around and it's time for a real game. An Erin Andrews image pops up on the pause menu and relays several goals for you to accomplish. Doing so will net you needed attribute points that you can then use to bump up your player's skills as you see fit. The goals adjust depending on past performances and what team you're playing. I'm glad it's not just static requirements, but I do wish that attribute bonuses were also assigned more organically through play on the field.
Once you build up your collegiate stud, you'll start to earn trophies that go in your dorm room and you'll earn notoriety around campus. None of that stuff is very substantive to the overall experience, but it's cool to see nonetheless.
Probably my biggest complaint with NCAA Football 10 on PSP is the on-field action. It's too limited and there are too many inaccuracies for it to be known as a fluid football experience. Passing can be a real nuisance, just as it was last year. Icons still pop up and flash either red or green to let you know whether it's safe to pass to a receiver, but the mechanic is totally broken. I was better off simply reading the defense on my own rather than relying on the signals. That said, even when passing to an open receiver passes were seldom on target and sometimes dropped by wide-open players. These guys are Division 1 college athletes. They can catch open passes and they can damn sure make accurate throws, regardless of how good a program they're playing for.
My other issue with the football action on PSP is that there's no easy way to pull off a juke like you can on consoles. With no right analog stick it's a bit hit or miss whether you're going to be able to time your juke properly. Toss in the fact that the momentum meter doesn't make a lick of sense (playing at home, up 14 points and it's 3rd and 20 for the other team but they have the momentum?) and my on-field enjoyment was dampened significantly.
The visuals in NCAA Football 10 took a bit of a different turn this year on PSP. Some might say they're even inspired by the look of Madden on the Wii. Uniforms have colors that really pop off the screen and the same can be said about the field. Animation systems look identical to what we've seen in the past and aren't quite as tight as what's seen on consoles. On the audio side the GameDay crew is serviceable when harnessed to a UMD disc. There are obvious loading times and they aren't as active as on consoles, but what's here isn't bad. I like the new enhanced hitting effect. It really makes the tackles pop. Crowd effects do these games justice as well, even through the PSP's tiny speakers.
©2009-07-28, IGN Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved
But does all of that amount to a game worth its sticker price or is the gameplay still stuck in the rut set by last year's effort? Read on for the answer.
It's no surprise that TeamBuilder and Season Showdown didn't make it into this version of NCAA Football 10. The infrastructure required to support those features simply doesn't make sense on the PSP. What you will find is a slightly trimmed down version of Road to Glory, the mode where you craft an incoming freshman, run through a series of specialized drills, and then build him up into the campus legend that we all wish we were in our college days.
Unlike the console versions, Road to Glory begins with drills rather than the high school playoffs. The drills you run through are dependent on your position for the most part. After you're done earning a solid stable of attribute points, it's time to pick from a list of schools that offer you a scholarship. I found that, as a quarterback, my attribute points were relatively limited compared to when I was, say, a defensive lineman. The drills were much easier as a defender compared to the QB position. As a defensive end I earned a scholarship to #1 ranked Florida, while as a quarterback I was relegated to #30 Miami for my best offer.
Once you've selected a school it's time to decide on a major, hit the books and make your way to the practice field to improve your player. I have issues with every aspect that I just mentioned. For starters, your major. You select from easy, medium and hard subjects to study. They range from college football knowledge to actual majors like mathematics and world geography. Why things like "ESPN" are included on the list doesn't make much sense, but it is a videogame so I guess it gets a pass in that regard.
When you have an evening event you're presented with a list of activity options. You can either hit the books in the library, meet with a tutor, meet with one of your coaches or engage in an "evening social gathering" (party your face off). When you attend to your studies you're typically given a practice exam to take and it has questions that match your field. It's a pseudo-mini-game of sorts but it's more an annoyance than anything else. Practicing also makes very little sense. As a quarterback I was penalized points for a running play that went awry. As a defensive back, putting pressure on the quarterback didn't amount to a damn thing if he made a solid pass. Why are my coaches not giving me individual credit for a job well done?
Thankfully things get a bit better once Saturday rolls around and it's time for a real game. An Erin Andrews image pops up on the pause menu and relays several goals for you to accomplish. Doing so will net you needed attribute points that you can then use to bump up your player's skills as you see fit. The goals adjust depending on past performances and what team you're playing. I'm glad it's not just static requirements, but I do wish that attribute bonuses were also assigned more organically through play on the field.
Once you build up your collegiate stud, you'll start to earn trophies that go in your dorm room and you'll earn notoriety around campus. None of that stuff is very substantive to the overall experience, but it's cool to see nonetheless.
Probably my biggest complaint with NCAA Football 10 on PSP is the on-field action. It's too limited and there are too many inaccuracies for it to be known as a fluid football experience. Passing can be a real nuisance, just as it was last year. Icons still pop up and flash either red or green to let you know whether it's safe to pass to a receiver, but the mechanic is totally broken. I was better off simply reading the defense on my own rather than relying on the signals. That said, even when passing to an open receiver passes were seldom on target and sometimes dropped by wide-open players. These guys are Division 1 college athletes. They can catch open passes and they can damn sure make accurate throws, regardless of how good a program they're playing for.
My other issue with the football action on PSP is that there's no easy way to pull off a juke like you can on consoles. With no right analog stick it's a bit hit or miss whether you're going to be able to time your juke properly. Toss in the fact that the momentum meter doesn't make a lick of sense (playing at home, up 14 points and it's 3rd and 20 for the other team but they have the momentum?) and my on-field enjoyment was dampened significantly.
The visuals in NCAA Football 10 took a bit of a different turn this year on PSP. Some might say they're even inspired by the look of Madden on the Wii. Uniforms have colors that really pop off the screen and the same can be said about the field. Animation systems look identical to what we've seen in the past and aren't quite as tight as what's seen on consoles. On the audio side the GameDay crew is serviceable when harnessed to a UMD disc. There are obvious loading times and they aren't as active as on consoles, but what's here isn't bad. I like the new enhanced hitting effect. It really makes the tackles pop. Crowd effects do these games justice as well, even through the PSP's tiny speakers.
©2009-07-28, IGN Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved