NCAA Football 2009 Demo Now Live on XBL

TEST NCAA FILE

Its hard to believe that its almost football season, but both college and pros are reporting to camps and starting up again as we speak. NCAA 2009 promises to improve itself on many aspects and distinguish itself as its own franchise instead of the game you play until Madden comes out. The demo is live right now. Check it out.

NCAA Football 2009 – Opening Cinematic

Its almost summer and that means its time for the latest NCAA Football installment. Here is the opening cinematic of the 2009 version. These are always a good warm-up before Madden comes out, but this franchise needs to either improve itself fast or it will forever be just Madden’s little brother.

NCAA Football 2009 Debut Trailer

It’s not too early to think about football and we get a glimpse at the latest release in the NCAA Football library. The games have been good as of late, but it seems as if they have peaked. Graphics are good, gameplay is solid, but it just seems like a roster update and maybe a new mode here or there.

Black College Football Xperience Announced

BCFx

I’m a bit confused by this one here. I think the football gaming market is fairly saturated, but who knows. In an effort to diversify, Nerjyzed Entertainment in bringing Black College Football Xperience to the PC this November.

BCFx is a sports game that captures the unique culture of the black college football experience, fusing advanced videogame design with music, and entertainment. Nerjyzed has secured an exclusive 5-year licensing agreement with three HBCU conferences including the SWAC, SIAC, and CIAA, several schools within the MEAC as well as independent HBCUs. The game features more than 40 teams, bands and mascots; interactive halftime shows; realistic stadiums; play-by-play commentary; and ten authentic Classics.

I think we all learned a long time ago that using an uppercase “X” to start a word automatically makes your game awesome.

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OJ Simpson Forced to Pay Royalties from All Pro Football 2K8

OJ Simpson

In the very very remote chance he didn’t do it, I would feel bad for OJ. Not only is he giving up money left and right from his pension and other means to the Goldman family, but now he has to pay them any money he makes from his likeness being used in All Pro Football 2K8.

According to GamesIndustry.biz:

The fees, royalties and other compensation that Simpson was paid for appearing in All-Pro Football 2K8 will now go towards paying the USD 33.5 million judgement won by Goldman’s family in 1997.

Of course, there’s still the ever so remote possibility he didn’t do it. It’s more likely that aliens built the pyramids, but hey, there’s still a chance.

NCAA 2008 Review for Xbox 360

ncaa-fball-2008.jpgEA Sports had to reinvent their football platforms because the last few installments of both NCAA and Madden have been less than spectacular. The only caveat holding them back was the lack of competition. It seemed that since there are no other licensed titles, they were at a crossroads of sorts. It’s safe to say that after this release, EA Sports is back on the wagon for their football titles. NCAA 2008 gets back to the very basics and improves the core game play and delivers a monster title.

I bought this game at launch and really wanted to cover all angles before dropping the review on you guys. I also recently purchased a 46′ Samsung LCD TV at 1080p and 15000:1 contrast, so I really wanted to see the game on the big screen before making my final decisions so I apologize for the tardiness.

Presentation and Graphics: EA Sports games have not changed their menus and I see no reason why they should. If you have played one title, you have basically memorized the layout and thats a good thing. The great think about college football is the music and fanfare and this is very apparent in the game. You can pick your favorite team and will be greeted to their fight song and a trophy hall with the banners of their rivals and an empty case where your trophies will sit after you unlock them. More on that later. The game runs at a smooth 60 fps and looks absolutely awesome on HD. Their is little to no collision detection and the uniforms, especially the helmets really shine. One of the coolest things to do is play on Boise State’s blue field which looks stunning and a nice change of pace from the usual green. There is also a Weather Channel option when on Live. if you are playing in Texas today, and its 95 degrees in Austin, that will be the temperature of the game. 4 of 5

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All Pro Football 2K8 Demo Available for Xbox 360

All Pro Football 2K8 Image

In case you’re on the fence about picking up All Pro Football 2K8 because it doesn’t have an NFL license, you now have a demo to play around with and see if you want to drop your cold hard cash on this game.

The demo is out on the Xbox Live Marketplace and weighs in at 681.90 MB, so prepare to wait a bit once you start your download.

There’s also a Nascar 08 demo available for the 360, so if you prefer making left turns for 3 hours instead of fast paced football action, feel free to download that demo as well.

NCAA Football 2008 Impressions for Xbox360

ncaa-fball-2008.jpgThis is the next gen football experience we have all be waiting for. The past installments of both Madden and NCAA have been crappy at best but this year it really picks up. Some noticeable changes are how smooth the game looks at a nice 60 fps. The PS3 version is only 30 fps, so if you have both systems, this is the version to get.  Running the ball is a lot more fluid with running backs falling forward and reaching for first downs and actually breaking a tackle when the obviously have the defender beat. I noticed through the first five games I played that the defensive backs know how to defend a deep ball. Last year, any over the top completion was a walk in the park. Especially when the man was a star player, it was almost an easy 40 yard gain. Now, the man has to really be beaten with a pump fake, play action, or even a look off with the QB vision, the passing game is that much better. I have only begun to scratch the surface of the dynasty and create a legend modes. but you can play your H.S glory days by playing the state tourney with your “legend” and making him that much more sought after for the scouts in the crowd. Also, the achievments are actually very plausible with nothing like a “win 50 games in a row online” or anything like that. The only tough ones are the “set the single game record for rushing or passing” which are about 600 and 400 yards respectively.

Expect a full review soon after more gameplay but this is shaping up to be a thirty pack killer.

Madden 08 for PS3 Will Run at 60FPS

Madden 08 Screenshot

In contradiction to previous reports, Kendall Boyd, one of the lead developers and producer of NCAA 08, has confirmed that Madden 08 will in fact run at 60 frames per second on both the Xbox 360 and PS3.

NCAA 08, on the other hand, will only run at 30fps on the PS3. It’s Xbox 360 counterpart will run at 60fps.

This makes my decision on which version to get harder. I strongly prefer the PlayStation controller for Madden games, but also like the amount of friends I have on Xbox Live. Decisions….

All-Pro Football 2K8 Gameplay Footage

Here’s some gameplay footage from the Xbox 360 version of the new All-Pro Football 2K8.

I’m really not sold on this game. It looks like a very slightly better looking version of NFL 2K5. Yes, we all loved 2K5 when it came out, but it’s 3 years later. There needs to be some innovation and graphical upgrades here.