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Madden NFL 08
(EA; Xbox 360, Xbox, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, GameCube, DS, and PC; Everyone)
It's about that time. Time to crack those knuckles, limber up those fingers, and prepare yourself for the kind of football that people afraid of actual physical injury are born to play. In other words, it's Madden time.
This year's edition has everything you've come to expect from a franchise old enough to be in junior high: The hits are helmet-quakingly jarring (perhaps too jarring; players seems to fumble here a lot more than before), the team rosters have been updated (though Michael Strahan was playing for the Giants in the preseason game I played), and the presentation — at least, if you're lucky enough to be playing on an Xbox 360 — is silky smooth (with all kinds of new animations, from jukes to end zone celebrations).
And, as usual, there's a depth to the game that offers plenty of rewards to the adventurous and detail-obsessed. If you want to learn the ins and outs of wielding your team weapons — players with specific superstar skills (power rushers, speed backs, thinking defenders, possession receivers, etc.) — go for it. If you want to play general manager and get involved in trade deadlines, stadium building, and ticket pricing, have a blast. You want to just boot up and kick ass? Still there for ya — and the controls are pretty much exactly as they've been for decades. Innovation built on solid gameplay are the hallmarks of any great sports videogame franchise — and Madden NFL 08 clearly has both. Whether you're the kind of person who spends hours playing an entire 16-game, regulation-time season or one who likes the quick-and-dirty, five-minute-quarter brawls, this game remains the perfect way to get your smashmouth on. A — Marc Bernardin
