Madden 2005: No sleep mode?

[catapult37]

Despite the surplus of DS games with which I now find myself, tonight I felt like looking for a game. I decided to check the CC clearance bin from the 8.96 sale. I was sort of hoping to find Madden 2005, and there it was, so I bought it.

Now, the game is exactly what the 5.0-average reviews would lead you to believe... subpar presentation, iffy graphics, semi-questionable AI ... but hey, it's a decent portable football game for $9.

However, one poor implementation that's bugging me a lot is that it doesn't seem to go into sleep mode when I close the DS. At first I thought I was crazy (hey... I thought it was only 2nd down!), but no, I eventually realized (after opening the DS to find my offense pushed back to the 1 yard line) that this thing wasn't sleeping. You can even see that the green light stays lit (like animal crossing, another game that doesn't technically sleep, but with good reason).

I think it really blows they didn't bother to implement sleep mode. It's one of my favorite aspects of DS gaming. Other people with this game, can you confirm it's not just my copy? Are there any other games that do this?

[daroga]

Wow, that sucks. That feature on the DS almost singlehandedly has kept me gaming the last year or so.

I think 05 was a (sloppy) DS launch title, right? I guess they just didn't get that sleep mode memo?

[catapult37]

I agree... when one is married, working full time, AND in school, waiting for a game to boot up can take up half your gaming time. :-)

Of course, I can just pause the game before shutting the DS, but I don't get the power-saving benefits of sleep mode. Can anyone out there who has this game confirm this behavior is "normal"?