If I told you this is the alpha build for NFL 2k11 could you believe it.

T

Thomas96

CAGiversary!
I've been looking at a lot of video lately of things that the NFL 2k series does better than Madden. I posted a lot of videos in my blog. Anyway, I came across this video where Versuz (of youtube fame) made a video of NFL 2k5 and updated the rosters then made this a 2k11 trailer. Obviously the graphics aren't there which is why I look at it as an alpha build or a early build of a future game. But there's so much going on, so much detail that Madden doesn't have that I have to admit that with a new coat of (graphical) paint and a roster update, you could actually have a NFL 2k11. (if not for the NFL exclusive rights agreement.).

take a look...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZRR_gM5dcc
 
[quote name='Morrigan Lover']Play control was always better in the Sega games than the EA games. Same for the basketball games too.[/QUOTE]

back in the day when Sega was releasing these NFL 2k games, I had NO IDEA how good they really were. I didn't like them because of the charge up moves, but looking back at all the detail I have to admit that even to this day they still have the better game. Play control is one thing, but they also had the better animations and better A.I. which is most surprising.
 
To me, Madden has never surpassed NFL 2K5 as the best football game ever made. I know others love Madden, and great for them. I'm sure there are things they appreciate in it that I do not. But for me, I just can't get over how much a better game 2K was.
 
Its the presentation that's still unsurpassed. I still think EA isn't using their ESPN to their full advantage. Certainly not as much as 2k did. They used ESPN's in-game graphics(granted outdated now, but it was the version that was in use back then), and not to mention those Sports Center updates. Hell, they even managed to have Chris Berman and his mannerisms(ex, the way he says the Raiders). And in the off season, you hear Mel Kiper Jr talk about upcoming prospects and mock drafts.
 
I hope that apparel company wins it's lawsuit against the NFL (unlikely), as that would open the door for other developers like 2K Sports to get an NFL license.

Just imagine how good NFL2K10 would have been, and how much better Madden would also be with competition.

NFL2K5 was the last NFL Football game I ever bought.
 
Honestly, I don't play enough football games to really pick out and appreciate many of the differences between the franchises. That said, it was a chickenshit move by EA to buy out the NFL license. They got scared when NFL 2k5 launched at $20 and got stellar reviews. Rather than flexing their programming muscle and building a better game than Sega, they just took the ball and went home. It was a top to bottom bitch move.
 
[quote name='Halo05']Honestly, I don't play enough football games to really pick out and appreciate many of the differences between the franchises. That said, it was a chickenshit move by EA to buy out the NFL license. They got scared when NFL 2k5 launched at $20 and got stellar reviews. Rather than flexing their programming muscle and building a better game than Sega, they just took the ball and went home. It was a top to bottom bitch move.[/QUOTE]
well for us it's a bitch move

but it's pretty smart business-wise
but it still sucks.
 
[quote name='kainzero']well for us it's a bitch move

but it's pretty smart business-wise
but it still sucks.[/QUOTE]

I'm not so sure how smart it was. It's led to bidding wars on all the sports which in turn has led to basically no profitability on making some of these games. 2K Sports is struggling to turn a profit on the MLB. EA couldn't turn a profit on NASCAR. Even with the NFL license they've tried to put out 3 games a year just to recoup some of their investment. I'm still not sure how much actual money it's made them.
 
[quote name='Halo05']Honestly, I don't play enough football games to really pick out and appreciate many of the differences between the franchises. That said, it was a chickenshit move by EA to buy out the NFL license. They got scared when NFL 2k5 launched at $20 and got stellar reviews. Rather than flexing their programming muscle and building a better game than Sega, they just took the ball and went home. It was a top to bottom bitch move.[/QUOTE]
The NFL was the one that went exclusive and started a bidding war amongst interested publishers to decide who got the exclusive license. You would've gotten exclusivity no matter what, so EA didn't do anything but have more money to bid with than Sega to win that bidding war.
 
"Oh I gotchu again!"

If nothing else the 2K's always had a little personality. I sadly bought Madden 07 for the 360 cuz a friend said he would do an online league. Playing it for a week made me realize why I never bought a Madden before and will be hard pressed to buy one in the future. Lifeless doesn't even begin describe the Madden games.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']The NFL was the one that went exclusive and started a bidding war amongst interested publishers to decide who got the exclusive license. You would've gotten exclusivity no matter what, so EA didn't do anything but have more money to bid with than Sega to win that bidding war.[/QUOTE]

My Frisky Mustelid friend is correct. It's the NFL that has a hardon for exclusivity deals.

That's why there's only Madden for NFL videogames.

And only Direct TV for NFL Ticket (watch every NFL game for a yearly price).

And only Reebok as the apparel manufacturer.
 
[quote name='elwood731']I'm not so sure how smart it was. It's led to bidding wars on all the sports which in turn has led to basically no profitability on making some of these games. 2K Sports is struggling to turn a profit on the MLB. EA couldn't turn a profit on NASCAR. Even with the NFL license they've tried to put out 3 games a year just to recoup some of their investment. I'm still not sure how much actual money it's made them.[/QUOTE]
Well, we'll see.

Once the license for the NFL expires, I think EA already did the damage it needed to do. Kids will grow up knowing EA's version and may not be able to adjust to any other football game. EA also pretty much halted any competing product from emerging so it may be a while before someone comparable decides to challenge it.
 
I was so naive when EA got the exclusive contract with the NFL. I was so sure that they would continue to put out a great product. But after getting that contract the game just turned into a yearly roster update fest. EA also had the rights to the NCAA [for football] as well. But I think they lost that exclusivity right(s).

I think that the 2k brand is still pretty strong and that people know that they make sports games. So if they were to put out a football game I think they'd do pretty good. The problem is will people review the game fairly or will it become a Madden love fest. I notice that most reviewers DO NOT know how to review a football game. When All pro football came out, the reviews were dismissive of the game and failed to point out that it had features that were still not in madden. Anyway, a 2k11 or 12 game obviously won't outsell Madden, but it might put up some good numbers... with some good advertisement.

By having one football game, I just don't see how the NFL makes more money like that, than allowing multiple companies to purchase the license. you go from having about 3 or 4 NFL games to having 1... or two. I guess its probably less work to just let EA have the exclusive license. One time contract and that's it... no working each year trying to grant license here and there.

[what's sad is that Madden doesn't even properly represent the game of football.... what's worse is that of next year's game they hired Mark Turmell (NBA JAM fame) to not work on another NBA Jam game, but to work on Madden to make it more user friendly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEYxe6kvWao
]
 
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Unless this was to launch at $20 again, I doubt it would gain much traction against madden. For everyone who complains about it on here (or any other message board), there are 10,000 people that love the game. It sells millions each year for a reason.
 
[quote name='doodofdoods']couldn't care less if it outsells madden or not, i just want to play it. Don't like madden games.[/quote] +1
 
[quote name='mtxbass1']Unless this was to launch at $20 again, I doubt it would gain much traction against madden. For everyone who complains about it on here (or any other message board), there are 10,000 people that love the game. It sells millions each year for a reason.[/QUOTE]

you know I think that launching at 20 dollars is what killed the franchise imo. I think that when Sega released the 2k games at 20, that made them budget titles which made it seem like they were inferior to the full priced Madden game(s). If they release another 2k football game (w/ NFL License) then they need to release it at full price... or maybe at 40. But definitely not at 20 or 30, or else people will just dismiss the game all over again.
 
My biggest beef with Madden is that they released that god awful version in 07 for the PS3 just to cash in off the franchise. It was the first one I bought since 04 and it seemed so gimped in comparison I haven't returned to the franchise yet.

It has its flaws and it's a rehash every year, but it's not like they took exclusive rights and churn out crap. The attention to detail and minimal features might disappoint some but it's been a decent at it's core the past year or two. Legit competition will do football fans a huge favor.
 
2k sports were always amazing and it didnt hurt that new games started being sold for 20 or 30 bucks new. this si coming from someone who doesn like most sports games i sill play nba 2k9.
 
[quote name='Thomas96']you know I think that launching at 20 dollars is what killed the franchise imo. I think that when Sega released the 2k games at 20, that made them budget titles which made it seem like they were inferior to the full priced Madden game(s). If they release another 2k football game (w/ NFL License) then they need to release it at full price... or maybe at 40. But definitely not at 20 or 30, or else people will just dismiss the game all over again.[/QUOTE]
2K raised their prices back up to full price the next year, right? Nobody would really bat an eyelash at it being full price since they haven't made the one time gimmick a standard.
 
Yea, I believe they did. They only lowered it to $20 since they were already being badly beaten by the EA games and needed a gimmick to try and boost awareness of their products. It seems ever since then, the 2K series of games have gotten worse, NHL2K and the MLB2K used to be pretty damn good if not the best but now they're a distant second to The Show and EA's NHL games.
 
[quote name='Thongsy']Yea, I believe they did. They only lowered it to $20 since they were already being badly beaten by the EA games and needed a gimmick to try and boost awareness of their products. It seems ever since then, the 2K series of games have gotten worse, NHL2K and the MLB2K used to be pretty damn good if not the best but now they're a distant second to The Show and EA's NHL games.[/QUOTE]

They indeed did.

I, for one, bought all 2K titles that year that came out at $19.99. It didn't kill any franchise for me. If anything it made me want to buy more 2K games. The next year when they were back to full price, I sat on the sidelines.
 
I agree that releasing a new game at $20 would imply that the game is budget, or somehow inferior to the competitors product.
 
I loved how the 2k5 games (not just NFL) had the custom soundtrack integration - set songs to play for a touchdown, first down, kickoff, etc. Only thing missing was being able to use multiple songs for the same event so you didn't hear the same thing every time you got a first down. The same feature in NBA 2k5 was even better.

Actually, custom soundtrack integration was one of my favorite features on the XBox and one of my most missed features in the current gen. The above-mentioned 2k5 games, the tape deck/CD player in GTA Vice City/GTA 3, etc were all great. It's rare as hell to see anything use it these days - the Smackdown games have it but that's all I'm aware of. I know you can play your own music via the dash on the 360 while playing, but that's not exactly the same thing - it's just music playing over the game, it's not integrated into the game itself.

...got a little off-topic there. But yeah, 2k rules and Madden drools or whatever.
 
[quote name='KaneRobot']I loved how the 2k5 games (not just NFL) had the custom soundtrack integration - set songs to play for a touchdown, first down, kickoff, etc. Only thing missing was being able to use multiple songs for the same event so you didn't hear the same thing every time you got a first down. The same feature in NBA 2k5 was even better.

Actually, custom soundtrack integration was one of my favorite features on the XBox and one of my most missed features in the current gen. The above-mentioned 2k5 games, the tape deck/CD player in GTA Vice City/GTA 3, etc were all great. It's rare as hell to see anything use it these days - the Smackdown games have it but that's all I'm aware of. I know you can play your own music via the dash on the 360 while playing, but that's not exactly the same thing - it's just music playing over the game, it's not integrated into the game itself.

...got a little off-topic there. But yeah, 2k rules and Madden drools or whatever.[/QUOTE]

God I loved that feature on the Xbox. For Vice City and San Andreas, I made multiple custom soundtracks that mirrored the flavor of the real in game stations. So I had a classic hip hop mixtape, and new wave mixtape, etc.
 
I'm pretty sure that custom soundtracks are in the newer Madden games. A buddy of mine has Welcome to the Jungle by GNR play before every kick off.
[quote name='Thongsy']Yea, I believe they did. They only lowered it to $20 since they were already being badly beaten by the EA games and needed a gimmick to try and boost awareness of their products. It seems ever since then, the 2K series of games have gotten worse, NHL2K and the MLB2K used to be pretty damn good if not the best but now they're a distant second to The Show and EA's NHL games.[/QUOTE]
The exception being NBA2k, which have always been better than EA's offering.
 
[quote name='KaneRobot']I loved how the 2k5 games (not just NFL) had the custom soundtrack integration - set songs to play for a touchdown, first down, kickoff, etc. Only thing missing was being able to use multiple songs for the same event so you didn't hear the same thing every time you got a first down. The same feature in NBA 2k5 was even better.

Actually, custom soundtrack integration was one of my favorite features on the XBox and one of my most missed features in the current gen. The above-mentioned 2k5 games, the tape deck/CD player in GTA Vice City/GTA 3, etc were all great. It's rare as hell to see anything use it these days - the Smackdown games have it but that's all I'm aware of. I know you can play your own music via the dash on the 360 while playing, but that's not exactly the same thing - it's just music playing over the game, it's not integrated into the game itself.

...got a little off-topic there. But yeah, 2k rules and Madden drools or whatever.[/QUOTE]

MLB 09 has that. It's much better hearing uploaded music in gaming context - never was a fan of just blasting music over a game.
 
[quote name='QiG']My biggest beef with Madden is that they released that god awful version in 07 for the PS3 just to cash in off the franchise. It was the first one I bought since 04 and it seemed so gimped in comparison I haven't returned to the franchise yet.

It has its flaws and it's a rehash every year, but it's not like they took exclusive rights and churn out crap. The attention to detail and minimal features might disappoint some but it's been a decent at it's core the past year or two. Legit competition will do football fans a huge favor.[/QUOTE]

If you go onto Madden's main online menu, it seems that about 90 percent of all the options you have to pay extra for. The details that Madden is missing aren't just minimal details, but they're details that have something to do with the very game of football. Clock not stopping when you go out of bounds, The computer AI knowing your routes before your WR/TE even starts the route, Balls going through hands, hitting invisible walls, the computer slowing your man down when he's got a clear patch to the endzone... to make it appear the the computer caught up with you legitimately. The details that madden forgot are things that 2k got right in 2k5. You ever play madden and you wanted to perhaps replay one aspect of a play, however Madden will instead choose automatically what part of the play they want to review.... well in 2k5 and 2k8(all pro football) you can choose exactly what part of the play you want reviewed. Things that are all part of the game, part of the simulation, are still missing in Madden but have been present in 2k5 and 2k8 games.
 
An interesting note:

The highest rated games in the modern Madden series were 2004 and 2005, and those were also the highest selling games in the series. Competition seems to be a good thing, eh?
 
Doesn't the EA deal with the NFL run out this year? I doubt EA will try to renew it as their Madden games have not been selling as well as they had wished and are probably not making the revenue they had anticipated when the deal was struck in 2004. Hopefully, 2K will make a new NFL game for next year or something.
 
[quote name='ananag112']Doesn't the EA deal with the NFL run out this year? I doubt EA will try to renew it as their Madden games have not been selling as well as they had wished and are probably not making the revenue they had anticipated when the deal was struck in 2004. Hopefully, 2K will make a new NFL game for next year or something.[/QUOTE]

The deal was renewed in 2009 to extend through the 2012 season.

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/851/851316p1.html

The bigger question will be what will happen with this season (uncapped year) and the proposed lockout after the CBA expires at the end of the 2010 season. With the contract renewal coming up I wonder if the NFL and the Players Union will revisit the EA exclusivity deal or allow multiple publishers access to NFL rights.

At any rate I was surprised at how well that 2K footage has held up. Really miss that series and haven't purchased a Madden title in years (more for being bored with sports games than anything else).
 
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