Quote: "But the game *isn't* the same every year. Just because football is football, doesn't mean every year they just update the roster database. The engines that run the game are always being updated in major ways--- for example if you look at the player faces for this year of EA sports games, they look 50x better than last year's. Also, they add entirely new features, too, like when they added Dynasty mode to NHL 2004, a mode that some would say is its best. It's not just roster updates--- I mean, the roster updates are available for free from EA for the PC version anyways"
Perhaps, but seriously speaking.. there isn't much more to the game itself. The faces might look better, which would be all well and good; but these games are not FPS where your staring at the faces, most of the time your camera is 100ft in the air and your watching people from the same perspective as TheSims.
I think what is irking people is the fact that gameplay never changes, they never try to add anything new. I really do like the games that break the usually mold of a series, by adding a new dimension without ruining what made the originals.
NBA -> NBA Street
Need for Speed -> Need for Speed Underground
Tony Hawks Pro Skater -> Tony Hawks Underground
maybe the new season rosters are available to PC owners for free, but problem is; almost everyone who plays these EA Sport games are buying the Console versions instead. Easier controls, Faster Gameplay (unless you have a top-end computer), etc..
they don't offer the same service to download the new rosters to save cards and upload them when the game starts. the technology is freely available for that to be viable though.
personally I feel a little cheated when a series of games never updates much.
it's like... Tomb Raider, each version there is always something new and new ideas behind level design. It was always the same game at heart but the subtle difference made my day
if all that had been update in Tomb Raider each version were better textures, and some 'see-every-blade-of-grass' engine. I'd of stopped at 2 and never touched it again. i don't care about how realistic a game is, i care more about how much fun it is to play.
the last Madden release, they could put it on the GameCube... why not? Because the DVD used on it is only 1.4GB; and this was a problem because..? Well because they had to add something like 25hrs of *real* NHL Training Videos.
SCREW THE F**KING VIDEOS, LET ME HAVE THE GAME! Surely the game itself didn't come over 1.5GB. I mean if it did, how come id Software can make the quite huge Doom3 fit into 1.44GB (including editor, installer, directx9, eax etc...) yet they can't fit a Madden game that is basically the same damn model with slightly edited variations, a few edited stadium models (with generic internals) and a few dozen textures into less than that?
This is why I don't buy the EA Sport games anymore. They're just a sodding rip-off. No offense to those working on the games, but EA is just pedalling the same damn games over and over.
I mean what's next 'realistic crowd heckler'?
