The Football Video Game Thread

[Lucky Colts Fan]

If someone wants to make a thread about all video games, feel free.  I don't like most video games, but I LOVE football video games, so that's what this thread is about.

 

I have been playing football video games since I was a kid (20+ years), and I'm not ashamed to admit that I still enjoy them as much now as I did then.  I love playing Madden because I can be the Colts, and I love playing NCAA Football because I can be Notre Dame.  (Big Thank You to EA Sports for making this possible for most of my life!)  I love building the teams up with good players.  I love playing the game.  I love it.

 

I hope I'm not the only one that's rocking this boat.  Anyone else enjoy football video games?

[PrincetonTiger]

Sports Video games are the only games I can play

[Lucky Colts Fan]

1 minute ago, PrincetonTiger said:

Sports Video games are the only games I can play

 

  At this point in my life, unfortunately, I have to agree with you.

 

I used to think I was athletic enough to play at a high level, especially since I was the same size as Bob Sanders.

 

But those days are over.  Now I have to live vicariously through my video game players.

[PrincetonTiger]

1 minute ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

  At this point in my life, unfortunately, I have to agree with you.

 

I used to think I was athletic enough to play at a high level, especially since I was the same size as Bob Sanders.

 

But those days are over.  Now I have to live vicariously through my video game players.

Since I can only use one hand most video games are a real struggle

[Yoshinator]

Today, I mostly play Madden and MLB the Show. I will still play my games on the SNES, N64, and Gamecube though that I grew up with. Never sold 90% of my games, so when Video Game prices went up, I never had to spend extra money to get them back. Still play Mario, Zelda, Pokemon (former state and regional champion and #1 ranked player in the world at one point). Just into sports a lot more now and fantasy sports in particular. Madden competitions seem like a logical next step, but I'd have to upgrade my PS3, and buy a new version every year as well as upgrade Cards.

[Yoshinator]

1 minute ago, PrincetonTiger said:

Since I can only use one hand most video games are a real struggle

Wow, I'm sorry man. I feel really bad for you and hope you can live your daily life ok. Do what you can!

[Lucky Colts Fan]

2 minutes ago, Jared Cisneros said:

Today, I mostly play Madden and MLB the Show. I will still play my games on the SNES, N64, and Gamecube though that I grew up with. Never sold 90% of my games, so when Video Game prices went up, I never had to spend extra money to get them back. Still play Mario, Zelda, Pokemon (former state and regional champion and #1 ranked player in the world at one point). Just into sports a lot more now and fantasy sports in particular. Madden competitions seem like a logical next step, but I'd have to upgrade my PS3, and buy a new version every year as well as upgrade Cards.

 

You still have a SNES, N64, and Gamecube?  When are you inviting me over for some old-school gaming?

 

JK.  That's awesome that you still play a lot of the original games.  I still have my SNES, and the first Madden that I ever played ('93).

 

Please participate in Madden tournaments.  I came in second in an Indy tournament once, and it was awesome.  I won a free T-shirt and copies of the new Madden AND NCAA Football (years ago), but just barely missed out on an opportunity to play in the national tournament.  The guy that beat me was really good, and it was super-frustrating trying to pass against him.  He basically played Cover-4 the whole game, so I had no choice but to run and throw screens/short passes...

[Yoshinator]

5 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

You still have a SNES, N64, and Gamecube?  When are you inviting me over for some old-school gaming?

 

JK.  That's awesome that you still play a lot of the original games.  I still have my SNES, and the first Madden that I ever played ('93).

 

Please participate in Madden tournaments.  I came in second in an Indy tournament once, and it was awesome.  I won a free T-shirt and copies of the new Madden AND NCAA Football (years ago), but just barely missed out on an opportunity to play in the national tournament.  The guy that beat me was really good, and it was super-frustrating trying to pass against him.  He basically played Cover-4 the whole game, so I had no choice but to run and throw screens/short passes...

Proud of you for that! Madden is insanely difficult, and it costs a lot of money as well as a lot work into studying the playbooks to learn counters to opponents plays. I would have to make a bit more money so I could keep up on the cards and upgrade my team weekly, but we'll see. You are welcome over anytime for old-school gaming!  

[Lucky Colts Fan]

14 minutes ago, Jared Cisneros said:

Proud of you for that! Madden is insanely difficult, and it costs a lot of money as well as a lot work into studying the playbooks to learn counters to opponents plays. I would have to make a bit more money so I could keep up on the cards and upgrade my team weekly, but we'll see. You are welcome over anytime for old-school gaming!  

 

I've watched that Madden TV show.  I didn't realize how much work people put into custom playbooks/custom plays.  It's impressive.  I'm a huge homer, so I just master the Colts playbook, and have always had a great QB to execute the Colts playbook.

 

Defense is the hardest part.  It's easy to move the ball downfield if you know what you're doing, but trying to stop someone...  I get so frustrated when people score on me.

 

That's how you make money in this world, playing good D.

[Yoshinator]

Just now, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

I've watched that Madden TV show.  I didn't realize how much work people put into custom playbooks/custom plays.  It's impressive.  I'm a huge homer, so I just master the Colts playbook, and have always had a great QB to execute the Colts playbook.

 

Defense is the hardest part.  It's easy to move the ball downfield if you know what you're doing, but trying to stop someone...  I get so frustrated when people score on me.

 

That's how you make money in this world, playing good D.

Exactly. To be competitive, I would have to work on my tackling and pass defense. It gets extremely difficult, especially against elite offenses and elite player cards. I remember when I first played Madden on PS3, I didn't have any money to buy any packs, so I just built up money and kept doing the auctions. Bought cards and sold them for a bit higher price. Rinse, Repeat. Eventually got a 92 Von Miller in an auction I believe, and just used him to sack everyone in the easier modes of Madden along with my beginner team where I couldn't afford packs and had to just buy slightly better cards from auctions as I built up my team. It was a Grind the first few weeks, and you have to pay out the nose and work hard to be competitive. I like the West Coast offense if i can use it, but I'll try out any playbook.

[Synthetic]

Anyone here play NFL 2K5? 

 

For a game that is now 13 years old, it still has quite the cult following of a fan base. I personally have never played it, but I'm impressed with how many people still play a game that is over 10 years old and how beloved it is. 

[Lucky Colts Fan]

1 minute ago, Jared Cisneros said:

Exactly. To be competitive, I would have to work on my tackling and pass defense. It gets extremely difficult, especially against elite offenses and elite player cards. I remember when I first played Madden on PS3, I didn't have any money to buy any packs, so I just built up money and kept doing the auctions. Bought cards and sold them for a bit higher price. Rinse, Repeat. Eventually got a 92 Von Miller in an auction I believe, and just used him to sack everyone in the easier modes of Madden along with my beginner team where I couldn't afford packs and had to just buy slightly better cards from auctions as I built up my team. It was a Grind the first few weeks, and you have to pay out the nose and work hard to be competitive. I like the West Coast offense if i can use it, but I'll try out any playbook.

 

Back before cards and auctions, when you just had to play straight up team vs team, the only time I ever quit playing someone online was this guy that played with the Patriots.  He only ran two plays on offense and one play on defense.

 

I have never been so frustrated in my life.  This was a decade ago, and he had these two plays on offense.  He would come out with a 5-wideout set with Randy Moss on the outside.  If you showed a deep-pass-defense to stop the deep-ball to Moss, he would audible to a goal-line set where Moss would jog into the backfield as the RB, and then run a toss-sweep to the larger (open) side of the field for at least 10 yds a pop.

 

So when I got sick of that first-down-every-time play, I would audible to a run-stop play and crowd the box.  Then that MUFER would audible to his original play with 5 wide-outs and Randy Moss would run a Go-route on the outside and it was a TD EVERY TIME.

 

I was losing 56-0 at the half when I quit...  I'm still mad/ashamed of that game.

[Yoshinator]

1 minute ago, Synthetic said:

Anyone here play NFL 2K5? 

 

For a game that is now 13 years old, it still has quite the cult following of a fan base. I personally have never played it, but I'm impressed with how many people still play a game that is over 10 years old and how beloved it is. 

I have not. I'll play older games like Tecmo Super Bowl and NFL Blitz, but besides that, I play Madden with updated rosters every year. I may try that game out though.

[Yoshinator]

2 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

Back before cards and auctions, when you just had to play straight up team vs team, the only time I ever quit playing someone online was this guy that played with the Patriots.  He only ran two plays on offense and one play on defense.

 

I have never been so frustrated in my life.  This was a decade ago, and he had these two plays on offense.  He would come out with a 5-wideout set with Randy Moss on the outside.  If you showed a deep-pass-defense to stop the deep-ball to Moss, he would audible to a goal-line set where Moss would jog into the backfield as the RB, and then run a toss-sweep to the larger (open) side of the field for at least 10 yds a pop.

 

So when I got sick of that first-down-every-time play, I would audible to a run-stop play and crowd the box.  Then that MUFER would audible to his original play with 5 wide-outs and Randy Moss would run a Go-route on the outside and it was a TD EVERY TIME.

 

I was losing 56-0 at the half when I quit...  I'm still mad/ashamed of that game.

Wow! LOL! That is dirty by him, but it's also the game of cat and mouse, who can adapt to each other the most. I have never even heard of that play where Moss did that. May have to hit the books lol. You are definitely better at the game than me though. I'm going to have to buy a PS4 and start playing again. Long ways to go, but I want to at least see how good I can get. Sometimes you'll face a shark, don't let it bug you too much, just keep getting better!

[Lucky Colts Fan]

13 minutes ago, Synthetic said:

Anyone here play NFL 2K5? 

 

For a game that is now 13 years old, it still has quite the cult following of a fan base. I personally have never played it, but I'm impressed with how many people still play a game that is over 10 years old and how beloved it is. 

 

There is a large group of people that are sick of EAs monopoly on the NFL Video Game.  It is basically just a $60 roster update every year when it comes to the Madden games.

 

Sometimes, it all comes down to money, like with the NCAA Football game being discontinued.

 

Manning was actually the cover-athlete on a non-EA NFL game one year.  NFL Fever I think?

[Lucky Colts Fan]

21 minutes ago, Jared Cisneros said:

Wow! LOL! That is dirty by him, but it's also the game of cat and mouse, who can adapt to each other the most. I have never even heard of that play where Moss did that. May have to hit the books lol. You are definitely better at the game than me though. I'm going to have to buy a PS4 and start playing again. Long ways to go, but I want to at least see how good I can get. Sometimes you'll face a shark, don't let it bug you too much, just keep getting better!

 

You do have to know your Xs and Os to excel against a human opponent.  But I remember when Vick was the Falcons QB in 2005.  He was unstoppable.  You could basically run one play, and if the receiver wasn't open, just book it to the outside and run for daylight.

 

My friends made me stop playing with the Falcons when my record against them was something ridiculous like 30-0.

 

But to be honest, I prefer the classic pocket-QB slinging it all over the yard.  Manning was (IMHO) the greatest video game QB ever.  His passes were always on-point, and with receivers like Harrison, Wayne, and Clark, it was easy money all day long.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

2 hours ago, PrincetonTiger said:

Sports Video games are the only games I can play

 

2 hours ago, PrincetonTiger said:

Since I can only use one hand most video games are a real struggle

 

Do you enjoy the team-building aspect of football video games?  That is my favorite part.  I don't know if this is relateable or not, but when I am doing the off-season parts of the season, I will just use one hand to make roster decisions.  (Don't you judge me for shoveling food into my face with the other hand).  I only really need both hands for playing the actual games.

 

Although, I "sim" a lot of the games, so I only actually play a game or two in a given season.  (Again, don't you judge me... Ok, you can judge me for not playing every game in the season, but I don't care.)

 

The games I play are usually Rivalry games.  Colts vs. Pats.  Notre Dame vs. USC.  Etc. etc.

[Synthetic]

1 hour ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

There is a large group of people that are sick of EAs monopoly on the NFL Video Game.  It is basically just a $60 roster update every year when it comes to the Madden games.

 

Sometimes, it all comes down to money, like with the NCAA Football game being discontinued.

 

Manning was actually the cover-athlete on a non-EA NFL game one year.  NFL Fever I think?

 

 

True. EA did everything to shut down 2K. I never played the game and I completely missed out on it's initial release, but the game obviously scared EA enough to buy out the license for the NFL and ESPN so they could never make a competitor game again. I see fans of NFL 2K often bring up how ESPN owns the license and still has not taken advantage of creativity to come up with a presentation like that game had. 

 

NFL Fever did have Manning on the cover indeed. 

 

 

I never played any Madden competitors in the 2000's. I played LOTS of video games in the 90's and then stopped for a brief bit in the 2000's. I'm mostly familiar with the 90's Madden games on the Super Nintendo and N64, and even back then, the Tecmo Super Bowl games on the SNES pretty much blew the old Madden's out the water. I still play those occasionally. 

 

 

[Synthetic]

1 hour ago, Jared Cisneros said:

I have not. I'll play older games like Tecmo Super Bowl and NFL Blitz, but besides that, I play Madden with updated rosters every year. I may try that game out though.

 

 

Tecmo is great stuff. I play the ones on the Super Nintendo. TSB 2 is my absolute favorite. If you ever come across that game somewhere, definitely worth buying. The value has went up a bit on the SNES cartridge cause it's relatively difficult to come across. If you are into video game collecting, that's a fine investment, as it will be worth more in another 10 years. 

[PrincetonTiger]

4 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

 

Do you enjoy the team-building aspect of football video games?  That is my favorite part.  I don't know if this is relateable or not, but when I am doing the off-season parts of the season, I will just use one hand to make roster decisions.  (Don't you judge me for shoveling food into my face with the other hand).  I only really need both hands for playing the actual games.

 

Although, I "sim" a lot of the games, so I only actually play a game or two in a given season.  (Again, don't you judge me... Ok, you can judge me for not playing every game in the season, but I don't care.)

 

The games I play are usually Rivalry games.  Colts vs. Pats.  Notre Dame vs. USC.  Etc. etc.

Yes 

I did but outside of Jeopardy on the Wii I haven't played a console video game in almost 10 years

[PrincetonTiger]

I never played online competitions while in the console and only play them now on the Ipad if I have to

[Lucky Colts Fan]

10 minutes ago, Synthetic said:

 

 

True. EA did everything to shut down 2K. I never played the game and I completely missed out on it's initial release, but the game obviously scared EA enough to buy out the license for the NFL and ESPN so they could never make a competitor game again. I see fans of NFL 2K often bring up how ESPN owns the license and still has not taken advantage of creativity to come up with a presentation like that game had. 

 

NFL Fever did have Manning on the cover indeed. 

 

 

I never played any Madden competitors in the 2000's. I played LOTS of video games in the 90's and then stopped for a brief bit in the 2000's. I'm mostly familiar with the 90's Madden games on the Super Nintendo and N64, and even back then, the Tecmo Super Bowl games on the SNES pretty much blew the old Madden's out the water. I still play those occasionally. 

 

 

 

Thank you.  I never played other football video games, but now I think maybe I should go back and try 2K or Fever.

 

11 minutes ago, Synthetic said:

Tecmo is great stuff. I play the ones on the Super Nintendo. TSB 2 is my absolute favorite.

 

As far as Techmo... I was scarred (emotionally and mentally) by my friend.  He would continuously use Bo Jackson to run circles around me and embarrass me.  I have a mental block on Techmo now, just like the '09 SB...

 

16 minutes ago, Synthetic said:

The value has went up a bit on the SNES cartridge cause it's relatively difficult to come across. If you are into video game collecting, that's a fine investment, as it will be worth more in another 10 years. 

 

Any old-school gaming system/game cartridge is definitely escalating in value.  I said escalating, not increasing, that sounds right, but we're not to the point where their value is going up exponentially... yet...

[Lucky Colts Fan]

4 hours ago, Synthetic said:

The value has went up a bit on the SNES cartridge cause it's relatively difficult to come across.

 

I'm venturing into the obscure, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention some of my favorite SNES games.  Believe me, I've tried, and I know how hard it is to acquire some of these games.  And the price just keeps going up...  I swear to God @Synthetic if you try to make money off our unfortunate souls...  "This is your warning"...

 

Joe & Mac, both 1 and 2, are quintessential old-school games in the mold of the SMB.  You get to fight dinosaurs and rescue cave-babes, utilizing stones, bones, fire, and boomerangs.  I am proud to say that I have beaten both of these games.  I won't spoil the ending for any prospective gamers.  (If anyone tries to buy these games and meets a brick-wall head-on, I have both, and will let you play on my old-as-snot SNES)

 

Battletoads.  I hope I don't need to elaborate anymore on this subject.  This was one of the hardest games to advance through, much less beat.  That one level (you gamers will know what I'm talking about) was the most difficult in video game history.  I am ashamed to admit I never beat this level, but my friend did it.  I watched the whole sequence, and I still can't believe what I saw...  I saw the ending, but was unable to participate.  

 

Most of us (pretty much all of us) are unworthy, only a select few get to enjoy the spoils of war...

[Lucky Colts Fan]

4 hours ago, Synthetic said:

True. EA did everything to shut down 2K. I never played the game and I completely missed out on it's initial release, but the game obviously scared EA enough to buy out the license for the NFL and ESPN so they could never make a competitor game again. I see fans of NFL 2K often bring up how ESPN owns the license and still has not taken advantage of creativity to come up with a presentation like that game had. 

 

I try not to be bitter about the whole situation.  I am "content" with a functional  video game.  If the legalities get sorted out, and I get to enjoy the benefits, awesome.

[Synthetic]

On 6/11/2017 at 2:41 AM, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

I'm venturing into the obscure, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention some of my favorite SNES games.  Believe me, I've tried, and I know how hard it is to acquire some of these games.  And the price just keeps going up...  I swear to God @Synthetic if you try to make money off our unfortunate souls...  "This is your warning"...

 

Joe & Mac, both 1 and 2, are quintessential old-school games in the mold of the SMB.  You get to fight dinosaurs and rescue cave-babes, utilizing stones, bones, fire, and boomerangs.  I am proud to say that I have beaten both of these games.  I won't spoil the ending for any prospective gamers.  (If anyone tries to buy these games and meets a brick-wall head-on, I have both, and will let you play on my old-as-snot SNES)

 

Battletoads.  I hope I don't need to elaborate anymore on this subject.  This was one of the hardest games to advance through, much less beat.  That one level (you gamers will know what I'm talking about) was the most difficult in video game history.  I am ashamed to admit I never beat this level, but my friend did it.  I watched the whole sequence, and I still can't believe what I saw...  I saw the ending, but was unable to participate.  

 

Most of us (pretty much all of us) are unworthy, only a select few get to enjoy the spoils of war...

 

 

I lost quite a bit of my classic games from flood damage with a bad hurricane some years back. The last thing I would do is try to profit off the bit I've re-collected since then. You have nothing to worry about, I hoard what I have now. Same for my record collection. When you lose a good bit of a collection, it makes you even more protective of those things. 

 

I know what you mean it's difficult to find these games for reasonable prices these days. One I have greatly sought after replacing is Super Castlevania IV on the SNES. There was a time when that game was possible to get decently for a reasonable price, but now it's so hard to find it for under 40-50 dollars. Super Metroid is another one that is difficult to track down without spending a good bit of money on the sole cartridge. 

 

Old PS1 games are starting to go up in crazy price range too. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is difficult to find for a reasonable price now. 

 

[Synthetic]

On 6/10/2017 at 10:40 PM, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

As far as Techmo... I was scarred (emotionally and mentally) by my friend.  He would continuously use Bo Jackson to run circles around me and embarrass me.  I have a mental block on Techmo now, just like the '09 SB....

 

 

That is the original Tecmo on NES. Bo Jackson isn't in any of the other versions. 

 

There was several other Tecmo games. I know the NES one is the most popular, but the SNES and Genesis ones were really good too. 

 

The SNES ones I played and I found them to be more balanced. The NES version does have Bo Jackson who is overpowered and there's a few other overpowered runners in that game; David Megget in particular can really carve you to pieces, and Barry Sanders is great in that game too. 

 

I know nothing about the Genesis versions cause I never played them but judging by videos, they do have pretty cut scenes. 

 

The SNES games balance a lot of those issues. While there is stand out players, they're not overpowered like that at all. 

 

 

The first one is really just a prettier remake of the original Tecmo on NES, it's basically identical just with better play control, better graphics and the 1992 rosters. I'd probably recommend this one the most. It is a beautiful remake and all the player ratings and stuff are pretty accurate for the time being. 

 

 

 

TSB II which I previously mentioned in this topic is my favorite one. This game is much harder than the other Tecmo games. It has increased difficulty, and the real selling point is that it has actually 3 rosters in it. You can play through the 1992, 1993, and 1994 seasons complete with all the rosters, schedules and player ratings. 

 

The accuracy on the 1992 and 1993 seasons is pretty incredible, if you play all 3 years, you can really see how the teams change from year to year with different rosters. This game also introduced a bit more advanced defensive system that lets you shift between nickel, dime, and standard coverages in audibles, and it added the 2 point conversion. 

 

Better controls allows fumbles and interceptions easier. You can return interceptions for TD's in this game, which was almost impossible in the other Tecmo's. Overall, it's a very very balanced game outside of the powerhouse dominant teams of those years being tough in the season mode. They also added several plays and expanded the playbooks in this game. There is a whole playbook of nothing but Run-N-Shoot style offense that was popular at the time with those Oilers teams. There's even some neat flea flicker plays in there too. 

 

TSB II is my favorite one due to the 3 year mode and the difficulty makes it more fun. In this game, the real top teams can give you some serious problems in the season and in the playoffs. If you're doing a season run with one team, the game's difficulty gets up there as you progress. If you're playing in the AFC, all I can tell you is the Buffalo Bills are the pain that they were during their 4 years SB run. They usually give me the most problems in the playoffs. 

 

 

The last one 'Tecmo Super Bowl III: Final Edition' I think might be the most popular SNES version. 

 

The last one was based in 1995. It has some infamous (and hilarious) glitches in the game. It's basically a fixed up version of TSB II with new animations, some graphic improvements, and most of all, this is the Tecmo game where you can get interceptions and return them for touchdowns easily. 

 

Rod Woodson is GOD in this game. He's what Bo Jackson was in the original Tecmo. Woodson can return kick offs for touchdowns almost every time, and when you get an interception, he has the best chance for a pick six return. 

 

The game isn't as difficult as the other SNES Tecmos unless you are playing with a really horrible team like the Jets or Cardinals and adjusting to their awful playbooks. 

 

One important feature though was the trade and free agency mode. I don't know how it works, but there are guides online that detail how to properly control it. Basically, you can trade away your entire team and build from scratch and mix match all the star players around the league. It's pretty funny. I did a random mode one time and Steve Young got traded to the Jets and Barry Sanders went to Miami. Funny stuff like that can make the game unpredictable and a lot more challenging. 

 

If you ever browse the Tecmo Super Bowl forums, there is a pretty dedicated community to TSB III with hacking and modding the game, and tons of players that have discovered glitches in the game and document them. I haven't been on there in a few years but they routinely edit and mod the original NES version of the game. If you are into Tecmo, their forum is quite a place for goodies to keep playing. 

 

[OffensivelyPC]

On 6/10/2017 at 9:14 PM, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

You still have a SNES, N64, and Gamecube?  When are you inviting me over for some old-school gaming?

 

JK.  That's awesome that you still play a lot of the original games.  I still have my SNES, and the first Madden that I ever played ('93).

 

Please participate in Madden tournaments.  I came in second in an Indy tournament once, and it was awesome.  I won a free T-shirt and copies of the new Madden AND NCAA Football (years ago), but just barely missed out on an opportunity to play in the national tournament.  The guy that beat me was really good, and it was super-frustrating trying to pass against him.  He basically played Cover-4 the whole game, so I had no choice but to run and throw screens/short passes...

I still have my old nintendo and a spare.  I have to disassemble the spare though, and readjust the pin connectors.  I acutally need to do the same with my SNES so the games actually play right again.  

 

But anymore, I go back to the NES and SNES more than my PS3 and I still haven't bought a PS4 yet. I've gotten to the point where I've played enoguh video games, they all seem the same anymore.  I don't buy new games any more, primarily because I want to wait until a game has been out for 2 or 3 years.  I can buy it on the cheap and by that time, I'll know if it's one of those console's greatest games - like PS3 for instance, Skyrim and The Last of Us.  Two of the greatest games I've ever played.  It's up there with my favorite NES and SNES games.  May not crack the top 5, but it's close to top 10, for sure top 25.  

 

But the sports games are blatant repeats in my eyes. Madden is a prime example.  Literally nothing changes but the button controls.  They tweak the buttons and update the roster which I think anyone who's played video games for longer than a few years should see right through as a money grab.  I love the roster building part of it, and that's really all I do much anymore on those games.  But I've done that so much that sometimes, I just cheat to make all my guys completely awesome and destroy everyone because hey...that's always fun no matter how stale a game gets.  You have a bad day and feel like life sucks for you right now?  Pull out a video game and make your guy(s) awesome and the CPU sh***y and you'll feel a whole lot better, even if only for 30 minutes.  But for the love of God, DO NOT play games like Ninja Gaiden and Battle Toads if you are feeling down.  EVER.