Buy the 360 Version only for play against your friends
Here's the scoop on Madden '06 for everyone with a 360. Buy it only if you have a bunch of people who LOVE to play Madden. If you have to buy only one Madden this year, better stick with the current gen one for PS2 and XBox. Heck, I'd even get the PSP version of this game before I bought this game, seeing as how the PSP version has a deeper franchise mode than the 360. I won't totally knock this version however, it does have its good moments. Also, this IS the engine EA will be working with for the next five years, so if you want to find a way to prepare for Madden NFL '07, this is it...
I won't lie, the graphics are outstanding. When you first boot up the game and see the opening trailer, you kind of wish T.O. would have shut his mouth so you really wonder what a Super Bowl rematch between the Eagles and Patriots would have been like (This is the opening scenario of the game, as McNabb fires a ball to L.J. Smith for a first down, then spikes the ball on first and goal with a tick left on the clock in SB 40 vs. the champs). When you play the game, a lot of things have changed. For one, Michaels and Madden no longer call the game. A local radio announcer calls the game, even though he is much, MUCH more enthusiastic with the call than Michaels EVER could be (Yes, this even includes Michaels infamous 'The Giants won the pennant!!!' call. The radio announcer can be that damn annoying sometimes).
One nice thing are the replays. They make you feel like your watching a classic NFL film, since NFL Film music is playing in the background (Think of the Burger King commercials where the King is pretty much running his own campaign to be MVP. That's how the replays feel like after a good play.)
Also, in the running game, you are going to need to take the ball to the outside or have a quarterback that can run his @$$ off (such as a Vick or McNabb; be smart and pray they don't get injured). Just like the initial Madden for the PS2 (Madden '01), it is going to take EA at least a year or two to work the offensive lineman enough for effective running plays up the gut.
What EA DID do that I appreciate is that they added more hip-hop to the EA Traks lineup, most notably Paul Wall's "They Don't Know" remix with Mike Jones. I bought Paul Wall's CD when it first came out, and it had the Chopped & Screwed version with it, but not the Mike Jones remix. Any fan of hip-hop knows that when it comes to EA & the rap game, you need to go to LIVE to get your fix. In addition EA added a bunch of underground artists, who got pretty dope songs. Don't worry if you like rock, Madden continues to stay partial to this genre as they added new songs to it as well (though I couldn't tell you what they are, seeing as how I don't listen to rock).
Another new feature to Madden for 360 is the virtual injury chart. Whenever a player gets injured, about 7 of 10 times, a virtual X-Ray comes up over the injured body part and lets you know how long that the player will be sitting out. This is one advantage over current gen (one of the VERY FEW, I might add), since you don't have to wait 2-3 minutes or go to the depth chart on the pause menu to find out how long players have to wait.
Finally, I will wrap this up with Madden 360's main weakness, a Franchise mode that is HOT GARBAGE. It reminds me of Tecmo Bowl for NES, it's that elementary.
Again, don't buy this game unless you have 2 or 3 Madden buddies or XBox Live (If you have BOTH, this is good).Read full review
