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I bought this game because thee Madden series is one of the few lines of games that I can seriously get into. In comparison to previous titles, Madden 05 is definitely better than anything prior to it. The new Hit Stick feature makes nailing a QB a thousand times more gratifying, not only increasing the chance of a fumble or an injury, but the sound and view of the hits are almost as thrilling as watching a real game. The tutorials are so exact, you could probably give this game to someone who's never watched a football game before and within a few minutes they'd be ready to play. The Mini Games add a fun alternative to normal gameplay, and Franchise mode offers an interesting view to the team that was previously unattainable. If you have the money, I would recommend just buying the newest title out, because it'll have all these features, too, but if this is all you can afford, Madden 05 makes all football games before it unplayable.Read full review
New Features Naturally I went straight to the owners mode, because that's what got all the hype. I was not impressed. All there really is to do there is micro-manage a team from the owner's perspective. It's not really got anything to do with football, it really belongs in a separate game that should be titled ''Sim Business''. In real life, every franchise makes a profit. The NFL created a system of profit sharing so that each team could stay competitive specifically because they knew it bolstered the game overall to the public. It's not particularly hard to make a profit as an owner in owner mode, but it can be tedious - since you have to adjust prices and such constantly. You can use the profits to hire coaches, but really all that does is creates more micro-management you need to do. The coaches can progress or digress in stats too, which means that now not only do you need to worry about the player stats, but you have coaches to worry about too. You don't get any other rewards for making profit that I could see, no cards, no tokens, nothing like that. So in my mind it's really more stuff to eat my social life, and it has nothing to do with actual football. I was not impressed. Moving on to the other new feature, the EA Sports Bio, I found more of the same. The Bio is supposed to be this great rewards system so that you get special things for playing other games. Really it's a marketing tool that forces gamers to buy or rent other EA products for nominal rewards. I have EA games, including Madden 2003 and Def Jam Vendetta, Nascar Thunder, and 2003 NCAA, and others. The Bio though, completely ignores that, and only wants to recognize newer games. Well, there aren't any newer games. What about rewarding those of us that have been playing in the past? Beyond that, the rewards seem pretty cheesy. I've checked with some people that got some of the rewards, and it seems there isn't much you can get from a bio that you can't get from the normal game (which is a good thing), and none of the cards are particularly special or potent. I was not impressed with the EA Bio feature, and I consider it more my enemy than my friend - since it actually means we're all buying games that we can't fully experience unless we buy MORE games that we can't fully experience. Moving away from those I'll be moving to the other new feature, play maker. It's really not that terrific in my opinion. It can be used with some success and could be helpful, but really with the speed of the game what it is a player has to know before hand on any given play where he's going to send a blocker or how he's going to run the defense and when he's going to send them after the ball. Really, this isn't something that has to be done during the game itself, it should be something we can set up prior to the snap so that when the ball is hiked, we can just play. All this does is invite the player to make more errors - or maybe get it right, but only because they already know what they're going to do on any given play. So it doesn't need to be real time or during the play itself. I don't like the way they implemented this. Training camp can now improve the stats of some players, but really all this does for me is make me min/max my players more, and it eats more of my social life up. I didn't really see anything wrong with the old system of progression where you just took players through pre-season and then played the year with themRead full review
It's not an easy task for a development team to make enough improvements to a yearly sports game series to warrant a purchase every year. However, EA Sports has not only managed to add enough features and gameplay tweaks to make Madden NFL 2004 a more than worthy purchase for those who bought last year's game, but it has also created one of best football games to date--especially in the case of the PS2 version, which is the only console version featuring online play. Madden NFL 2004 covers nearly every facet of professional football, but what makes this year's entry in the series so special is the fact that it ties all its components together seamlessly. Even the new gameplay features have been integrated incredibly well, and the result is a game that models the sport of professional football much more intricately than any other game before it. A perfect example of this is the playmaker control feature. While it initially seems like nothing more than a quick audible option, playmaker control is actually much more than that. Before the snap of the ball, if you don't like what you're seeing on defensive side of the ball, you can adjust the offensive play to compensate without calling an audible. For example, if a linebacker appears to be blitzing on the side you're about to run a halfback toss to, you can change the direction of the run on the fly by simply pressing the right analog stick in the opposite direction. Similarly, after the ball's been snapped, you can direct teammates on the field to block opposing players in front of the ballcarrier by pressing the right analog stick in the appropriate direction. There's a little bit of risk involved in doing this, since its effectiveness depends on the speed of the teammate running over to block. In fact, when calling for a block in this fashion, you may be tempted to head for the teammate once you've told him to throw a block in an attempt to put him in between you and the defensive player more quickly. But you'll quickly discover this rarely ever works and almost always results in an appreciable loss of yards. In any case, the playmaker controls for directing your blockers prove to be quite valuable when used in the correct situation. Running isn't the only facet of the gameplay in which playmaker control can be used. When using it on a passing play before the snap, playmaker control can quickly change the route of a receiver if there appears to be a gap in the secondary. When the ball is snapped, playmaker control can then be used to have a designated receiver break off his route and go in a variety of directions--even back toward the line of scrimmage. Again, there's a fair amount of risk involved, since the defensive line and linebackers are constantly gunning for the quarterback, but if it looks like you have enough time and it appears that you can get a receiver open by having him change direction, you can use this technique to pick up a few extra yards. Defensively, the playmaker mechanic isn't quite as prominent. Essentially, if you see a key receiver lining up one-on-one with a cornerback that you don't have too much confidence in, then playmaker can be used to shift your coverage over to that side, making it a little more difficult for the receiver to get open. If the ball has already been snapped, then playmaker control can be used to shift your overall coverage to run or pass.......Read full review
For a number of reasons, the 2004 release in the madden nfl series for all consoles (especially ps2) probably marked a high point in its development overall. In the gameplay category 9/10 overall: certainly the main reasons being that this was back when the player ratings, physics, & overall player attributes were still respected; in simpler terms the gameplay was still tight (& responsive)and you had to earn interceptions and turnovers with smart play-calling. It was very realistic for a football video game & played like one was inside an actual game. In graphics also 9/10 overall; -As the game play was still much like the 2002 & 2003 versions(tight), the 2004 looked even better & just a more polished version graphically than the two years before;certainly not to say that the 2002 & 2003 maddens weren't good graphically as I still play all of them regularly- -the 2004 is just more detailed and really visually pleasing- for example; the stadium detail is even more improved as you can see the arch entrance at the side of Foxboro (Gilette) Stadium of the Patriots in a really nice detail. All of the players (faces) & everything else across the board looks really crisp clean & improved with clean colors & lines. Finally additional features 9/10 overall; the uniform modify/editor is a nice feature as it allows you to pre-set the home and away jersey colors of all current nfl teams; for example it has the Washington Redskins dark burgundy home with the yellow/gold pants version & other throwback options (one they have been wearing a lot this season). Finally, the owner mode is a nice new addition as it allows you to set ticket, concession and food prices & other revenue options & even to relocate to another city & design a new stadium. Overall, 9/10 across the board -quite simply a great version of this game, one you will never run out of new wrinkles with always a new option to discover; the Franchise mode is 10/10 top-notch-any of the madden releases for all modern consoles from 2002-2005 are more than worthy for the avid or even casual football fan & easy to pick up for someone who wants to learn football, and to relive & remember some classic NFL old-school players from the past. -A must have & highly recommend picking it up -Joe S. a.k.a. Exon (marty) Valdez (smokinjosephus)- -Read full review
One of the better Madden games on the Playstation 2. Don't worry about who's on the cover, at this point he's retired anyway.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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