NCAA Impressions

hgplayer1 said:
that sucks. Ive been sittin here at the main screen since I got home from work which was about an hour ago and I havent disconnected once.

is it only disconnecting you when you try to start a game?
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mostly, but a couple of times it did disconnect from the main screen. Something about my set-up and EA's set-up is not meshing. On X-Box atleast. I can get into Madden on PS2 with no problem.

I've contacted EA and on the message board at EASports. Seems others are still having issues as well.
 
siamesedreamer said:
French, I assume that you are Truelize?
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I'm Truelize. Same name here. So the tourney didn't fill up again? I'm not surprised. Friday night? Some people have other things to do than run home and sign up for an online tourney.
 
everyone has better things to do on everynight of the week, but it takes 15 seconds to sign into the tournament. i still blame the lousy servers for this anyways :D
 
has anyone else run into a situation where you call a pass play and as soon as the ball is snapped your QB just starts pump faking every which way and you cant make him stop? Ive had this happen a couple times and Im not sure if it was my controller or what.
 
hgplayer1 said:
has anyone else run into a situation where you call a pass play and as soon as the ball is snapped your QB just starts pump faking every which way and you cant make him stop? Ive had this happen a couple times and Im not sure if it was my controller or what.
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Haven't seen that, but since it's the right analog that pump-fakes, I'd unplug and re-plug the controller in. Perhaps the stick got loose and needs to be recentered.
 
Matrix and I played twice. I think they were good games.....

At least the first was. I kept my spirits high even though I lost because of a dropped pass... I would have had a first in his 20.....so it wasn't 100% but my chances were good :(

The second game I just sucked. My team had a 95 WR, but stats don't seem to mean shit.

I'm complaining now, but the games were fun for the most part. If he had a mic I would have enjoyed laughing at the game's flaws with him! ;)
 
this game is pure garbage dudes. by far the worst EA sports game i have played since Triple Play '99 on psone. it sucks too because although im not a big college fan, i find it fun to play with the various colleges and so on.

but this game just takes all the fun out of football and online gaming. dropped passes, bad frame rates, retarded bombs, stupid defenders, tip drills, the list goes on. i can't wait until ESPN comes out so i can get rid of this crapfest. BOO URNS NCAA, BOO URNS!
 
FrenchMovieTheme said:
this game is pure garbage dudes. by far the worst EA sports game i have played since Triple Play '99 on psone. it sucks too because although im not a big college fan, i find it fun to play with the various colleges and so on.

but this game just takes all the fun out of football and online gaming. dropped passes, bad frame rates, retarded bombs, stupid defenders, tip drills, the list goes on. i can't wait until ESPN comes out so i can get rid of this crapfest. BOO URNS NCAA, BOO URNS!
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Amen brother! This game is garbage, and I won't be renting or buying this crap for 2006. Did EA even test this thing?
 
FrenchMovieTheme said:
this game is pure garbage dudes. by far the worst EA sports game i have played since Triple Play '99 on psone. it sucks too because although im not a big college fan, i find it fun to play with the various colleges and so on.

but this game just takes all the fun out of football and online gaming. dropped passes, bad frame rates, retarded bombs, stupid defenders, tip drills, the list goes on. i can't wait until ESPN comes out so i can get rid of this crapfest. BOO URNS NCAA, BOO URNS!
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I love how the general reaction on boards is if a game isn't perfect it is pure garbage. I can't clinch in Fight Night!?! My freshman receiver doesn't catch every pass from my 78 OVR QB in NCAA!?! Therefore it is complete garbage. I'm tired of being anally raped by EA!!

Get a grip. Players in the NCAA drop passes, and it happens to my opponents as well, so its not like I am victim here. I've had no problem with the frame rates, I don't know what retarded bombs are, there are stupid defenders if their AWR is poor, the trip drills are rediculous, but I don't know what other "critical flaws" you found in the list that goes on and on.

I am trying to take a 2-star school (Tulane) through a dynasty and become a prestige program, but first I need to beat Southern Miss to earn a bowl bid. But just before the game starts my star SR WR (92 OVR) has been missing classes all semester. Now I've got to decide to bench him for the most important game of the season or throw out my principles and play him anyway. I grit my teeth and bench him and move my JR to the X spot and bring up a redshirted FS to the Z. The result was a fingernail biter that I was able to win by relying on the ground game sweeps and short hook routes to my sure-handed but slow recieving corps. I won the game by 3, got my bowl bid and am now ready to play TCU in a game that will have huge implications for my recruiting efforts come offseason.

It's that sort of experience that has me wrapped up in this game. You're right that it is not perfect in the gameplay, and the presentation needs polish, but I started out with an average attendance of 29K at the dome, but I'm finishing up with 55K rabid Green Wave fans raising the roof. Hopefully I can make the Superdome one of the 25 toughest places to play, because the game dynamically updates the list at the end of the season, which is an awesome touch.

Sorry you're not enjoying it, but this game is far from garbage.
 
I've had no problem with the frame rates, I don't know what retarded bombs are, there are stupid defenders if their AWR is poor, the trip drills are rediculous, but I don't know what other "critical flaws" you found in the list that goes on and on
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The "retarded bombs" I've experienced are basically any long pass, which is 99% guaranteed to be caught regardless of coverage. I had one where my DB slowed down on his chase as the ball was thrown, letting his man get a 30 yard break on him while the ball was being thrown. Yet when he caught the ball he decided to speed up and chase him. It's heartbreaking to play great defense, have a 3rd and 12 situation but give up a 40 yard pass while your own recievers cant catch an open ball over the middle. There's nothing wrong with dropped passes, its the way that it happens.

Other problems? No clipping on replays and players tipping balls that are three feet away from them come to mind. And theres the HB pass play that the AI never defends. Theres also a lack of short passing routes in most formations, making it even harder to pass the ball.

It's not a matter of the game being pure garbage, I wouldn't use that description because it has a lot of great features. However it is far from being fun to play.
 
This seems to always happen when a new NCAA/NFL 2kx/Madden hits.

People are hyped, people play it, some people love it, then turns to hate cuz they aren't used to the improvements, adjustments made to the system, they complain, overreact, keep playing, finally get the hang of it, and finally really like it again.

It's a cycle that happens EVERY year, and this year will be no exception.

(Yes, I have the game, yes I see the tip balls, and dropped passes, and guess what, I'm having fun while working on/waiting for some sliders for the game. SHOCK!) =)
 
I have no idea how anyone can call this game garbage. It is not garbage. The games I have been able to complete have been fun. Very fun. The thing is there is alot of new things to get used to. Also, playing this game like past NCAA editions is not going to work. I get the feeling that Madden is going to be the same way. Kintaro has it right. I think Operation Sports has the "Big Release Cycle" stickied on one of it's boards. Everyone gets hyped, then gets pissed, then learns to appreciate the new game.

I for one am enjoying the game. I am enjoying it alot. As I get more used to the game, I will enjoy it even more. The only real complaint I have is the fact I can't finish a game online, but that has little to do with the game itself.
 
Yeah I'm keeping this for the awesome dynasty mode. My biggest disappointment in that NCAA 2005 feels like a step back in some areas versus 2004. All the reviews you read state that 2005 is a more refined version of 2004 and this clearly is not the case. NCAA 2005 plays different. Passes different, runs different, blcoks different. Some for the better (run game, run blocking) and some for the worse (Pass game you know the story, tipped passes, kick/punt return game is worse than 2004).
 
I guess I'm really lucky that I've never played a NCAA football game before then. Cause I'm loving this. I picked Utah for my dynasty (3 star school in a poor conference), I look forward to the challenge of improving their prestige. I'm pretty worried about next year, most of my good players are all seniors so I'm gonna need to not only do well, but luck out next year in my recruiting. It will be amazing if I'm as good next year as I am this year. I can't wait to see though.
I don't mind the framerate, the tip drill is pretty ridiculous but I find it to be pretty intense too. I keep worring that someone is gonna catch that ball. I love the blocking, I think the running game is step up from Maddens' last year. And the pump fake works wonders. I have found that if I pump fake I'm having much more success with completing passes. I don't know if it's actually helping, but when I pump they catch. I've watched some DB and LB get totally frozen from my pumps. So far that's my favorite feature in this game.
 
After playing every day since it came out, feeling the good and the bad I have to say I think its better then 2004.

I don't think the dropped passes are a big deal like most everyone. Shit, I'm playing with really terrible receivers in my Dynasty and I expect them to drop passes. With good receivers I've nailed some pretty nice completions. There are times when I go "Damn, he should have caught that", but its hardly the game breaking feature people are making it out to be.

About this long bomb stuff I've heard. I had a guy online who tried that shit on me. He'd get into shotgun and just fire it deep play after play. Guess what? He never scored. Hell, he didn't even get in position. Maybe I was just lucky, but he didn't have the heavy effectiveness people are saying the long bomb brings. In fact, he didn't have any effectiveness at all with the right coverage.

Defense is hella improved. Not just with the DB AI (which I admit seems a little to good at times), but with D-line and LB play. In the previous NCAA my leading tackler was always a defensive back, this year its a linebacker. My DT's are no slouch. This is a damn good improvement that I haven't heard anyone speaking about.

Tipped balls are overdone, but again they aren't as big a deal as everyone saying "OMG It bouncesss to much!!11". Its not ping pong, you get some tips which can result in some cool plays. If they are causing to many picks, turn that slider down.

Dynasty is better. How much I don't know. But, I like the ability of team captains and what not. I'll know more when I get to the off season. Create a school is still the same, which is just lazy work. Especially shit like not being able to have a greatest game with a created school. Just terrible.

Sliders seem more effective this year. A few notches really helped my running game seem more realistic.

Sweeps work. Trick plays work. Not 100% better, but a good deal better.

HFA and composure is cool. Its not broken like osme made it out to be. I came back quite a few times online against guys who had a 2 TD lead and HFA.

Sack tracking is much improved as is the QB not getting it off a milisecond from the defender being close. Play action sacks now count as sacks 100% of the time rather then mostly tackles like last year. Good improvement I've been wanting.

Slowdown is there, and it can be very bad. That is fucked up, no two ways about it. EA should worked much harder on this aspect of the game. I adjusted, but I shouldn't have to.

I don't like the slwoer game speed when compared to last years.

I shared the initial dissapointment that many of you have. But, the game is good. Its solid. The problem is they didn't improve in enough areas, and they stayed the same in quite a few. That really makes ones initial reaction a negative one. But, there are many improvements like I listed that make this NCAA the better one. I agree, they should have done more. But, they didn't and that's where we are. In the end, I'm having fun with this game via Dynasty and online play.
 
I love how the general reaction on boards is if a game isn't perfect it is pure garbage. I can't clinch in Fight Night!?! My freshman receiver doesn't catch every pass from my 78 OVR QB in NCAA!?! Therefore it is complete garbage. I'm tired of being anally raped by EA!!
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wrong dude. this isn't about "my freshman receiver dropping a few passes". I can deal with that. what i CANT deal with is my star, 90+ rated receiver running a 5 yard crossing pattern on 3rd and 3, being WIDE OPEN, WIDE FUCKING OPEN, and he just drops the ball. explain that. oh, you say "it happens"? does it happen 5-15 times a game? cause guess what? those are the average drop number in the games i have. there is no way you can justify the drops, i don't care what you say.

Get a grip. Players in the NCAA drop passes, and it happens to my opponents as well, so its not like I am victim here. I've had no problem with the frame rates, I don't know what retarded bombs are, there are stupid defenders if their AWR is poor, the trip drills are rediculous, but I don't know what other "critical flaws" you found in the list that goes on and on.
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wow, i can't believe you dont think the drops are critical. players everywhere drop balls, we all know that. NO ONE DROPS WIDE OPEN PASSES ON A CONSISTENT BASIS OR THEY WOULDNT BE PLAYING FOOTBALL! case closed dude! there is not one receiver in college football that can drop 5 wide open passes in a game and expect to be on the team the next game, its just ridiculous and unacceptable. "retarded bombs" are the only sure-way to move the ball downfield through the air, and its not because of "bad DB's". I'll call double coverage with my best CB/SS combo, and the ball is still caught, it doesn't matter.


Sorry you're not enjoying it, but this game is far from garbage.
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i'm sorry i'm not enjoying it as well. you're right, in general the game isn't the worst i've ever played, its just garbage from an EA standpoint. i'm used to a certain level of quality out of EA sports games, and this game isn't up to that level. you can talk to me about dynasty attendance, recruiting, that you can catch passes, etc. but the bottom line is 90% of the reason i bought this game was to play it online. that is where i find the best games and best competition in sports games, and with the way things are its just a huge mess. its like whoever the CPU designates "being able to catch" online is going to win the game. if neither team can catch, it's going to be a 6-3 game. the "defense" in this game is a joke because its artificially made better by spider senses in the DB's and by receiver drops.

there are two football games that will have been released in the last week, one was $50 and one $20. while i can't comment on espn yet, NCAA really feels like a $20 game. that's good some of you are enjoying ncaa, but this game is a complete and total fraud to me.
 
I've seen most of the things FMT is talking about. The tips and long bombs piss me off the most, though. I love when I'm on defense, tip the ball around for a few seconds (but can't catch it), then an offensive player comes within range of it and snags it. It's just great how the offense gets such a higher percentage of grabbing the tipped ball. We all know how realistic that is.
 
FMT, I think you just got way too hyped about this game and now are disappointed. You had the game up at a level where no game could reach, IMO. This is not NCAA 2004 with improvements. This is a new game. I am enjoying it, but like 80% of the sports games out now, slider intervention is involved in getting the game to a point that I am loving it.
 
of the 3 major football games, this was the one i was hyped least for. i'm not really a college football fanatic (like i am nfl), and i thought both espn and madden were better last year. so its not a case of being "overhyped" and being let down. i am flat out let down. this game doesn't feel finished to me
 
dskillzhtown said:
FMT, I think you just got way too hyped about this game and now are disappointed. You had the game up at a level where no game could reach, IMO. This is not NCAA 2004 with improvements. This is a new game. I am enjoying it, but like 80% of the sports games out now, slider intervention is involved in getting the game to a point that I am loving it.
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Can you use sliders online?
 
While you can make apologies, the bottom line is this game is not properly balanced. Any defensive player in zone defense becomes an omnisicient superman. That's bad enough, but when you combine that with the drops, it leads to the commonplace 30% completion rates for both you and the AI. The AI can't complete passes on Heisman level with sliders in its favor!! The game is broken.

It's absurd that it's easier to complete a 40 yard bomb into coverage than a wide open 5 yard crossing pattern. That's not football.

What in the hell was Tiburon thinking? Did they release it like this thinking it was a good game?
 
FrenchMovieTheme said:
of the 3 major football games, this was the one i was hyped least for. i'm not really a college football fanatic (like i am nfl), and i thought both espn and madden were better last year. so its not a case of being "overhyped" and being let down. i am flat out let down. this game doesn't feel finished to me
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Well, maybe that is part of it. I love the college game and go to maybe games during the season. I have seen many drops that should have been TDs in person so I can relate. I have seen wacky bounces and tips turn into TDs because of the inexperience of college players compared to pro players. So for me this seems more of a realistc take on the college game. But this is all about opinions so hopefully you will enjoy ESPN and/or Madden more. Last year, I thought NCAA was the best football game out last year, gameplay wise anyway.

The only thing I don't like is the game seems to take out the chance of a 65-55 score shootout because of the emphasis on defense. Maybe this will also be the same in Madden as well.
 
JayFro said:
You can't adjust the sliders in online games as far as I know. Those who seem to be the most pissed off about this game are the ones who are playing it for the online experience. Online it's horrible. I'm glad I didn't buy this game and I certainly didn't rent it for the dynasty mode.

http://www.gamepartisan.com/microsoft/reviews/index.php?view=105

This review about sums up my feelings on this game.
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No, you can't adjust the sliders in the online portion, probably because they wan't everyone playing on the same playing field...er, with the same settings that is. :-)

As for that review, it just seemed like another "this game is not perfect therefore it is shit" opinion. As far as I can tell, his big complaints were with the tipped balls and the dropped passes. I agree that the tipped balls are over done, but I have not had devastating interceptions from them. In a couple of cases, another receiver of mine made the catch and got me a first down. It doesn't ruin the game for me, it's just not the level of realism that I want.

And as for the dropped passes, I honestly have not had the problem that others on this board have. YES, I do have drops from wide-open players, but then again I'm playing as Tulane with my best receiver at an 82 OVR so I accept it. I suppose if I was playing with USC, I would be more upset. But what I am not upset about (and is not mentioned in this poor review at game partisan.com) is how vastly improved the running game is. Last year I couldn't turn the corner to save my life, and I'm betting some folks on this board complained bitterly about that. This year the Maryland-I is deadly, I can turn the corner and pitches, counters and stunts, and best of all the power and speed options are incredibly deadly, especially against twitch-master online players.

Maybe because I play the offline version as much as the online that I am not having the same disappoinments as most. To give this game a 5.5 out of 10 because of two complaints (actually three counting slowdown) is absurd. And his point about probation having no effect on dynasty is just flat-out wrong for reasons I mentioned in my previous post. Sorry that others hate it so much because I'm enjoying it.
 
dude, no receiver should be dropping these passes. these aren't "well i guess they're catchable..." passes, these are "no one is within 5 yards wide open" passes! don't try to justify it because you're tulane. what you dont understand is that the catch ratings mean nothing in this game. doesn't matter if you are mike williams or joe nobody, you're going to drop a lot of wide open passes.

my qualms with the game aren't regarding perfection. i don't expect perfection out of anything. espn won't be perfect, madden won't be perfect, halo 2 wont be perfect, whatever WONT be perfect, but i bet you those games will be enjoyable. ncaa is not enjoyable to me because this is not how football should be played. but ill say it again, good for the people that are enjoying it. i envy you
 
I honestly don't understand how you guys keep having problems throwing over the middle. I throw over the middle all the time and my receivers rarely drop passes. Maybe one honest drop a game. Other drops come from getting nailed by a linebacker a split-second after making the catch. And I'm playing with fucking Baylor. I've noticed that a lot of the drop passes, and this happened last year too, come from throwing on the run or off your back foot.

As for slider tweaks for dynasty, I play on All-American but here's some of my tweaks:

CPU:
run ability and run blocking: increase sliders to max
qb accuracy: 3 or 4 notch increase
catching ability: 3 or 4 notch increase
pass blocking: 2 or 3 notch increase
defensive awareness: 4 or 5 notch increase

Human:
run ability and run blocking: 2 or 3 notch increase
qb accuracy: 1 or 2 notch increase
pass blocking: 2 or 3 notch increase
catching ability: 1 or 2 notch increase
defensive awareness: 3 or 4 notch increase

Those are what I can remember off the top of my head. I'm too lazy to actually turn on my PS2 and take a look. Your best bet is to mess around with the sliders and find out what works best for you and makes the game fun, yet challenging.
 
swoon said:
fmt doesn't understand sliders or anything about how college football plays
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Sliders are moot. You can't adjust them online, which is the main attraction of sports gaming for a lot of people. And sliders are a weak ass excuse for not getting the difficulty settings playing right in the first place.
 
I have found that if I hammer on the pass button versus tapping it or just pushin it in at a medium speed I get more drops. Maybe that has something to do with it.
Just a thought.
 
swoon said:
fmt doesn't understand sliders or anything about how college football plays
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Yeah, when a reciever is wide open in college football, he tends to drop the ball. No matter how good he is!
 
swoon said:
fmt doesn't understand sliders or anything about how college football plays
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Fmt understands football better than anyone else in this forum imo...I laugh at you.
 
LOL
 
fmt doesn't understand sliders or anything about how college football plays
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dude are you blind? i said 90% of the reason i bought the game was to play it online. PM me once you figure out how to use sliders online, until then come up with something better than "he doesnt know about CFB!"

in other news, i had a couple good games today.

first game was against fifty. i wouldn't call it a "good" game from my end, but some of the flaws i listed weren't as bad in this game. he stomped me 40-8 or something like that. i couldn't get the run game going or the pass, and my interior D was pretty weak. it happens ladies!

next game against dm and this one hurt. i was bombarded again, but this time i had the lead late. DM got the lead back, 28-24, and i drove all the way down inside his 10 for a first and goal. flash forward to 4th and goal and i throw a pretty crappy pass that gets picked game over. man what i wouldn't give to have those 4 shots back again... but oh well, thats how you have to take your beatings sometimes!
 
Fifty,I'm down for a game or two.You need some revenge :P
 
Yeah, that shit was ugly. I played good with UCLA today. Can you play now?

Oh, and turn voice through TV on in case I need to bitch to the TV!
 
Yep..its cougar time :D See ya online in a few.
 
Well DM just fmuta :( He beat me 7O something to 7..I stopped caring when he was up 35-0.Kinda sad that I can play good one minute and then next minute play like a retarded 4 year old.

Thank God Fifty is around,someone I can actually beat :P
 
wtf.... 70 something!?!?

Did he just throw long bombs?
I would have gone crazy if that happened to me. This is pathetic, I lose 24-6 to you and you lose by 70 points.


This game is WHACK. When I played you (when the score was tight) I dropped passes on 3rd down conversions time and time again. Remember that play to the left when the guy was WIDE OPEN and he drops it. You then proceeded to score on me. Outside running is way too easy in this game. You had an average running back, but he could run outside any time you wanted to go there.
 
Nah he was playing solid at the the start of the game,nice mix of running which for some reason I couldnt stop which helped him open up a few long bombs he caught and then he went on an int binge,I couldnt complete one damn pass that game.As soon as he hit 35-0 I think it was that,I just stopped caring and let him abuse me even worse.I would pick goaline and he would bomb the ball out or throw cross routes and take them in for the td..I could care less at that point.


THe game pisses me off because it feels random who wins the game online,he could catch everything and his sweep plays with his running back I couldnt stop.Yet other times when I play him he cant complete jack shit and I'm the one pulling down balls...something just seems off :\
 
As a test, I jacked up the WR catching ability to the highest setting. I am playing on All American. I threw passes specifically to my 92 rated receiver. I threw 10 passes where there was no DB interference. He dropped 6 of them. Explain that...?!?!
 
Matrix said:
THe game pisses me off because it feels random who wins the game online,he could catch everything and his sweep plays with his running back I couldnt stop.Yet other times when I play him he cant complete jack shit and I'm the one pulling down balls...something just seems off :\
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You're just noticing that with online sports games? If you take two people who know a little bit about the game (ie they don't pick dime-prevent against an obvious run, etc), it's gonna flip back and forth all the time.
 
I think I can safely speak for myself, Matrix and FMT when I say that we've never seen a game (that was so good last year) play so randomly online. In every game (even the guy who beat me) we had a QB % of 20% or less.
 
Bog said:
You're just noticing that with online sports games? If you take two people who know a little bit about the game (ie they don't pick dime-prevent against an obvious run, etc), it's gonna flip back and forth all the time.
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Ummm we all here know how to play football games..why dont you sign on and see for yourself how this game plays online.
 
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