Madden NFL 2001
Score: 80% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: EA Games Developer: EA Sports Media: Cartridge/1 Players: 1 - 4 Genre: Sports (Football)
Graphics & Sound: A long time ago, I once believed that when a game had much success, the only thing to do for the next game was to IMPROVE. Unfortunately, that belief went straight out the window when I played Madden NFL 2001. EA Sports tried something new with the Player Detail, which I think bombed completely. It's like there is a black outline on every player model, which really downgrades the attractiveness of the game. Plus, they look very 'blocky,' very unlike Madden NFL 2000. The stadiums' appearance is the same like the year before, which is descent. The sounds are just the same as the year before, in that you have Madden and Summerall commentating (take it as you will), along with the whistles, tackles and crowd noise. No big effort for improvement was proven to me from EA Sports.
Gameplay: There are the same features as before with Practice, Preseason, Season, Franchise, and Madden Challenges. But now Madden has added some pretty cool features with the 2 Minute Drill and the Situation mode. With the 2 Minute Drill, you have to prove your worth within the two minutes allotted, and see if you have what it takes to be a "Comeback Quarterback." The other one, which is my favorite, is the Situation mode, where you can recreate any type of situation to possibly change the outcome. I immediately tried this out with the last seconds of the Rams/Titans Super Bowl. Very cool. The gameplay is basically the same with the handling of the offense and defense. Not much changed from that point, although they have added some new "Bone-Crushing" tackles, and new end zone celebrations. Speaking of which, you are able to actually choose which celebration you want to do with the simple press of the button, just so you don't get too bored of one in particular.
Difficulty: The difficulty in Madden 2001 is again the same as it has been from the past. And you are always able to change any settings regarding penalties, weather, etc., that may increase or decrease the difficulty of the game.
Game Mechanics: Again, not much changed from the previous year. Madden NFL 2001 provides good solid control to go along with fluid graphics. The button configuration changed slightly, but that takes a second to get used to. And it takes up about the same amount of Game Pak space as from the year before. My final note: The only thing that is dramatically different is the graphics, which got worse. A couple new game features provide some new fun, but all in all, you're playing the same game from a year ago... except with worse graphics.
-Red Dawg, GameVortex Communications AKA Alex Redmann
Indy Racing 2000 PGA European Tour