NDS GAME RECOMMENDATIONS |

[#] Madden NFL 2005 (Electronic Arts, Nintendo DS, 2004)

A strong, satisfying core of pigskin, but with little adornment.

It's blocky, the audio is minimal, the touch screen is barely used, but this DS launch title has kept me pretty well entertained over the past few weeks. Madden 2005 majorly benefits from EA's realization that the DS is very similar to a PS1 in capabilities--and they just so happened to have a PS1 engine for Madden still knocking around (2005 was the last edition released for it). This is effectively a port of that PS1 version, right down to the UI, sound effects, summaries after each play, and camera angles, and that was a very smart move given how nicely PS1 Madden had matured by the early 2000s.

It's really easy to dismiss at first glance, because Madden 2005 is visually and audibly not brilliant. The players are chunky and have little more than eyes peeking from their helmets, but their animations are pretty smooth, and there's even some nice little touches like different field surfaces and the chain measurements for debated first downs. Audio is understandably poor, with only a loop of Earshot's "Wait" remaining from the soundtrack for the menus and almost no game commentary outside of Al Michaels' occasional first down and point after comments. John himself only ever seems to chime in to tell us that a two yard loss is "what football's all about"!

While there's certainly a lot of nitpicks (no Mini Camp, no weather, no scrolling menus with the touch screen, though picking plays with it is very fun), the core of Madden is still here, and it's hella solid. The lack of load times on a cartridge mean you get into a flow of first downs and pass attempts really quickly, and I find the running game especially satisfying in this version. The AI is decent, even cheeky, running down the clock by delaying the game or kneeing for touchbacks, and there's a lot to customize for rosters, penalties, and injuries. I'm sure you can do better for on-the-go handegg now, but I still felt compelled to play through a season here. Just remember to turn off those constant instant replays.

Recommended for... blockers. (Get it? The game is blocky and there's blockers in football?)