NCAA Football 10 (PS3)

by Kevin Sweeney - GamePro Sports
July 15, 2009 00:00 AM PST

NCAA Football 10 is like an above average college football recruit: it plays hard, keeps its nose clean and eventually gets drafted in the second round. It doesn't make ESPN's Top 10 Plays segment on a weekly basis nor does it rack up the jersey sales but it works hard in the trenches and is a great locker room presence. What I'm trying to say here is that NCAA 10 isn't a superstar, but your team -- or rather, your sporting game library -- will be better off if it's on your roster.

While Kevin wasn't blown away by this year's NCAA installation, he still found it an incredibly enjoyable title with some deep new gameplay options, such as the customizable new TeamBuilder feature.

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Erin Andrews > New gameplay

As we've all heard a thousand times before, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" and EA Tiburon follows that edict about as well as anybody could. The game looks and plays pretty much like last year's version, with the expected uptick in visual quality and some new gimmicks and tweaks that are peppered in to, and allow me to paraphrase the legendary Hank Stram here, keep things "matriculating down the field."

My favorite new addition has to be the bodacious Erin Andrews, who acts as the in-game sideline reporter; she can play on my team any day of the week. Season Showdown mode is also a welcome addition; in this mode you are graded on every aspect of your game as you play out your school's weekly schedule. There's even an honor code so if you choose to run up the score, it will cost you dearly when your grade is tallied.

School's Out For Summer

Another excellent online feature is the new TeamBuilder mode. There's a dedicated website that does an absolutely fantastic job of letting you create a custom team that you can import into the game. My only gripe is that you have to use the website; there's no TeamBuilder option on the actual game disc itself. Road to Glory mode is also fun and gives you the ability to watch videos of your saved highlights after every game but the gimmick becomes stale after a while.

All in all, NCAA Football 10 is an enjoyable college football sim that doesn't quite reach superstar status. It has a great set of skills but it doesn't excel in any one area. If you're a diehard college football fanatic then this is a no-brainer; if, however, you're just in the mood for some digital football, I'd advise you to wait until Madden NFL 10 comes out before you sign your letter of intent.

PROS: TeamBuilder is very deep and really allows for a personal team; Season Showdown could make for some great online rivalries; Erin Andrews
CONS: Road to Glory is a new title and not much else; EA will charge you REAL money for VIRTUAL in game recruiting