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Xbox | Sports | Madden NFL 2002

Boxart for Madden NFL 2002
Madden NFL 2002 15 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 5.0
  • SOUND: 4.0
  • CONTROL: 4.5
  • FUN FACTOR 5.0
  • AVG USER SCORE 4.3
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 4.4
Winner of the GamePro Editor's Choice Award

Review: Madden NFL 2002

Review by Bro Buzz | 11/15/2001 | 15:24:19 PM PST

Madden NFL 2002 is ready to slide under the PS2-versus-Xbox microscope.

When it?s time to put on the pads and get geeked up for video game football, Madden NFL is always first string. So to tackle a new game system, the game plan seems decidedly clear cut: Let?s truck the best version of the game to date from the PlayStation 2 to the Xbox. Of course, with the Xbox?s much?hyped promise of more pure processing horsepower and hardware muscle comes higher expectations for gameplay, too. For the most part, Madden NFL 2002 is up to the challenge.

The Xs and Os
NFL 2002?s feature set and game modes make the transition unscathed and in fine form. Even with the real NFL season near the half-way point, Madden X holds up?and with the extra time between releases, the Xbox player roster is even more current. Franchise mode and create-a-player are primed and ready for imaginative, creative general managers and frankensteinian coaches alike. You can wheel and deal Madden cards, too.

The on-the-field action is fast and familiar to Madden fans, and there aren?t any major new moves. It may also take time for slow-fingered play-callers to hunt around the Xbox controller to reach the additional W and Bl action buttons during passes. But using that extra Bl button for flipping plays is great, and the analog stick feels a might tighter than the PS2?s. Your challenge, really, is to learn how to dance with that Xbox controller, which rumbles like a Tony Siragusa sprint.

Looks Like Madden
Madden also maintains its graphics game face. If anything, character visuals look slightly sharper with brighter colors than the PS2 game's, and the post-play highlights are still cool. You really appreciate the multiple camera angles in instant replay, too. But maybe the little things stand out more now, too, such as the active (if primitive) reaction by the fans after big plays?but that sideline remains sparse, and ballcarriers sometimes reveal happy feet when they?re stuck up against another player. And the close-ups of the coaches are even more unnerving now (sorry, Coaches Green, Fassel, and Seifert).

The voices of Madden and Summerall continue to carry the sounds with their homespun commentary. These guys never get excited about anything. The roar of the crowd ebbs and flows a touch too rapidly, but it provides a nice background to the action.

System Safe
Madden makes the smart play by not fixing anything that ain?t broke for the Xbox, but a second go-round places it under more of a microscope with fans. If you?re making tackles and scoring touchdowns with the PS2 version, there?s no incentive to switch right now. But if you?re a first-time football gamer looking for a serious simulation or a pro totally committing to the Xbox, you can?t go wrong with Madden NFL 2002.