Could've been better
User Rating: 7 | Madden NFL 08 X360
This is my first Madden on the 360, and I've gotta say I was a little let down. I didn't go for the 360 version last year because it didn't stack up to the PS2 version in the features department, but this year's edition seems to have, at the very least, closed the gap. The first thing I noticed is that the gameplay is a lot more fast-paced, and that the defense seems to have been built up even stronger than over the past few years, where that has become the main focus. Also the tackling animations are a lot more varied, and the presentation is a lot more enjoyable, with interesting pans from the stands, and a good variety of play celebrations, not to mention the removal of Madden's play by play in favor of the ESPN radio commentary. Now, the radio commentary isn't greay by any means, but anything beats listening to Madden's annoying voice for hours on end. The main complaints have, with my limited several-hour experience playing the game, are as follows: The front office navigation in Franchise mode is not as user friendly as past years. Making trades is time consuming, since you have to pretty much start over if you remove any of the players from the trade. The scouting process is far too time consuming. Free agent signing seems incomplete, because when you enter a player data screen and view their interests, the bars representing their interest in your team always seem to be empty. I haven't done extensive research on this, but having been on a successful, talented team, and to have the players who are interested in joining such a team still have those interest bars empty, left me wondering.
The create-a-superstar drills are much harder than they should be. Either that, or I'm losing my gamer's touch at my ripe old age of 23. The ring-building points / trophies systems aren't explained very well at all. It gives the impression of gaining some kind of experience, like in a role playing game, but there's not a whole lot of mention as to what having more points/trophies does for you in the long run. Fumblitis! I've played one game in the rain, and my team fumbled 8 times. This seemed a little excessive. Could've just been a fluke, but it started getting to me when I fumbled on nearly every drive in the game. All in all, it's pretty fun. But certain aspects can be frustrating. 
