You can smell it in the air. It's that time for college football again! And EA Sports has the game to satisfy your need!
When you put this game in the console you are immediately met with a montage of college football mascots, & cheerleaders followed by the EA Sports splash logo. From there, the game enters a presentation that pretty much defines what college football is all about: tradition, and dedication to your school. What you see on Saturday afternoons in Ohio Stadium is what you get. The Ohio State University Band marching on the field, with the susaphone player dotting the "I"; this game has it all. "Play Like A Champion Today" slapping that sign before you hit the football field is what you see the Notre Dame Fighting Irish do on Saturday afternoon's and that is exactly what you see in this game. You will hear your school's fight song as you take the field as well as your team's flags being flown by your mascot and cheerleaders. As far as presentation goes, this is the closest you will get to the field. And that is not all. Not only is the on field presentation in this game amazing, the gameplay presentation is bar none. Between plays, you will see a smooth ESPN logo wipe with the instant replay as if the game was being broadcasted live on ESPN. There's nothing like it.
This game also has many different ways to enjoy the college football experience. First there is the dynasty modes both online & local. I personally haven't had the chance to check out the online dynasty mode yet but from what I understand, a player chooses a team to control for their dynasty. This includes playing conference & non-conference games, recruiting, the whole 9 yards. The main difference between online dynasty & local dynasty modes is the local dynasty is just competing against the A.I. while the online dynasty is against real people. Both modes are exceptional and EA Sports has really done a great job with them especially when it comes to recruiting kids to attend your school. I'm not going to get into detail much with that, I'll just let you check it out for yourself; it's something that shouldn't be missed.
Another mode in NCAA Football 11' that shouldn't be missed is the Road To Glory Mode. You take control of a created player (position of your choice) and start at your high school state championship game. Once those games are complete depending on how you did on your games, you get recruited by the many schools in the NCAA offering scholarships for you. Once you make your decision, it's off to the campus where each week you participate in practices, classes, and other nightly activites of your choice (studying, studying the playbook, visiting the coaching staff, etc). These choices will weigh on how your attributes change for the player you created so the choices must be choosen wisely for each day/evening. It's probably one of the most unique modes I've ever played in terms of sports games. These two game modes are the best modes that the game offers and are where most gamers will spend most of their time with.
As great as NCAA Football 2011 is, it's not perfect. There are glitches that I personally ran across while playing this game. For example, I ran a play where I fumbled the football, and for about 5 minutes, all 22 players on the field were literally playing "hot potato" with the football unable to pick it up and literally were just diving and grudging against one other trying to maintain control of the football for their team. I was just about to reset the game when I got an idea. I pulled all 11 defensive players from my team off of the football field and the skirmish for the football continued for the offensive players for another 30 seconds…and finally their momentium drived the football out of bounds and play finally resumed. It was pretty ridiculous and I personally thought that this kind of bug should have been discovered by EA Sports' QA department but I guess no one is perfect. I've heard of other bugs that happen in the game occassionally as well such as not gaining possession after the opponent scores a touchdown which also would be frustrating.
But overall in conclusion, NCAA Football 2011 is the most complete college football game on the market today and this year's game is no exception. The presentation is unmatched and there are many features that keep the replayability very high with this game especially for football fans. However the game is not perfect and does have it's share of bugs that happen from time to time. But I would still reccomend this game for any college football game fan, because of it's presentation, game modes, and graphics alone. This game is the complete package. So strap on your helmet football fans. College football is here!
Graphics: 8 – The graphics for this game improve a little bit every year and this is no exception. The game is delivered in 720p resolution and the video looks stellar. Player models & animations are smooth and dynamic.
Gameplay: 8.5 – Gameplay definitely has a learning curve but once you get the hang of it, it's a pretty interactive experience. Bottom line, you aren't playing a button masher here, and if you push the wrong button at the wrong time, or too late, the football will be turned over. This adds to the challenge and makes gameplay more challenging and fun for all.
Sound: 9 – This game has a great soundtrack of multiple authentic college football cadances, fight songs, chants, etc. If you've ever attended a college football game, you will be right at home. It's the ultimate authentic experience for college football. You won't be disappointed.
Presentation: 8 – The only thing keeping this game from receiving a 9 or a 10 on presentation from me are the bugs that I encountered. Otherwise, this is one of the most authentic games in association to real college football that I have ever seen. To this date, you can't get any closer to this except for the real game.
Re-Playability: 9 – If you love college football and can play this game season after season, the dynasty modes are just for you. You can play multiple seasons and will never get tired of it because ever year there is a new recruiting class, a new #1 team, a new bowl game, and a new national champion.
Overall: 8.5 – LEGIT