NFL Fever 2003
The past 2 months I’ve been playing some Xbox rpg’s for your reviewing pleasure and now that they are finished I had a little time to do a sports title. Personally I think that a console is still the best way to play a sports game like Fifa or Tony Hawk but I had no clue about this one, NFL Fever 2003. Yep, football, not exactly the best known sport around here but knowing it is a Microsoft title it will be pretty much the real deal.
So as a total football newbie I started of with the training sessions which were really interesting and not at all boring: there is nothing more fun then brutally tackling a guy that doest hurt you back. After getting all the basics in movement, passing and game overview I went for a quick game against one of the worst teams out there. It was a very close *cough* match and the end score was a 51 – something loss. So I started wondering what went wrong and I hit me pretty soon: I know about as much of American Football as the average American knows about the offside rules in soccer. Nothing!
After some consideration I decided to give you all my newbie opinion and then get a mate of mine that watches every sport they air on CNN.
The gameplay seems correct as far as I can tell. But there are some surprises for newbies like me: I had no idea that you only get a limited amount of plays to try and score points, after that you get to kick the ball to their side and they can try. One thing I have to mention is the fun factor, I really had a good time even though my best result was a tie with the best team against the worst team and that is still the aim of a game if you ask me. Everything is there: you can do tackle combos, run plays, create your own plays, read up on the history of teams and analyze the game in tactical overview. The only problem I had is choosing the right play for the right situation, luckily there is a recommended play option.
Over to the expert view now, all the teams have the correct gear and outfits and players move amazingly accurate. There are loads of good plays in the game that cover every situation but you can gain a lot on the opponent with you own plays like the defensive plays that Tampa Bay used in this years super bowl. This game is by far the best football game on any platform I’ve tried.
The sound and graphics are simply top notch. There is nothing more to say about it then the fact that Microsoft obviously knows its console best. Amazing player models, great Dolby cheering crowds, nice stadiums etc…
NFL Fever 2003 has a live feature and was promoted as one of the biggest online titles for Xbox in the USA and it is the best selling Xbox title there so maybe it will gain popularity over here via that way but I seriously doubt it.
If you are a football fan, buy this game. If you are looking for a new sport to try out on you console, buy this game. But if you don’t know football I wouldn’t buy it cause even though it was fun, it didn’t entertain me that long just because I didn’t get the rules completely and they are not that easy to get when you are addicted to soccer. The low score in gameplay is just because its very hard for beginners and most people in Europe are just that.
8.0
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