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Okay,
I'm not going to blow smoke up your butts by starting off this review saying
things like "NFL Gameday '97 is the most awesome football game ever created"
and stuff like that. What you have here is the second year's installment of
Sony's premiere sports title "NFL Gameday". Sony has obviously taken
the good part of a year to try and improve on last years masterpiece football
game. Their intention: To make the good things of last years title great and
the great things ever better. Have they succeeded? Read on my sporting
friends...
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NFL
Gameday '97 is intended to be a good playable football simulation with arcade
elements thrown in for good measure. In my opinion Sony has succeeded in doing
just that with this game. If you really enjoy a good realistic football
showdown, you are sure to love this one...Pick your team, huddle up and get
ready to rock!
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This
is probably the most disappointing part of the entire game. GD '97's player
graphics don't seem to have improved at all from last year. The figures still
pixelate horribly when close up and are rather small overall when compared to
Madden '97 or NFL Quarterback. This, fortunately is where the disappointment
ends. All of the NFL stadiums are beautifully reproduced in all their graphic
glory. Now when you play, say the Giants, you feel like your in the
Meadowlands.
The games animations are also a big improvement from
last years game. The frame rate claims to be 50% faster and it surely shows.
Players move around wonderfully. You can plainly see one handed diving catches,
fakes, blocks and other special player movements. Very nice indeed.
There
is also a very engaging Full Motion Video opening sequence that sets the mood
nicely. Menu screen graphics are done nicely too. They are laid out logically
and are graphically appealing.
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Excellent...from
the hard hitting, bone crunching sound your defensive linemen make to the grunts
and groans from your offensive runner, the sounds put you into the game. The
music is pretty much the same as last years (which isn't a bad thing) and you
now have an announcer calling the play by play. I must say, the announcer in
this game is very good. Play calls are on the money and you also get the
echo/stadium sound from his voice. It's really a notch above all the others.
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Now
this is where the game really pulls out all the heavy artillery and sets the
stage for all other football games to follows. Never before has a console
football game been created that has such depth and realism yet perfectly
balances that with a fun to play game as GD '97. There are literally dozens
upon dozens of options available to the user. You actually need to read the
instruction booklet to understand what all of the buttons on the controller are
used for. There are also game configuration options that can be set prior to or
during play. Some of these options are: Computer IQ, Game Speed, Camera Angles,
Audibles, Physics, Clock Speed, Show Names or Numbers and Total Control
Passing/Advanced Meter Passing. Each of these options have significant impact
on the overall game. The computer IQ can be set from 60 to 180 and controls the
computers offensive and defensive intelligence. Player physics can be set for
loose (slide), normal (minimal slide) and tight (turn on a dime). Game Speed can
be set to slow, medium or fast and the camera angles, especially in the instant
replay mode, have an almost unlimited number of angles and zooms that can be
set.
The playbook is also very impressive! There are somewhere in the
neighborhood of 500 total plays to choose from and everything is laid out very
nicely using the button icons on the playstation controller. There are also no
"special" plays to be found that will allow you to consistly burn the
defense. This makes for a very strategic play calling experience. Another
impressive feature is the Total Control Passing element. This enables you to
over or underthrow your receiver in heavy coverage. Combine this with a jumping
one handed catch and you have yourself one spectacular play calling system here.
The defense now has the ability to swim past the offensive line or give a
forearm blast and speed burst to cut through the offense like butter. On
offense you can now pitch the ball to another player in your area and your also
have a nifty little double spin move to confuse the defense. Quarterbacks can
spike the ball and kneel down for game ending plays. Hell, you even have
interactive sidelines. If your runner gets pushed out of bounds, he can collide
with the ref, the other players, cheerleaders, anything that is in his
way...how's that for realism! You now have the option of creating your own
players too. Another point of interest is that this game also lets you place
players in any position at any time during the game.
So there you
have it folks, without a doubt, NFL Gameday '97 is the most awesome football
game ever created!!! (Hey, I never said anything about finishing up my review
by not praising this game)...
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All
the NFL teams, all the stadiums, all the players AND the ability to create your
own superstars certainly gives this title a great deal of value for your gaming
dollars. The computer AI is incredibly hard and unforgiving. It will learn
your plays and force you to get creative. No two games ever play alike. Now
that's value!
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TOM |
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GRAPHICS: |
Average |
About
the only thing that Sony needs to focus on for Gameday '98 is improving the
player graphics, everything else is indeed top notch! With the innovative
passing meter and advanced defense and offensive plays you can execute, this
game truly has it all...The stadiums are gorgeous, the animation is top notch
and the games sounds are all incredibly realistic. You want a true football
gaming experience, go pick up Gameday '97, you won't be sorry.
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SOUND: |
Good |
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PLAYABILITY: |
Good |
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VALUE: |
Brilliant |
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OVERALL
8/10 |
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JIM |
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GRAPHICS: |
Average |
Just
how much more can they cram into a football game? This game is still the leader
of the pack. |
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SOUND: |
Average |
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PLAYABILITY: |
Brilliant |
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VALUE: |
Brillisnt |
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OVERALL
8/10 |
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