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Madden arrives on PSP. Madden is undoubtedly EA Sports’ star franchise and not just because EA is now the sole interactive licenser of the NFL. The franchise appears on many platforms including all consoles and the PC, and portable platforms including the Nintendo DS. Madden NFL 06 for PSP is the definitive handheld football game to own.
The game’s primary mode is the franchise mode. You can perform a number of activities including playing practices, completing training minigames, playing actual games, signing free agents, getting rookies and making trades. Overall, the franchise mode is just as involved as it is on consoles. The franchise mode is so involved that you can actually sync the PSP with the PS2. You can upload your game online, and download it on either the PSP or PS2. This lets you play on franchise mode, and play it either on the big screen or on the PSP. This was something discussed when the PSP was first launched and it is awesome to have it implemented so well here.
Moving past the franchise mode, the game lacks an owner mode and the Tony Bruno show. If you aren’t up for a full game, you can enter the minicamp mode. There are a number of new modes including modes specialized for quarterbacks, receivers, offensive linemen, and defensive running backs. They are a good way to get some gameplay going in a short amount of time. Of course, the typical practice and exhibition game modes are also included.
The gameplay closely resembles a console Madden game from a few years ago. You can perform most of the basic activities including precision analog passing, though it isn’t quite as effective on the PSP though that is due to its analog stick more than the game. The running game is a bit uneven since the game lets you get away with too much rushing at times. This is due to the lack of momentum-based running found in the console versions, probably something that EA Sports will fix for the next iteration. The defense is still very solid though the understandable lack of the hit stick is missed. The vision cone implemented in this year’s console version is lacking in the PSP version of Madden.
Madden NFL 06 features both offline and online multiplayer. The typical offline, local wireless (ad hoc) works like a charm without any lag. The online mode works very well too. As usual, you’ll need to register for an EA account if you don’t already have one. As with recent games, there is a $2 to opt out of ESPN emails, though you can get around this by using a barely-checked email address for your EA login.
Madden NFL 06 on PSP is a fully 3D football game, mirroring the console versions of a years ago. Understandably, the game isn’t quite as detailed so you’ll notice that the player models don’t have quite the same level of detail. EA Canada managed to get all of the animations in though, allowing for a wonderfully smooth game of football. The frame rate generally handles the action, though it slows down here and there. Perhaps the most annoying quirk about the visual presentation is the loading which is a bit too frequent.
The game’s stellar presentation continues with the sound. The sound effects are impressive, providing some life to the onscreen action. The commentary provides by Al Michaels and John Madden is about as good as a typical Madden game. The EA Trax provided soundtrack is impressive in terms of sheer scope. All of the audio is console-quality, as well.
Madden NFL 06 is the first football game on the PSP, and it gets a lot of things right. Like with any franchise, there is room for improvement but for now, Madden on PSP is definitely recommended to football fans. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Oct 3, 2005
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