We rate Microsoft's first foray into the console sports realm.
If you're going launch a new console and you want to do it right, you have to showcase a premiere football title. It's just an unwritten rule. Microsoft and the Xbox have done even better than that. They've not only launched with Madden 2002, a guaranteed hit, but also with their own home grown football title, NFL Fever 2002. Fever is a good first step for Microsoft into the console pigskin realm, but it's far from perfect.
Right off the bat, you'll notice the incredibly slick visuals. These are easily the best looking players I've seen on a computer generated football field. They're muscular, well proportioned, and have amazingly realistic faces that stretch and animate to perfection. The uniforms are just as tight. They have that silky sheen that's noticeable on current NFL squads, and they gather dust and dirt as the game goes on. The stadiums are nice, but slightly less comparable to the rest of the on field visuals. The sidelines are particular nasty, as they house low poly, jerky players and coaches that actually look like low-res FMV being played over the game proper.
I can't stand using the word "mixed-bag" almost as much as I can't stand the use of "air quotes," but for lack of a better term, here we go. The animation in this game is a mixed bag. It's a shame really because it seriously diminishes the overall look of Fever. The graphics are the crowning achievement for the game after plays and during replays, but it looks pretty rickety in motion during the actual game play. It's starts off real cool with the quarterback using shifty footwork in the pocket and throwing the ball in form true to life. Once you have the ball as the running back or the receiver though, there are some real questionable transitions and a lot of jerky cutbacks. The actual running is similar to Madden where they look like they have a bad hip and a slight limp, but it really goes sour when you cut left and right. There's a mix of momentum animation like they have weight, then all of the sudden they're back in a running animation in the opposite direction. The jerkiness and cutting quickly out of animation (lack of good transitions) makes you feel a bit out of control of your on screen player. Compound that with the oft seen magically reappearing football (where the ball leaves its in flight pattern and snaps to a players hands) and you're heading for some frustration. Like I said, it's not all bad. There are some cool tackle animations and running back moves where they support themselves with one hand and keep scrambling forward, and of course the post play celebrations are keen.
Talking about animation leads nicely into how this game actually plays because what you see directly affects how you react. The animation is actually detrimental to the game play. I've already described how you can feel out of control with a running back and how the ball magically appears in receivers' hands, but the tackling is a problem too. Tackling also lacks the necessary transition animation to make the game play smoothly. I appreciate the fact that you can actually free your defender from a blocker, but it's near instantaneous. One moment the defender is engaged in a block, then a nanosecond later, he's leaped off and brought down the ball carrier. The classic 5 yard, darting, diving tackle rears its ugly head here too. This really lends itself more to an NFL Blitz arcade type of game play. Maybe that's what you're looking for in a football game, but it makes me none too happy.
I guess you take the bad with the good, and there are some very strong points to this football engine. If only we, as gamers, could splice all the best parts of these high profile football games together, imagine how fantastic it would look and play. I'm impressed by the offensive players and the roles they play on the field, while I'm once again disappointed in the stupid things that the defensive players do on the other side of the ball. I was overjoyed to see the offensive players actually try to complete the play I picked as designed. Offensive lineman that are supposed to pull on a running play do just that, and they get out in front of the RB just itching for a linebacker or safety to lay out. Receivers run routes to a spot on the field where I expected them and avoid collisions for the most part. They also have the ability to catch a ball in stride (like on an out or a crossing pattern) and turn it up field, which feels very natural. So while the offense is showing me that they are capable of field vision, I notice that the defense looks unable to perform the same task. Linebackers, who are supposed to have the best awareness, often chase a tight end on a flat out pattern while the give is to the tailback up the middle. The reaction comes around too late, and the running back ends up getting tackled by the safeties 15 yards downfield who were also running with a receiver until the last moment. There isn't much in the way of breaking tackles either, which goes back to my complaint about the super hero diving tackles before.
As for the rest of the game, it comes across strong. The commentary is weak, but unless the box reads NFL2K#, then that's to be expected. The on field sounds and trash talking are pretty good, and the menu music is some of the best I've heard in a sports game. It's really underrated because during franchises you can spend an inordinate amount of time surfing through stats and coaching screens. Speaking of menus, I was perplexed by the limited amount of option including the unforgivable number of quarter lengths you can pick. There are only 5, 10, and 15 minute quarters to choose from. The play calling screens are easy to navigate, and there are a large variety of offensive and defensive plays. Unfortunately you have like zero time to pick a defensive play because you have to choose within seconds of the CPU picking, and it picks way too fast. There are plenty of the standard modes to choose from such as exhibition, season, training, and franchise. There are also plenty of hidden teams and stadiums to unlock during your progression with the game.
I guess I was pretty hard on Fever, but the developer just gave me so many easy things to pick on. The fun factor hasn't been totally negated, and I can really appreciate some of the things Fever does that you can't find in other console football games. I still contend that this is an adequate first step into the arena for Microsoft, and I expect that they can build on the high points of this game to create something outstanding next year. Players looking for an alternative to Madden should consider NFL Fever 2002 a viable option for the Xbox launch, but I suggest taking the prima donna rookie approach and holding out until next season.
