In the opening sequence of Madden 10, John Madden himself promises you “I’ve seen a lot of games, but I have a feeling that this one is gonna be special.”
Big words, for a franchise that has come under quite a lot of fire the past few years for not being innovative or special whatsoever. Gone were the days when 2k and EA pushed themselves to their creative limits and brought about many of the staples now found in almost every football game (I remember the first year of the hit stick; it was EPPIIICC). Many critical sports gamers have, like John, seen a lot of games since EA’s exclusive deal with the NFL went down - and many of them feel that all of those games were far too similar to merit a yearly $60 investment into nothing more than a glorified roster redux. 2010, though, promises to be anything but more of the same, packed to the brim with new features galore. Does the game deliver on the promise put down by its namesake; is 2010 special? Find out after the jump
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Ladies and gentlemen, you get tickets to one of these fights. Which do you choose?
(Take a gander after the cut).
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Speaking at the Paris Game Developers Conference, EA’s David McCarthy revealed that within the next year, EA Sports games will be bundled with peripherals. McCarthy said “I think you’ll see games using that Rock Band peripheral strategy from EA Sports, even within the next 12 months,” so long as the accessibility of a game isn’t compromised. McCarthy did not expand on whether or not the peripherals would reach all three major consoles, or even what specific games they are being developed for.

Regardless of the game, I think we can all agree that this console generation’s obsession with peripherals is getting a little out of hand. Whatever happened to picking up just a disc whenever we wanted a new game? Now I have to get an entirely new controller. The recently announced Guitar Hero 4 is supposed to have drums as well, and I sure as hell don’t need two drum sets.

This leads me into a greater argument about sports games as a whole. I feel that if you really want to play a sport, then go out and play it! There is some rationality to using a standard controller and playing online, but if someone is already swinging a virtual bat, that’s just one step away from actually playing baseball. Some may argue that music games such as Rock Band should follow the same guidelines, but learning the basics of an instrument is definitely more time-consuming than learning the basics of a sport. If you’ve ever had gym class, you should know how to play basketball.

Hey, EA, why not get to work on a new SSX instead?

[Via Gamesindustry.biz]

Activision has been getting its ass kicked lately, thanks to brand new EA games such as Skate and Rock Band dominating the Tony Hawk Pro Skater and Guitar Hero series. Activision isn’t giving up though…least not without several upgrades and innovations.

IGN has reported that in the May issue of Conde Nast Portfolio, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick revealed that more instruments will be included in Guitar Hero IV.

“It’s not just about guitars. We’ll include a lot of other instruments, vocals. It will help us expand internationally.”

In addition to new instruments, Kotick also said that GH IV will be the first game in which the company will use “local content and local bands.” Players will be able to play along with their local bands in-game.

I don’t think Rock Band can get away with just DLC when this game comes around…

Sure, Wii Sports is a neat party trick to pull out and amuse your friends with for five minutes, but how long does it take for the shallow gameplay to overstay its welcome? Too long. For those of us who have become bored with the pack-in title, Tecmo has pulled up in their shiny golf carts to offer us Super Swing Golf Season 2, a whimsical, fantasy golf title.

Does SSGS2 hit a hole in one? Hit the jump to find out. I might even throw in a few more golf puns.
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