IGN Reviews ESPN 2k5

I thought owner mode was a nice enhancement. They took it to a deeper level this year but it was more than pricing hotdogs. This year with players having emotion about where they want to play will be really cool, expecially since the computer initiates trades now. They fixed so many things that will make playing a franchise realistic and similar to as if they were all real players. Also then trading up in the draft. Madden for a logn time was just a roster update, and I never bought any of those maddens either. But in all reality the roster update is the biggest reason i buy the game,expecially being a skins fan and having a full new roster everyyear. This year should be a great madden though, this competition is great and will make both games so much better.
I'm really looking forward to how your players won't re-sign just for the money. If your WR isn't seeing enough throws his way he'll look to go elsewhere.

ok good, im glad im not the only one obsessive enough to notice this. they've never been able to get our Burgundy down, it's true. for $20 i'll pick up 2k5 and let you know if they've fixed this. i hope one day the games, Madden or 2k, finally realize that our home uniform is WHITE (!@#$% Schottenheimer...)

here's a 2k tip, never play in default difficulty, play on all-pro straight away. much more strategic and life like. on default, your players break way too many tackles as its tuned for more 'fun' style gameplay and to show off the animations.
Prior to Marty Madden did have the Skins in their home whites, since then it's been switched.

I hope they have the all-white look available this year, I thought it was pretty sweet.

I thought owner mode was a nice enhancement. They took it to a deeper level this year but it was more than pricing hotdogs. This year with players having emotion about where they want to play will be really cool, expecially since the computer initiates trades now. They fixed so many things that will make playing a franchise realistic and similar to as if they were all real players. Also then trading up in the draft. Madden for a logn time was just a roster update, and I never bought any of those maddens either. But in all reality the roster update is the biggest reason i buy the game,expecially being a skins fan and having a full new roster everyyear. This year should be a great madden though, this competition is great and will make both games so much better.

of course the roster is why we buy the game (and keep EA rich). makes me mad because its really only a roster download away...

extras like franchise, fantasy and owner mode are cool and tons of people love it, but i've always felt obligated to just play the actual Redskins. no what ifs or made up trades (although this year i'm super tempted to play as if we got Ogunleye..)

i've always been more concerned with the on field gameplay/physics and am still waiting for the day Madden doubles its animations and gets that accursed 'ice skating' feeling off the running game. if i'm Clinton Portis i should be able to really CUT and see it / feel it.

I haven't felt that ice skating feeling for quite a while now. In fact I think the spin move is something that needs to be adjusted, because as it is right now it's just deadly in the open field. You can literally cut on a dime while running full speed and spin away from a tackle.

As a gaming fan who enjoyed 2k3 I really liked some of the things they did differently from madden(scouting & the draft) and yeah the controls took a little getting used too, but after I did it was a really addictive game(i didn't buy madden that year either,lol.) So if I can save $30 buying one game out of two very similar games then I'm getting the cheaper one so I can use my extra money towards more games, gas, movies, or food. I definitely wouldn't pay $60 for the collectors edition of madden cuz I could really care less about the behind the scenes stuff, all I want is the game. Plus I for one am really tired of listening to madden babble on and on and would rather hear a bit more creative commentary and highlight reel in 2k5. I'll have a couple weeks to try out espn 2k5 and if it winds up being a total flop then I'll go ahead and get madden, but to me it's not worth it to buy both when there r just too many other good games coming out and I'm not pulling in the big bucks as of yet to buy as many as I'd like.

The halftime highlight reel sounds like a great feature on 2K5, but unless you have the xbox all you get is snapshots of the action.

I'll probably rent 2K5 at some point, but I don't see it pulling me away from Madden.

basically, i look forward to the day when the runner moves and animates naturally like this, only WITHOUT any special buttons or need for a separate stick movement (minus the spins of course, that should definitely be a button):
http://www.espnvideogames.com/_img/videos/nfl2005/nfl2005_teaser_1.mpg

they dont have to make everyone miss like these are supposed to, but just so you plant your feet moving around with the appropriate animations. i want to feel like an athlete on the field, not a game piece on a board. i hate the standard 2k series 'stick up the butt' (aka 'mario running') movement, and the weak one step Madden 'cuts'.

the announcers are really well done (no WASHINTON-seven-TEEN, miami-SIX-TEEN chunkiness), but the actual voices are more annoying... win some lose some i guess.

What's up with the 2K announcers? Why don't they have the regular ESPN booth?? I was kinda disappointed when I didn't hear them.

at the risk of sounding a little 'anti' Skin, you really want to hear Joe Theisman?