NCAA Football 13 returns this year with a host of new features. Does it live up to the high standard set by previous entries?
The spring and summer seasons always play out the same for me every year; in April, I watch the NFL Draft, May-June I watch all the rookie mini camps and OTAs, In July and August, I start watching training camps, and by the time football season rolls around, I’m nearly jittery with anticipation.
It’s tough for a football fanatic when the time between seasons is filled with large gaps of nothing. However, every July and August, a little something drops in my lap to make time pass a little bit quicker. Yes readers, I’m talking about NCAA Football and Madden, two ways to get my gridiron on before my household is taken over by nearly 24/7 football broadcasts.
The tough thing about an annual release like NCAA and Madden is the fact that the changes won’t be dramatic from year to year. While we as fans would LOVE a drastically different and improved product every year, the reality of it is that probably won’t ever happen; whether it’s because of a developmental reason or a business one.
The changes to NCAA Football 13 are relatively subtle for the most part, but they contribute to some pretty dramatic changes to the way you play the game that we’ve all grown so familiar with.
In video game football, I’ve come across two types of players; 1) the strict sim fanatic who plays like a football team would in real life, and 2) the arcade crowd. These are the guys that drop back 20 yards every snap, Hail Mary every play, go for it every single 4th down, and abuse Michael Vick’s skills like no other. Both groups are fine and dandy, but this year, it appears that EA is weeding out the arcade crowd.
If you intend to succeed at NCAA Football 13, you better know your football (this, of course, is not referring to 1 Button Mode, which is aimed at folks who don’t know football or kids). Improved AI and animations make this iteration one of the more realistic football experiences in quite some time. Sure, I’m certain there will still be people that find ways to exploit the game, but by and large, you are forced to play this game like a real football player would.
To begin with, there are 20 new QB dropback animations (including 1, 3, 5, and 7 step drops). These are automatic; simply snap the ball, and let the AI do the work. This allows the player to scan the field for open receivers (which now are represented by a highlighted icon to show that they are looking for the ball). Pump fakes are now automatic as well in plays that include them. Your QB now has new animations for scrambles and rollouts, which affect their throw power and trajectories by being on the move. You can perform shovel passes, and overall, throwing animations in general have been sped up, resulting in quicker releases.
There’s also the addition of Total Control Passing, which honestly is just an evolution of Precision Passing. Essentially the system is a glorified version of leading your receivers. It’s a small thing to notice, but fanatics will appreciate the greater degree of control.
While we’re on the subject of passes, how about the 20 new pass trajectories? Now, your QB isn’t limited to just a bullet pass or lob pass. These 20 new trajectories now take into account a variety of zones across the field. A lob to a WR running a fade will be significantly different than a bullet to a WR on a quick out.
All these new QB features make it difficult for the cheesers to succeed. Basically if it can’t be done in real life, you’ll have a hard time doing it in the game.
That’s just on the offensive side of the ball. The defense this year is smarter as well, and also considerably less cheesy. In previous installments, if you had a pass swatted down or picked off, there was a good chance that a “magical” LB or DB appeared out of nowhere, slid across the field with superhuman speed, and somehow ended up exactly where your ball is. There was nothing more annoying than having these “Psychic DBs” and “Super LBs” roaming the field.
Now, these superhuman defenders have all been injected with a dose of Kryptonite, making them much more human. Defenders must now actually turn and see the ball before they can make a play on it. Defenders will now match up the best of their players to the best of the offense. The defense will now disguise their coverages, making it much more difficult to pick out whether they are lined in man or zone coverage. And the most noticeable one of all; defenders will now cover your receivers like glue. In the past, if I launched a pass at my TE, for instance, and it was picked off or batted down, there was a good chance that a Super Defender was to blame. Now, if the same thing happens, it’s my own damn fault because I didn’t actually wait for my receiver to get open.
Needless to say, with all these new improvements to both sides of the ball, anytime I made a great play or scored, I felt like Peyton Manning. I knew I put in the work and actually read the opposing team correctly. It’s a pretty cool feeling.
The Career modes also see a few changes, although it seems to affect Dynasty Mode more so than Road to Glory. RTG returns as mostly the same thing we saw from last year. The biggest change, other than a few AI enhancements, is the inclusion of Reaction Time, which is basically bullet-time. The better you become, the more Reaction Time you have. It’s completely optional and not something you’re forced into using. That’s a good thing, as Reaction Time sometimes makes things a bit too easy.
Dynasty Mode sees a number of changes made to Scouting and Recruiting. There is now a devoted bank of time to put towards scouting, which will unlock certain attributes for players. Based off of your scouting, potential prospects can be classified as Gems or Busts. Recruiting also gets a few new features, as triple threat athletes can be recruited and assigned to different positions. Dynamic pitches also make the recruiting process a much more exciting affair, as pitch grades can now change from week to week based off of your performance. It’s pretty cool knowing that you are affecting your pitch grades, and that you can then use your newly improved (or worsened) pitch grade in your favor.
Rounding out the Career modes is the inclusion of the Heisman Challenge. This mode is, simply put, absolutely awesome for those who are fans of football history. Heisman Challenge includes a number of real Heisman winners (Carson Palmer, Barry Sanders, Tim Brown, Desmond Howard, and more) and gives you the chance to play through the legendary seasons of said athlete’s repertoire. This mode is presented with a variety of video interviews, and plays out very similarly to RTG. Reaction Time makes an appearance, but here, it feels more natural. You’re cleating up as one of the best of all time in college history; Reaction Time gives you that edge to feel dominant on the field. I should point out, however, that six of the players are locked to pre-order bonuses, the demo, or future DLC….which is kind of messed up.
On the presentation front, NCAA Football 13 is pretty much the same that we’ve seen before. There are a few new stadiums, traditions, mascots, etc (USC Song Girls, Rivalry Game trophy presentations, new Florida Atlantic University Stadium and new North Texas University Stadium, to name a few), and a variety of visual enhancements. One of the most noticeable is the inclusion of motion blur, which adds a pretty neat effect to the gameplay.
On the audio side, stadium sounds are a lot more authentic. The development team traveled to a number of live games during the 2011 season and recorded the actual crowds. The results are staggering, especially with a good sound system. If you’ve got a decent sound system, crank it up and feel your whole living room rock to the sounds of a live crowd.
The commentary is pretty decent, as usual, but there are some strange instances of the commentary not fitting into the situation. I know that Brad Nessler and Kirk Herbstreit were given situations to talk about and then allowed to adlib, but the result still feels somewhat stilted and wooden. I know I’m nitpicking here, and perhaps I had my sights set a little too high, but I was hoping for a more dynamic commentating team. It’s weird playing with a record breaking running back, but having the commentary mention how pass heavy my team was. Again, nothing more than a nitpick, but it affects the believability a bit.
My final gripe…the load times. We’re coming into the tail end of this current console generation. Why am I still sitting through such painfully long load times? I’m a father to a 7 month old daughter. I game when she naps. I can’t afford to waste 20 minutes of a one hour gaming session to loading. Rant over.
In the end, NCAA Football 13 is a far more authentic experience than we’re use to. This is either great, or a horrible thing, depending on your play style. Cheesing your way to victory is a thing of the past, and I suspect that will turn off a number of fans. However, being forced to think like a real football player is sure to appeal to the number of fans who play football games as a sim. A number of improved and new features make this one of the stronger NCAA offerings yet, but it’s far from a perfect experience. In addition to the hiccups outline above, there is also the exclusion of importing your draft classes to Madden…..something that’s a major part of my personal experience. This sounds like something that may be added in the near future, but it’s still tough not to have a mainstay like that included in the game. Regardless, NCAA Football 13 is well worth your hard earned dollar.
