Madden NFL 2005 Online

Electronic Art’s beast of a franchise Madden NFLhas stormed onto Xbox Live™, and I only need to take a quick gander at my Friends List to know how many people have gobbled it up. EA could have simply plopped down this blockbuster game on Xbox Live and included only the bare minimum of options, and chances are, folks would have been plenty happy; however, EA is not one to be outdone in the features department, so there are plenty of options to cover.

Can’t touch this.

We all know the actual game plays smooth as butter online, but it’s the way the game tracks information, gives you information, helps you create tournaments, gets you into tournaments, and puts you in a position to communicate with your friends and fellow competitors that puts this game and EA’s online experience over the top. Here are a few of the nifty features that make theMadden NFL 2005 online experience so unbelievably enriching.

The Sports Ticker
Anyone who spends anytime watching SportsCenter or ESPN News will instantly recognize and appreciate this feature. There’s an actual live and constantly updated sports ticker that runs along the bottom of the screen. The first time I saw it, I thought it was a neat little graphical effect. I didn’t realize that it actually carries live game scores. When I say live, I mean actual real-world sports scores. Whatever is happening that day, that’s what you’ll see in the ticker. MLB, NBA, NHL, and, of course, NFL scores are updated constantly. Beyond real-world sports, the ticker also tracks people on your Friends List and gives you real-time updates on their current games.

Ugh.

Rushing Attack
Not everyone has the time to put in a full game online, but if you’re looking for a quick competitive Madden NFLfix, EA has you covered. Just participate in the Rushing Attack mini-game, which features only five players on the field: three defenders, the quarterback, and the halfback. You get points for gaining yards, breaking tackles, and scoring touchdowns, and you alternate play between defense and offense. It’s terribly addicting, very fast, and a good way to learn the nuances of the rushing game.

Social Central
There are static lobbies available in the game (e.g. West Coast, East Coast), and these are great for jumping in, chatting it up with folks, and challenging fellow players to games. You can also create your own lobby. Have some buddies planning on going online? Create a lobby, name it, and even password protect it if you don’t want anyone else crashing your party. Whatever lobby you’re in, though, you have a variety of options. You can send text messages—including quick messages that EA provides, like, “Anyone want a ranked game?”—invite individuals to a voice chat, and even look up a player’s career. If you look at someone’s career, you’ll be getting an instant scouting report, which can be crucial. You’ll see their pass-rush ratio, third-down conversion percentage, win-loss ratio, and everything else that you’ll want to be aware of before playing them.

Setting up your contact information.

Reach Out and Touch Someone
Often the most frustrating aspect of playing any game online is getting in touch with someone you want to play. There are a lot of people on my Friends List that I don’t personally know, so the only way I have to get in touch with them is through Xbox Live. In Madden NFL 2005, you can set up your profile to allow people to contact you in a variety of ways. You can:

• Receive text messages in the game when you’re signed in.
• Register an e-mail account in your profile, so text messages are sent there when your offline.
• Input your cell phone information into your profile to receive messages from your Friends on the go.
• Receive post-game stats from EA after every game you play. It makes for great bragging rights because you can easily send them along to your Friends.

Madden NFL 2005 is a football game, but online, it's a community sports experience. EA recognizes that Maddenfans (and sports fans in general) tend to be competitive, and they’ve put together a package of Xbox Live features to accommodate both those needs.

By Alex McLain