Thursday, October 15, 2009

Football Games on the iPhone - Who Rules the Arena?

By Eric Meister

Here we are with the football season upon us and, of course, with the iPhone and iPod touch at a popularity high, we want this week's roundup to revolve around NFL video games. Three games stood out as we gathered together the best apps for this story. Today, we're going to highlight EA's Madden 10, Gameloft's NFL2010, and Chillingo's Super Shock Football.

Madden 10, the 20-year-old king of football games, has finally been released by EA and is now available in the app store. As you might expect, though Gameloft's NFL2010 was the first on the iPhone and iPod touch, Madden 10 is a solid addition that leaves gamers with a dilemma.

Visually, Madden looks good, but maybe not up to our initial expectations. The graphics are similar to yesteryear's console performance but don't compare to what is available today. For the iPhone though, they are adequate. The famous helmet-to-helmet effects and John Madden comments are all present. Additionally, all your iPod library tracks are available to override the built-in music score. Madden 10's controls all work well and all the options are quickly accessible.

Multiplayer should be included in a future update, as well as roster updates, which will add a lot to the game. Replay value is huge. After all, it's a Madden football game. You know you'll be playing it until the next one comes out. It is comparable to Gameloft's NFL2010, though each offers a great gaming experience and some attributes that the other lacks. If you can afford it, you might want to go ahead and get both. Madden 10 rolls into the app store at the expected $9.99 and will likely remain that way for most of the season. Madden hauls in a solid 4-Star touchdown pass, taking this grudge match against rival NFL2010 into OT.

The first full-featured football game in the App Store was NFL2010 by Gameloft. In relation to Madden 10, NFL2010 looks on-par and, of course, we need to do a comparison. Happily, NFL2010 holds up quite well against its 20-year-old competition and mobile gamers will love it through and through.

NFL2010 definitely sports a wow-factor in the graphics department. Actually, this is the closest to Madden we've experienced. We liked the sounds too. You'll enjoy responsive controls and notice that they are all well honed. Some functionality does feel to be missing as we don't quite feel we have total control over the plays. Sometimes, we get the feeling we are simply watching them happen as we have set them up. Kicking plays seemed to give the most feeling of control as they allow for dual controls of aiming and power. We liked this scheme the most.

Gameloft really impresses with NFL2010, their first effort at iPhone football gaming. This will be on our most-played list for some time to come. The $7.99 price is a bit steep, but it is lower than Madden 10 and it's a huge savings when compared to console games. We have to give NFL2010 a 4-Star rating as well.

Super Shock Football, Chillingo's new sports game based on the classic electric football game, has been released in the app store. Combining the random exhilaration of vibrating players with some exciting new additions, Super Shock Football won't replace Madden or NFL2010, but it creates a whole new experience unto itself that many may find just as satisfying.

We really loved the graphics of the 2D players running around in a 3D world. A top down viewing angle is used for setups but switches to an on-field view when watching plays. Crowd noise, whistles, and vibrating players humming all adds up to some cool audio effects. All the controls can be met with a single finger. The bottom of the screen hosts game info like scores, time remaining, etc. These don't distract from gaming but are a little hard to make out. Players can set the quarter length and the number of men on each team up to 11.

Super Shock Football, although not on the same level as its more serious contenders, brings a lot of nostalgia and humorous gameplay to the App Store. Don't take it too seriously and you'll have a ball. Since the outcomes are so random in this title, no two games will ever be the same. Replay ability is very high as a result. At $1.99, Super Shock Football is positioned by Chillingo to be a winner. Surprisingly, we have settled on a 5-Star rating for this little gem of a football game.

The iPhone and iPod touch have skyrocketed to true gaming platforms in little over a year. We wanted to put together this NFL video games review for your benefit, but had no idea each would perform so well. All the titles: Madden 10, NFL2010, and Super Shock Football prove they are a few of the best apps available in the App Store at present.

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