Are console sports games dead to AT?

[IndyColtsFan]

UPDATE (9/7/2012):

Cross posted this to another forum I'm a member of in hopes of getting a couple players from there. I'll monitor both forums and I am posting team acquisitions at both places.


UPDATE (9/6/12):

Guys, for a good solid league, we'd need at least 10 dedicated and committed players (and hopefully more!). I ran the last AT Madden league and the last AT NCAA league, and we dropped to the point where we only had 4 or 5 players playing regularly and it sucked.

If you're interested in a league, PM me and let me know what team you want (I'll take the Colts) and your console. I'll post the names and teams in this thread and if we can reach critical mass, I'll start a league. The league will likely be for XBL if it sees the light of day, but if we reach critical mass on the PS3, maybe we can have a PS3 league too. If we get enough people claiming teams, we can vote on rules, etc.

Please note that the expectation would be that we'd play one game a week and during the holiday season, we'd stretch the schedule out a bit; for example, during Thanksgiving week, we wouldn't expect people to play so we'd allow people two weeks to play that particular game. Also, and this is very important -- communication is VITAL. I can't tell you the number of times in our last Madden league that people just wouldn't communicate. If you're not willing to commit an hour per week (except, as noted, holiday weeks) and aren't willing to communicate with your opponents to schedule games and to let people know if an emergency comes up, this probably isn't for you.


League Roster

AT Name, Team
IndyColtsFan, Indianapolis Colts
smackababy, Dallas Cowboys
sixguns, Atlanta Falcons

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It seems that way to me. Over the past 2 or 3 years, it seems that AT has given up on sports games. During my tenure here, I ran the last Madden league AT had (using Madden 2010) and the last NCAA league (using NCAA 11). We had a lot of fun in those leagues but unfortunately, people dropped out over the course of the season and it always resulted in just 3 or 4 people being left.

I used Madden and NCAA as an example because I've tried getting baseball and hockey leagues going with no luck, so there is clearly no interest there. Is anyone on AT playing NCAA 13? Is anyone planning on getting Madden 13?

 

[zerocool84]

I still play them but never in leagues because I hardly get time to play.

 

[PricklyPete]

I've lost interest over the years. The only one that I semi-regularly play is FIFA. NHL used to be my favorite...but my current schedule dictates that I only play games with friends...and that has been COD/BF3 with old friends that I regularly connect via xbox live.

 

[RedRooster]

If someone wanted to join my Tiger 13 clubhouse, we could get some stats and tournaments going. Otherwise, the big sports like NHL and Madden I just got sick of. Too complicated to play well, they added too much stuff.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I guess I kind of grew tired of Madden over the years due to it basically being the same game with tweaks year-after-year. I would've loved to have had an NBA, NHL, or MLB league here on AT though.

I have been playing Madden with my brothers again recently and have enjoyed it but it is way too easy and the thing I used to love doing the most -- building and managing a franchise -- doesn't have the same appeal because the interface is kludgy and with only a few exceptions, it doesn't seem like player attributes even matter.

 

[JujuFish]

I'm getting Madden 13 this year for the PS3. It's my first Madden since 08 for the PC. I'd play in a league, but I'm probably going to suck.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Unfortunately, cross-platform leagues aren't possible and when we put together the last Madden and NCAA leagues, the Xbox was the overwhelming platform choice for the leagues.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Yearly releases of sports games that ask $60 for updated rosters really turned me off to sports games in general. That, and they've gotten so complex that I can't figure out how to play them. And I can't support EA or the Madden franchise for buying the NFL license so 2K Sports couldn't use it, then putting out subpar games because there was no competition. The only sports games that remotely interest me now are Wii Sports or PS Move games, and I haven't touched anything like that in a year.

 

[Sixguns]

I buy Madden every year. I woulndt mind being in a league but getting online at a certain time and day would be hard for me.

 

[fatpat268]

Sports games in general are dead to me. I know it's cliché to say it, but the lack of competition in sports games has been absolutely horrible for the genre. Madden stays stale year after year. It improves a bit, but perhaps my expectations are too high. Same applies to NCAA Football. NBA 2k, is generally pretty good, but I'm not really into basketball anyway.

MLB The Show is an outstanding baseball game, yet it feels so sterile. Also because they pretty much nailed the game down a while ago, every new iteration feels like it barely added anything. Hell, I still have my copy of MLB The Show 08, because after playing the some of the newer ones, I realized I didn't want to lose my Road to the Show progress.

But look back to last gen and before that, there were a ton of sports games, all vying and competing for the top spot. We got some truly fantastic, and some not so fantastic, but it all created innovation. If you ever got bored of a particular sports series back then, you'd just switch to the competitor. You can't do that now, anymore.

But if the day comes where someone creates an unlicensed football game for the PC allowing you to play online and create your own teams/leagues/rulesets, then that will be glorious. But unfortunately if the game doesn't have the name NFL on it, it'll likely fail (like APF2k8 and Backbreaker).

 

[chalmers]

Agree with the above posts. Until EA loses their exclusive rights I'm not interested.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Agree with the above posts. Until EA loses their exclusive rights I'm not interested.

Apparently EA recently settled a lawsuit and they won't have exclusive use of the NCAA license for at least 5 years after 2014:

http://www.operationsports.com/news...-announced-in-ea-madden-price-fixing-lawsuit/

Some in the forums were speculating that EA was willing to give up the NCAA license as a sacrificial lamb in order to keep NFL exclusivity, and I'm hoping that's not the case. EA's exclusive use of the NFL license has severely damaged football gaming IMO. Their best edition of Madden was 2005 and I don't think it is coincidental that 2005 also happened to be the year where their competition put out their best product (NFL 2K5).

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Sports games in general are dead to me. I know it's cliché to say it, but the lack of competition in sports games has been absolutely horrible for the genre. Madden stays stale year after year. It improves a bit, but perhaps my expectations are too high. Same applies to NCAA Football. NBA 2k, is generally pretty good, but I'm not really into basketball anyway.

I have to agree. I love pro football and I used to really love the football management aspect as much or more than playing the game itself. Now, doing that kind of stuff is more of a chore and hassle and with the horrible interface, I just let the computer do it for me. It would be different if player stats actually seemed to matter.

MLB The Show is an outstanding baseball game, yet it feels so sterile. Also because they pretty much nailed the game down a while ago, every new iteration feels like it barely added anything. Hell, I still have my copy of MLB The Show 08, because after playing the some of the newer ones, I realized I didn't want to lose my Road to the Show progress.

I have MLB The Show 10 and only played it a couple of times but it was fun.

 

[Cuda1447]

Apparently EA recently settled a lawsuit and they won't have exclusive use of the NCAA license for at least 5 years after 2014:

http://www.operationsports.com/news...-announced-in-ea-madden-price-fixing-lawsuit/

Some in the forums were speculating that EA was willing to give up the NCAA license as a sacrificial lamb in order to keep NFL exclusivity, and I'm hoping that's not the case. EA's exclusive use of the NFL license has severely damaged football gaming IMO. Their best edition of Madden was 2005 and I don't think it is coincidental that 2005 also happened to be the year where their competition put out their best product (NFL 2K5).

That's good news that they lost exclusives to NCAA and gives me hope that the NFL will follow suit soon. I would love to see Sega make an NFL game. Even more, I'd LOOOOOVE to see Sega make an NFL Football manager, like their (soccer) Football Manager game. That game is so deep and amazing, yet its a relatively boring sport to build a franchise in. Football would be 100x better.

 

[diesbudt]

Actually the Madden I liked the most was 2009 or 2010, I can't remember which. I didn't care for 2005. So when they placed the "best" madden is all opinion.

Sure competition can force products to be better, but then why is there still so many bad games out there with competition? Or why would you think any game company would be able to jump back into football, not having done it in many years, when sadly EA pretty much has the formula down? Along with the fact there isn't really much else that can be added to a football game that hasn't thus far.

Though if EA did lose NFL rights, it wouldn't start till 2018 if I heard correctly as EAs current contract goes that far. (like their current NCAA contract goes to 2014.

And the reason they gave up NCAA wasnt exactly as a sacrifical lamb, they gave it up so other companies can now "compete" in the football genre using actual names and locations without giving up the top licensing NFL. To prevent futher settlements.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Actually the Madden I liked the most was 2009 or 2010, I can't remember which. I didn't care for 2005. So when they placed the "best" madden is all opinion.

That's true, but most polls on sports sites asking this question generally show that most feel Madden 2005 (or an edition around that year) was the best. 2007 and 2008, at least on next gen, were terrible. 2009 is when it started getting good and IMO, 2010 was really good.

Sure competition can force products to be better, but then why is there still so many bad games out there with competition?

Examples?

Some would argue EA's best sports game the last several years has been the NHL series and that was largely due to intense competition from 2KSports. EA still hasn't gotten close in basketball.

Or why would you think any game company would be able to jump back into football, not having done it in many years, when sadly EA pretty much has the formula down? Along with the fact there isn't really much else that can be added to a football game that hasn't thus far.

One of the reasons All Pro was made a few years ago, IIRC, was because 2K wanted to modernize their football engine and have something in decent shape for when the NFL license came up for bidding. I don't know where development on that engine currently stands (or if anything is done at all), but I believe that 2K did work on a second version of All Pro and just didn't release it.

Also, there are a lot of improvements that can be made. EA has never gotten offensive line play right. NEVER. Cornerback AI is another area they don't seem to have mastered. Also, Madden 2012's interface is AWFUL.

Though if EA did lose NFL rights, it wouldn't start till 2018 if I heard correctly as EAs current contract goes that far. (like their current NCAA contract goes to 2014.

Too lazy to look, but I don't believe that's the case. I believe their NFL license is up in the next two years IIRC.

And the reason they gave up NCAA wasnt exactly as a sacrifical lamb, they gave it up so other companies can now "compete" in the football genre using actual names and locations without giving up the top licensing NFL. To prevent futher settlements.

More accurately, EA knows that there is little chance that someone will jump into the college football genre to compete with them as the dollars aren't there and the startup costs would be astronomical. They gave it up because they knew they would have no serious threat there in all likelihood.

 

[Oyeve]

Havent played since madden 2003 on ps2. I did get 2010 for 360 but I dont recall ever loading it.

 

[Imported]

I tell myself every year I won't buy the next Madden game but I always end up doing so. I might just need to buy it this year because my team should be pretty awesome in it..

I never have time for leagues, etc. Being PST made trying just to make Forza/GT5 nights a challenge.

 

[Saint Nick]

I never once bought a sports game... I played outside

 

[Homerboy]

sports games are pretty much all I play on my 360.
maybe a LEGO game or two with the kids.

MLB2K12, Tiger, Madden, NCAA... all of them.

 

[exar333]

The last sports game I was really excited about was NFL 2K and NFL 2K1 on the DC. Not a huge fan of Madden, and it's more of the same every year. More competition is needed for this to get any better.

 

[Kev]

I was in an NCAA online league with some of my friends. After 2 years EA killed the servers for the game and we lost our league.

This is one of the many reasons I don't do business with EA anymore.

 

[jacktesterson]

I will be playing NHL 13 non stop come September on 360.

Used to play MLB on 360 too, went with PC this season. (MLB 2K12)

 

[IndyColtsFan]

If we could get an NHL, NBA, MLB, or NFL league going and actually sustained here, I'd buy the game and join in. But I know that is impossible.

 

[Bman123]

I have Madden 12 on ps3 and I never play it I may as well sell it for $15