Madden NFL 06

Although thousands of them already line up each August to catch the latest edition of gaming's most recognized annual title, it's safe to say that football fans and sports gamers will have an even harder time passing on the "06" version of Madden NFL. This edition of the long-running series introduces a few changes and additions, designed to make the challenges of executing on offense feel more realistic than ever before. The most obvious changes to this year's edition come in the passing game, which introduces a gameplay features based on quarterback-specific attributes. Most notable is the new "Vision Cone," which simulates the QB's field of view with a highlighted cone that fans out in the direction of the current intended receiver. The feature is designed to force the player on offense to commit earlier in the play, and to telegraph his passes much more realistically than in earlier versions of Madden, making those improbably easy no-look completions a thing of the past. The range of the vision cone is based on multiple factors, including the quarterback's "talent" attribute rating and the difficulty setting at which the game is being played. Madden NFL 06 also brings a new "Precision Passing" system to the series, which allows quarterbacks some direct control over the accuracy of their passes. By bumping the left analog stick or D-pad in the desired direction as the ball is passed, QBs can aim high, low, in front, or behind their receivers, allowing them to lead the catcher away from coverage or make use of height advantages. Other features, more familiar to gaming's most popular sports series, are also present in Madden 06, along with new replay camera angles, animations, and other presentational upgrades. There's also an offensive answer to last year's defensive "hit stick" mechanic, which allows ball carriers to try to plow through oncoming hits and blocks with a flick of commitment on the analog stick. As usual, this edition of Madden is designed to offer a highly customizable game of football, and players who prefer the more forgiving play design of earlier editions can simply turn off the Vision Cone -- or nearly any other element that conflicts with their personal style of play. The game also includes all the teams, stadiums, and players of the real-life NFL (thanks to an exclusive NFL license which takes effect for the first time this year).

ALL PHASES OF THE GAME

Left Analog Stick = move your player
Square Button + R2 Button = flip play at the line
R2 Button = play art
L2 Button = coach's cam
Square Button + Square, X, Circle, L1 or R1 Button = call an audible
Triangle Button = cancel the audible before selecting a play
Square Button + L2 Button = reset original play after calling an audible
Select Button = call timeout

OFFENSE

BEFORE THE SNAP

X Button = snap ball
Right Analog Stick Left or Right = switch direction of a running play
Right Analog Stick = change primary receiver's route on a passing play
Triangle Button + D-Pad Up = hot route fly pattern
Triangle Button + D-Pad Down = hot route curl pattern
Triangle Button + D-Pad Left or Right = hot route in or out pattern
Triangle Button + Right Analog Stick Down = hot route run smart route
Triangle Button + L2 or R2 Button = hot route left or right slant pattern
Left Analog Stick Up or Down = highlight eligible player
Left Analog Stick Left or Right = send highlighted player in motion
L1 Button + D-Pad Up = slide offensive line protection to spread the offensive line
L1 Button + D-Pad Down = slide offensive line protection to pinch the line
L1 Button + D-Pad Left or Right = slide offensive line protection to shift blocking left or right
L3 Button = quiet crowd
R1 Button + D-Pad = formation shift
Circle Button = fake snap

RUNNING WITH THE BALL

X Button = sprint
Right Analog Stick Up = truck stick
Square Button (tap) = QB or wide receiver slide
Square Button (hold) = QB or wide receiver dive
Triangle Button = cover up, protect ball
Circle Button = spin
L1 or R1 Button = juke left or right
Right Analog Stick Down = juke backward
L2 or R2 Button = stiff arm left or right

PASSING / RECEIVING

Right Analog Stick Left or Right = QB vision control
R2 Button (+ receiver button) = lock on to receiver
Left Analog Stick or D-Pad = precision passing
Triangle, Square, Circle, L1 or R1 Button (tap) = throw the ball for lob pass
Triangle, Square, Circle, L1 or R1 Button (hold) = throw the ball for bullet pass
R3 Button = activate playmaker passing to guide closest receiver
L2 Button (tap) = throw ball away
L2 Button (hold) + Square, Circle, L1, R1 or R2 Button = QB scramble behind the line with all the rushing moves available
R2 Button (tap) = pump fake
Circle Button = control intended receiver
Square Button = dive for pass
X Button = sprint
Triangle Button = catch
L1 Button = swat

BLOCKING

Circle Button = switch to closest blocker
Square Button = cut block
X Button = sprint, power block
Triangle Button = jump
Triangle Button + L2 or R2 Button = change blocking assignment before the snap

AFTER THE PLAY

Circle Button (hold) = spike ball to stop the clock
L1 + R1 Button = instant replay
Square Button (hold) = fake spike ball trick play
Triangle Button (hold) = no huddle, hurry-up offense

DEFENSE

BEFORE THE SNAP

X or Circle Button = choose a player to control
X or Circle Button (hold) + D-Pad = switch to closest defender
R3 Button = view individual assignments

DEFENSIVE PLAYMAKER

D-Pad Up = put linebackers and defensive lineman in a hook zone or DBs in a deep zone
D-Pad Down = blitz
D-Pad Down (twice) = QB contain blitz
D-Pad Left = go into QB spy coverage
D-Pad Right = play a flat zone

DEFENSIVE LINE SHIFT

L1 Button + D-Pad Up = spread the defensive ends outside the tackles
L1 Button + D-Pad Down = move the line in tight between the tackles
L1 Button + D-Pad Left or Right = shift the line left or right
L1 + L2 Button = reset the shift

DEFENSIVE LINE ADJUSTMENT

L1 Button + Right Analog Stick Down = make line crash in
L1 Button + Right Analog Stick Up = make line rush to the outside
L1 Button + Right Analog Stick Left or Right = make line crash left or right

LINEBACKER SHIFTS

R1 Button + D-Pad Up or Down = spread linebackers out or move them in tight
R1 Button + D-Pad Left or Right = shift linebackers left or right
R1 + L2 Button = reset the shift

LINEBACKER ADJUSTMENTS

R1 Button + Right Analog Stick Down = blitz all linebackers
R1 Button + Right Analog Stick Up = call off all linebacker blitzes and put them into hook zone
R1 Button + Right Analog Stick Left or Right = blitz the right or left outside linebacker

SECONDARY ADJUSTEMENTS

Triangle Button + Right Analog Stick = secondary adjustments

COVERAGE AUDIBLES

Triangle Button + D-Pad Up or Down = put DBs into bump and run or loose coverage
Triangle Button + D-Pad Right = shift the safeties and linebackers into better position to cover their assigned man
Triangle Button + R2 Button = make your defenders go to their default positions on the field
Triangle Button + L2 Button = reset coverage

CHANGE INDIVIDUAL MATCHUPS

Triangle Button (+ offensive player button) + D-Pad Up or Down = bump or play off the receiver
Triangle Button (+ offensive player button) + D-Pad Right = double team the receiver with the highlighted defender

PUMP UP THE CROWD

L3 Button = pump up the crowd

AFTER THE SNAP

Circle Button = control player nearest to the ball
Right Analog Stick = unleash the hit stick
Square Button = dive
X Button = sprint, shove blocker
Triangle Button = jump, intercept, hands up while rushing QB
L2 or R2 Button = strip ball
L1 or R1 Button = rip, swim, spin
R1 Button = strafe
L1 Button = rip, swat ball, swim move

KICKING GAME

Left Analog Stick = change kick direction or elevation
X Button = start kick meter, stop kick meter on the upswing, set accuracy
Circle Button = switch players
Triangle Button = fair catch ~ Keith Adams, All Game Guide

With each new edition of the Madden football franchise, the developers at EA Sports try to make their game a little bit more complex and a little bit more enjoyable. The previous year's new features focused mostly on the defensive side of the football, so this year it's the offensive side of the ball that gets the tune-up, with the passing game getting the biggest facelift. The other major adjustment to this year’s version is the addition of a superstar mode that allows gamers to take control of a single player from birth to retirement. Both new additions are ambitious and show promise, but both are ultimately disappointing.

The most dramatic change to this year's game is the brand new vision control, a wedge of light that represents the quarterback's field of vision. Now QBs actually have to look at the receivers to make an accurate pass. This adds a great deal of realism to the game, but controlling the vision cone is a clunky affair that adds as much frustration as it does realism. Other additions to the offensive gameplay come off much better. The new precision passing allows for pinpoint accuracy on throws, and the new "truck stick" lets running backs lower their heads and smash into defenders. Overall, gameplay is typically great, but the iffy new quarterback vision outweighs the positive additions.

The franchise and online modes are great, and remain the primary attraction in the Madden series, but the new "superstar" mode is also worth a try. Unfortunately, a single try is basically all the superstar mode is worth. It's essentially a cross between the create-a-player feature and the franchise mode, but it lacks the bells and whistles to make it more than a novelty. Both the superstar mode and the new passing controls are disappointing, but they are good ideas that can be expanded upon and improved in the future. Madden NFL 06 retains the addictive gameplay that makes the series great, but the lackluster additions essentially leave gamers with last year’s game and this year's rosters. ~ Christopher Brown, All Game Guide