Madden NFL 10 [Wii]

03 Sep 2009 at 10:19:19 by Chris Schilling
Systems used to review this title: (WII)

Of all Wii’s third-party publishers, it seems to be EA that understands Nintendo’s disruptive influence better than anyone else. A quick glance at the back of the box tells you that this year’s Madden is ‘What Fun Looks Like’. Compare and contrast with the warlike battle cry of ‘Fight For Every Yard’ that’s yelled from the 360 blurb. While this year’s HD take is an information overload – all stats, facts, and sponsor snacks – the Wii version streamlines the figures to focus on the meat-and-potatoes stuff. If you want realism, look elsewhere. If you want big yardage, big scores, big tackles and big personality, you’ve come to the right place.

Not having played last year’s game, it’s hard for me to say how NFL 10 compares to 09, but it’s certainly changed significantly from two years ago, where the Wii game felt like a faintly puny sibling next to its strapping hi-def brethren. It certainly punched its weight with the physicality of its controls, but it felt like a compromise. NFL 10 is significantly different enough on Wii to feel like an entirely different game to the HD versions. Interactive injuries and stat updates are replaced with minigames and unusual multiplayer asides; Franchise mode with a co-operative Road To The Superbowl. Here a game-changer isn’t a substitution or a special play, but an option which turns random players invisible. You won’t want to quiet the crowd when you’re doing such a good job of pumping them up. Like I said: it’s different.

First impressions are certainly good – the main menu is decked out in the colours of your favourite team, while the shiny rotating menu buttons are so appealing, you’ll scroll over them just to see them turn (no, really). The music is the typical rap/rock mix, with EA making the most of the songs it’s already licensed for Rock Band – still, with Guerrilla Radio and Sabotage the first two tunes to greet me, who’s complaining? There’s a big change in the graphical style used in-game, too. The players have a slightly exaggerated, almost caricatured look – think Grand Slam Tennis with helmets and thigh pads and you’re in the right ballpark. The only real presentational mis-step is in the commentary – EA Sports is obviously so proud of the line “I don’t care what the coach’s age is, that’ll make your heart skip a beat” that it thinks you’ll want to hear it six times in one game. Good job there’s an option to turn it off, then.

How it plays is an altogether more complicated matter, given the bewildering array of options open to the player. The Wii version of Madden might avoid the barrage of numbers the HD game bombards you with, but it makes up for it in the range of modes and tweaks available. While it’s never as realistic or detailed as the HD game, you can make it as hardcore or as casual as you like. The All-Play option lets you play with just the remote, using simple button commands and gestures, with optional help from Madden himself when calling the plays. If you’re unaware of what the legend Big Hit Whiff means, or are baffled by the talk about ‘intimidating Tight Ends’, then you can essentially avoid the playbook and simply concentrate on running, passing and tackling. The former and latter are even automated to a certain degree – you can modify the movement of receivers and quarterbacks with the nunchuk control stick or d-pad, but they’ll set off automatically.

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