Thursday, October 29, 2009

Which iPhone Football Game Reigns Supreme?

By Eric Meister

Football season is here and iPhone gamers are scouring the App Store for the best NFL video games available for their device. Three of the best apps in this genre are included in our round this week. The titles which made the cut are 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.

Hopefully, we the game will obtain multiplayer and roster updates as the title gets successive updates in the App Store. Where it stands today, Madden 10 offers tons of replay ability. Don't forget, this is a Madden football title. Gamers will be playing this feverously until the next Madden title is unleashed. Comparing it to NFL2010, it's a close draw as both offer a slightly different experience. If you like, you may choose to buy both and determine which options you like the best. Madden appears in the App Store at a $9.99 price point. We believe it will remain there for the rest of the season. We give Madden 10 a 4-Star rating that puts it neck and neck with NFL2010.

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.

Graphically, the game looks gorgeous. This is the closest thing to Madden that we've seen. Sounds are good, with all of the expected football sound effects. Controls work well and are responsive. It just seems that it is lacking some of the functionality necessary to make us feel as if we have control over the plays. Often, it feels like we are simply watching them unfold as we've set them up. In fact, the plays where we felt like we had the most control were kicking plays, which utilize two gauges, one for aiming and one for power. This scheme works especially well.

If this is the first effort Gameloft has made with iPhone football gaming, we'd say NFL2010 is a glimpse of absolute success. We won't be putting down this title any time soon. When viewed in relation to Madden 10 and pricey console football games, the $7.99 price tag is cheap. A 4-Star rating is awarded this smash-hit title that impressed us through and through.

With Super Shock Football, iPhone app publisher Chillingo brings a different style to the football genre. Based on the electric football games of the past, Super Shock Football will grant a satisfying experience to iPhone gamers, even if it doesn't replace Madden 10 or NFL2010.

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.

Clearly, there are other games available for a more authentic football experience, but Super Shock Football is in a league of its own for nostalgia and humorous gameplay. If you don't take this game too seriously, it is an absolute blast. Replay value is very high, as anything can happen and the eventual outcomes are so random that no two games will be anywhere close to the same. Chillingo has priced Super Shock Football at $1.99 for a limited time, a very fair price for an enjoyable experience. Super Shock Football is worthy of a 5-Dimple touchdown dance.

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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