Madden 10 vs NFL 2K5

In an interview with Game Informer magazine, the staff at Tiburon admitted that this year's Madden was an effort to finally get people to shut up about 2K5. Well, Madden 10 is, and people are still talking. A lot of people still don't believe Madden has caught up with the game that has somehow become legendary. It's time for an impartial voice to make a judgment here. Let's dissect both games to see if 2K5 is still on top, or if Madden if finally worthy of sole possession of the NFL license.

Gameplay:
I think it's safe to say that Madden 10 has surpassed 2K5 in gameplay, but there are still some annoyances in Madden I didn't have in 2K5. The fact that receivers can STILL do superman moves to intercept the ball still pisses me off. In Madden 10, the defenders now don't make a play on the ball unless they see it, but when they do, it's back to cheap picks. Despite this, Madden still beats out 2K5. Why? Because 2k5 is 5 years old. The gameplay (while still good) is stale by today's standards. Have you played APF 2K8? It uses the exact same gameplay. It was good, but not good enough. Besides, Madden's hit stick kicks ass!

Online:
Madden has online franchise mode...enough said

Presentation:
It's here's where 2K5 has always outshined Madden, and why people keep talking about it. 2K5 made you feel like you were actually watching a football game. After 5 years, Madden finally, FINALLY, put some work in on presentation. so, is it better than 2K5? No. Not by a long shot. It's sad really. First of all, Madden doesn't make use of the ESPN license. It's always the extremely fake EA Sports network. Why have the license if you're not going to fuckin use it? 2K5 was so ESPN up the ass, you thought the game was made by ESPN themselves. The halftime show in Madden is a fuckin joke. The woman in the booth barely says anything at, and when she does, it sounds so broken. There's also no postgame show like 2K5. Madden's franchise mode has a weekly show that gives you information on what's going on around the league. Nice, but the host's voice still sounds broken. 2K5 did it too, and Chris Berman's voice sounded a little better, but didn't provide as much info. Still, it was 2004, so it was excusable. As for on the field, 2K5 barely beats Madden out. Madden has added some new shots why playing. You see things like the coach yelling at the players on the sidelines, the kicker warming up, and other stuff that you would see on Sunday. 2K5 had that, but not nearly as impressive. The announce team in Madden isn't as good as the team on 2K5, which is weird because last year's Madden was so impressive with the commentary. It's the same team this year, so I don't see how it got worse. 2K5's team may not be famous figures like Madden, but that allowed for more time in the booth, which in turn gives the listener more lines to hear. There are 2 things 2K5 have that Madden don't. First off, at the end of the game, there are player interviews. It was cool to see a mic by a player's face and have them talk about the game. In Madden defense, leagues no longer want game companies to do that because it puts words in player's mouth. The second thing is the crib. I don't know why 2K games no longer have it; it kicked ass. I have spent more time playing 2K5 than all the Maddens combined simply because of the crib. As you played games, you earned money that can be used to buy stuff for your crib like a dart machine, air hockey table, furniture, TVs, etc. By the time I was done playing 2K5, my crib was the shit. I feel like playing it now just to hook up the crib again. If you had the Xbox version, you could play your music on the jukebox in the crib. It didn't seem important at first, but it adds a nice touch when you walk in your crib, and your music is playing.

Verdict:
Madden 10 is better than NFL 2K5. 2K5 was a great game, but it's old now. It's gameplay just isn't up to snuff with Madden. In fact, I'm pretty sure everybody knows that. It's the presentation that got it so much admiration. You see what happens when you present yourself well? Madden 11 needs to forget about gameplay changes for one year, and work on presentation if it wants to erase 2K5 off the map for good. Well, I wouldn't say that. People are still pretty pissed that EA monopolized the NFL license. That's why some people hold 2K5 so close to their hearts. At least they'll admit Madden 11 is better.