10/06 Update: Since we no longer write for the Edmond Sun, this section is temporarily housing our podcast links for our iTunes feed. All of the columns are in the archives menu if you feel like exploring.

These columns (as well as the 'releases') come from weekly content that we write for the Edmond Sun, out of Edmond, OK (though we live in Chicago). This page contains the archives for said column, many of which are in their pre-published, unedited state. Some titles and editing by Brendan Sinclair.

Column Archives:

Next up: blocking the sun
Saturday, December 18, 2004

Imagine for just one second that you are in a relationship. You are clearly the weak link, though. Let's just say you smell really awful and have most of your front teeth missing. There is no denying that, with these horrible attributes, you are just asking for a dumping. When it finally does come, you hit rock bottom for a few weeks, living out your days on a soiled couch eating pickled pigs feet for sustenance. Eventually, you realize that life could be better. You learn to work that overly complicated shower. You see a dentist. You get your GED. Heck, you even work out a little bit. The whole nine yards.

So you call up your ex and see if she'll meet you for coffee. You aren't interested in her anymore - you just want to show her what she's missing. When she shows up, you expect her to faint at the mere sight of your awesomeness. Instead, she whips a melon baller out of her purse and proceeds to merciless beat you to the cold, unforgiving ground.

This must be what Sega feels like right now. When their NFL2K franchise debuted on the Dreamcast 6 years ago, it relied mainly on beautiful graphics to survive. The passing system was chuck full of money plays. Defense was just the horrible penance one endured for playing so cheaply on offense. As the years have gone by, however, the NFL2K series has really come into its own. They teamed up with ESPN to get the best presentation around. They created a franchise mode with so many options it even gave Bill Walsh a headache. Most important of all, they created a football system that was the closest thing to real life out-of-shape gamers like myself could experience. But now, everything is gone.

On Monday, December 13th, Electronic Arts signed a deal that could potentially send videogame football back to the stone age. Starting next season and continuing through 2010, EA has exclusive rights to the NFL players, team names and stadiums. For the next five years, Madden, NFL Street and a yet-to-be-named management game will be the only licensed football games around. And the world wept.

I know there are plenty of people, potentially even reading this column, who love Madden. Though I don't think it is quite as good as NFL2K5, I definitely see why people love it so. Clearly, there has to be some sort of alternative for gamers who don't want an exact replication of the NFL game. It is very good at what it does, after all, and the series has been a staple for more than a decade now. Why should you care that Madden is the only game around if the only game you play is Madden anyway?

One word: competition. While EA is great at updating their games year in and year out, they are not the most innovative company around. For example, you may look at the PlayStation lineup and see that there is no Madden '96. There is one for the SNES and Genesis, but for some reason EA decided to ignore the PlaySation? This seems rather unlikely. Instead, this title was cancelled. If you peruse old magazines you can still find screenshots from the 2D game. Sony's football title - Gameday - was the first 3D football title around. It was so advanced, and made Madden look so bad in comparison, that EA was forced to sit out a year rather than release an inferior product onto store shelves.

If EA had no competition, who knows how long it would have taken them to release a 3D football game on the Playstation? Who knows if they would have ever supported Xbox Live this generation? With no competition, there is no reason to believe EA won't simply sit on the Madden franchise for years. They have no need to revolutionize when
consumers have no choice but to purchase Madden.

I have been boycotting EA products since 1999, when they refused to make games for the Dreamcast. Consider they now make games for the lowly N-Gage, it's a joke that they ignored a system as amazing as the DC. However, while that may seem silly to some, I can't imagine any way one can support what EA is doing now. I would love for everyone who reads this to join me in boycotting EA products, but I know that is unlikely. I only hope you will realize that this industry cannot survive without healthy competition. By purchasing any small company they can get their hands on and buying exclusive deals for high profile licenses, EA is hurting the industry.

Nick's Response:

While I agree that this will hurt the gaming industry in the long run, I do have a few disagreements I'd like to first get out of the way. First off, the Madden series will not decline in quality. I don't know a real football from a jar of marmalade, but I know a good video game when I play it. While ESPN might be a better all-around representation of the sport, Madden would not be where it is if it wasn't a good game, and I don't see that changing. Videogames are the one industry where large sales numbers almost always equal high quality, and I think EA is well aware of this. Even with the supposed better play and drastically lower price Madden outsold ESPN this year, with the usual batch of very minor changes. If they can sell a game in this fashion year after year despite what the competition is doing, why would the game see a decrease in quality? It might not improve drastically in any area outside of graphics for the next couple of years, but you better believe they'll stay on top of the standard of sports games and online play and include every bell and whistle that's expected. EA might be evil, but they're a very smart company and know how to appeal to the vast majority of the gaming public.

(This has been the case with EA for a while now controlling the NASCAR, PGA and FIFA licenses, but I can only assume rednecks aren't picky, golf fans only have eyes for that dreamy Tiger Woods, and real soccer fans play the Winning Eleven series. So it's not quite the same.)

So why do I think this hurts the industry when it comes down to it? Because of the lack of choices sports fans will be faced with starting next year. One of the reasons why gaming is so great is the huge variety of games available within every genre. Halo is arguably the best First Person Shooter on the market, but I'd cry if I couldn't play Timesplitters or Red Faction ever again. Even if the next Madden is a completely flawless game it won't be for everyone, and those people won't be able to find respite elsewhere. It's like having a bunch of people make you their take on a philly cheese steak and then only getting to eat one for the rest of your life. Even if you liked it the best, you're going to get sick of it.


Nick's Response:

While I agree that this will hurt the gaming industry in the long run, I do have a few disagreements I'd like to first get out of the way. First off, the Madden series will not decline in quality. I don't know a real football from a jar of marmalade, but I know a good video game when I play it. While ESPN might be a better all-around representation of the sport, Madden would not be where it is if it wasn't a good game, and I don't see that changing. Videogames are the one industry where large sales numbers almost always equal high quality, and I think EA is well aware of this. Even with the supposed better play and drastically lower price Madden outsold ESPN this year, with the usual batch of very minor changes. If they can sell a game in this fashion year after year despite what the competition is doing, why would the game see a decrease in quality? It might not improve drastically in any area outside of graphics for the next couple of years, but you better believe they'll stay on top of the standard of sports games and online play and include every bell and whistle that's expected. EA might be evil, but they're a very smart company and know how to appeal to the vast majority of the gaming public.

(This has been the case with EA for a while now controlling the NASCAR, PGA and FIFA licenses, but I can only assume rednecks aren't picky, golf fans only have eyes for that dreamy Tiger Woods, and real soccer fans play the Winning Eleven series. So it's not quite the same.)

So why do I think this hurts the industry when it comes down to it? Because of the lack of choices sports fans will be faced with starting next year. One of the reasons why gaming is so great is the huge variety of games available within every genre. Halo is arguably the best First Person Shooter on the market, but I'd cry if I couldn't play Timesplitters or Red Faction ever again. Even if the next Madden is a completely flawless game it won't be for everyone, and those people won't be able to find respite elsewhere. It's like having a bunch of people make you their take on a philly cheese steak and then only getting to eat one for the rest of your life. Even if you liked it the best, you're going to get sick of it.

- Tom


|