Graphically, EA has done a superb job here, with the players faces and uniforms being portrayed very very well. They look way more realistic than last year's "we are space aliens who've come to earth and infiltrated your NFL players" looks. The coaches who hover about on the sidelines are the best looking of any football game to date. Heck even the snow looks nicer, it doesnt just fall, it blows in from the sides, as if it were really a blizzard out there. And yes, we finally have cheerleaders!!! Ea Sports' addressed concerns about last years ballplayers being all the same size, so this year, players are noticibly more slender, while still having that football player build. Like NCAA 2002, it reads the clock on your PS2, so if you're playing a game at night, it will start your game at night as well, or if you're playing at dusk, with the sun going down, you may start the game with the sun up, but by the time the game is over, it'll be dark. Little touches like this help to add realism to the game, theyre all over the place and it shows.

Soundwise, its what you'd expect from a great title like this. A snazzy new opening kicks off most games, followed by player intros, at least from the home team. John Madden and Pat Summerall are back and Madden is as witty as ever, "he put too much mustard on that one!". Adding to the humorous reparte is Leslie Visser, with a few bits and pieces thrown in, proving that football announcing isnt just a male oriented sport.

The game is literally overflowing with features. Theres the all-new two minute drill, where you run plays and try to get as many touchdowns as you can within the last 2 minutes of a game. I personally love this idea, as it lets you earn tokens for Madden Cards without having to play a whole game. Speaking of Madden Cards, theyre back, in the standard flavored, bronze, silver and gold. While they might not be everyone's cup of tea, theyre a great incentive to keep playing, to collect them all and unlock classic teams and stadiums. You can even collect cheerleader cards which give your players a (ratings)real boost. The franchise mode is deep as heck and goes on for an amazing thirty seasons. Another feature that is very nice is the ability to import your exported draft teams from NCAA 2002, if you have it (and who doesnt?). The controls for the most part are unchanged since last year, so even players who havent yet picked up a Madden game can jump right in with little trouble.

There is a lot to like here, and while its not quite a perfect football game yet, its darn close. Do yourself a favor and pick up Madden 2002 today.

11 of 11 found the following review helpful:


Good outweighs the bad  Oct 10, 2001 By eStragand
A lifelong football fan, I hold off buying a new football video game every year. Typically, I pick up a new one about every 3 years or so, with the last being Madden 99 for the PC. I was pretty pleased with 99 and thought this would be more of the same, only with new rosters and the Texans. I was very surprised, as the same features I enjoyed on 99 are still here, and the new features simply amazed me. This game has a very realistic feel to it and is, hands-down, the best football game I've ever played.

The graphics are phenomenal, and replays even feature the spiffy "matrix" camera effect (where the camera seems to pan around the play, in a circular motion...or like the Jamal Lewis TD replays in the last Super Bowl). The customization and "challenge" features add an extra edge to the game. In addition to playing an ordinary schedule, you're given "challenges" to perform- like "Beat the Colts in the RCA Dome" or "Complete a pass to 5 different receivers". These allow you to collect points and build up "Madden Cards". (A feature that annoyed me at first, but I was converted). The customization of players was exceptional. I created a new player, not on the game's rosters,- Kevin Kasper. I was amazed when the announcers actually SPOKE his name... thought that was a neat touch. (Older version would just say "he throws to the RECEIVER", here they say "KASPER"). You can also change your team's uniforms for each game. For example, the Broncos have five uniforms: home, road, alternate home, home throwback, and away throwback. Plus, if your team plays a Thanksgiving game, the announcers say "Happy Thanksgiving, everybody..." Madden even chimes in, late in the game, talking about his six-legged turkey. Nice touches!

Another cool feature- upon completing a single season, you can convert your season file into a franchise file, immediately.

A few blemishes, though. As mentioned, if you're unfamiliar with "Madden Cards", it takes some getting used to. The instruction book does a poor job of explaining what these do, or why you'd want to build them up. Furthermore, the idea of "unlocking" features is annoying to me. I want everything to be there for me to mess with. You "unlock" some of the "greatest players of all time"... so I was bummed when it turned out to be the likes of Merrill Hoge and Keith Byars. It does get better, as Dan Marino and others eventually appear. Cheat cards bother me... why would you want to play a football simulation game where you can make every 1st and ten into a 1st and five? Takes away the realism, right there. Additionally, it takes a few games to figure out how to save all your files. (There's three different menus that take you to the "SAVE" screen.. so you forget how you got there)

Gameplay has a few drawbacks. First, if the computer goes 3 and out on the first series, it rarely runs the ball for the rest of the game. The computer consistently passes and it's not unusual for Jon Kitna and the Bengals to throw three 80 YD TD bombs in one game. The computer often finishes a game with 376 yds in the air, and 12 yds on the ground. Secondly, you have to gingerly touch the controls to complete a pass to your receivers. This is especially tough for the L1, L2 buttons. After two games, you get sick of hearing Madden say "He obviously has a cannon for an arm, but on the shorter passes, he needs a softer touch". Takes alot of practice to work around these things.

The only thing I havent' found is the "lateral" button. On Madden 99, any ball carrier could lateral the ball at any time. A move rarely seen in the pros, but you could pull off some nifty hook and ladder plays when you were behind.

Overall, this has everything you'd every want in a football game. The little details and touches are fantastic. Pump-fakes, motions, coaches, audibles, off-season moves, full roster customization, entire TEAM creation, and even the NFL Europe teams! Heck, I'll bet a clever fan could even create some CFL or Arena teams. It really blew me away, and I don't think I'll have a need for another football game for quite some time. If you're a football fan, get this game!

11 of 12 found the following review helpful:


Don't feel bad about cheating  Oct 16, 2001
Let me start by saying I can't stop playing this game - the
Franchise mode is addictive and can eat up your life. This is
a solid game - it retains all the features that makes Madden
such fun to play. On the PS2 (the last one I played was the 99
version on the PS) the graphics add an extra degree of realism
and "feel" to it all.

I do have a bit of a gripe, though. I am a serious gamer and
cranked the puppy up to All-Madden level. I knew what I was
letting myself in for but I guess it was the manner in which
I was pounded. The AI cheats, it has to in order to make it
more difficult, but I wish it wouldn't do it so blatantly and
all the time. Things are okay if the CPU is ahead - you can
generally stop its drives, but as soon as you take the lead
it goes into a "I will score at all costs" mode. It doesn't
matter what defensive set you use, you cannot stop it. Even
when you do stop it a penalty pops up from nowhere and -
bingo - the drive is still alive. This means that it doesn't
matter if you score on every drive until the end of the game
- the CPU will come straight back and take the lead again.

Some examples: I managed to get 3 pts ahead with 20 sec on
the clock left (too much, I agree) and the CPU returns my
kickoff for a touchdown. Great. I thought that this was
just a fluke until it happened again in a similar
situation in another game. Another time I am kicking for a
game-winning field goal from 25 yards. No wind (<1mph),
good power and accuracy - the ball suddenly veers right
and hits the upright! This has happened a number of times,
with some variation - it uses the crossbar sometimes to
thwart you! Why not just let it go wide or short?! This is
just rubbing it in.

There is no way to compete with the thing on All-Madden unless
you are superhuman. But there is an alternative (if you are
of a nervous disposition you had better look away now) and
it is to cheat as badly as it does. Use the Cheat cards
liberally and you will start dishing out the pain you were
suffering. Watch with grim satisfaction as the CPU tries to
kick a FG into a headwind with the uprights narrowed to
nothing. Cackle with glee when you give your QB 100% accuracy
for a quarter with unlimited timeouts and score 30 unanswered
points in 5 minutes. Sit with a warm glow as you see the CPU
try to figure out how to score 35 points in the last ninety
seconds. Oh yes, it's fun, but it isn't football ...

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:


A little disappointing...  Sep 14, 2001 By D Critique "d_critique"
My expectations were very high for Madden 2002. After playing NCAA, I thought Madden would be unbelievable. At first the graphics and body motion blows you away. Clearly the graphics were improved from Madden 2001. Also they have more lines for the commentator and play-by-play man, John Madden is not as annoying as Madden 2001. And they keep the great franchise mode and allow you to create expansion teams. However, EA degraded some aspects of this game. First, you can no longer get a pash rush unless you blitz. Regardless of the pass rusher it is very difficult to beat the pass blocker. Also you cannot stop the run effectively unless you blitz. I am very disappointed that there are not more defenses. You cannot put 9 players in the box without putting in the goalline team. Also punting the ball is terrible in the game, it is way to difficult to get a decent punt. This is the NFL, punters can punt the ball 45-50 easy. And one aspect of this game that EA is lacking significantly is pass defense. EA will not be able to take this game to the next level until they figure out how to make pass defense realistic. They can start by not have the safeties burned deep on every deep ball. Also cornerbacks usually keep the receivers in front of them, but in this game receivers are behind them and cornerbacks usually get burned deep. It is way to easy to pass the ball in this game for the user and the computer, which is evident by the computer only running the ball 15 times a game. This game is good but it is not an improvement from 2001. It is different from 2001 but the improvements are counterbalanced against its faults. I think NCAA 2002 is a much better and realistic football game. I don't think it is a bad buy, but don't expect too much. BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD FOR EA. (Please note that for any other software company, this would be a good game, I just expect much more from EA Sports and that is why I buy EA Sports games.)

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