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NCAA March Madness '08: Navigation

NCAA March Madness '08 - E

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4 stars

College hoop madness returns, and its fun.

Publisher: Electronic Arts Category/Genre: Video Games - Sports Platform: PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 Price: $33.99 Online Enabled: No Graphics: High for Xbox 360 & PS3. Medium for PS2. Playability: Medium, gentle learning curve teaches this complex game well. Reading Level: Medium Release Date: 12/12/2007 ESRB Rating: E

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Common Sense Note

Parents need to know this basketball game features scores of college teams from around the country in realistic action. Players will be exposed to some in-game ads, and examples of unsportsmanlike behavior in excessive celebration upon scoring, taunting of other teams, and delivering rough fouls. However, the game really focuses on the on-court play. While the difficulty levels are adjustable, some of the controls, menus, and modes are probably too complex for young players.

Families can talk about the importance of teamwork and good sportsmanship. What kinds of plays do you find appealing: showy breakaways and dunks or coordinated efforts involving the whole squad? Since this game is set in college, families can discuss the role of athletics in school. For online play, parents may also wish to discuss trash-talking, proper sportsmanship, and etiquette for video games.

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Andrew Bub

March is the time of the year when hoops fans start going a little crazy. March Madness refers to the yearly college championship tournament that pits school against school and alumni against alumni. Boy, has EA got a game for them! Typical of an EA Sports title, MARCH MADNESS '08 shows off gorgeous graphics -- especially on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles. The gameplay is tight and the game mostly adheres to realistic play and real basketball strategy. A deep dynasty mode lets you take control of a College team and handle the schedule, recruitment, and more. You can then automatically simulate the season, play every game individually, or even try a combination of the two.

The gameplay works well, but there are oddities on occasion. Some fans claim the computer starts cheating a bit if you get ahead on points, and fouls aren't nearly as frequent as the real thing. The announcing is only fair, because the commentators get an awful lot wrong and sometimes their commentary is a little late.

The controls work well and its easy to run plays, drive it to the hoop, perform an assist on offense, and steal the ball, jam, or block on defense. All the colleges, the colors, and even the mascots and fight songs are here. All told, there are over 200 teams represented. The game links to ESPN, so during the season, if your console is on the Internet, you'll get real-world scores via a ticker at the bottom of the screen. We can imagine players playing each match-up in the tournament -- while they have the actual game on a TV nearby. The overall feel of the game is true, the gameplay is deep, and the teams do play to their real-world strengths and weaknesses -- in short, this game does a good job of imitating college basketball.

If you like this game, you might want to consider College Hoops 2K8. For street ball, consider NBA Street HomeCourt. And for something more offbeat, Mario Hoops 3-on-3 for the DS.

Platform Notes

PlayStation 2
Inferior graphics, missing features like management mode.

PlayStation 3
Same as Xbox 360 version -- better graphics and deeper gameplay.

Xbox 360
Same as PS3 version -- better graphics and deeper gameplay.

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Content
CS adults kids

Sexual Content

Violence

Rough fowls, but no more than you would see on TV.

Language

Message

 

Social Behavior

Emphasis is on teamwork, planning, and playing well. But also includes examples of unsportsmanlike behavior: excessive celebration upon scoring, taunting of other teams, and delivering rough fouls.

 

Commercialism

Technically the universities are being advertised here and, like the real thing, there's a lot of product placement and branding.

 

Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco

 

Educational Value

Teaches about college basketball and kids will also learn something about universities.

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