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So what do you do when your rival takes away your right to make a competing product? That
is the problem Visual Concepts was faced with after EA bought the rights to be the only
ones allowed to make a NFL football game. After the made what I will argue what is the
great pro football game ever with NFL 2K5, EA felt the pressure and snapped away what
would have been a great rivalry. But this would not stop 2K, only make them have to
get a little creative. Their answer came a couple years later with All-Pro Football 2K8.
Instead of featuring current NFL stars, they had rosters filled with past NFL stars.
You load up the game and immediately enter a create-a-team. Sure you can pick your team
colors and the stadium you will play in, all of which is great and important in its own
right, but there are more important things you have to decide, like who is going to be
on your team. Imagine around a hundred great former NFL players decided they wanted to
play a game of pick-up football. They all line up along the sideline and designated
you to be the captain and pick the team. Yeah, that would be a little intense. The players
are broken up by talent. You can pick 2 gold players, 3 silver players and 6 bronze players
for a team of 11. So you have to make some decisions, like do you want Unitas at QB but
not have great DN like Reggie White. It is really run to mix and match superstars from
different eras to create your own dream team. Also, I want to meet the person who told Greg
Lloyd he was going to be a silver player. I wouldn’t want to have to do that. People
who think James Harrison is a scary player do not remember Greg Lloyd. After you have
your team set, it’s time to hit the gridiron.
The football itself is solid but leaves a lot to be desired. It is great because it
is basically the same system from 2K5, but it is underwhelming because it is basically
the same system from 2K5. This means that if you have only played Madden, then this
is going to feel very different. The passing will feel a little slower, but the running
and tackling will be unmatched. If this is your first time playing a 2K football game,
it is going to take some getting use to but once you do you will find it to be a very
rewarding football system.
The only problem I have with the system is the fact that is the exact same as in 2K5.
I would have liked, with a couple years and a new console generation in-between entries,
them to have improved the gameplay instead of shipping out the same thing. But that is
not the biggest problem with the game, it’s the lack of features that’s the problem.
The game pulls a Wes Welker and drops the ball without having a franchise mode. Franchise
mode is my favorite part, taking a team through the years. In this there is a season mode
and that’s really it. Go through a season, make a new team, rinse and repeat. It doesn’t
make me put in the hours into it like I do other sports games. It is disappointing because
it could have been much better. And with online play that is functional but not deep, it creates
an overall underwhelming experience.
This game had the potential to be truly great with past great players and still great gameplay
but failed to deliver by not offering enough. A couple of additions and this could have
been a much better game.