Gaming Target - Xbox: NFL Fever 2003

Written by Adam Woolcott on August 15, 2002

Full Review: You'd think that with all the money Microsoft has, they could afford a better announcing team.

If there were one game out of the Xbox launch that really surprised everyone, it would be NFL Fever 2002. Nearly all the early impressions of the game placed it firmly behind the 2 other football juggernauts, Madden 2002 and NFL 2K2. Yet when the game was released, many of those same people were pleasantly surprised by what became a solid football game that was a lot of fun to play, if flawed in some areas Ц things that could be easily improved. Xbox owners responded in kind, making Fever 2002 the best selling football game on the system.

Now that the football season is upon us, it's time for NFL Fever's newest incarnation to hit, the aptly titled NFL Fever 2003. Now the questions arrive Ц has the game improved? Unfortunately, not really. Has it gotten worse? In some places, yes Ц in others, no. Is it still a good football game that can compete with Madden and the drastically improved NFL 2K3? Kinda. NFL Fever 2003 is no doubt a good, fun football game with an excellent dynasty mode and really nice graphics, just like last year. The inclusion of online play through Xbox Live (even if that doesn't start until November 15th) is a welcome addition, but in a lot of ways, this game feels like NFL Fever 2002 with online play added on. The game manages to still be fun and a worthwhile buy if you love NFL games Ц but it should probably be your third choice behind NFL 2K3 and Madden 2003, unless you want Fever's Xbox-enhanced visuals.

Fever 2003 comes packed with the same features as last year Ц basic exhibition games, a training mode that can be used to unlock old or hidden teams, a practice mode to learn the team plays, and the meat of the game, Season. As mentioned, online play is included, but since XBL isn't released yet, it's somewhat challenging to play and thus review. Unless we get a time machine, in which most of us would go backwards anyway. The Season is split into a pair of modes Ц the Dynasty (which I'll talk about in a second), and Classic Challenge. Classic Challenge is a ladder-style tournament where you choose a team and work your way up against some of the best NFL teams of all time, including the 1985 Chicago Bears (ESPN's best. Football. Team. Ever!!). Beating each team unlocks them for play in exhibition modes, giving you a reason to play, and thus see if those '85 Bears can destroy the current Monsters of theЕMemorial Stadium.

If online isn't your thing, you'll probably spend the most time in the 25 year Dynasty mode. Veterans of Fever 2002 will be right at home (if not too comfy) with both the interface and progression of the seasons. Fever of course features both the new team (the Houston Texans), and the new 8-division realignment, so the real NFL is represented well here. Within each season you can trade players, sign free agents, hell, even move your team out of the country if you see fit. The rosters are going to be out of date come September, but thanks to online features, Fever's rosters can be updated on a consistent basis.

In something that's still unique to Fever, '03 continues the tradition of having all the real post-season awards, Hall of Fame list, and a list of real NFL records, complete with the real record holder. Obviously this gives more motivation to play the seasons, so you can take a young rookie running back and take a shot at the NFL's career rushing title, or see if you can find the next Dan Marino, or just see your team in lights by winning the Super Bowl year after year. Only one thing annoys me about this that wasn't a problem last year Ц all the old and retired players names are removed. In '02, the names were there, what gives? For some reason, it's not as appealing to see УCHI HB #34Ф as the career rushing holder, or УMIA QB #13Ф holding all the passing records. It looks ratherЕunprofessional. Oddly, most of these names are still in the game if they're in the Hall of Fame.

However, the most important and improved part of the Dynasty is the much more УdynamicФ Dynamic Player Performance. Last year, it took acts of God to raise the stature of a player, and took little effort at all to decrease a great player (in part due to the 5 minute quarter limitЕsomething that has been removed for Fever '03). This year, it's more balanced out and realistic. For instance, in my Dynasty with the Texans, David Carr has steadily seen his stats improve as he has good game after good game. Last year's game, I was playing as the Bears, and QB Jim Miller had constant great games and his rating would never change. Sometimes, players even jump more than one point, I've seen players jump as many as 4 points after an exceptional game. In another good move, you now can actually see the progress of a player directly after a game Ц it gives you a list of both the players who improved and the players who have dropped a bit. DPP was one of the selling points for Fever 2002, and it's even better here, and sure to be an eventual staple of all football games.

Enough of the off-field actions though; because it's time to hit the turf and see how the game stacks up, playability wise. Veteran Fever players will find themselves right at home here, thanks to the exact same interface as last year. That's right, the only minor change is going from a blue background to the more Xbox-standard green. Of course, Fever newbies will not care about this, so just ignore it. With the exception of a few minor changes, even the playbooks are basically the exact same as last year. However, this is all just minor quibbles, because it's when you're on the field, the game really shows its (familiar) colors.

When on offense, get ready for some serious timing changes. For some reason, wide receivers do not run their routes as fast as they used toЕit's almost as if they jog their way around. Many of my favorite passing plays from last year are pretty much deemed useless because the timing has changed so much, leading to a ton of interceptions. They still work decently, but not for as big a gain as previously. Thankfully, the computer AI is improved defensively Ц last year too many passes were left undefended, and interceptions were a rarity unless you threw it into coverage with 3 guys on one receiver. Now the D plays a little more aggressivelyЕwith help from the slow-motion routes. Still, if you had favorite plays from 2002, they'll work here for the most part, and still get you positive yardage, and it might even open up a few other plays to exploit the defense.

The running game is largely unchanged Ц the only difference comes into play against the AI. Once again, the typical run plays from last year work perfectly Ц but not for as big a gains as before. Last year I could get 5-6 yards per carry every time; now I manage 3 or 4 each time. This change is not due to a lack of blocking or slower running Ц it has to do with the superhuman ability of the defenders to immediately leave their blockers to tackle you to the ground. Just when you think you have a hole to blast through, here comes the DL to pancake you to the ground. Truly though, it really only happens on a constant basis against the strong defensive teams Ц it feels like an AI cheat to make the defense better though. It can be avoided sometimes if you work fast and juke the defender, but most likely you won't even be expecting it to happen. A plus of the running game though is the ability to break big gains more often if you find the right hole Ц something I found troublesome last year.

Playing defense is largely unchanged from last year. The defensive line is really unable to break past the brick walls of the opposing line, even with all the swim moves and other tricks. Occasionally you can break through, but by then the QB has had years of time to throw the ball. Stuffing the run, however, is pretty simple as long as you can anticipate the moves of the ball carrier. Since your linebackers usually stay in the middle to defend against the short pass and the run, they're speedy enough to get to the ball carrier and sock it to Сem.

When it comes to defending the passЕthat's where it can get tough. Thankfully, you won't get burned as often by a lucky catch Ц Fever 2002 had a habit sometimes where a QB could throw it into traffic and an AI receiver would actually catch it somehow Ц it can still happen, but as long as you or an AI counterpart bat the ball away, it won't happen as frequently. Still, if you leave a man open, you're going to get burned bad by it. Getting the timing down for when to hit a receiver so he drops the ball is essential, as is learning how to bat down the ball to avoid a catch. The referees don't call a lot of pass interference unless you set it to call a tight game, so you can get away with a few cheap shots on occasion. Still, the receivers for a computer opponent are fairly sure-handed, so it will take plenty of aggression to get a key 3 and out play.

On the whole, the computer AI is a bit improved, but still pretty easy. Last year's was pretty good, giving you a good battle even on the easier difficulty levels, but Fever's is a little more challenging. Rarely will you be able to shut out a good team with a bad team, let alone defeat them. As a veteran Fever player though, most of the AI discrepancies are easily caught from last year, so knowing how to tear up the defense is not that difficult.

That's the real problem here with Fever Ц how similar it is to last year. Even with the AI tweaks, the game plays the exact same way. The plays are the same, the speed is the same (except for the slow passing routes), and the feeling of the game is the same. Madden and 2K games tweak the gameplay each year, upping the AI and adding in some new things Ц Fever really doesn't add much from last year. Mind you, Fever 2002 was a great football game, and 2003 will be a great game for those who never played 2002, but it doesn't feel as fresh as last year. Online play being added in is nice, but online gameplay does not make a game brand new. Hopefully next year the Fever team will tweak even more to create a whole new interface, new playbooks, and a brand new feeling game of football.

Continuing with a trend here, NFL Fever 2003's graphics are nice, but not highly improved. The player models are the exact same ones as last year, only a little cleaner. The stadiums (complete with new homes for the Seahawks, Texans, and PatriotsЕand the temporary home of the Bears in southern Illinois) and fields look nice and are very accurate to reality, but only a bit better looking than last year. And once again, Fever lacks almost any kind of animations. There's a few new tackling animations, but there's only still like 5 of them total, which is nothing when compared to Madden or 2K. On offense it isn't that much better, with only a few running animations and passing animations. Mind you this doesn't really mess up the game, but since this does fall into graphics, it has to be discussed. It's a shortcoming that will probably be fixed with time. Still, Fever's graphics are better than any other football game on Xbox, and is the only one specifically made for the system. So if you thought last years were fine, and don't really need them any better, 2003 will suit you well.

The sounds and music do fine in some places, and awfully in others. Where Fever shines is in the music. I absolutely love the NFL Films-style music that plays in the Dynasty menu screensЕit gives the game a real strong feeling in the same way the same kind of music makes NFL highlights seem so larger than life. There's some other music mixed in that plays on other menus, but it's not nearly as memorable Ц yet not that annoying either.

The sound effects are the same as last year for the most part Ц the same voices, grunts, and other noises you might hear on the game are identical, but also pretty good.

The big problem, once again, is announcing. Dick Stockton is gone, replaced by Seattle Sonics announcer Kevin Calabro, and Ron Pitts returns for color commentary. The idea of Calabro as a football announcer is ludicrous, given that he's an NBA announcer, and the PBP for Inside Drive (he is a great NBA broadcaster). He just repeats the same lame and generic phrases that Stockton said last year anyway. Mr. Pitts on the other hand, just sucks. Only John Madden himself is more grating to the ears, or as annoying as Pitts. I'd rather see Bill Gates do the analysis Ц I bet he knows more about football than Pitts anyway, former player or not.