Gaming Target - Dreamcast: NCAA Football 2K2: Road to the Rose Bowl

Written by Adam Woolcott on August 16, 2001

First Impressions: Bah! They copied the use of 2K2 off of Sega... oh wait..

As much as the NFL is the most popular sport in the US, there's something about college football that makes it stand out. The intense rivalries like Auburn vs. Alabama, UCLA vs. USC, and Texas vs. Oklahoma, along with the passionate fans of their local team or old school give NCAA football a whole different environment and experience. Instead of stars looking for a fat contract, we've got college kids who love to play the game, and all they want to win is a National Championship.

And now, Sega Sports, along with developer Visual Concepts, is making their attempt at bringing that experience home on Dreamcast, in the form of NCAA Football 2K2: Road to the Rose Bowl. While this isn't the first Sega-branded college football game, it is the first (and unfortunately last) crack at it on Dreamcast. Using an enhanced version of the NFL 2K engine, NCAA 2K2 looks to be almost a no-brainer hit for Sega's console. As long as things keep on the upside, DC fans waiting for their first NCAA football game will have their wish, in style.

Road to the Rose bowl will feature every NCAA Division 1-A team (over one hundred in total), from major schools like Nebraska, Florida State, Tennessee, and Miami, along with low level teams like Idaho, Arkansas St. and Bowling Green, as well as every single stadium they play in, and the exact uniforms they wear. And while Sega couldn't get the BCS (Bowl Championship Series) game license (Fiesta, Orange, and Sugar bowls) due to EA Sports snagging exclusivity, they did manage to get in all the other real bowl games (as well as the locations), and of course the Rose Bowl game. Topping that off, all kinds of playbooks are added Ц for running pro style offenses or defenses, and even the mighty wishbone/option style.

Besides the prerequisite exhibition mode offered, there's 2 major ways to play that light up the hearts of college fans: Dynasty and Online. In Dynasty, you take your team through 10 seasons, trying to make your way to the National Championship, by recruiting hot prospects from high school all the while. Failing to produce victories and championships may result in a loss of your job. For the single player, this mode obviously will be the deepest, as well as the one you'll spend the most time on.

As for Online Ц well that's a gimmie. Online in NFL 2K1 was outstanding, and NCAA 2K2 can't be much worse. Actually, it's almost destined to be even better. Just imagine: The Friday night before the annual Florida St. Ц Florida game, players from each of the 2 schools hook up online for a video game duel to see how close they come to reality the next day. The possibilities are endless Ц instead of just Unknown Player vs. Unknown Player, you'll be able to possibly play against other schools for supremacy. The online tournaments could be endless. And VC slipped in 2 nice additions Ц a way to track your win-loss record, as well as a way to see how many disconnects an opponent may have. You know, so that lamer who gets his ass kicked every time, then quits before the 4th quarter gets stopped before he can start.

While the engine is based on NFL 2K, it's radically different. For one the pace of the game is much faster, like the college game is. That thought is amazing, considering how fast paced NFL 2K and NFL 2K1 are, but it's a reality. Since there are a lot of rule differences, like the playclock speed and such, the engine needs to be overhauled. All told NCAA 2K2 will use maybe half the original NFL 2K engineЕgiving NCAA 2K2 a feel of its own. On the surface it will look like the traditional Sega football game, but it seems that will be the only major similarity between the two, which is great.