ShareThis"NCAA Football 10"
Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PS2, PSP
Genre: Sports
Publisher: EA Sports
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Grade: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
I won't lie: The "NCAA Football" franchise is one of my favorites. Every year it's one of my most-looked-forward-to games - and also one of the most heavily scrutinized. Some people are Madden people; I am a college football guy. What can I say? Going to a Southeastern Conference school taught me well.
This year's edition has some wonderful improvements, while other aspects of the game remain unchanged beyond some new coats of paint slapped on the same old body. It looks like EA Sports' main goal was to make the game more accessible to newer gamers who may have little experience with previous editions while keeping it technical enough for vets to drill down into specifics both on the field and off.
The Road to Glory mode is just a souped-up version of the previous Campus Legend, only this time ESPN's Erin Andrews hosts. It's always a winner, and if you're a defensive player, the camera controls make racking up stats easier and more fun.
The Dynasty mode is the real highlight here. While choosing an existing college is just fine, the gem is creating your own team from scratch online to download and import into the game. This isn't just a generic generator, either. I easily spent more than an hour customizing my logo, jersey types and rosters before stepping on the field. Once loaded up, the game runs seamlessly with your new team. It even zooms in close on replays to show that your logo -- no matter how complex -- looks great.
Visually, the game is as strong as ever, despite occasional lighting snafus.
Using this custom team online and offline is fantastic, and makes leagues and dynasty modes much more engaging and personal. "NCAA Football 10" is the most complete football game yet. Don't hesitate to add it to your library.
"Overlord II"
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC
Genre: Action-Adventure
Publisher: Codemasters
ESRB Rating: T for Teen
Grade: 3.5 stars
If you have not found the proper outlet to unleash the evil inside you (unless you have an insatiable desire to end up in prison, in which case please stay away from me), check out "Overlord II." The crux of the game involves holding sway over your minions and wreaking havoc on peaceful civilizations. The new edition features enough improvements over the first to make it worthwhile.
Yes, you get your own minions (and not the four-eyed geek kind to take their lunch money from) to control. There are four types of hellions at your disposal, though you will go quite a ways into the game before being able to access them all. Each color represents a different ability (fire, magic, melee and sneak attack); it can be tricky to use them when going after numerous enemies. Getting these devilish little suckers to do your bidding never gets old.
As the overlord, you naturally won't do much heavy lifting beyond the occasional sword strike. Nah, instead you like to be the classic commander who directs his willing subjects into battle and, sometimes, inevitable death. When your enemy is a free-spirited, corpulent society that looks all cheery and peaceful, all the better to let loose your imps of destruction.
Some problems from the original "Overlord" remain in this sequel. A bad camera makes navigating battles a chore at times, and your minions can still be wildly inconsistent when it comes to staying on task. The mini map lacks enough info to make it useful. These may be minor annoyances, but they frustrate over the course of the game.
With some passable multiplayer and co-op modes, "Overlord II" is strong enough overall to recommend to anyone with a secret desire to cause havoc without committing any misdemeanors or felonies.
(E-mail Chris Campbell at game_on_games(at)mac.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
