NCAA Football 08 review

Your momma always said that the best things come to those who wait. Chances are she wasn’t talking about excellent college football video games, but who cares - after a mediocre Xbox 360 outing last year, EA Sports’ NCAA Football 08 is back with a vengeance and belongs in every pigskin junkie’s library right this minute. The promise of next-generation football is finally upon us, and we couldn’t be happier if we tried.

On the field, every fundamental element - gameplay, visuals, play-calling, and so on - is smooth as butter. We’ve discovered all sorts of nifty nuances, such as running backs reaching out to follow their blockers instead of sticking to them (finally!), and dozens of seemingly random new (and wholly realistic) tackle animations. Last year’s stuttering stops and starts during and immediately after the play are long gone, appearing only occasionally during pre-snap menus and cutscenes. Three cheers for that.