NCAA March Madness 2003
NCAA March Madness 2003by Electronic Arts
Platform: PlayStation2
ESRB Rating: Rating Pending
ASIN: B00006ZCD0
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Features:
• Stage your own NCAA tournament
• Pull off sweet crossovers, triple threat moves, post moves, and strip steals
• Fully animated 3-D crowds, 49 mascots, and 120 fight songs
• Scouting reports for every school in the game
• Single and multiplayer modes
Amazon.com Product Description: NCAA March Madness 2003 features an authentic college basketball atmosphere, with fully animated 3-D crowds, 49 mascots, 120 fight songs, and more than 300 crowd chants from 162 schools in 15 conferences. As for the game itself, you will pull off sweet crossovers, triple-threat moves, post moves, and strip steals. String your moves together by using the right analog stick. Pull off what you want, when you want it, all with unprecedented two-handed control. Then turn up the heat on D with one of eight full- and half-court, man-to-man or zone defenses. On offense, get the ball into the post, isolate your defender on the perimeter, and much more. Set up for the game-winning three or get the ball to your best ball handler.
Customer Reviews:
whole lot better than last year., November 25, 2002
Reviewer: A gamer from Cambridge, Ohio
I like this game a lot and I reccomend it for anyone that is a college basketball fan. Or just a basketball fan. It has a dynasty mode and the recruiting is pretty much like ncaa football 2003. Easy to pick up and play. The only real problem with this game is that it is way to easy I win with kent st. against Duke by like 50. you can adjust it a little to make it harder. When you do this the games are actually close and entertaining. You can create your own preseason schedule I like this a lot because you get to play the top ranked teams. If you find this under your tree don't take it back you will enjoy it.
NICE!!!, November 24, 2002
Reviewer: armil rucker
this game is very fun. same style as NBA Live 2003, the graphic are not as clear and player miss too many dunks but the game play makes you feel like your at the stadium watching a real game. everyone should have this game.
NCAA March Madness 2003 is NBA Live 2003 in disguise, November 22, 2002
Reviewer: James Nelson from Apple Valley, CA
NCAA March Madness 2003 for the PS2 is really NBA Live 2003 in disguise because this game plays like NBA Live 2003 of this 'so-called' EA Freestyle Control. I call it the EA Freek-style Control because it can mess your player up.
Another con is the Roster Manager. Even when you try your best to put your names over the "Position and Number" sentence in the stat overlays in the game, your name will never show up! Brad Nessler and Dick Vitale will never call you by your last name like Nessler did in the successful NCAA Football 2003. EA Sports has made another dumb move.
My third con is the lack of scouting reports and halftime stats at the intermission. All you get is the bunch of funny intros and cutscenes ala NBA Live 2003, and where's the tipoff official at the beginning?
My fourth con is the jerseys. One number font? C'mon, EA Sports! You can go back to watching the NCAA and double check on the designs! Also, my gripe is that your last names never seem to appear on the jersey's back!
My only pro and my single one is the Season mode, Dynasty mode, and the NCAA Tourney mode, not to mention the Maui Invitational. But these modes can go out of style quickly, because of my cons I've mentioned.
As far as I'm concerned, I'm gonna have to wait till Sega Sports comes with NCAA College Basketball 2K3. It WILL be better!
But before I go, I made up a new slogan for EA Sports:
EA Sports: It's NOT in the game...and EA Sports knows it! Take it from Sega Sports!
Great fun but not college basketball, November 21, 2002
Reviewer: Big League Chew from St. Louis
I checked out a conversation on Operationsports.com, where an editor picked up the game and played it through and answered questions. March Madness 2003 is graphically appealing and has a good style to it, but it's much more arcade gameplay than the real college basketball fan might want.
It's very comparable to NBA Live 2003, in that offenses are one on one isolation and high scoring affairs. The freestyle control is there, so it will be very fun to breakdown defenders off the dribble with all kinds of sweet moves. Also, there are A.I. sliders to tone the game to what you really want to play it at.
Still, the game will play more arcade than simulation. While that may be something more appealing to others, it's just not really what I want to see. I want to see ball movement, screens, and even motion on the offense, and that's something I dont think you'll get too much of in MM2003. The crowd is decently intensive and the announcers (Dicky V and Nessler) do a pretty good job, but there isn't the ability for Nessler to announce player names, so there's already a bit that detracts from the presentation.
You're not going to have one of those 53-50 games, where it's good, hard college basketball. Also, you're only going to be able to play with the major conferences. sure there's 100 something teams, but where's the Missouri Valley, or even WAC?
No Kent State? Denied!
If you're interested in a good simulation that you want to play and thorougly enjoy, check out NCAA College Basketball 2K3 by Sega coming out 12/3. It's got 300+ teams, a more team oriented gameplay, a better presentation with the ESPN style and the broadcaster's ability to announce players names (which you can have the game randomly generate and then go in and edit the ones you know), and an outrageously deeper dynasty mode. Not only can you keep track of one team for a long time, but you could also stay with a coach in his career as he switches schools trying to build a program. Also, there are over 50 different arenas/stadiums/fieldhouses and courts for every team in the game. There's only 3 generic arenas in MM 2003.
Overall, I think MM 2003 is a good arcade game to rent and play amongst friends for some outrageous scores and sweet, ankle breaking, crossovers. However, if you're interested in a deep dynasty, running offenses, recruiting the next conference player of the year, etc... you should really check out NCAA College Basketball 2k3 by Sega.
I'm not an editor, have any relation to either company, but I have heavily researched the two games and have read or talked to people who have played BOTH games and weighed a well-informed opinion accordingly.
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