NFL Tour Preview

Being a big fan of Madden in this country can be difficult. Firstly, I have no one to play it with because nobody over here understands how to play it, except for one person in my case; and Secondly, going online to play with others involves me getting my arse kicked by a 12 year old Tom Brady who knows EVERYTHING there is to know about the New England defence and subsequently sacks my Eli Manning on every play by blitzing on the weak side. If this is already getting too technical then you know how I feel. So, EA BIG, one of my favourite developers created a "Street" version on Madden to match the popular NBA Street series in order to glamorise and simplify the game. This turned out to be a terrible waste with tricks and stupidity taking away from the game what it is in essence. Now though, they've gone away and thought about things and have decided to take NFL on Tour.

NFL Tour is basically going to annoy the hell out of anyone who really loves Madden because it is a stripped down version with a lot more glamour. They have done away with the Street look, opting for an AstroTurf, carnivally feel. The players are all in uniform but there are no helmets or padding. Fireworks go off every time you score a touchdown and touchdowns are a lot easier to score. It's a 7 v 7 and the pitch is smaller. The beauty of it all though lies in the gameplay.

Being a 7 v 7 and looking more like flag football than actual NFL rules makes the game easier to understand for beginners and the idea that there is no kicking in the game at all means that there are not as many tactics to try and understand. The plays range from very simple to very inventive but are always more fun than that in a Madden game. In fact, at times it may feel like you are playing a College play and that's exactly how it should feel.

When on a run, you can shake off tackles and run up the walls to get past your opponent which makes it feel like you're going somewhere. On the opposite side of the ball you can come up with a massive hit that sends the player back yards so it's not just a one sided affair.

This game looks great to me because it's the kind of game that NFL fans can play with their non-NFL-loving mates and have a good time. It might look ridiculous but you can tell it's going to be fun! Watch this space!