Catching Football Fever

I admit that I was never much of a football fan before I met my husband, but he’s definitely turned me onto football after taking me to all the University of Hawaii games and having me watch Dallas Cowboy games with him. As I’m looking forward to the 2005 football season just around the corner, I’ve been playing the recently released Madden NFL 06 (with my Dallas Cowboys team of course) on my Xbox.

This is the 16th year that Electronic Arts (EA SPORTS) has released a version of Madden NFL Football. With more than 40 million copies sold, it continues to be the number one football franchise. Last year’s Madden NFL 2005 focused on improving the defensive game, but the new Madden NFL 06 goes the opposite direction with the addition of an offensive arsenal. A few of the new features are:

- Quarterback Vision Control: You see a cone of light that represents exactly what your QB can see. Each QB has a different field of vision, depending on his rating. This feature makes it tougher to hit receivers outside the QB Vision Control.

- Precision Placement: This allows you choose exactly where to throw the ball. Lead the receiver across the middle or take a little off the deep pass to setup a jump ball.

- NFL Superstar Mode: Experience the life of an NFL player by earning one of more than 60 personas ranging from MVP to movie star. You can even take an IQ test and choose your parents and a house. This can only be used in single-player mode.

You also see improved graphics, more scripted scenes, and new replays and sequences. In addition, there’s the EA SPORTS Fantasy Football integration that allows you to check fantasy scores, obtain trade notifications and earn trophies.

If just playing for yourself doesn’t satisfy you, try your hand in the 2005 EA Sports Madden Challenge for a chance at winning a $100,000. The other part of the prize is a trip to our home state to watch the Pro Bowl, yeah, I know . . .not much good, but I would still do it for the cash! The challenge takes place in various cities, but unfortunately there are no competitions here in Hawaii. However, if you happen to be in Las Vegas or on the West Coast, you can compete in one of the many games there. Log onto www.maddenchallenge.com to see a complete schedule.

If you like football, you will definitely enjoy Madden NFL 06. It is rated E for Everyone and is now available for the PlayStation 2 (PS2), Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance and the PC. In addition, the rookie PSP version will be released on September 27. You will be able to cross-link between your PSP and PS2 for at home or on-the-go play. Madden NFL 06 is $49.95 at your nearest CompUSA, Toys n’ Joys or Toyriffic.