Official NCAA 12! Thread

[FirstTimer]

I actually had much more success with the zone read in NCAA 11 compared to previous titles.

I would estimate it worked around 25-35% of the time, when that number should be closer to 50%. They're getting there.

Zoneread and options were feast or famine. It either got killed for a loss or went for a big gain because you caught the defense asleep. There was no middle ground at all.

Also, the defense blitzing 99% of the time needs to be fixed as well. I shouldn't need to go into coaching sliders before each game and tone down the defensive agressiveness so I'm not seeing jailbreak blitzes on practically every first down play.

 

[spiker]

Also, the defense blitzing 99% of the time needs to be fixed as well. I shouldn't need to go into coaching sliders before each game and tone down the defensive agressiveness so I'm not seeing jailbreak blitzes on practically every first down play.

Don't forget the psychic defense. The same defense EA denies is coded into the game.

 

[BrntO4Life]

Zoneread and options were feast or famine. It either got killed for a loss or went for a big gain because you caught the defense asleep. There was no middle ground at all.

Also, the defense blitzing 99% of the time needs to be fixed as well. I shouldn't need to go into coaching sliders before each game and tone down the defensive agressiveness so I'm not seeing jailbreak blitzes on practically every first down play.

I must have been playing a different game or had good sliders. I could get a consistent 4-5 yards at times with the zone read.

 

[Nevermind]

I am with FirstTimer I hate to see people going wild for these little updates such as Bevo and the duck riding in on the motorcycle. That stuff is only cool if it comes with some great gameplay.

 

[FirstTimer]

I must have been playing a different game or had good sliders. I could get a consistent 4-5 yards at times with the zone read.

I had the best gameplay experience I have had in years from this game. Had tremendous sliders and the zoneread was feast or famine all day...and the feast was mainly due to the fact that I may have had a fast QB. Using anything less than a VY type QB was pointless to even try and run it with.

The triple option was useless.

I am with FirstTimer I hate to see people going wild for these little updates such as Bevo and the duck riding in on the motorcycle. That stuff is only cool if it comes with some great gameplay.

Plus they better fix recruiting and player rating generation in dynasty.

Plus tuner sets were fucking lame. You'd get a gorgeous set of sliders they'd relese a tuner set and your sliders would instantly become fucked and you'd have to go back and try and tweak to a new set to get the gameplay right.

 

[BrntO4Life]

Plus tuner sets were fucking lame. You'd get a gorgeous set of sliders they'd relese a tuner set and your sliders would instantly become fucked and you'd have to go back and try and tweak to a new set to get the gameplay right.

If you get the game to play well, stop downloading the tuner sets. They aren't required.

 

[ryne candy]

I am with FirstTimer I hate to see people going wild for these little updates such as Bevo and the duck riding in on the motorcycle. That stuff is only cool if it comes with some great gameplay.

and I agree with this but let that time come...they aren't going to release their load day 1 (hell even 2-3wks). If nothing is improved gameplay wise, they deserve to get all the hate toward them but right now we can only hope that there is more to come. Some people sound since they didn't release gameplay day 1 (of announcement) that the game must suck and be NCAA 11.2. You can't hate on people for getting excited when you think there is nothing more to come....let that day come and go and then hate. :hammer:

 

[spiker]

I'm hating because of my previous experience with EA. I know other stuff is coming out but I'm not going to lie to myself and say the gameplay will significantly change for the better. It hasn't changed signicantly from year to year for the past 5 years, why would it now?

I'm not slamming them for announcing the new tackling system but you better believe I will if it turns the game into NCAA Blitz 12.

 

[BrntO4Life]

I'm hating because of my previous experience with EA. I know other stuff is coming out but I'm not going to lie to myself and say the gameplay will significantly change for the better. It hasn't changed signicantly from year to year for the past 5 years, why would it now?

Then you haven't been playing. NCAA 09-11 is night and day.

Perfect? No way in hell. But it's exponentially better.

 

[Nevermind]

and I agree with this but let that time come...they aren't going to release their load day 1 (hell even 2-3wks). If nothing is improved gameplay wise, they deserve to get all the hate toward them but right now we can only hope that there is more to come. Some people sound since they didn't release gameplay day 1 (of announcement) that the game must suck and be NCAA 11.2. You can't hate on people for getting excited when you think there is nothing more to come....let that day come and go and then hate. :hammer:

Yeah I am still hoping that we will get some good info on gameplay at somepoint and understand that we won't get it all at once but I guess it just sucks to see quite a few people that are already sold on the game just because of some presentation updates. Kind of just lets EA know that they can get a lot of people hyped on small presentation upgrades like that.

 

[BrntO4Life]

Yeah I am still hoping that we will get some good info on gameplay at somepoint and understand that we won't get it all at once but I guess it just sucks to see quite a few people that are already sold on the game just because of some presentation updates. Kind of just lets EA know that they can get a lot of people hyped on small presentation upgrades like that.

People are hyped right now, which was the point.

No one has purchased the game yet and can easily have their opinion swayed if nothing of substance is released in the coming months.

 

[spiker]

Then you haven't been playing. NCAA 09-11 is night and day.

Perfect? No way in hell. But it's exponentially better.

I'm not expecting perfection. I understand the nature of video games and programming and that flaws slip through the cracks. The degree of the flaws that plague this series are not minor and it appears they can't be fixed without a total overhaul. The sales as they are don't justify an overhaul of the series so we keep getting the same game every year with minor bandages.

NCAA 07

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwLDXSeQPBE"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwLDXSeQPBE[/ame]

NCAA 11

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtN2Fkw5GIM"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtN2Fkw5GIM[/ame]

I don't see the significant changes in gameplay. Graphically there's been some substantial change, but gameplay-wise you can tell the same engine is driving these games.

Also, that's just annoying to dismiss my opinions by saying I'm not playing the games. The only reason I'm so outspoken is because I have been playing the game and it's only marginally improved over the course of next gen. I'm not going around and making detailed and critical posts about Wii games I've never played because... I've never played them.

 

[FirstTimer]

If you get the game to play well, stop downloading the tuner sets. They aren't required.

I believe the are requried if you want to get online(d/l rosters etc) aren't they?

Then you haven't been playing. NCAA 09-11 is night and day.

Perfect? No way in hell. But it's exponentially better.

I would agree. The last few years have been a slow build up but NCAA played much better than even 2010 and the 2007-2009 weren't even close to 2011. Obviously there is still lots of room to grow and the engine needs to keep being fixed/tweaked but NCAA11 was the first NCAA I had bought since 2007(which I returned in a week) and there was a big reason for it.

 

[mgoblue2290]

Don't forget the psychic defense. The same defense EA denies is coded into the game.

Yup, you play on Heisman and the whole d-line and linebackers will shift toward where you are running the ball. If you flip the play, they slide with it. I'm also 99% sure in NCAA 11 I saw defensive backs cutting before receivers even did.

 

[kmanharris]

Everything that has been said already is a legitimate gripe but I am also in the boat of giving them the benefit of the doubt this time.

To go along with the all out blitzing they need to fix the defense showing they are going to all out blitz. It was easy to distinguish because all 11 guys were standing up, even the defensive linemen. Not once did I see it be a bluff all out blitz.

Although it is EA, I am still holding out hope based on what they accomplished last year.

 

[FirstTimer]

I'm also 99% sure in NCAA 11 I saw defensive backs cutting before receivers even did.

That had to do with the Pass Coverage slider. Set it to 35 or below and it wasn't an issue. The DB's would react to the play at that point. 45 and above was where you would see the DB's route mirroring issue and the route "jumping" issue where the DB was actually running the route ahead of the WR.

 

[spiker]

Yup, you play on Heisman and the whole d-line and linebackers will shift toward where you are running the ball. If you flip the play, they slide with it. I'm also 99% sure in NCAA 11 I saw defensive backs cutting before receivers even did.

Happens all the time. Watch #36 on defense and #83 on offense. #36 will cut on the route before #83. There are dozens of examples of this on Youtube.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX1XhSNfduo"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX1XhSNfduo[/ame]

The fundamental coding is to tell the DB what route the WR is running and then, based on some rating like "Man Coverage", the DB will be able to jump the route like he knew it was going to happen. It's broken and man coverage is too effective in NCAA 11 because of the route mirroring.

 

[Realist]

Happens all the time. Watch #36 on defense and #83 on offense. #36 will cut on the route before #83. There are dozens of examples of this on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX1XhSNfduo

The fundamental coding is to tell the DB what route the WR is running and then, based on some rating like "Man Coverage", the DB will be able to jump the route like he knew it was going to happen. It's broken and man coverage is too effective in NCAA 11 because of the route mirroring.

Again, as firsttimer said, nothing that sliders can't fix. After tweaking the sliders that firsttimer provided in my OD, the game played about as good as it was going to get with realistic results.

EVerything has been said regarding the people who are complaining about a presentation video but people wanted more presentation and EA is working on that. Gameplay is essential but if EA didn't touch gameplay they would hear all the bitchin' and moanin' so yea, you might skip it after seeing it 3-4 times, but at least it's there and there are more people who care about that than you.

and NCAA 2007 doesn't even come close to NCAA 2011

 

[FirstTimer]

Happens all the time. Watch #36 on defense and #83 on offense. #36 will cut on the route before #83. There are dozens of examples of this on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX1XhSNfduo

The fundamental coding is to tell the DB what route the WR is running and then, based on some rating like "Man Coverage", the DB will be able to jump the route like he knew it was going to happen. It's broken and man coverage is too effective in NCAA 11 because of the route mirroring.

Not a big deal and fixed in about 5 seconds at the slider menu. You could make the argument it shouldn't exist in the first place...but it's not a game breaker or killer since it was fixable.

I had no issue with man pass coverage with the correct sliders.

Zone coverage and the pass rush were much bigger issues IMO.

 

[spiker]

and NCAA 2007 doesn't even come close to NCAA 2011

It shouldn't but it does.

Graphically, the game has improved a lot with new player models implemented, improved textures and lighting, etc. The ESPN presentation is also a nice addition. It looks good in HD. I'd never dispute that they've made many nice graphical improvements.

Sound wise it sounds almost identical. Herbie is still saying the same crap he's been saying for years. Tackles, crowd noises, and school bands have largely been unchanged in 4 years. Crowd noises are the big thing when it comes to sound and they have been glossed over for the most part. I think one year they tried to fix it but it's still pretty underwhelming.

The gameplay has been a piling turds upon turds year after year. Watching that NCAA 07 video, I still notice some issues plaguing NCAA 11:

- Bad zone coverage
- Bad tackling angles
- Confused offensive line AI, especially option blocking AI
- Psychic defense
- Underdeveloped playbooks and featuring worthless, unusable plays and plays without complimentary plays
- Bad pass rush which is probably the result of....
- Suction blocking, tackling, and catching (among other animation issues)

Those are just some I saw in that video alone. Yes, they added gang tackling and improved some tackling angles and fixed a couple blocking assignments. I still see the same engine underneath it all and it really doesn't play significantly different to me. Meanwhile they've added Season Showdown and Mascot games and I'm still not even sure if 120 Ways to Win was more than just a marketing slogan.

I'm not shitting on EA to shit on EA but I'm not going to apologize for them either. I've played all the games. Online dynasty is the best thing they've added to any football game ever. The problem is that they continue to slight customers like me by continuing to cater to the casual gamer who wants to pick up and play with Pro Combat uniforms. That's fine but I've been here the whole time wanting something more. They're the only college football game on the block and you can't fault me for feeling slighted just a little.