In Madden NFL 06, EA has added what most people have always known about NFL football. It is about the quarterback. Every successful NFL franchise has had a quarterback that can make plays and see things developing. Is the hot route open? Can I get the ball to my second or third reads? So what did EA do? They have added quarterback vision to the passing game. When you pass now, a highlighted area shows on the screen which depicts what the quarterback can actually see. Thus, you will be more accurate throwing in the area of vision. Additionally, this vision varies widely from quarterback to quarterback. If you are playing New England, then you will have Tom Brady and he will have a nice wide field to throw to. If you are using Detroit, then you need to look out because Joey Harrington has tunnel vision. This feature is very realistic, as the great quarterbacks are always hyped because of their arm or field vision. Joe Montana did not have a great arm, but he knew where to throw it. This leads to the other addition of precision passing, which lets you use the toggles to lead the ball and place it in different areas, which is great in the red zone if you have a tall receiver and want to put the ball up over the defensive back. While the feature is difficult to use, once mastered it can be quite deadly to your opponent.

Aside from these additions, the game is not greatly different from its predecessors, which I thought was good. The game play is still the same, except that the players seem to be more fluid and cut better according to your controls. The playbooks are in the same cookie cutter molds that the NFL uses, which again makes it realistic and different from the college title with it’s greatly varied playbooks.

The game still offers the usual modes, like play now and franchise. It also offers the superstar mode, which lets you create a player and take him through his career as an NFL player. This mode is very similar to the Heisman mode for NCAA Football 06: Race for the Heisman. This is actually very fun, as it is challenging to make your career in the NFL and hold off your opponents as well as the rookie players. Better yet, the actual creation of the player lets you pick your parents and a lot of other interesting things during your NFL career. New contracts, endorsements and even movie roles are all part of this mode, which really takes you into the world of an NFL superstar.

The graphics are still quite excellent. The stadium environment is by far the best for all sports games. The stadiums are very accurate and detailed, and the weather environments are well done and affect the game play as it would in real life. The players are also detailed and the facial features are accurate. The only problem I see is that some of the players look a lot bigger than they actually are. Thus some of the linemen and fullbacks appear large and blocky. The sound is done very well, with the solid commentary of Al Michael and John Madden. THX is doing the sound, which is awesome for those of you that have surround sound. I really enjoyed all the crowd noises and hits. This game should be played with the volume turned up so you can feel the environment.

Madden 06 is a welcome addition to what is already a great series of games. I would strongly recommend it to any football fan, and if you do not have any football games, then this is a must have for your video game collection. Get that chin strap buckled and get in the huddle. Let’s see what kind of game you got when you are down 6 with 2 minutes left on your own 20 yard line.