TrickyD
07-06-2007, 01:40 PM
http://www.ncaastrategies.com/images/news/gamesdaily.pngGameDaily is doing a four part article featuring the new Campus Legend mode in NCAA Football 08. This is from part 1 of that sequence.
The Making of a (Campus) Legend
In this exclusive four-part diary, watch our NFL hopeful go from high school scrub to high-scoring superstar in NCAA football 08.
By JONATHAN MILLER
On your shoulders alone did your high school football team reach the state playoffs. That's the premise of NCAA 08's Campus Legend mode, where college scouts squeeze into the bleachers next to your hot girlfriend and doting parents to watch you play.
Campus Legend is EA's innovative idea of a football role-playing game, and fans of Madden's Superstar mode already understand just how addictive the third-person football mode can be. After creating a player, customizing wristbands and socks along the way, jump right into the best years of his life as a 17-year-old blue chip recruit with a chip on his shoulder. From there, finish out the final games of his high school career, controlling only your player the entire game while the coach calls the plays. The more games you win, the more scouts come to see you play. The more scouts come to see you play, the more likely you are to sign with a top school and score the captain of the cheerleading team as your prom date. So be aggressive, be, be, aggressive.
To guide you through this year's Campus Legend, we created a sadistic, hard-hitting free safety that makes Ronnie Lott look like Mary Poppins. We'll take this future felon all the way from high school to the NFL draft via Madden NFL 08. His name is Johnny Killer and the last nice thing he did for anybody was show an opposing wide receiver to the nearest hospital. While we could have made Killer a quarterback or running back, the glamour positions of Campus Legend, we chose free safety because we like hurting people (now made easier with Hit Stick 2.0!).
Killer, a California native, attends Bear Roid High School, named after a prominent local baseball legend known for big home runs and an even bigger skull. The Bear Roid Bombers are proud of their heritage, no matter how many times it’s subpoenaed by Congress. With Killer anchoring the defense, the Bombers breeze through the opposition and take the state title, giving their coach a Gatorade shower of flaxseed oil. Bear Roid fans everywhere are juiced. They are also happy about the state title.
As a Bay Area product, Killer always wanted to go to Cal. But with his five-star performance this season, he's been offered a scholarship to every single college in the country, many that have promised him the starting safety job as a freshman ... and a Hummer. Like you wouldn't take it. Anyway, Killer has a decision to make.
Will Killer go for a high-profile team that's on TV every week? Does he look for an NFL talent factory? Does he care about academics? Yes, yes and most definitely no.
Killer opts for the University of Southern California, currently ranked No. 1 in the nation and known best academically for an excellent ballroom dancing program. The bad news is that USC is loaded at the free safety position, and Killer will have to prove himself on the practice field at third string before moving up the depth chart to take the starting role.
Killer arrives at USC with only a week of practice before the Trojans face Idaho. Despite playing well during the week, picking off a pass and making several tackles for a loss, it isn't enough to move up to second string, which is sure to see some fourth-quarter garbage time in a blowout of the Vandals.
After practice, Killer can hang out in his dorm room and check his MySpace, or he can get to know USC. His first week is rather slow: he helps a fellow freshman move in; he goes for a bike ride to class (stamina boost!); he watches a popular reality show (most likely Top Chef: Miami). These evening activities are optional, but the numerous hot dog eating contests and pick-up basketball games are a great way to gain popularity with your teammates, although you may roll an ankle and take a hit in your speed rating. After all this fooling around, it's finally game day.
Killer runs out of the tunnel at the Los Angeles Coliseum for his first taste of college football. The crowd is screaming. Tommy Trojan is dancing. The cheerleaders are gyrating. And then, in his first college game of his career, Killer does the only thing he has left to do: he sits on the bench. The clock ticks away and Killer doesn't step one foot on the field, not even on special teams.
Hey, this happens to future legends all the time. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team and his professional baseball team. Killer vows to get coach's attention next week in practice and get in the game. The good news is that he doesn't have to wash his uniform.
Next week, we'll take Killer from a third-string bench warmer to an impact free safety and scourge of the secondary. Stay with us as we create a legend and groom an NFL Superstar.
The Making of a (Campus) Legend
In this exclusive four-part diary, watch our NFL hopeful go from high school scrub to high-scoring superstar in NCAA football 08.
By JONATHAN MILLER
On your shoulders alone did your high school football team reach the state playoffs. That's the premise of NCAA 08's Campus Legend mode, where college scouts squeeze into the bleachers next to your hot girlfriend and doting parents to watch you play.
Campus Legend is EA's innovative idea of a football role-playing game, and fans of Madden's Superstar mode already understand just how addictive the third-person football mode can be. After creating a player, customizing wristbands and socks along the way, jump right into the best years of his life as a 17-year-old blue chip recruit with a chip on his shoulder. From there, finish out the final games of his high school career, controlling only your player the entire game while the coach calls the plays. The more games you win, the more scouts come to see you play. The more scouts come to see you play, the more likely you are to sign with a top school and score the captain of the cheerleading team as your prom date. So be aggressive, be, be, aggressive.
To guide you through this year's Campus Legend, we created a sadistic, hard-hitting free safety that makes Ronnie Lott look like Mary Poppins. We'll take this future felon all the way from high school to the NFL draft via Madden NFL 08. His name is Johnny Killer and the last nice thing he did for anybody was show an opposing wide receiver to the nearest hospital. While we could have made Killer a quarterback or running back, the glamour positions of Campus Legend, we chose free safety because we like hurting people (now made easier with Hit Stick 2.0!).
Killer, a California native, attends Bear Roid High School, named after a prominent local baseball legend known for big home runs and an even bigger skull. The Bear Roid Bombers are proud of their heritage, no matter how many times it’s subpoenaed by Congress. With Killer anchoring the defense, the Bombers breeze through the opposition and take the state title, giving their coach a Gatorade shower of flaxseed oil. Bear Roid fans everywhere are juiced. They are also happy about the state title.
As a Bay Area product, Killer always wanted to go to Cal. But with his five-star performance this season, he's been offered a scholarship to every single college in the country, many that have promised him the starting safety job as a freshman ... and a Hummer. Like you wouldn't take it. Anyway, Killer has a decision to make.
Will Killer go for a high-profile team that's on TV every week? Does he look for an NFL talent factory? Does he care about academics? Yes, yes and most definitely no.
Killer opts for the University of Southern California, currently ranked No. 1 in the nation and known best academically for an excellent ballroom dancing program. The bad news is that USC is loaded at the free safety position, and Killer will have to prove himself on the practice field at third string before moving up the depth chart to take the starting role.
Killer arrives at USC with only a week of practice before the Trojans face Idaho. Despite playing well during the week, picking off a pass and making several tackles for a loss, it isn't enough to move up to second string, which is sure to see some fourth-quarter garbage time in a blowout of the Vandals.
After practice, Killer can hang out in his dorm room and check his MySpace, or he can get to know USC. His first week is rather slow: he helps a fellow freshman move in; he goes for a bike ride to class (stamina boost!); he watches a popular reality show (most likely Top Chef: Miami). These evening activities are optional, but the numerous hot dog eating contests and pick-up basketball games are a great way to gain popularity with your teammates, although you may roll an ankle and take a hit in your speed rating. After all this fooling around, it's finally game day.
Killer runs out of the tunnel at the Los Angeles Coliseum for his first taste of college football. The crowd is screaming. Tommy Trojan is dancing. The cheerleaders are gyrating. And then, in his first college game of his career, Killer does the only thing he has left to do: he sits on the bench. The clock ticks away and Killer doesn't step one foot on the field, not even on special teams.
Hey, this happens to future legends all the time. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team and his professional baseball team. Killer vows to get coach's attention next week in practice and get in the game. The good news is that he doesn't have to wash his uniform.
Next week, we'll take Killer from a third-string bench warmer to an impact free safety and scourge of the secondary. Stay with us as we create a legend and groom an NFL Superstar.