EA Sports' NFL Head Coach

I picked this up last Sunday on my way back home from the great weekend. I will also note that I bought this game specifically for my PC, not the PS2.

For some reason, I just knew that this game would be right up my alley. For years I've championed the cause of the NCAA Football series over the Madden series due to the deptht that the game brings (recruiting, career mode for your own player, etc.). I loved the idea of getting involved with your team, off the field, rather just controlling the players on the field.

Now, with NFL Head Coach, this would be a game that you would be in complete control of your team -- hiring your coordinators, going over scouting reports, looking at potential draft choices, managing the salary cap, and best of all -- calling those all-important plays during an actual game.

The game picks up right after last season, when the Steelers defeated the Seahawks in last year's Super Bowl. Create your own "coach," then get ready to interview for head coaching positions. As for me, I interviewed with the Minnesota Vikings owner, but in return, I got offers from 5 different teams, including the Vikings. Although the Vikings were not really going to "pay me" the big bucks compared to the other offers, my heart is with Minnesota.

As the Head Coach, you're basically in your own office for most of the time. The Owner goes over the interface of what you can actually do in your office -- this is the most confusing part of the game. There's just so much to look through and the menus are difficult to go through.

The most exciting part for me during the off-season was getting ready for the draft, including the NFL Draft Day. That was pretty sweet, with scrolling information across your screen, who picked who, including analysis from Mel Kiper of ESPN. I wouldn't call it "realistic," since Reggie Bush went 8th overall (I picked Laurence Maroney as my first rounder -- RB from the Gophers).

Of course, you have your practice sessions, all the while trying to set goals for your team. If you don't match your goals, the owner gets pissed. Run plays over and over again (making them "money plays") and talk to your coordintors after a practice and get their input on who should be starting. It's all good.

(By the way, if you choose the Vikings, Culpepper is still the QB... Yeah, I know...)

Then, the game itself. You're on the sidelines, calling the plays. The offensive coordinator will give you a suggested play, and it's totally up to you to decide to go with that one or not. Even when they are running the play, you can turn around and provide feedback to your players, giving them strategy or motivation -- good or bad. Either way, you're going to piss off a few of your players, but you're the coach!

The Vikes played the Raiders in their first pre-season game and I pulled off a pretty nice win: 27-14. The offense really wasn't that great, but the defense played well. Culpepper was a punk all game: I would give him good feedback and he wouldn't like it. Then, I would yell at him, and he wouldn't like me even more. Bitch. I should have traded him for a draft pick.

A word of advice: when you're in the off-season, keep in mind of your salary cap! With the Vikings, I've got just a little over $30 million to spend. During this time, there are your free agency periods and players with their contracts expiring, so be wary who you want back. You will have to talk to their agent to discuss their contract. There was one agent for a back-up offensive lineman for the Vikes and I pissed him off something fierce (seriously, I wasn't going to pay a back-up right guard millions of dollars) and the agent decided not to talk to me again.

But remember to have money left over to sign your draft picks! I remembered this from previous games on the PS2, usually going crazy during the free agency periods and not having any roster room or money left to sign my picks. I managed pretty well, currently sitting with $8 million left in my salary cap.

Overall, a great strategy game. I'm afraid that this will become easier with time, because I cannot imagine a person playing this season after season without actually winning the Super Bowl. I'm predicting that I'll make the playoffs this season and probably will win the Super Bowl my second season. But like I said before, this game is right up my alley. You just have to be patient with it!

IGN rated it a 7.2, and GameSpot also rated it a 7.2.