E...A Sports. It's in the game!

Really!?! That's funny, because you can challenge plays in the National Football League, yet no such animal exists in the Xbox 360 version of Madden NFL 06. The game sure looks purty, especially running in high definition, but it's a little hard to smile at all of the eye candy when I'm losing precious touchdowns and games because of blown calls. But I guess I'll have to live with it, huh? After all, this is the only football game in town. Might as well suck it up and take the $59.99 kick to the nuts like a man.

I'm willing to take this slight shot to the groin because the game plays great, and even more important than that, looks outstanding. It's not the gigantic leap in technology that the original NFL 2K for the Sega Dreamcast was, but it's pretty damn impressive running on an HDTV. All of the players feature new and improved animations, EA scanned about 200 player faces which all look fantastic, the weather effects, particularly the puddles that form when its raining are especially sweet, and the full polygonal crowd is a feature that's been a long time coming. It's not as shocking as NBA Live, but it's pretty damn attractive.

Unfortunately, the game isn't as pristine in standard definition. In fact, it barely looks better than Madden for the Xbox. That's no exaggeration. That's just the unfortunate reality. Running this game on an aged CRT is like welcoming 360 critics into your home so that they can bitch slap you for wasting $400 on a new console, so you can either commit to an HD set and bask in the glow that is next generation football, or convince yourself that the game looks just fantabulous on your piece of crap old folks TV.

Regardless of which type of TV you own the game runs as smooth as a brand new microwave and plays excellently. The majority of the features that make Madden NFL 06 fun, such as the hit stick and QB vision have been included, and the announcing is done in a radio style that's a lot more enjoyable to listen to than John Madden blurting out FIRST...AND...TEN every fifteen seconds. I'm also quite fond of the new kicking system, which is much simpler than the stupid golf meter. You just stop the moving arrow, settle on a degree of power, and let it fly with just two button presses.

Per the usual, there's a Franchise mode as well as online play with all of the trimmings. It's nothing extraordinary, but you can easily hop online and into a game, and you're able to see who's an ass and who isn't, which allows you to select opponents that'll actually finish the game instead of quitting like a spoiled child.

Outside gameplay, kudos to EA for the new presentation. The sliding menus are much more stylish than the old school stuff found in the other games, and the NFL music during replays is a nice touch. The soundtrack in general is golden, but that's one area that EA usually gets right year after year.

So here's the deal. Buy this game if A.) You don't own the latest Madden and/or B.) You sell out for pretty graphics like I do. But leave it on the shelf if you want all of the features found in the Xbox and PS2 versions of the game, particularly the ability to challenge plays (the lack thereof has a bigger impact than you might think) and the Mini Camp content, which enables you to actually improve your skills. This one has "casual player" spray painted all over it, and hardcore arm chair quarterbacks need not apply.