Will Backbreaker break Madden?
I just ran across a blurb about this game in the latest OXM and it grabbed my interest. I'm a huge football fan, but not so much a Madden fan. Before EA Sports got the exclusive NFL License, I was a big fan of 2k Sports' ESPN NFL 2k5, which many (myself included) thought was superior to Madden 2005 (and 2006, for that matter). Once the exclusive video game development license was awarded to Madden, 2k's NFL games were history and Madden became to only game in town. As a side-effect, Madden also sucked for the next three iterations.
During that time 2k Sports tried it's hand at a non-license football franchise, All Pro Football 2k8, which featured licensed members of the NFL Players Association like Jerry Rice, John Elway, and over 100 others. Since the retired players are not covered under the NFL license, 2k could pay retired players for the right to use their likeness. The game was included fictional teams and a fairly robust customization feature to allow you to create your own players and teams, but was short on game modes. The developers made the mistake of thinking that if the on-field play was sweet, that would be enough to make gamers overlook the lack of a multi-season franchise mode or the limitations on the number of players you could create. In the end, it did not work. Even a $20 price point could not guarantee enough in sales to merit a sequel.
Now comes another developer with a similar idea. "Backbreaker", a new non-license football game for publisher 505 Games and developer NaturalMotion. Again the hook is great gameplay with a physics engine that makes every hit and every tackle unique, since hits and tackles are not animated (like Madden) and are entirely based on the physics of the hit. The game will ship with 32 fictional teams and a customization option to create your own.
It looks great, but I'm troubled that NaturalMotion is poised to repeat the mistake that 2k made. There are no plans for a franchise mode, since the dev wants to "keep the focus on playing football". Unless this changes between now and April when the game is scheduled to ship, the game had better be mind-blowingly awesome, or it will end up another failure, in the bargain bin next to APF 2k8.