Football Resurrected: Thoughts on APF 2K8
After months of speculation, today we finally got our first look at 2K Sports' return to football: All-Pro Football 2K8 . The trailer shown during yesterday's press conference--just a few minutes of in-game footage--was more of a teaser than anything else; a look at the kind of action that will be found in the game, more than a menu of the different kinds of features. As a result, some questions have been answered--mostly revolving around how the game will look--but there's still more questions than answers.

First impressions of the trailer? The first though that ran through my head was "skinny"; as in some skinny player models. Granted, that's because many of the segments from the trailer focused on longer, leaner receivers. As for the gameplay, the animations looked fine, particularly a bobbled catch that had a wideout scooping up a ball while falling to the ground on his back. It was a bit reminiscent of Antonio Freeman's miraculous catch from Monday Night Football in 2000 and, for me at least, was the highlight of the entire demo.

The legends in the game look to be the selling point for this game, and it's no surprise that recent stars like Elway, Marino, and Rice are all in the game. I'm pleased that older players--guys like Fred Biletnikoff and Earl Campbell--are getting their due as well.

Still, there's names missing--the first name that jumped to my mind was perhaps the greatest running back of all time, Jim Brown. For a game that looks to pit the greatest players who've ever stepped foot on a gridiron against one another, not having Brown in there would be a shame. Perhaps, they're saving him for a future announcement.

More troubling than that who has been left out, however, is who is actually in the game. I'm speaking of O.J. Simpson, of course. When asked about Simpson's appearance on the roster, Visual Concepts president Greg Thomas said his team was focused on what players did on the field, not off the field.  As he put it, based on O.J.'s gridiron skills, "How could we not put [him] in the game?"

Well, that's one way of looking at it.  The way I see it, you could easily get away without Simpson in 2K8. I sure wouldn't have missed him and, beyond some crazed Buffalo Bills fans, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be alone there. With legendary backs like Sweetness, Sanders, and Roger Craig already in there, I suspect Simpson's absence would go practically unnoticed. Besides, regardless of how you feel about O.J., the guy carries way too much baggage, and his inclusion in the game--especially if he's being paid for it--brings with it the wrong kind of publicity. I wish 2K would reconsider that choice.

That said, it's great to see the doors finally starting to creak open on APF 2K8. As 2K puts it, 2K8 is "football resurrected." Like many of you, I'm glad it's back.
Continue »