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NFL Head Coach 09 | 
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| From: Electronic Arts
Category: Video Games
List Price: $29.99
Buy New: $17.99
You Save: $12.00 (40%)
New (35) Used (6) from $15.79
Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 3528
Platform: Xbox 360
Genre: football_games
ESRB: Everyone
Media: Video Game
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 5 - 20 years
Operating System: Xbox 360
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 0.1 x 0.1 x 0
Legal Disclaimer: Brand new and factory sealed game! Ready to ship. All standard shipping games ship via first class mail with free tracking and insurance! Expedited items are shipped via USPS Priority Mail. All of our games, new and used are backed by a solid 90-day warranty.
MPN: 15596
Model: 15596
UPC: 014633155969
EAN: 0014633155969
ASIN: B0018Z2PXQ
Release Date: September 3, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Create new plays and use them in your playbooks. Create plays in-game to defend against unexpected plays from your opponent. | | • | Custom plays you save to your playbook are seamlessly imported into Madden NFL 09, and are available to share online. | | • | Utilize game planning and assistant coach’s input to make the decisions that will define not only the game, but your career. | | • | You to make key decisions like free agents, trades, and hiring new assistant coaches. | | • | Every decision you make from who you draft, to how you react on the sideline will impact your approval rating with the media, fans, players, coaches and your team owner. |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
In the NFL, the right coaching decisions combined with focused preparation can turn a last place team into a championship contender. NFL Head Coach 09 gives you the opportunity to make the decisions that can turn your favorite NFL franchise into a perennial champion. Not only can you design and call plays, but NFL Head Coach 09 puts you in the thick of managing players, coaches, and the front office. And of course your team will have to perform on the field if you intend to keep your job. Do you have what it takes to be an NFL Head Coach?
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| Customer Reviews:
 Promising Game December 11, 2008
A. Wiley (Arizona)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If you dont want to read my entire review, I suggest doing two things with this game before playing.
1. Download the patch by updating the rosters online (This is huge, this game had alot of bugs prior.)
2. Upload it to your hard drive. (Quicker load times, smoother playing, less chance of freezing in middle of game)
A easy way to determine if this game is right for you Madden lovers is to simply think of what you enjoy more on Madden. Do you enjoy the actual game playing of Madden or the Franchise mode (more specifically the offseason). If you love the later, this game is perfect for you. Just keep in mind of two things in terms of game play. This is a head coach game (a bit of strategy and quite a bit of tedious stuff) and its the pretty much the 1st year of its big release since its nothing like its predecessor (meaning there will be bugs).
The amount of detail this game has makes it absolutely brilliant, but the main downside of the game is the amount of bugs it has. If only EASports would of just tested the game before releasing it, then it would be pretty popular right now.
Overall I wouldnt quite recommend this game until these bugs are fixed and I dont believe it will happen until the 2010 version next year (if it survives the consumer backlash). The game is promising and very fun, but the amount of bugs it has just kind of slowly turned me off from it.
EDIT: So after staying away from this game for a few weeks, I decided to give it a 2nd chance and download the patch given out through Xbox live. (Its done by the updating the rosters in case you dont know). I have to say that the patch has fixed ALOT of the previous issues/bugs I had with the game. The game is ENJOYABLE and more importantly PLAYABLE. I would love to change my ratings from a 2 to 4, but I can't seem to find out how on Amazon's review system. So I apologize EASports for not getting the patch before writing my review.
The rumors that made me sway from getting this patched haven't occurred for me so far (I'm in my 2nd season and played every game). Those rumors included the game freezes at the same point, so you can't progress further in your career. Has not happened for myself. Then the 2nd big one is that you will experience a heavy amount of injuries, 12 starters/15 players on long term injuries in one report. (I've only had 3 at most and that's with a terrible trainer). Otherwise the patch has made this game a big success for me. I do experience a couple of minor bugs still, like the game freezing about 25% of the time I exit to the main menu, but this game is so much more playable with the patch now.
In the end, I hope EA takes this as a good marketing lesson. This game could of easily been a big success if they had just tested it before releasing. I'd be cautious of getting the 2010 version right off the bat due to this, but a good patch will probably fix it again.
Again I apologize for not writing the review after I got the patch.
 Very Addicting, Even with Bugs December 5, 2008
Arthur L
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is the direction in which I always hoped Madden would go, giving the player more control and depth in running an NFL franchise. Scouting, salary cap and player/coach management, a solid draft experience, game planning - this game almost has it all. Unfortunately that also includes bugs. If any other game had as many bugs as this one, it would break it, but no matter how many times the game freezes up in the 4th quarter, I keep coming back.
No matter how much experience you have in football and sim games, there is insufficient official guidance on how to actually play the game, along with a very steep learning curve which may discourage the average gamer or football fan. It took me seven do-overs in my first franchise before I didn't completely mess up. Fortunately for those who like to read, there are hardcore fans of this game and external guides and advice are available. The best site for game information is, in my opinion, Operation Sports. The developers of the game actually read and respond to posts put up by gamers. Great community there - that could be a review in itself.
In general, the game paces itself nicely by having a constant clock/calendar running with only a limited amount of time to make decisions. My favorite part of the game is how much time and effort the developers put into the draft classes. To increase replayability and the connection you feel with the game, the developers have created four separate "draft tracks." You are put into one randomly when you start a new franchise. I believe a franchise lasts ten seasons. Each year's draft class has its own stars whose stories are told by in-game pop-ups from the menu screen by Adam Schefter as if it is coming from NFL Network. They've created stories for each draft's star players, going into where they are from, etc. Some are also based on real players (Johnny English = John Elway - same school, description, etc.). Long-time fans of the NFL definitely appreciate this.
When it's time for the actual draft, there is definitely a sense of urgency, even with 10 real minutes to make your pick. Do you go with the GM recommendation, or do you go over his head and pick someone else? Are you going to get the late round sleeper of this year's draft? Did you do enough scouting in the positions you need? Again, during the draft itself, Adam Schefter will be popping up frequently to let you know if a team's pick was good, a bust, or the "steal of the draft." Even stories behind the sleeper picks and the busts are here to add character to the players and dimension to the overall experience. Every time you make a pick and you hear the "Dadada, dadada" and Adam Schefter pops up, you're on the edge of your seat to find out if you made a good pick.
There are many bugs and issues with this game that can be a real pain, which keep it from a 5-star rating. Not everything was fixed with patches on either the 360 or PS3 version, but the game is at least playable. You need to constantly save in case of random freezing (most of which happens during an actual game). When actually coaching a game, it is hard to find successful plays, and even with an unbelievable RB and OL, I can rush for positive yards only once or twice a game. When simming games, stats are more realistic. Another issue is general menu navigation. Once you are in certain screens, critical information becomes unavailable and you can't cancel out of the screen to go find it. Also, with coach hiring/firing, you have very little idea of who will be available when you decide to fire or retain your coaching and support staff. And if you make the playoffs, all the other teams get first dibs. So if the owner wants you to fire the GM and you agree, you might end up with a complete piece of garbage as a replacement.
You can tell the developers put a lot of heart into this game, and I could gush on for much longer. While far from perfect, it's the best thing us fans of running franchises with real players may ever have on console. If you've ever bought a copy of Madden just to run a franchise and sim all the games (I don't think I played a single actual game of Madden 2005 for PS2), but you want more than what the next-gen console versions EA is giving you, then this game is for you. If I could pick only one game to play over the next several years, this would be it.
What an improvement October 8, 2008
P. J. Seguin (minnetonka, mn USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was one of those unfortunates who bought, and struggled, and struggled with the predecessor. This version is light-years ahead. My only concern is that the game is essentially inscrutible without buying the "Game Guide." The instructions enclosed with the game are horribly inadequate.
Solid First Down September 19, 2008
Brian Douglas (the great wide open)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
NFL Head Coach 09 is a massive improvement over the first NFL Head Coach game. The game doesn't get as bogged down on the personality conflicts that made the first game such a chore.
This game gives you total control of a NFL franchise from signing free agents to working your way through the draft. You can also pick the plays and the assistant coaches who'll help you on your way to building a championship team.
The only real negatives are some of the game play features especially the approval rating system. I won my division and made it to the conference championship game with the Detroit Lions but because I coached a ball control offense and a defense that rarely blitzed my approval rating was only 57. The game punishes you for not being hyper aggressive and that takes away from the reality of the game.
One last thing, make sure you get the patch on Xbox Live as it improves the game greatly.
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www.xbox360fanzone.com | |
