[REVIEW] NFL Blitz

Mat Paget
(PlayStation 3 [REVIEWED], Xbox 360)

We are in an age of mediocre football games. There hasn’t been a title that has really captured the fun of football in a good long time, but with the return of NFL Blitz, that’s all going to change, right? The NFL has forced EA to remove late hits (a hardcore fan favourite), and Tiburon’s track record hasn’t been the greatest these past few years. The signs point to no, but hopefully, the developer can defy the odds, and bring the Blitz name back to its former glory.

For those who don’t know the difference between the Blitz and Madden games, let me catch you up. Blitz takes a more arcadey route, and plays fast and loose with the rules of football. Penalties like pass interference, and, well, interference, don’t exist. Tackling receivers as the ball is being thrown to them still feels great, and it’s a feeling you, quite literally, can’t get anywhere else. Blitz is the guy everyone wants to party with, while Madden is the newly-hired security guard who takes his job a bit too seriously; Blitz is, and always has been, more fun.

Now, that last paragraph was about the Blitz franchise as a whole, and not its newest release. My experience with 2012’s NFL Blitz was like a romantic relationship with an old friend. It started off slow on the single-player modes, getting to know each other after such a long time apart. I wasn’t sure how I felt about her, but the memories of the past encouraged me to push on. Eventually, she let me get online with her. This is where the fun and intensity of Blitz, that I remember feeling in the arcades, came rushing back to me in full force.

Oh, my god! He’s on fire! SOMEBODY CALL THE FIRE BRIGADE!

This game is best when played with other people. Although it isn’t the same as playing with a friend in the same room, the online gets just as intense as those sweaty-palmed battles in the arcade. Thankfully, NFL Blitz includes both forms of multiplayer. The online components are done really well, too. There are Battle Boards that rank you among others in your region, and yes, there is an option for Canada. Each win and loss will either raise your rank, or drop you into a deep hole of shame. This makes each game you play that much more intense, and of a need-to-win status.

Although all this is great, there are some network issues that have costed me touchdowns, first downs, and turnovers on downs. This insures that local multiplayer continues to reign king in Blitz.

Along with basic one-on-one multiplayer, the game supplies players with the Elite League. This mode is definitely for those who like to fine-tune their team exactly the way they like it. It basically allows players to create a team by collecting cards, and adjust their line-up with the best possible combination. Collecting cards can be a bit of a grind at times, but the grinding is the best part of the package: competing against other players. And if the stakes weren’t high enough already, than players can risk their most prized cards in hopes of retrieving their opponent’s.

I know the Dallas Cowboys’ egos are big, but this is ridiculous!

And just because the single-player modes don’t come within driving distance of the multiplayer competition, that doesn’t mean they’re not worth taking a look at. The Blitz Gauntlet is well put together; players will play against a set of teams, eventually leading to a fantasy team boss battle. The bosses are basically just teams made up of mascot-like players such as cheeseheads, or sasquatches. As fun and crazy as this may sound, it never reaches the same intense action that the multiplayer offers.

Although the game is extremely polished, a few minor issues do shine through the cracks. One thing that Blitz has adopted from Madden is the commentator errors. They don’t happen often, but every now and then they’ll call a play wrong, or say something akin to, “they came short on the 3rd down,” when you go for a field goal on any down. Otherwise, Tim Klitzrow (best known as the voice of NBA Jam) does a fantastic job commentating the game. Unfortunately, his partner is not very funny; instead, he’s actually kind of annoying.

Another issue I had was with the team statistics — Offense, Defense, and Special Teams. I’m not exactly sure when the developer was basing its statistics. I’m not a fan, but Denver definitely shouldn’t have the worst statistics in the game, and San Diego shouldn’t have one of the best. There are many teams with questionable statistics. This would be fine if the game was released at the beginning of the season, but even then some of the statistics are confusing.

Despite all that, Blitz is back, and looking better than ever. The game runs at 60 frames per second; match that with the adrenaline-fueled action of Blitz, and you’ve got yourself something truly great. The only thing missing from this great package are late hits, which is like taking Fatalities out of Mortal Kombat. But after all is said and done, I haven’t had this much fun with a football game since Blitz 2000, and anyone who was, or still is, a fan of the arcade-football games needs to buy this. If only Tiburon could make Madden this much fun. Heck, if only real football was this much fun.