NFL Tour [X360]

EA is clearly trying to create a simple, pick-up-and-play football experience, and in that, it has succeeded. Multiplayer games are tense and engaging. The single-player Tour mode is somewhat challenging. Unfortunately, this casual approach alienates anyone over the age of 12 that wants something more than a button-mash-fest. There are no real lineup decisions to make other than deciding to sub a tight-end for a wide out, not a bad idea if you want to get Antonio Gates or Jeremy Shockey involved. There's no play creator, no audibles, and barely a hint of customization. You can "create" a player by choosing from some pre-set heads, bodies and uniform types, but that's the extent of it. While NBA Street Homecourt featured the entire line of Air Jordan sneakers and a ton of gear to unlock, NFL Tour features, well, NFL jerseys.

Even the player likenesses are bland. Tom Brady, the poster-boy of the league, looks like an animated UPS delivery driver. Still, Tour blazes along at 60 frames per second and has some excellent animations, utilizing much of the branching tech we saw in Homecourt. Unfortunately the stadiums, crowds, players and backgrounds are all dull and lack significant detail.

Trey Wingo is a bright spot, as the ESPN personality hosts single-player Tour mode and calls the action on the field. He adds much-needed comedy relief to the audio booth, offering factoids about each city you're playing in and constantly screaming "Laces out Dan!" Hey, it's better than yet another hip-hop DJ, right?

The good news is that you'll have some fun with NFL Tour, especially with friends. But the joy will be short lived when you realize that the feature set is comparable to the original NBA Jam -- just pick a team and play. It's a thin package that comes off as more of a $30 budget title than a full-fledged effort. If EA isn't going to pay its dues to create a great arcade experience, why should you have to pay full price?

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