The battle for the console football crown has never been as heated or as competitive as it has been this season. Sega fired a shot across EA's bow by lowering the cost of ESPN 2K5 to the budget price of $20. EA Sports responded on its website, after a strong week of initial sales by Madden 2005, saying that with ESPN you "get what you pay for." The companies are literally at each other's throats. All of this should make sports gamers giddy because when two companies battle like this, it only means better games in the end -- competition is never a bad thing. Now that the football season is underway, let's see which football game rules the console world.

But which is the better game?

That's a loaded question that is impossible to answer without going into some detail. Each game has its strengths and weaknesses, and picking the right game for you depends what you want out of a football game. The problem here is that neither game is perfect, and both have some highly frustrating aspects combined with segments of sheer brilliance. Sorting through all of that can be difficult, so let's take a look at the nuances of both games to find out what makes them tick.

Graphics: The One-Sided Fight

It's here where ESPN 2K5 has one of its big advantages. First off, ESPN is the best-looking football game ever made, hands down, end of conversation. The animations, the fluidity of the players, everything is flat-out gorgeous. After playing ESPN, Madden looks stiff and rigid and the player models look "off" by comparison. EA Sports isn't used to playing second fiddle in the graphics department, but that's definitely the case this year.


When you combine the brilliant graphics with the wonderful ESPN broadcast presentation, it's clear that ESPN 2K5 holds a huge lead in the "eye candy and frills" department. It has a great replay system that sucks you into the action as well as the Chris Berman halftime and post game shows. It helps create the illusion that you're watching a real game, and are part of a real league, better than any sports game ever made.

The audio is also an ESPN strong suit. While EA Sports has the recognizable names of Al Michaels and John Madden, ESPN has by far the better commentary. The commentators discuss the replays and actually make fairly astute observations about what's happening on the field. Madden and Michaels sound completely disinterested, and it hurts the overall atmosphere.