March Madness Edition is enjoyable, but only because of the additional free download that lets you play with the real brackets from this year (something that could be manually inputted in NCAA 09). Those who chose to shell out fifteen bones on this download should only do so if they don't already own NCAA 09, and even then it's a bit of a risk. There's no online play, no truly new features (only a roster update to adjust attributes), and no new graphical frills. It's still a decent game of basketball, it's just not nearly as cool as it could have been.
Presentation - 7.5
Graphics - 8.0
Sound - 8.5
Gameplay - 7.0
Lasting Appeal - 4.0
Overall -
When you hear NCAA Tournament or the words March Madness you think of brackets, office pools and a couple of weeks of none stop basketball action. Now you can think NCAA Basketball 09: March Madness Edition from EA Sports.
GGG writes: "When you hear NCAA Tournament or the words March Madness you think of brackets, office pools and a couple of weeks of none stop basketball action. Now you can think NCAA Basketball 09: March Madness Edition from EA Sports.
March Madness is 1200 Microsoft points which is about 15 bucks and is a digital download you can purchase and download from Microsoft Live. NCAA Basketball 09: March Madness Edition is like buying a single game mode out of NCAA College Basketball 2009. So for the owners of NCAA Basketball 09 game, don't expect anything new or exciting here."
ZeroTolerance of ZTGD writes: The fever of March Madness is everywhere. Fans of college hoops look forward to this magical time each year, and even common people such as myself find the 64-team bracket addicting. EA Sports has decided to capitalize on this with their first Xbox Live Arcade effort, which takes their staple franchise and strips it down to its most basic premise. NCAA Basketball 09: March Madness Edition is exactly what it sounds like; it takes the retail game and delivers the 64 teams that have made it into the tournament and lets you play out who will take home the crown. This is a perfect way for gamers who are only mildly interested in the phenomenon to participate without dropping sixty bucks on a game that may only place twice.
Pros
+ Looks and feels great
+ Only fifteen bucks
+ Addictive as real brackets
Cons
- Shooting still sporadic
- No online play
