NCAA Football 11 Demo Available Now! Share Your Impressions

[CLW]

I'm sorry, but you're wrong. Even with a 4 man rush, the QB should rarely have more than 5 seconds to pass the ball. And some of these teams have pretty good defensive lines. The issue isn't just sacks and pressures. The issue is that a lot of times you get all or nothing. You either get instant pressure or the QB has 7+ seconds to sit in the pocket and scan the field.

I'm not complaining about coverage for the player that I'm controlling. I'm complaining about the CPU covering the areas that it's supposed to. Putting those 11 guys in position only matters if they carry out the assignments that I give them.

Completely agreed. I almost feel like going to youtube and showing videos of a 4 man rush getting after the quarterback within 3-4 seconds on a regular basis just to show what you me and everyone else is talking about.

I fooled around last night and committing to pass + d-line agressive settings do help you get a much more realistic pass rush. However, the flip side once again is I did not see ONE offsides call after I chose to go agressive with my d-line. Again, everyone is just going to automatically set their d-line to agressive to get the "jumped snap" with no possible negative ramifications for making that decision.

I also messed around with Mizzou last night. I played on Heisman and went no huddle staying in the shotgun quad sets and WOW there are at least 5 plays that literally cannot be stopped. Simply hike the ball make the correct read and it will either be a completion or a dropped pass. The CPU tried zone, man, blitz everything and they were TOAST every play. I ended up putting up 31 points in the game scoring on every possession.

The more I play this game the more I FEAR that there simply is going to be ZERO defense in this game (except for finding and manipulating AI glitches).

[Kwizzy]

Not to sound like a homer but a great visual of this would be Nebraska's dline from last year. We rarely brought more than the front 4 because we had Suh & could get quick pressure just fine with 4. It would be nice to see the game have to account for dominant players like Suh, McCoy, Cody, etc... and make teams pay for having to double them. Completely with you guys on this.

[rhombic21]

CPU just ran wildcat. Then ran no-huddle and audibled to pass a play in 5 wide with the HB at QB.

Really, this AI playcalling logic is just terrible. On both offense and defense.

[I OU a Beatn]

CPU just ran wildcat. Then ran no-huddle and audibled to pass a play in 5 wide with the HB at QB.

Really, this AI playcalling logic is just terrible. On both offense and defense.

I'm not going to complain a bit about their play calling. Play Backbreaker a few times and neither will you.

I actually haven't seen them make too many bad calls. I've seen a couple times where they ran it right up the gut in 3rd and like 5 when I was showing blitz, but other than that, I haven't had many problems with that. Defensively they call of a bunch of stupid plays, but that's been an NCAA staple since I can remember.

[willisj318]

Did anyone else experience a tad bit of lag while they were playing the games?

I did, in menus and playcalling especially. I thought the game was fun, it played better than last years. Either I suck at defense or its impossible to stop. I played on AA. 14-14 tie UT vs Oklahoma, I was UT. 14-16 passing and 2TDs. No stops until the 4th OT. I missed a 4th down and they made a FG to win. Next game was OSU vs Miami. I was OSU. It was pretty defensinve for the first half then in the last 30 seconds Miami scored on two bombs and I scored on a bomb. I just hope that isnt going to be howe the end of the games are.

Also the cpu called timeouts to stop the clock even though I was kicking the xp multiple times.

[CLW]

Not to sound like a homer but a great visual of this would be Nebraska's dline from last year. We rarely brought more than the front 4 because we had Suh & could get quick pressure just fine with 4. It would be nice to see the game have to account for dominant players like Suh, McCoy, Cody, etc... and make teams pay for having to double them. Completely with you guys on this.

Last year's Nebraska squad is a good example. If you have good/great defensive lineman in college you are going to get pressure with your front 3/4 within 3-4 seconds on most plays. Will it be every play? Of course not. However, I'm seeing far too many instances of 5+ seconds in the pocket with no duress then when the pressure finally does come its still too easy (IMO) to avoid the pressure by escaping the pocket buying another 2-3 seconds while your WR running a deep post route eventually outruns the CB/S and its bombs away.

[jaymo76]

Last year's Nebraska squad is a good example. If you have good/great defensive lineman in college you are going to get pressure with your front 3/4 within 3-4 seconds on most plays. Will it be every play? Of course not. However, I'm seeing far too many instances of 5+ seconds in the pocket with no duress then when the pressure finally does come its still too easy (IMO) to avoid the pressure by escaping the pocket buying another 2-3 seconds while your WR running a deep post route eventually outruns the CB/S and its bombs away.

Perfect summary.

[Deuce]

What do you guys think about sliders being able to 'fix' the issues that most of you are seeing? Can sliders fix it or will it require a patch?

[xGRIDIRONxGURUx]

why i noted the dunlaps and suhs... i was taken literal when i said "5 seconds"... guys... pick at whatever you want.. but this is the best game to date... a 4 man rush gives you 3-4 to throw... and thats about what you get on this game... at least when im playing... and i wasnt talking about user controlled players rhombic... i was speaking about awareness updates for those CPU guys who dont help out in certain zone situations in the vertical game like they should...

im not calling people a liar... but seriously... take off the "goggles" (whatever equivalent of beer goggles that makes a game look bad when its really good) and start seeing this as a game that you are going to have to learn to play "new"... not like anything we have played before... they said that SO MANY TIMES in the videos... "we want you to feel like you have never played this game before"... they followed through... its not an issue of "all or nothing" its an issue of you want a 4 man rush to get you 10 sacks a game... but thats not realistic... (10 is exaggerated but you get my point)... we cry for a realistic game... the demo is LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM ANYTHING WE HAVE EVER PLAYED but yet, you act (along with a few others ive seen post this) that it "could be the worst version ever"

this can be taken like a prick punk statement... but i will say it anyways... im not trying to piss anyone off... but some people need to get off the "old version bottle" and start eating some NCAA 11 grown up food...

this game forces you to be a better signal caller... a more controlled user... to play with strategy... and it seems like most of the ones complaining (i said most) are the ones that piss and moan about PS2 and the glory days... where you could hardly do anything wrong on defense... even on next gen consoles all the way up to 10, we have had the *** EASY MILK IN A BOTTLE stuff on defense to allow people to play lazy (insert run commit along with other crap here) and now that people are having to call a good game on BOTH sides of the ball... its hard all of a sudden...

i dont know... maybe im the punk here for responding like this, but honestly... when i saw that the one dude played vs the CPU and lost 63-8 on heisman... i knew the upgrades werent going to be received well... b/c the CPU overall is way more advanced than ever...

the stuff like the audible to 5 wide with QB in, thats stuff that can be patched... which you will say... "they should have all that fixed"... i say... "i would say the same thing if they sat on their butts all off-season and gave us an updated roster of last years game" but they didnt... so have faith... give feedback... and keep playing...

i just watched a highlight clip of the big 12 game vs texas... and on average except for a few stunts that got by... 4 seconds on the sacks...

just saying...

"E"

[rhombic21]

I don't believe that you are honestly only getting 3-4 seconds to throw against a 4 man rush on this game. And the zones aren't just messed up on deep routes, they're messed up on short routes too.

[rhombic21]

I just threw for nearly 500 yards and 6 TDs with 2 minute quarters using OU against Texas. Just run 5 WR Four Verticals every single play. The computer will never stop it.

[Kwizzy]

Gridiron,
I don't know where you saw anyone on this site being overly negative or critical. Maybe, you're carryin some of the stuff you've read on utopia with you. I think all of us have said that this is one of the better efforts EA has put in in quite awhile. Locomotion, Assignment AI, recruiting, etc... have all been pretty well hailed as MAJOR upgrades by everyone here. We have simply voiced our concerns with something all of us have been noticing. For years the defensive AI has been able to get away with not "understanding" some of the concepts of a team defense due to the lack of realistic physical movement restrictions. The addition of locomotion, while great, may have opened up another can of worms that needs to be pointed out.

No one is saying this isn't a GREAT improvement merely offering some constructive criticism.

[I OU a Beatn]

Gridiron, there is such a thing as being an EA hater. It definitely does exist. However, none of us here hate EA. I've noticed in basically every single one of your posts that you are blindly defending every aspect of the game no matter what. Whether you care to admit it or not, there ARE problems with the demo. Whether or not they exist in the final game is a while different matter, though judging from years past, the exact same issues will exist in the final game.

First of all, I'm getting 5-8 seconds to throw the ball when facing a 4 man rush, and get about the same amount of time whenever the CPU has the ball. That. Is. WAY. Too. Long. Even when you pass commit and have your defensive line set to aggressive, it still doesn't generate nearly the pressure I should be seeing whether it be a 4 man rush or with blitzing defenders as well. If you say you only get 3 seconds to throw the ball on average, I'll straight out call you a liar. I've played it, and tons of others have as well, and you're the only person I've seen say that.

The game forces you to be a better signal caller? LOL. No, it doesn't. As rhombic said above me, you can run Verticals the entire game and score at will. You can run a post route every single play and score at will. There's SEVERE issues with how the defense defends and responds to the pass. Defenders in zone drop to the wrong spot in the field, they will NOT make an effort to defend someone in their zone, DBs constantly get turned around for some reason leading to easy touchdowns, and there's also occasional issues where they just line up incorrectly leaving someone wide open from the start. Of all the games I've played football wise this generation, this one is the single worst at making me make the correct reads. I don't have to make reads. I can pick a route that's going to be wide open before I even run the play.

Now, like I said, this is based on the DEMO. Whether or not it plays the same in the final version remains to be seen. I just think you really need to hop in between the "EA is amazing" and "EA sucks" train and see where I'm coming from.

[morsdraconis]

I just threw for nearly 500 yards and 6 TDs with 2 minute quarters using OU against Texas. Just run 5 WR Four Verticals every single play. The computer will never stop it.

You're playing on All-American right?

Try it on Heisman and come back to me. I GUARANTEE you, you will not do that on Heisman because the pass rush will get to you in time.

[Rudy]

Last year's Nebraska squad is a good example. If you have good/great defensive lineman in college you are going to get pressure with your front 3/4 within 3-4 seconds on most plays. Will it be every play? Of course not. However, I'm seeing far too many instances of 5+ seconds in the pocket with no duress then when the pressure finally does come its still too easy (IMO) to avoid the pressure by escaping the pocket buying another 2-3 seconds while your WR running a deep post route eventually outruns the CB/S and its bombs away.

Nebraska isn't a real good example though. Suh had more tackles than any DT in college football since Cortez Kennedy. The other DL were great too. Crick had 9.5 sacks. That's a DL where you don't have to bring pressure.

I'll defend Gridiron a bit here. Just look at a team like the Patriots. Against most teams Brady is sipping a cup of coffee back there against a 4 man rush. NFL teams average one sack for every 15 attempts. It's hard to find stats on how often teams blitz and their effects. I'd love to know the average time spent in the pocket vs. various 3-6 man rushes. Here is one article with a little insight (only NFL). http://profootball.scout.com/2/932036.html

[Kwizzy]

You're playing on All-American right?

Try it on Heisman and come back to me. I GUARANTEE you, you will not do that on Heisman because the pass rush will get to you in time.

I dunno man, the safety play is suspect at best from my experiences so far (on heisman). I don't doubt he could do it.

As far as the pass rush goes: I think the cpu is getting decent pressure on me so far but I am having trouble getting any coverage at all, especially on shorter crossing routes, & therefore no time for my dline to get pressure for the most part. My concern isn't so much with playing against the cpu because I'd rather the cpu was able to get some yards. My concern lies with what happens when I play someone online.

[CLW]

What do you guys think about sliders being able to 'fix' the issues that most of you are seeing? Can sliders fix it or will it require a patch?

Well that probably depends on what sliders we are given and how effective they are. In the past, sliders have been helpful and other years it feels like they are either entirely ineffective or are counter-productive. My guess is it will probably take both. EA has always favored offense as they clearly believe (and probably are right) that easy offense sells games. "Pink Hats" want to put up points and feel like they are "bad ass".

As far as a slider set, my guess is Heisman and the following adjustments would be needed:

HUM/CPU

OFFENSE
QBA-15/20
PASS BLK-30/35
WR CATCH-40/50
RBA-50/50
RUN BLK-40/50

DEFENSE
PASS COVERAGE-85/100
PASS RUSH-85/100
INT-50/50
RUN DEFENSE-50/50
TKL-50/50

[I OU a Beatn]

You're playing on All-American right?

Try it on Heisman and come back to me. I GUARANTEE you, you will not do that on Heisman because the pass rush will get to you in time.

Speaking for both rhombic and myself, 90% of our games are spent online against human opponents. The difficulty is hard set at All American and you can not change it. Setting the difficulty to Heisman on the demo wont help a bit.

[oweb26]

First of all, I'm getting 5-8 seconds to throw the ball when facing a 4 man rush, and get about the same amount of time whenever the CPU has the ball. That. Is. WAY. Too. Long. Even when you pass commit and have your defensive line set to aggressive, it still doesn't generate nearly the pressure I should be seeing whether it be a 4 man rush or with blitzing defenders as well. If you say you only get 3 seconds to throw the ball on average, I'll straight out call you a liar. I've played it, and tons of others have as well, and you're the only person I've seen say that.

. As rhombic said above me, you can run Verticals the entire game and score at will. You can run a post route every single play and score at will. There's SEVERE issues with how the defense defends and responds to the pass. Defenders in zone drop to the wrong spot in the field, they will NOT make an effort to defend someone in their zone, DBs constantly get turned around for some reason leading to easy touchdowns, and there's also occasional issues where they just line up incorrectly leaving someone wide open from the start. Of all the games I've played football wise this generation, this one is the single worst at making me make the correct reads. I don't have to make reads. I can pick a route that's going to be wide open before I even run the play.

Now, like I said, this is based on the DEMO. Whether or not it plays the same in the final version remains to be seen. I just think you really need to hop in between the "EA is amazing" and "EA sucks" train and see where I'm coming from.

You could have run verticals alot on last years game IIRC, I honestly cant remember a year that the post route wasn't deadly, these are old problems that apparently will not get fixed, so why fuss every year? .....I'm just sayin.

Another thing is, if you know you can exploit one play why run it over and over again? I know this new COD generation will do it ( inside joke to IOU) , but just don't run the damn play. I really feel as though its more shitty(predictable) play calling by the computer more than anything else, probably with a slight condition of fucked up programming.

[JeffHCross]

As IOU said, he and rhombic spend a lot of time playing Online. More often than not Random Online, I believe. So problems like Four Verticals being ridiculously easy are going to plague them.