Best version of NCAA Football XX simply for stadium experience? (PS3, Nintendo)

[jm31828]

I have to admit I love playing the NCAA Football series on the PS3, but am not so picky on things like the AI, player movements, number of plays available, etc. One thing that I really judge them by is the stadium experience when playing- how close to a true, real game atmosphere they make it in regards to the graphics, the noise of the crowd, the things going on in and around the stadium that they show in the game, the way the "broadcast" is shown as you play the game, etc. So with that in mind, which version do you think is the best in this regard? I own 2009 and love it, but an wanting to upgrade now, but not sure if 2011, 2012, or 2013 would be best simply for this aspect. Reviews that I have read don't go into a ton of detail on that stuff, so I thought I'd ask here.

[Randomdude]

I have both 2012 and 2013, and I dont see much difference in atmosphere between the two, but I really cant compare then to 2009, because I never played 2009.

However, if its anything like Madden, I get Madden every year practically, and I happend to go back and play 2009 just for kicks one day, and the differences are huge between 2012 and 2009.

People like to say nothing in these games changes every year but the rosters......go ahead play a version from 3 years ago and see if they are the same thing. I couldnt sit through 2009 after playing 2012, and 2008 reminded me of something from Super Nintendo days, even though I thought it was great when it came out.

[jm31828]

Well I found a great deal at best buy, I got the 2012 version for only $9.99. I have played it a bit and am completely disappointed! It was hyped to have enhanced the atmosphere so much to feel more like real college football games. What i found was a sterile game/stadium atmosphere- the noise is non-existent. Where is the roar of the crowd that you hear at a game when the home team is on defense? Instead the stadium is almost silent during most plays, only getting a bit noisy after a big play. 2009 isn't great with this, either, but is much better at trying to put some realism into crowd noise. Why can't ea sports get that right? That is the biggest aspect to the atmosphere, when the home team is on d your tv should almost be shaking with noise!
Outside of that, the vaunted ESPN broadcast is a joke- very sterile, bland coverage making it feel nothing like a real tv game. There are so many periods of silence, between quarters, at halftime, etc. making it feel like a practice game with some random play calling thrown in.
And the stadium- the crowd is dull, even after a big score they stand and clap calmly in unison, no energy, a big step back from older versions.

So i guess my take is that the older 2009 version blows 2012 away in presentation and atmosphere, ea has taken big steps backwards with this game. I wonder if 2013 is any better?

[Randomdude]

2013 is a rip off in my opinion. The game play isnt much different from 2012 (the passing is a bit better since you can arc), and I like the upgrades they did to recruiting (even though its not much different from the last couple years) but you cannot export classes to Madden. I hear they took this out because of something they did in Madden, not really sure, but what I do know is that completely ruins the game for me. 75% of the reason I get this game is to export the draft classes to Madden.

I did notice some new presentation things. Teams have new run outs now. For instance, Notre Dame players hit the sign on the way out of the tunnel. I might have just not noticed this before, but it is one of the things they are touting as "new".