NCAA Final Four 2004 (PlayStation 2)

CNET editors' rating: 1.5 stars Poor
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Overall score: 3.3 (1.5 stars)
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Gamespot editors' review

• Reviewed by: Bob Colayco
• Reviewed on: 12/04/2003
• Released on: 11/11/2003

It's entirely appropriate that Nick Collison is the cover athlete for 989 Sports' NCAA Final Four 2004. Currently missing the entire 2003-2004 NBA season after undergoing surgery on both of his shoulders, Collison accurately represents the state of Final Four 2004--broken and in need of some serious rehabilitation. The game is hopelessly primitive in almost every conceivable way.

The problems start with the graphics. Player models look decent, but their animations look stiff and somewhat robotic. The crowds have a laughable lack of detail, and the arenas are very generic. Additionally, the floor is strangely vacant. While the team benches are included, there are huge spaces on the floor that are empty in those places where you'd normally expect to see fans in the expensive sideline seats. Don't anticipate seeing any cameramen, fans, or cheerleaders along the empty-looking baselines either.

Graphics are not Final Four 2004's strong suit.

The biggest problem is that the game seems to lack any sort of transitional animations. Going from a running dribble to a shooting or passing motion often results in the player "popping" oddly from one motion to the other. You'll also see players sliding over the court as if they're ice-skating. This is particularly noticeable when you get your players set in a defensive stance.

The sound is nothing to write home about either. While the basic sounds of the game, like dribbling and dunking, are passable, the crowd doesn't seem to be a factor. The game's announcing is particularly terrible. Handled by Eddie Doucet and Billy Packer, the duo seems to have graduated from the three-word school of broadcasting. They hardly say anything aside from short, nondescript phrases, like "Takes the pass," "Snares the board," and "Not so fast."

As far as gameplay goes, Final Four 2004 seems to have an odd sense of pacing when it comes to how fast the players can move. The default run/walk speed seems normal, but if you use the turbo button, your players all seem to run faster than a track sprinter. Controlling a guard while on defense, we were able to literally run circles around the opposing point guard as he walked the ball into the frontcourt. Players going up for a dunk seem to go into slow motion as they crouch down and gather themselves for the leap. Then, all of a sudden, the game seems to speed up unnaturally as they jump up and down with blinding speed. It's as if the animators used a taut spring as their model for players who are leaping up for a dunk. It all adds up to a game that feels entirely herky-jerky and lacks a sense of grace or fluidity.

Perhaps the worst problem--in a game that seems to have no shortage of them--is that the controls are totally unresponsive. For some strange reason, the game will often fail to register button input from the controller. You frequently have to pound on the pass or shoot buttons to make anything happen, and when you do, the results are usually unpredictable. Inbounding the ball after a made basket is a great example. If you press the pass button without pressing any direction on the stick, the passer will often choose to toss a high-risk pass all the way downcourt, instead of just flipping the ball to the point guard who's standing right in front of him.

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• Amazon.com Marketplace $5.45 Yes
• Amazon.com $9.99 Yes
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