Sports Reviews

OK, so the management options are fun--but how does the game look and play? Fantastic. The players are scrupulously detailed and animated, while the improved Artificial Intelligence system makes for a challenging opponent. One flaw is the confounding menu and play interface. It's too complicated and tends to make play-calling too much of a pain. But any presentation qualms quickly go to the bottom of the pile when considering the polished, true-to-life play of Madden NFL 99. --Sajed Ahmed

Pros:

• Authentic NFL stadiums and real-life NFL players, from past and present
• Play editor lets you create your own offensive and defensive plays
• Team-specific playbooks designed by actual NFL coaches
• 120 current and classic teams

• Madden and Summerall aren't quite as garrulous
• Complicated interface can take some getting used to

Game modes include free surf, single session, multiplayer, and pro tour. The first three modes are self-explanatory, while the last consists of objective-based levels and competitions with the pros. Although the controls are responsive, timing tricks and combos is initially difficult. Unlike in skateboarding and BMX games, the player has to master each trick's timing while worrying about a constantly moving environment. While it may be too daunting for beginners, this is a deep and rewarding game that's a joy to behold. It's to surfing games what Tony Hawk's Pro Skater is to skateboarding games. --Raymond M. Padilla

Pros:

• Amazing graphics
• Responsive controls
• Good variety of surfers, beaches, and music tracks

• Relatively steep learning curve
• Hackneyed level objectives
• Middling sound effects

The real crowd pleaser here is Knockout Kings 2000's career mode. Choosing from a wide variety of options, you get to create your own custom boxer, who can fight his way to the top in career mode or participate in exhibition and slugfest matches. Before career fights, customized boxers can be improved by training, or playing various mini-games. (A memory card is required to save custom boxer data.)

What robs Knockout Kings 2000 of the championship belt is its unbalanced 3-D graphics. The boxers look great and move fluidly, but everything else appears flat and unfinished. Thankfully, fast game speed and responsive controls clamp down on the sightseeing, which is one sure-fire way to end up KO'd. --Joe Hon

Pros:

• Can create your own custom boxer
• Features realistic and arcade-style boxing
• Fast game speed and responsive controls
• Optional 1-button mode for those who don't want to memorize controls

• Except for the boxers, graphics aren't very pretty

But before you can hang with the likes of Mat "The Condor" Hoffman or Ruben "Pollo" Alcantara, it's advisable to practice your chops on the Free Ride or Session modes, especially if you're a newcomer to tricks-based sports games. We spent a good amount of time on Free Ride's open-ended play time to master the complicated sets of controller taps needed to achieve trick points.

The levels that you can ride in either Session or Free Ride depend on what you've unlocked in Road Trip. To get to the next destination, you'll need to complete a set of four challenges not once, but three times (in rookie, semipro, and pro). That can be a daunting challenge, especially for beginners, and for more experienced players it can get a little tedious as you search for the final trick that will push you to the next level. That said, after building some new calluses, we found a satisfying BMX groove and zoomed along on our road trip.

The game also includes several multiplayer options, including HORSE, Tag, Halfpipe Hell, Graffiti War, and Push, where you try to out trick your opponent and make his side of the screen smaller by increasing your side of the screen. Graphically, the game detail is superb--from the bikes and riders to the glitzy lights of the Las Vegas background. Our one major technical beef came from not being able to use our own soundtrack, but the game is populated with some fine tunes, ranging from LL Cool J to Iggy Pop. --Agen Schmitz

Pros:

• As tricky and fun to master as Tony Hawk
• Fantastic graphics--from backgrounds to riders
• Numerous multiplayer games

Cons:

• Can be frustrating for beginners to extreme-sports games
• You can't set your own soundtrack

Note: This review refers to the Xbox version of this game.

Growing accustomed to Links LS 2000's control scheme couldn't be easier. Links LS 2000 offers four different swing methods: the new PowerStroke swing, where you actually move the mouse left and right to denote backswing and downswing; the traditional two-click swing; a three-click swing; and a new Easy swing, where striking the ball is as simple as aiming and pressing the mouse button. Furthermore, Links LS 2000 includes many diverse training modes, such as the new "Links Lessons," that ease novice PC golfers into the interface, options, and controls.

With five brand-new courses, including the classic St. Andrews Old Course, as well as the ability to import any of the over 25 Links LS add-on courses, Links LS 2000 should occupy space on players' hard disks for many months. Additionally, players can hop on Microsoft's online gaming service, the MSN Gaming Zone, and complete against other online golfers. Once again, the proven Links LS gameplay doesn't disappoint with 35 different play styles, including stroke play, skins game, and a new wolf challenge mode. --Doug Radcliffe