Playing football in "Madden NFL 2003" will engulf you, and before you know it will be just a few hours before you need to be at work. Mini-camps, practice sessions, franchise mode, and 2-minute drills. So much to do with so little time to play!

I started out by creating a team based on the Rams - The Cougars. Made their hometown my hometown - a town in Maine with only a few thousand people, and gave them their own logo and colors. All was going fine until I got to the create-a-coach screen. No women characters to pick! Now I do realize there aren't any women coaches in the NFL, but give me at least one female to pick from out of the 62 men available. Yes, this probably bothered me more then it should, but it's the principle of the thing.

Being the wimp that I am, I started out on the rookie level. So maybe I should have chosen a little harder level of difficulty. I'd tell you the score, but I wouldn't want to embarrass the computer player. Seriously, though you can easily see a difference between the levels.

I played a few games and tried a few of the mini-camps. After about an hour of playing, I finally had which buttons were which coordinated between my brain and fingers. Takes awhile after not using a game pad for a while!

I admit, I usually have no idea which play to call while on defensie. I thoroughly tested out the option of Madden choosing the play to call thoroughly while on defense. While he chose well, I think my random picking of plays sometimes worked out better.

Graphics:
As high-tech as the graphics may be, I was disappointed in them. The fans are flat and have absolutely no life in them. There is no wear and tear on the field as the game progresses, and the edges of players aren't always smooth. On a positive note, the replays are satisfying, even if they lack a wow effect.

Sound:
This is the first sports game I've played where the commentators didn't want to make me throw something at the computer or shut off the sound completely. Their comments weren't dull or too repetitive, although if you play for 4 hours straight then they will be.

Conclusion:

Simply put this is a game football fans need to own. Finally features available in the PS2 were integrated into the PC version. The multiple game modes, graphics, and captivating gameplay make "Madden NFL 2003" a must have.