When NCAA Football 2002 was released on the PS2 last year it was a run away hit. Some people declared it was better than its cousin game, Madden. The game had tight controls, realistic graphics, an extensive playbook, and millions of options that took hundreds of hours away from gamers lives. Now that the latest incarnation has been released, the question that is on so many peoples minds is "Will it be as good as last year, and improve on some of the minor faults, or will it be the same game with an updated roster?" Once players load up the game, the answer to this question is immediately revealed; with minor tweaks to this game, and numerous extras, Tiburon is squeezing every ounce of power out of Sony's black box.

The engine for NCAA Football is based off the Madden engine, and it has made an enormous leap overall since last year's game. It has many extras to keep players coming back for many months trying to unlock everything. One of these new features is the create-a-school mode. If there isn't a school that is in the game, or if a gamer wishes to create their own team, they have the ability to do so and play with them in the games fantastic dynasty mode. Players can create their own fight song, logo, stadium, playbook, and anything else they wish. It truly is phenomenal how powerful this feature truly is. Along with the create-a-school mode, there is an expanded create-a-player mode. This is a usual mode included in all sports games, and it is a welcome addition as players can create their own dream players, and put them against the best of the best! These modes alone warrant the purchase of this splendid game.

The modes of play are Season Mode, Dynasty Mode, Rivalry Game, Mascot Game, Practice, and Play Now. Season Mode is where you lead a team to the next Bowl Game. Rivalry games are really interesting because it sets up famous known rivalry games that are aired each year, such as the Texas and OU game. Practice Mode players can learn how to play offense and defense. Players will learn the ins and outs of the plays usable in daunting circumstances. Play Now is like an exhibition game, players pick two teams to play and than go at it on the field.

Another mode that has been expounded upon is the mascot games. Gamers can choose what team they want to play with and the entire team is composed of the school's mascot. Since I am a huge UT fan it was somewhat gratifying and hilarious to see a team made of nothing but the "Hook'Em" against any other mascots. This mode helps take away from any sort of repetition the game has, and places players in a comedic situation, which is extremely fun to play.

Dynasty mode is the meat and potatoes of the entire game. Players will be put in the mind of the coach and are able to decide every little feature that goes into making a team an unbeatable force to reckon with. You will have the power to recruit players, cut them, create the team schedules, change playbooks, and myriads of other things to keep gamers busy for years to come!

NCAA Football 2003 is rated E for Everyone. It requires up to 3.6 MB on your memory card and can play up to 1-8 players (via multitap).

Gameplay: 9.8
The PlayStation 2 control must have been designed with sports games in mind, as it is perfect for anything that needs to be done. The gameplay is tight and the characters move with the slightest touch of the controller. Also the game is also pressure sensitive, meaning that the harder and longer you press the sprint button the faster the players will run.

Since last years version there has been a multitude of new plays for gamers to try. The interface has been made even easier to navigate than previous versions, making it simple to find those sure-fire plays. The game also plays like a college football game should, offering college-specific players, which makes the game that much more realistic.

Graphics: 9.2 
Since the game is built off the Madden engine, one might assume the game would be exactly thay, yet all the players will be suited up in college uniforms. Thankfully, Tiburon has given the game a definite college feel, which makes it a completely different game. Since last year's version, many new player animations have been added and smoothed out. The football player models seemed to be improved over last year's work, with more attention being shown towards the players faces. The cheerleaders, refs, coaches, and actual stadiums look stupendous. There are a lot more sideline animations since last year, which makes the overall presentation more like (real-time) TV.

Even with all the new features added, the game still has its fair share of minor kinks. The game suffers from occasional slowdown, which doesn't happen much. When the entire team is crowed in one area it slows, but it never hampers the game. Every so often you will catch a glimpse of some "jaggies", but they never distract from the game, since players will be more concerned about their next play.

Sound: 9.0
The game makes use of Dolby Surround Sound, which makes a huge difference to be able to hear all the extras. The commentary is really well done and doesn't get old or repetitive. At times you will hear many things going on at once, such as the crowd cheering louder to distract the visiting team, the play calling, and you can never forget that Tiburon managed to squeeze over 200 fight songs to hear while playing. This totally immerses the players in the atmosphere, and makes it feel like they are watching a live college football game.

Difficulty: Medium
The computer AI can be relentless in this game. It can guess your plays dead on. That is what makes the game so much fun though, as it seems more like a real football game with the opposing team finding out your plays, and you overcoming those challenges. The AI may seem hard, but it is not to the point where it is cheating. Tiburon did a wonderful job with simulating the AI, and I look forward to seeing how the computer will react in future games.

Concept: 9.0 
The game has improved leaps and bounds since last years version, which is surprising since it was done wonderfully last year. With recent additions such as the create-a-player, expounded Mascots games, rivalry games, and many other additions, players will be occupied for a long time. With all the various sounds and the excellent presentation, players feel like they are watching a live football game. Another feature is the ability to personalize the game interface based on your favorite team. This was a clever idea to help indulge the players more into the game's setting. The only thing that would have it even better would be online play.

Multiplayer: 8.9
Even though it doesn't include internet play like Madden 2003, this game still offers plenty of fun for a group of football gamers. The PlayStation 2 version offers the option of playing up to 8 people in one game. The CPU players have excellent AI and will gamers occupied until NCAA 2004 is released next year!

Overall: 9.5
If you do not own this game yet, stop reading and go out and purchase it immediately! The only thing that keeps it from surpassing Madden 2003 is that it doesn't include online play. Hopefully next year, we will be playing online with other college football fanatics! If you are craving a wonderful college football game, look no further as NCAA Football 2003 will be the only game for you!