“Move Forward” is a common phrase in the sports world. Your best player gets injured? Someone else needs to step up so you can Move Forward. Your coach has an indiscretion with someone else’s wife? It’s in the past and you have to Move Forward. Teams have conditioned themselves to forget about whatever’s just happened, almost from the instant it occurs. They just keep Moving Forward.

In many ways, Madden 10 on the PS2 is all about Moving Forward. There’s clearly very little focus on the platform, and it shows. Sure, there’s more than enough football to keep you busy for months on end. Franchise? Check. Fantasy Challenge? Check. Online games? Check. Superstar mode? Check. There are even a few new wrinkles to make things a tad interesting for vets of the series, such as new configurable control settings and a much-needed update to the commentary.

In reality, though, Madden 10 isn’t much more than an expensive roster update. What’s worse, the technical problems that have plagued the on-field action for years remain on display. Our biggest complaint is the jarring freeze that takes place at the end of plays. Sometimes it’s a split second, other times it’s long enough to make us worry that the game might have actually seized up on us. By now, this should’ve been addressed – especially when we’re charged a full $40.

Nagging issues aside, for the most part Madden remains a powerhouse of gridiron content, albeit one we’ve mostly seen and played before. We continue to find ourselves pleasantly surprised by little nuggets of awesome that surface with each game, such as tip-toe sideline catches and vicious, fumble-inducing hits. The new Fight for the Fumble minigame isn’t cheesy at all, either, adding a nifty little button-masher to the mix.

Even so, there aren’t a lot of equations that end with a “Yes” when the question is “Should I pick up Madden 10 for the PS2?” Since it’s plain to see that EA continues to Move Forward on the next-generation front at the expense of the last one, you should too.

Aug 27, 2009