The old NFL 2k's are better than any modern Maddens.

@akschannelhome

14 күн бұрын

Amen, my friend.

@MaverickBrewer

14 күн бұрын

2K5 was the best football game ever.

@allenantonio4389

14 күн бұрын

Yup

@DesertRainReads

14 күн бұрын

Definitely, Madden has taken a noticeable nosedive in quality since EA bought exclusive rights.

@charleswilliams4088

14 күн бұрын

We still edit and play 2k5 till this day check out 2k redirected

That was a bitch move by EA. 2K5 > Madden

@OneOkami

4 күн бұрын

This NFL is at least as responsible given they are the licensor they chose to sell out that way.

@samuraibeastwarrior2886

3 күн бұрын

big facts

NFL 2K5 is the best football game ever made.

@NealBauer

14 күн бұрын

I have never and WILL NEVER forgive EA for taking good football games away from millions of fans back in 2004.

@InflatableConan

14 күн бұрын

Don't forget the best part was the game was only $20 when it was released. Good times.

@coreymcmanus4749

14 күн бұрын

Hell yes it is

@guardianbeardizer6361

14 күн бұрын

For me, a non-football fan, it's NFL Blitz on N64 mainly because it let's me powerbomb people lol

@rod0524

14 күн бұрын

Yes

NFL 2K5 scared the daylights out of EA. That's what happened.

@DesertRainReads

14 күн бұрын

Right? It destroyed Madden that year. Holy shit, it wasn't even a contest. EA shit their pants and felt they needed to coerce the NFL into giving them exclusive rights. It sucks because ever since then, Madden has taken a noticeable nosedive in terms of quality.

@MikeTButler

13 күн бұрын

@@DesertRainReads Madden always sucked. Even Quarterback Club was better than Madden

@diamondbackspartan3204

12 күн бұрын

@@DesertRainReads yea there wasnt a nosedive, they've been making the same Madden since sega genesis

@jdog34505

6 күн бұрын

So much so EA signed an exclusive contract with the NFL for the licensing rights

@marcroberts5251

5 күн бұрын

Facts

I remember buying NFL 2K5 for 19.99 on the Xbox while Madden 05 was 49.99. That game is still one of my all time favorite NFL games.

Crazy that a game about to be 20 years old is still better than the crap we have today.

I was never really a sports game player. But When NFL2K came out on the dreamcast me and my buddies played that game to death!

@PlasticCogLiquid

14 күн бұрын

I hate most sports games but I have a soft spot for NBA Live 95 and Super Football on the Atari 2600. Of course Tecmo Bowl was fun too

@andreana2112

14 күн бұрын

“Those damn enchiladas!!!”

@PlasticCogLiquid

14 күн бұрын

@@andreana2112 NFL Blitz! was awesome too!

My mom woke up from a nap and asked if we were watching a football game on tv....yeah shit was real in 1999.

@riddickj16

10 күн бұрын

lol facts

@tizzomr

Күн бұрын

My pops came in my room and asked me if a game was on lol.

The graphics are really good for the day even now

NFL 2K was that moment for me when real-time video game graphics achieved a believable state. I remember playing not long after the release of the Dreamcast, and my mother casually walked by and asked who was playing, thinking I was watching an actual football game.

@bradybrapples

14 күн бұрын

same thing happened to me - it was quite the jump in graphics quality people probably don't understand unless you were around and paying attention back then Everybody else still waited for the ps2 though anyway lol

@aceassn716

13 күн бұрын

We were waiting for the cheapest dvd player available since it cost $150-200 more back then But once GTA III released then all heck broke loose

@michaelcatalano6208

12 күн бұрын

Good old days playing nfl 2k2 all night man

I still remember walking into my uncles room. After school seeing him play DC NFL 2k with the snow coming down , thought it was real life, he had to show me he was playing a video game

Wherever monopolies exist, people suffer

One of tbe best Football games..PERIOD!!!

They used to have Dreamcasts set up at Epcot in Disney World, and i played HOURS AND HOURS of the 2k Dreamcast games

I still say that NFL 2K5 is one of the best sports games of all time. NFL 2K had a nice run and it's a shame that they couldn't continue with the franchise.

If only the NFL and EA weren’t so money hungry and holding that license hostage, we could’ve gotten more amazing games that don’t always feel like roster updates.

@gpsxbx5097

14 күн бұрын

i blame nfl 100%

@Fabulos1

12 күн бұрын

@@gpsxbx5097 Surprised the FTC didn't step in.

Taking me back to my teenage years with this. I remember when pops got home from fishing the year the Dreamcast came out and he bought NFL 2K along with the system. I was mind blown seeing the graphics and gameplay. Only thing that stunk was calling timeouts as the second player. The commentary was revolutionary at the time and the announcers were pretty good. Shame good things came to end.

I lost my best friend a few years ago. I have fond memories of playing this game with him and although I'm not the biggest sports games guy, we loved throwing down on this with a few beers and making a day of it. We continued that tradition with the Madden games later on but this one holds a special place for me.

NFL 2K is one of my favorite games. I played it for the 2011 NFL season. I played as the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans in season mode and took them all the way to Super Bowl XXXIV. I also played NFL 2K3 on Xbox the following year, followed by ESPN NFL Football on Xbox in 2013 and ESPN NFL 2K5 on Xbox in 2014-15.

2K Hockey was great as well.

@CrustyBung

14 күн бұрын

Scoring was ridiculously difficult unless you nerfed goalies, but otherwise an awesome game!

Came for a Dreamcast review, stayed for the jiggle physics.

I haven’t played sports games for almost 20 years because of EA’s stranglehold on it. I really liked NHL 2K on the Dreamcast as well. All I play sports-wise ironically is MLB The Show…on my Switch 😊

LOVED nfl 2k. And the actors they got for the play by play were incredibly well done.

It’s a real shame. I’m a very casual football fan, but I played the hell out of 2K and 2K1. Was sooo good! They even got a mention on an episode of CSI. Two of the guys were taking in the lab and asked the other if they saw NFL 2K on the Dreamcast and how real it looked.

I remember around the time of the Dreamcast launch they showed off the graphics of NFL 2k on the local news

I LOOOOVED the 2K football games. Best football games, hands down.

It doesn't get any more early 2000s than "The Crib". Well maybe if they called it DA CRIB. I was just playing 2k1 this week, still a banger and the series only gets better from there until the end. Great vid, SLX

Lordy is an amazing journalist of retro video games!

I came home on 9/9/99 with Soul Calibur and NFL 2K. 2K was the game I had most been looking forward to, me and my friends were crazy NFL fans. We popped it in, and I was immediately impressed...then disappointed. The running game was so rigid. You couldn't really break tackles or bull you way forward, so it was all about passing. Subsequent years did improve though. I bought every edition up through 2K4, but the crib with all the heavy branding got to be kind off a turn off. Judging by the footage here I bailed one year too early though, 2K5 looks amazing.

When the Dreamcast launched, stores were demoing NFL2K and I literally thought it was a real live football game playing on TV. I might not be the biggest sports fan but back then it was mindblowing.

Of all the stupid things Sega has done, selling 2K was the stupidest. It would have at minimum kept a good revenue flowing and kept them relevant at a time they all but disappeared. Instead of Take Two raking it in and expanding.

I never wanted a nfl game as a kid. Loved playing Super Tecmo Bowl but when I saw NFL2K coming out on the Dreamcast I NEEDED THAT GAME. Also loved NBA2K and NHL2K from that same year they were a blast

Memories of playing NFL 2k and NBA 2k on Dreamcast takes me back. Didn't realize they went all the way to 2k5

I really hope the NFL will invite competition in its video game titles again & that 2K returns. They were outstanding in their efforts. All Pro 2K8 was also a nice title on 360. Here's hoping one day, it will come back.

@ItsMeBarnaby

13 күн бұрын

EA has the deepest pockets, it seems unlikely that they will ever let go of the license. They can afford to kick back more to the NFL than pretty much any other developer in the industry. As long as people buy new Maddens on release en masse it will never change. Football fans have to hit them where it hurts by not buying the yearly roster swaps.

@mxggo9046

13 күн бұрын

ALL PRO FOOTBALL.....ALL PRO SOUNDTRACK! That is an awesome game!

I'm not a sports gaming maven, but NFL2k2 was the most fun I've ever had with a football game. Thanks Lordster! SEEEEEEGAAAAAAAAAA!

I never played too many sports games, but when I did Eileen more toward the arcade style sports. NFl Blitz and Techmo Bowl we're about the extent of my football video games. I didn't get a Dreamcast right away, but ended up getting the Sega sports bundle at a pretty good discount. After playing NFL 2K, I was blown away. My friends and I played the hell out of it in college, and it was a great balance between simulation and more approachable arcade style football. NFL 2K 5 was amazing, and I loved the Xbox version of it. I am still pissed at EA for monopolizing the NFL license and killing any competition of the Madden series, which I never liked. this is a perfect example of why competition is a good thing. I miss this series, and Blitz a lot. Screw EA Sports!

awesome video 👍🏼

Thanks for the video. I remember this time frame vividly. NFL 2K was competing with a lot more than Madden at the time yet each entry was absolutely stellar. It’s truly disheartening the state of NFL games these days. I hope it changes sooner than later. Lastly, NFL 2K5 is STILL the best NFL game ever made.

One day, in the mid-2000s, my older brother visited our family and gave my younger brother and I one Xbox game each. For my younger brother, it was Marc Eckō Getting Up. For me, it was ESPN NFL 2K5. To be honest, I was a little envious of my younger brother because Getting Up seemed like a much more interesting game than what I got. Still, I was thankful for getting a free game at all. Well Getting Up was a pretty decent game but NFL 2K5 wound up getting way more play time by my brother, our friends and I. It played great and the presentation was phenomenal. The SportsCenter half-time and post-game shows were so realistic for the time. And, of course, I had a blast decking out my crib in cool stuff and taking on teams lead by celebrities like Funkmaster Flex (which made my dad do a double take when he saw Flex in the game) and Steve-O. I don’t know what happened to Getting Up but I still own NFL 2K5 to this day and, while I don’t play it nearly as often as I used to, I’ll pull it out every once and a while and still have a good time. Thank you, older bro, and thank you, Sega. 👍🏾

@mxggo9046

13 күн бұрын

I made myself as a playable character on NFL 2K5. Had 'Eye of the Tiger' play when my team would come out of the stadium. Was amazing game!

I still have my copy of 2k5 & it’s one of my favorite FB games of all time. We were so upset when EA bought the exclusive rights, that year’s madden sucked, so we played 2k5 for years.

This is almost an unofficial prequel to Angry Joe's Madden NFL videos... XD

I missed the days when NFL gave their license to different game development companies. Now we're stuck with EA in their crappy development. I would love to play football games again if they release NFL 2K.

@BobbyHo2022

13 күн бұрын

It should be illegal to do what EA did.

@tical2399

12 күн бұрын

@@BobbyHo2022 people keep saying that but not actually saying what EA "did". What they did was bid on an open license. So what you're saying is it should be illegal for an ip holder to license it's content to who it wants? Please explain why they should be illegal. Mind you i'm not asking you to tell me why you don't like it but why it should be illegal.

black Sega Sports Dreamcast and all the Sega Sports games were and are top tier

Needed to mention NFL 2k5 Resurrected!

1st I want to say thank you for covering retro sports games. They definitely don’t get the love and attention I think some of them deserve. Especially from an informed gamer. It’s appreciated. 2nd this is the most tragic what if for me. I still have fantasies of what VC would’ve done to football gaming if allowed to continue. Thanks again for this video. It was great.

NFL 2K-2K5 good times

My good sir I’m not a fan of football but this story was worth watching until the end. Very interesting. Thank you.

What a Great Video. As a lifelong Sega and Sports fan, this is a Great Segment. Cheers. Retro Sports!

These were peak gaming moments. Good job refreshing us, I remember having many battles on each game on the DC. NFL2K5 was incredible.

I played a lot of it in my DC back then. In a country without the sports tradition, even letting the computer play against itself was a way to quench the thirst for American football - and with those graphics, it was a delight.

I really appreciate this video more than you'll ever know. I was one of the top players on NFL 2K5 until 2010 when the OG Xbox was taken offline. The culmination of all 6 games came to fruition in the Sim juggernaut that was 2K5. Nothing will ever touch that game. Madden 24-54 is and will forever be light-years behind ESPN NFL2K5. Sega Lord X, you are goated for this video.

That side of the pond, we weren't so lucky with "soccer" games. Virtua Tennis 2 and NBA 2K1 made great consolation prizes though.

Dreamcast 2K sports games were the greatest lineup of sports games for any console.

I loved the NFL 2K series as SEGA made great strides with gameplay, graphics, sound, style, and overall refinement. EA simply couldn’t keep up, and cheated their way to the top with a big payout to the NFL smh. I wonder if we’ll ever get the series back someday…

i was a huge Dreamcast mark & 2k made me enjoy something i previously had no interest in. it was fun & great to look at- especially snow games! i still don't watch or play real football but 2k was a blast.

I remember when they went multiplatform. I read an interview with one of ea sports lead devs and he said, "They can scotch tape that thing to a ham and give them away for free and we will still outsell them."

@aceassn716

13 күн бұрын

If ea not had to drop the price from $50 to $30 2005 doesnt outsell 2k5 Heck it only surpassed it after the price drop But 1.42mill 1.38mill clearly showed there was a market for both Corporate greed an grudge (Joe Montana on Sega&Nfl Gameday remember those gems anyone) Had to cause evil association to spend 300mill to lockdown the license 20ish yrs of mediocrity later here we are

"San Francisco welcomes you to the most popular city in the world." Boy, that hasn't aged well.

I just rewatched this episode, and it's a great trip down memory lane. If you wanna keep making more retrospective videos like this, I'd love it!

The title says it all, this video is pure truth. Sega wtf man.

@BlueEyedVibeChecker

14 күн бұрын

People ditched them for EA, it sure is a wtf, but not on SEGA's part. Gamers made their bed and now it's too covered in trash and microtransactions to sleep in.

@wilsonchan9768

13 күн бұрын

EA happened.

Damn. I forgot how much that I enjoy your videos. Another great effort. Thanks for including my Seahawks.

@SegaLordX + Sports Games + 49er Fan = My favorite KZreadr

I remember owning Toughman Contest. I used to spam the Hell outta the haymaker.. 😂 And Visual Concepts developed a few early Madden games? 🤯

VMU play calling was the feature I loved the most when I was playing against a friend.

@taguirre7052

8 күн бұрын

Heck yeah especially when they watch your play picks so this threw them off lol

Your greatest video EVER. Your video echoed my sentiments for video that I told my customers shopping for video games.

My god, NFL 2k on the Dreamcast was such an awesome experience! It absolutely blew my freinds and I away. Nothing else was even close man Great video brother, appreciate all your work!!!

NFL 2K series was so good I played it a ton even though I don't even like football. I've never forgiven EA

I rarely comment on your awesome videos, Sega Lord X. But, as a long-time subscriber I would love a longer, more in-depth video of your thoughts on this series. It still sucks that it went away after only 6 years on the market (screw you NFL & EA Sports), and I still pine for an alternative pro football game of this quality in the market.

Life changing game series for me. Others have said NFL 2K5 is the best football game of all time and I agree. Several other games in the series mean just as much to me. No one on earth might believe me but I’ve never played any Madden game since the death of this series.

The ONLY football game Ive got in my collection is 2K5. Anytime I want a football fix…I just play that. Really good game.

It's a good thing there are forums devoted to roster updates and other mods to the 2K series.

Everyone of these 2k football games is infinitely more playable than the next gen maddens

This was mind blowing at the time

I still play 2k5 until this day. Best nfl game.

SEGA was the go to for sports games

EAs monopoly of the NFL license is one of the great artistic tragedies of our time.

The fact people chose EA over SEGA Sports, and now people hate EA and love SEGA's sports games like Football Manager is hilarious to me, it's almost like gamers do it to themselves. Remember when Nintendo made powerful hardware and it was outdone by a weak 240P DVD player aimed at casuals, and now people hate on Nintendo for making weaker hardware aimed at casuals? Laughs aside, I wish SEGA would make more of these kinds of games, I seldom enjoy a sports game, but Virtua Tennis, and SEGA Sports football are so much fun, especially with friends.

@MrSamPhoenix

14 күн бұрын

We didn’t choose EA when the 2K series was released. EA simply cheated their way to the top with a payout to the NFL.

I'm not into football games like that. I only played three ever. One of them was NFL 2K. I swear it was one of the best games that I ever played. I remember seeing the presentation on that game back then and thinking Sega was in for the long haul and how lifelike it felt. Like I was watching TV. EA knew Sega was a threat. Sega had their card and they couldn't stand it. Now the Madden games are the same year after year. I miss that competition

I was lucky enough to be at E3 so I got to see NFL 2K on the Dreamcast before most people. It blew me away like no other game before or since. It changed video game football and it is very telling that the animations in 1999 are STILL better than the animations in Madden 2024. In fact, I don’t think Madden will EVER have animations as realistic as the ones in NFL2K5. Madden 2024 is Madden 2001 with better graphics; the animations are the same (let’s just say there a lot of swiveling players on the field)

They had kiosks running NFL and NBA 2K into laces like Best Buy. People were stacked 2-3 deep watching the screen. Sold a ton of Dreamcasts. But alas, not enough I guess.

I was kinda curious about this sports franchise, so thanks for the video SLX as always, oh and happy Father's Day to You, enjoy!

I think the 2K series helped to motivate EA to make their Maddens better. They fed off each other to make some very good football titles for a few years. The Dreamcast was the 1st system to have the power to maintain super smooth framerates with super realistic graphics & therefore more precise control. A DC Mini would be so welcome, but perhaps with a Saturn/MD hybrid controller instead of the DC one. Great video again!

I appreciate seeing my Niners features ALL of the footage shown in this video

This is the game that made me pre order a Dreamcast and love it at launch!

Happy Father's day, dude!

@SegaLordX

14 күн бұрын

Thanks!

Not only do I miss NFL2K5, but I cheered every 49ers play shown in the video like they really happened!! BangBangNinerGang LOL 😂

Who remembers watching Chris Berman re-capping all of the games of the week which including actual footage of your gameplay that day?

Had some epic matches in my college dorm with this series.

NFL 2K5 was great especially at $20. Haven't bought a Madden game since EA has exclusive use of the NFL license.

Tx SLX. Now I have the original NFL 2K on my Ebay wishlist 😊

2K5, aka The GOAT.

Not a fan of the genre but still watched this to show my support! 👍

Nearly 20 years later, NFL 2K5 remains the gold standard of NFL gaming. EA, instead of innovating, has churned out mediocre products annually, relying on their exclusivity. Compare NBA 2K to the now-defunct NBA Live series- This is a clear example of how EA's lack of innovation and poor game design has led to its disdain amongst gamers today.

Fondest memory is beating my older cousin because for some reason the game wouldn't let him call a timeout in the last min for some reason hahaha killed him with the All Streak play

The first NFL 2k game absolutely sold me a Dreamcast. I think the first two hold up better as an overall playing experience better than the Madden offerings at the time. They just didn't have the other bells and whistles that Madden did. I still mourn the loss of having options every year. There's no argument that NBA 2k and The Show are the best sports titles out there, but they would benefit from having dedicated competition. That goes double for Madden. It has been not only stagnant, but mediocre for over a decade.

I'm a NFL guy but I never really play sports games except for NHL 97 on the PS1. I sunk so many hours in that game with friends

I'm glad you made the Madden point at the end: the flipside of the loss of the great NFL 2K series is the absolute stagnation of EA's offering.

A had the very first game the day it came out, and was on the QA team for ESPN NFL2K

Respect due to the 2K franchise but the most memorable football game from that era was "Gameday 2000". We played that game for YEARS mainly because it had the full pallet of the NFL 75th Throwback Uniforms

Awful time to be a sports game fan. EA got the exclusive NFL license and killed 2K, but also lost the MLB license so MVP Baseball got killed off.

@lazarushernandez5827

14 күн бұрын

Sega also took the NBA licenses at the time in response.

@BobbyLips

13 күн бұрын

I thought EA just quit making NBA Live due to it not being able to compete with 2K

It is a testament to how good of a developer Visual Concepts are. They took on the juggernaut of EA and won in my opinion by the end of it's lifecycle.