Right after the tournament this year I was desperate for a college basketball game. I got this one and was not disappointed but wasn't blown away either. The coaching mode leaves much to be desired. How about letting us start off as an assistant for crying out loud!! But the recruiting is okay and the gameplay is pretty good. On the hardest level on a good team's floor you can lose and will always have a hard time for example at Cameron indoor arena.

If you want a college basketball game then it's a good buy but if you're just looking for a good game in general then there are certainly better ones out there.

For the same reason when you buy an NCAA jersey, it doesn't have a name on the back...

The NCAA can't directly market a single player. Yes, the networks can, ala ESPN showing a little JJ Reddick picture before a Duke/UNC game. Or CBS showing Marvin Williams taking an alley-oop from Raymond Felton for the Final Four.

However, they can't pay these athletes so they can't directly market them. That's one reason why it's damn near impossible to see a college star marketing anything that isn't the NCAA and academics.

It's why Andrew Bogut or Reggie Bush can't do Wheaties commercials.

It's also the reason anyone on a 2K5 of EA Sports college sporting game-over has either graduated or in the NBA from the next year. (I know NCAA 2K has rights with the Heisman winner. As EA once did. Last year's Naismith winner, Jamar Nelson of St. Joe's, is absent from either of this year's games that feature Okafor (EA) and Childress (2K5) on their respective covers).

However, if Emeka Okafor had stayed in school, it's very likely Ben Gordon (or another NBA-player, ala Tony Allen, would've been on the cover.

Imagine the same scenario with TJ Ford replacing Carmelo Anthony on 2004.

Most know this...but many others don't. So that is your answer. It's not to be lame or lazy, it's simply the fact that NCAA can only use player numbers and their likeness (within reason of course) during their games. I imagine any potential recruits are forgotten as well for same laws/reasons.

It seems dumb, but that's the NCAA for you.

Making billions for universities, networks, and themselves...and not letting the players have anything at all.

ncaa march madness was a great game, who cares if you dont know who the players are you can pull off upsets in the collage classics mode and win the tornament in the dynasty mode. It is a great basketball game to play with your friends and it is very entertaining by yourself

I like EA Sports, I got this game NCAA March Madness 2005, it's fun but what really got me was when I "PAID" $49.99 and cant export your college players to NBA Live, that mess up. Why they go and put the player number, but not the name with it. They otta put the player piture on there too. If they can make over 1000 right fight songs and the real mascot, why not the player name and the piture, Lucky I didnt tear the plastic, now I can put it back in there, and get my money back and go get NBA 2K5 since I got NCAA 2K5.

I was expecting a lot more out of this game. Even after writing to EA Sports, informing them what they needed to do to make this game better, the game still lacks what it could be, or should I say what their competitor does just right?

March Madness 2005 has somewhat improved from 2004, but it still has ways to go (time for a new game engine, don't you think?). First of all, I like the new play-calling screens, that can easily be opened and operated; and I like the new time out feature as well. The Pontiac classic game challenge is very fun, too! The front menu screens are much better and readable, and the Dynasty mode is better than last year's with a neat calendar and PDA system.

But overall, the game has got to be a major disappointment for die-hard basketball fans. One thing this year is that the game player cannot export their draft classes into NBA Live. The game play is comparable to NBA Live 2005, with has better spacing, rebounding, and tip-ins. The player models are better as well, but not a significant change from MM 2004. As far as comparing this to ESPN'S College sim, which sells for just $20, there is no comparison. ESPN has much better game play and a more intuitive player-editing system than EA's. But if there is one complaint I have this year for both NBA Live and March Madness, it is the awful camera views. When you are playing a game you are either too far away or too close. And for some reason, the game does not recognize your previous setting of camera views, so you have to go back and change it. If EA would stop trying to add so much as the kitchen sink to a game and instead try to really improve the basics, it would really shine.

Until then, ESPN'S game is the way to go this season!