One thing that must be said is that EA’s last effort in the NFL Street series left many people thoroughly surprised. NFL Street brought back memories of Blitz on the Nintendo 64 by delivering the same hard-hitting gameplay and action that football fans have come to love from the Blitz series of football games. But with NFL Street came a whole new way to experience the sport of football. Not only did it take football to the streets. NFL Street mixed the same features of NBA Street and urban art together to create a unique and ingenious experience. Loaded to the brim with features, NFL Street was highly successful in sales. It topped 2004’s Q1 sales charts, and in light of this NFL Street was warranted a sequel in the form of NFL Street 2.

After the roughly eleven and a half month wait we are treated to NFL street 2. Adding more content, features, and amazingly artistic style to the overall design that is NFL Street, there is no doubt that NFL Street 2 will be as successful as the original NFL Street, if not more so. The overall feel of the series is still intact, and also feels fresher considering that online has been implemented into the XBox version. That doesn’t mean that Cube owners aren’t getting a wealth of content as it is. NFL Street 2 expands upon its predecessor in several ways. All new modes such as ‘Own the City’ make NFL Street 2 a more enjoyable and lengthier game than the original while still capturing the essence of urban street football. A lot of things have been refined such as the graphics, gameplay, and overall effort that Tiburon has put into NFL Street 2. If you loved NFL Street, then you are in for a fun and lengthy ride with NFL Street 2.

Features

• The sequel to the highly successful NFL Street.
  
• Experience hard hitting and over-the-top urban football action as it was meant to
  be played.
  
• All new game modes including ‘Own the City’, ‘NFL Gauntlet’, and new ‘Street Events’.
  
• Includes the original game modes from NFL Street such as ‘Pickup game’, ‘NFL Challenge’, and an all new tutorial to get you started.
  
• Create a player and bring together a team from your hometown. Then make your way through dominating all opponents in your way until you rule the hood in the all new ‘Own the City’ game mode.
  
• Play against the entire NFL in the all new ‘NFL Gauntlet’ game mode.
  
• Challenge teams in 4-on-4 games or play every man for himself in the new ‘Crush the Carrier’ street event.
  
• EA brings the NFL Street series online for the XBox version of NFL Street 2 while also supporting 4 player offline play for both the XBox and GameCube.
  
• Songs from hit artists like “The Used” and “Sum 41” accommodate the soundtrack nicely.
  
• NFL Street 2 supports custom soundtracks and runs in Dolby Digital sound for the XBox version.
  
• NFL Street 2 runs in HDTV 480p for the XBox version.
  

The City is Yours for the Taking
If you have played NBA Street Vol. 2 you have most likely experienced its incredibly deep ‘Be a Legend’ mode. NFL Street 2 takes the same aspect from NBA Street Vol. 2’s ‘Be a Legend’ mode and tweaks it. NFL Street was based on the same arcade type gameplay that is offered up in all of the EA BIG sports titles. It comes as no surprise that the same can be said for NFL Street 2.

‘Own the City’ is mainly the real meat of the package for this year’s installment into the NFL Street series. In the ‘Own the City’ mode your main goal is to defeat all opponents that rise up against you on the streets, taking them on field by field. First you create a player, and after winning more and more pickup games you will pull together a team. You will gain new team members from the opposing team once you have beat them in a pickup game. As you beat your opponents you will build a reputation on the streets, and eventually make it to the ultimate showdown in the City against Xzibit and his team of NFL players.


'Own the City' by taking on local teams.

The fields you need to play at and defeat are shown on the ‘Own the City’ map. Once you select a field to conquer, you will begin to work your way through the list of games and challenges, ranging from street events, pickup games, and team games that let you duke it out against the teams that are in control of the area. With each victory you will earn more and more reputation along with credits to buy new gear for your created player. New gear that you can buy ranges from tattoos to clothing. This aspect lets the player broaden and personalize their overall experience with the game. ‘Own the City’ is a welcomed addition to the NFL Street series and lengthens the urban football experience exponentially.