All-Pro Football 2K8

Infobox VG| title = All-Pro Football 2K8


developer = Visual Concepts
publisher = 2K Sports
designer =
released = July 16, 2007
genre = Sports
modes = Single player
Multiplayer
ratings = ESRB: Everyone 10+
platforms = PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
media = BD-ROM, DVD-ROM
input = SIXAXIS, Xbox 360 Controller

"All-Pro Football 2K8" (abbreviated "APF2K8") is a football game for seventh generation consoles and the spiritual successor to the "ESPN NFL 2K" series. "APF2K8" is the first football game to be published by 2K Sports since EA Sports purchased exclusive licenses to the intellectual properties of the NFL and NFLPA; the last football game published by 2K Sports was "ESPN NFL 2K5". Barry Sanders, John Elway, and Jerry Rice appear on the cover. There have been rumors for a sequel.

Overview

"All-Pro Football 2K8" features a fictional league called the All-Pro League, or APL. The APL consists of 24 teams that are grouped into six divisions of four teams each, whereas the NFL's 32 teams are grouped into eight divisions of four teams each. Both leagues, however, run a sixteen-game schedule and hold a championship game at the end of the playoffs.

Horse-collar tackles, which are illegal in the NFL, are legal in "All-Pro 2K8". The user can also initiate late hits after the whistle. However, unlike Midway's "" (which also is unlicensed and therefore does not abide by the rules of the National Football League), players are penalized with a fifteen-yard personal foul and therefore receive no benefit from performing such infractions after the whistle. Whereas "Blitz" is less restrictive, APF2K8 takes a tamer approach, preferring to go a little bit more "traditional".

Legends

2K Sports has licensed over 240 retired NFL players for "APF2K8". [http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/sports/allprofootball2k8/news.html?sid=6173345 GameSpot – "All-Pro Football 2K8" Hands-On"] ] Some of the legends included are listed below:

Reception

"All-Pro Football 2K8" has received criticism because of the game's lack of notable features seen in previous "2K Football" games. [http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3161361 1UP.com Review] ] Most notably, the lack of a multi-season Franchise Mode as seen in competing titles such as "Madden NFL 08" and "NCAA Football 08" is a large omission, given Visual Concepts' last football title, "ESPN NFL 2K5", contained a similar Franchise Mode. 2K Sports and Visual Concepts believed removing Franchise Mode was necessary because no specific team histories for any of the unlicensed teams in the fictional "APL" are provided and the customization features, would, in their opinion, essentially make a multiple season mode irrelevant. [http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/784/784926p1.html IGN Xbox 360 Preview] ] It's been noted too that this game is about gameplay, a hallmark of the 2K series over 'features'. As of October 3, 2007, APF2K8 has a score of 74/100 on Metacritic [cite web | url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/allprofootball2k8 | accessdate=2007-10-03 | publisher=Metacritic | title= "All-Pro Football 2K8" on Metacritic] and 75% on Game Rankings. [cite web | url=http://gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/938066.asp | accessdate=2007-10-03 | publisher=Game Rankings | title= "All-Pro Football 2K8" on Game Rankings]

Controversy

In a court ruling, O.J. Simpson was ordered to pay the family of Ronald Goldman any money made for his appearance in the game. Simpson was found not guilty of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Goldman in 1995, but was found legally responsible for their deaths by a civil court jury two years later. [ [http://news.com.com/O.J.+Simpson+ordered+to+pay+Goldmans+over+game/2100-1043_3-6201250.html O.J. Simpson ordered to pay Goldmans over game | CNET News.com ] ] A common misconception is that O.J. Simpson is a member of the fictional New Jersey Assassins. To make it worse, Assassins players will perform a throat slash as a touchdown celebration, and the animatronic mascot for the Assassins will make a slashing motion. Some pre-release videos showed Simpson performing these moves, implying to some that the designers were intentionally referencing the murders. However, Simpson is actually on the roster of a team named the Cyclones.

Trivia

*The team called the New Jersey Assassins play at DiMeo Stadium, named after the DiMeo Crime Family. The crime family is the one Tony Soprano works in on The Sopranos. The Sopranos is set in New Jersey, just like the Assassins.
*The team known as the Iron Men play in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh is known for its steel and iron industries (hence the NFL team the Pittsburgh Steelers).
*The Iron Men play at Steel Mill Park, which (in the game) is constructed of over 30,000 steel rivets.
*The team called the Sharks play at Amity Stadium, named after the fictional town Amity in the famous shark film "Jaws".
*The Atlanta Wasps play in a field called Van Dyne Field, which is a reference to Janet Van Dyne, who in the Marvel universe is known as the superhero Wasp (comics).
*The game offers a free 30 minute mix card of the artists who add their songs to the game featuring DJ Z-Trip.
*Even though there are not any NFL teams in the game, the player can still create similar looking teams to their actual NFL counterparts. For example, the Chicago Grizzlies with the orange "C" on the helmets bear a resemblance to Chicago Bears' helmets. Also, the Pittsburgh Iron Men wear black and yellow just like the Pittsburgh Steelers. Similarly, the Create-a-Player feature allows the player to add some notable names that were not included in the game roster.
*The stadium that the Chicago Beasts play at, Wolfram & Hart Stadium is named after the fictional international and inter dimensional law firm Wolfram & Hart in the "Angel (TV series)".
*The New York Knights play in a stadium that the game says was designed by G.L. Costanza, a reference to the Seinfeld character.
*The Carolina Cobras play in a stadium that is called The Extensive Enterprises Stadium. Extensive Enterprises was a front company for Cobra in the G.I. Joe comic book and animated series.

The Season Teams

*Atlantic Conference
*"North"
*Philadelphia Americans
*New Jersey Assassins
*New York Knights
*Boston Minutemen
*"Central"
*Washington Federals (possibly a reference to the former USFL team of the same name)
*Detroit Firebirds
*Pittsburgh Iron Men
*Ohio Red Dogs
*"South"
*Carolina Cobras (Possibly a reference to the former arena football team of the same name)
*Tampa Bay Top Guns
*Atlanta Wasps
*Miami Cyclones
*Pacific Conference
*"North"
*Chicago Beasts
*Milwaukee Indians
*Seattle Sailors
*Minneapolis Werewolves
*"Central"
*Denver Cougars
*Dallas Gunslingers
*St. Louis Rhinos
*San Francisco Sharks
*"West"
*Los Angeles Legends
*Las Vegas Rollers
*Texas Rustlers
*Arizona Scorpions

References

Community Site

* [http://www.2kfootballstrategy.com 2K Football Strategy]
* [http://consolesports.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=39&Itemid=99 2K Football.net]
* [http://www.2ksportsfootball.com 2K Sports Gaming]
* [http://apfhq.com All Pro Football Headquarters]

External links

* [http://www.2ksports.com/games/football2k8/ "All-Pro Football 2K8" official website]
* [http://www.2ksports.com/media/news.php?id=2476&gid=&iType=6 2K Games press release]
* [http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/sports/allprofootball2k8/news.html?sid=6165016&tag=topslot;title;1&om_act=convert&click=topslot&page=1 "The Road to Rebirth"] – GameSpot's interview with Greg Thomas
* [http://www.gamespot.com/video/938065/6173348/all-pro-football-2k8-on-the-spot-demo# "APF 2K8 Gameplay Footage"]
* [http://ps3.ign.com/articles/760/760001p1.html "2K Games Returns to the Gridiron"]
* [http://ps3.ign.com/articles/784/784922p1.html "All-Pro Football 2K8's Resurrection"]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=_G-opa2px64 "All-Pro Football 2K8 Trailer"]
* [http://sports.ign.com/articles/783/783753p1.html "All-Pro Football 2K8 Legends List"]
* [http://www.sportsgamer.com/content/931/final-take-on-all-pro-2k8 "Comparison to Madden 08"]
* [http://gaming.wikia.com/index.php?title=Xbox_360_Achievements:_All-Pro_Football_2K8 A list of Xbox 360 Achievements for "All-Pro Football 2K8"]