In his first NFL football game, Reggie Bush had 136 yards rushing, 108 yards receiving and three touchdowns in a 42-21 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
You may be saying to yourself, “Andy, what are you talking about? Bush didn’t do that on Sunday. And the Saints beat the Browns 19-14, right?”
You are correct. But so am I, because I’m not talking about Sunday. I’m talking about my first game I played with Reggie on Madden NFL ’07.
Ah, Madden. And yes, Reggie is just as beastly on the game as he’s made out to be in real life by all these NFL experts. Some have called him overrated; but after his true performance against Cleveland on Sunday, people have shut up. At least for now.
Now this year, I couldn’t wait in line at midnight like thousands of people did across the country, but I got my copy when I got back from training camp. And I haven’t stopped since. I’m playing Madden as I’m typing this.
This year’s “hook” to get Madden players to buy the ’07 version is the Superstar: Road to the Hall of Fame mode. “SS” mode, as it’s affectionately called, allows a gamer to create a superstar by picking his father and mother’s DNA, creating a specific type of player.
Sometimes your father will have been a Hall of Fame linebacker, making your guy a monster on defense. Sometimes your mother will be listed as one of the fastest women in the world, making your guy one of the fastest men to ever grace a football field.
The best part? It’s all random. So you have to sit, trying to get the set of parents you want.
The best part about Madden, however, has to be the owner mode. In this mode, you control every aspect of your team. You decide who makes the team, how much you want to spend on advertising and (if you’re the Saints) even how much you’re going to sell beignets for.
Personally, I’ve never seen beignets sold at the Superdome, but maybe that’s because I’m always sitting at the top. Maybe that’s a rich people thing.
Anyway, back to my addiction …
Madden. I just love saying it. Madden, Madden, Madden. And every person that plays only wants to prove that they can beat you. My buddy Mike and I have a tradition of getting together on Thanksgiving and playing Madden all day. We’ll eat Thanksgiving dinner with our families but then meet up around 3 or 4 o’clock and just play.
Whoever wins the most games gets the ultimate one-up in male friendships: bragging rights. Until the next game, bragging rights mean constant nagging, phone calls, text messages, e-mails and instant messages reminding the other person who won.
While Mike and I haven’t had our game this year, it’s coming. We’re already talking trash.
And I know I’m gonna … oh wait.
My quarterback was just injured for the season and its only week two. No fear. Excuse me while I go hit the reset button.
