Realizing that sports games don't usually contend outside of their classification, Stick Jockey's named an honor roll of nine awards within the sports game genre for 2009. Seven of them conform to awards offered elsewhere in video gaming. Two of them, Rookie of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year, might sound more familiar to real awards offered by some leagues, but they also recognize the annual nature of games produced by this sector.

While a game's technical aspects and ability to execute were considered, more subjective qualities such as a title's innovation, impact, and the size of the gaming population it served also came into play in judging a game's worthiness. By no means were these the only good games made in the year 2009; but they are Stick Jockey's choices representing the best the year had to offer.

Best Presentation and Best Singleplayer: MLB 09 The Show (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
The 30 ballparks of Major League Baseball provide a wonderful canvas to showcase a sports game's visuals, and yet it was only the starting point for MLB 09 The Show. Abetted by such unique venues, and the pace of a sport that allows long looks at your surroundings, MLB 09 delivered a visual polish unmatched by any other sports game. Baseball's pre-eminent simulation demonstrated how high-powered visuals aren't just pretty to look at, but that they necessarily contribute to a game's true-to-life realism and its ability to perfect a sports simulation. For a pure singleplayer experience, MLB 09's Road to the Show again exceeded career modes in other sports, both in terms of the deep participation it offers in your player's progression, and in a game experience better suited to playing as a individual than presently offered by soccer, football or basketball.

Best Multiplayer: Madden NFL 10 (EA Sports)
Madden, a mainstay of online sports gaming, delivered its first online franchise mode this year. While it lacked some customizable features of its other game modes, it was a tremendous improvement over Madden 09's online leagues. 2009 was not a particularly noteworthy year for multiplayer sports gaming - other titles trended toward innovation or execution, but not both. Given Madden's stature as an online staple, all year long, this was the most value-added upgrade to a title's multiplayer package and it lays a strong foundation for improvement in the next year.

Best Indie Game: Avatar Golf (BarkersCrest)
Inside Lacrosse College Lacrosse 2010 was an unusual and very laudable effort, delivering simulation quality to a niche sport with a very passionate following. But for gameplay and overall appeal, nothing comes close to Avatar Golf by BarkersCrest Studios on the Xbox Live Indie Games channel. Just $5 delivers seven courses, three different tee lengths, playable with a full bag of clubs, and environmental effects - as your Xbox Live avatar, both singleplayer and online. If that's not enough, it packaged an entire course editor and the ability to share those creations. For such a trivial price, Avatar Golf is hands down the biggest value in all of sports gaming for 2009.

Comeback Player of the Year: NBA Live 10 (EA Sports)
In many ways, Madden NFL 10 finally felt like the first game in that series worthy of the current generation of console. Madden also roams alone, with no other licensed competitor, so its improvement is welcome but shouldn't get extra credit. That instead goes to NBA Live 10, which while it has its shortcomings, made professional basketball the only seriously contested licensed sports title this year. NBA Live 10 was distinguished by better passing, and the little things, like stronger atmospherics, commentary that adapts to season progression, and player-specific crowd reactions. This award does not mean NBA Live 10 is the best basketball game. It means it made that argument worth having again.

Rookie of the Year and Best Individual Sports Game of the Year: UFC 2009 Undisputed (THQ)
This mixed martial arts title wasn't perfect, but it delivered immediate impact for a fast-growing sport underserved by video gaming's mainstream. As a rookie, yes, there are few new IPs in this genre, and 2K Sports offered two - MLB Front Office Manager, and NBA 2K10 on the Wii. Neither had anywhere close to the impact of Undisputed, nor will they see 2010, whereas THQ has already booked a sequel for May. And UFC Undisputed's upcoming rivalry with EA Sports MMA will be a key story of 2010. Tiger Woods PGA Tour and Fight Night Round 4 from EA Sports also were strong contenders in more traditional roles. But for fun, and for living up to the challenges posed by a new sport, Undisputed gets the nod.

Best Team Sports Game and Sports Game of the Year: FIFA 10 (EA Sports)
A striking 360-degree player motion upgrade helped make FIFA 10 the most lifelike simulation of game action in any team offering this year, no small order for a constantly flowing, moving and contested sport such as soccer. Its new Virtual Pro capability broke the accepted boundaries of created-player modes in other sims, essentially embedding yourself, the gamer, in the roster for use in all modes, with attendant player progression. Rather than completely reboot some major aspect of gameplay or control, EA Canada moved more to improve what was already a critical success from the year before. Subtle, but such confidence distinguishes a best-in-class sports simulation, and that's what FIFA 10 is.

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

In many ways 2009 was like most for sports games - every major team sports title put out a new version; Madden sold a ton for EA Sports; cover athletes were leaked and/or announced; titles such as EA Sports' FIFA and NHL followed their own strong traditions, while ones like THQ's UFC Undisputed broke new ground. Kotaku's roundup of 2009 is not of the routine stories however, but the ones that had the most lasting impact on this year, and should into next year, too. We invite you to continue the discussion in our comments.

The Race is Over for NASCAR
In early February, EA Sports announces there will be no sequel to NASCAR 09, ending a series going back under various names to 1998. The title's biggest problems were in the franchise's poor sales and limited growth potential. Later, EA Sports boss Peter Moore reveals that the NASCAR development team has been repurposed to its upcoming EA Sports MMA, and the publisher has no plans to restart the racing franchise.

Lawsuits Threaten College Titles' Realism
In May, former Arizona State and Nebraska quarterback Sam Keller files a class-action lawsuit alleging that the NCAA and EA Sports use and/or profit from the use of college athlete's likenesses in video games, without their permission. Keller's complaint points to the two-faced nature of the college sports authority, which requires its athletes' adherence to strict amateur codes while reaping millions off, in effect, their labor. But compensating Keller, or any other athlete, for the use of their likenesses while they are still in school would render them ineligible. Keller's suit points out how easily identifiable he and other players are in the NCAA games - indeed a cottage industry has cropped up to rename roster files, which are disseminated via the EA Sports Locker feature in both its football and basketball titles. Later in the year, former UCLA standout Ed O'Bannon also sues on the same grounds, but said he would use the suit to create a trust fund that could compensate players after they graduate, to preserve the value of the products in which they appear without violating their rights or eligibility. Neither suit has yet gone to trial, but NCAA Football and Basketball without realistic rosters would seriously damage both titles.

Mixed Martial Arts: The Sport of the Future
UFC 2009 Undisputed by THQ debuts in May and is immediately that month's biggest seller, helping put a gold star over mixed martial arts as the newest it-franchise for sports gaming. Although THQ has the UFC license for foreseeable future, rumors that EA Sports has eyes for the sport come true at E3 2009, when EA Sports MMA is announced. Voluble UFC boss Dana White unleashes invective at EA, saying the publisher years before had told his outfit, "You're not a real sport," and "EA doesn't give a [expletive] about mixed martial arts." White also warns fighters they "won't be in the UFC," if they sign on to EA Sports MMA. EA Sports boss Peter Moore doesn't respond directly to White, but says he's backed MMA in video games going back to 2000 on the Dreamcast. Meanwhile, EA Sports MMA signs names such as Fedor Emelianeko, Randy Couture, Jason Miller and, ultimately inks a deal with MMA promotion house Strikeforce. Word spreads that UFC 2010 Undisputed is due in May - and EA Sports declines comment on a rumor that EA Sports MMA won't be out until September.

Trash Talk on the Court
NBA 2K10 is again the consensus leader among pro basketball titles, but NBA Live 10 is a significant improvement over previous years' lackluster offerings. This year, it becomes easily the most competitive, and heated, rivalry among published sports titles. It gets personal when EA Sports is praised for putting out a comprehensive patch that it says was built with community feedback. A representative of 2K Sports, in a post later taken down, goes into a forum to question whether such a patch could have been built and passed certification so quickly - which implies EA Sports began work in advance of the game's release and knew it was shipping substandard code. The NBA Live team returns fire on its blog with a wave of screenshots showing people offering NBA 2K10 for sale on Craigslist, insulting its quality, and pledging allegiance to NBA Live.

Catch a Tiger with Tail
Golf superstar Tiger Woods' failure to keep it in his pants is the subject of a hilarious machinima re-enactment from China, but as the scandal wears on it starts getting less funny and starts costing more money. As Woods' major corporate sponsors such as Accenture and Gatorade begin dropping him or scaling back his appearances, the question is put to EA Sports, which has the golfer at the front of both its console golf title and an upcoming free-to-play online version. At first EA Sports stands by its man, but later issues a second statement that, reading between the lines, is a little more qualified in its support. Woods is taking an indefinite leave from the PGA Tour heading into 2010, and it becomes clear that as long as he is away from the course, EA Sports will face these questions.

Iced Hockey
Not a poor game, but not exceptional in its later years, the consensus still places 2K Sports' NHL franchise a distant second to EA Sports' NHL in 2009, and that seems to be enough for the Take-Two leadership. In December, the game is conspicuously left off a corporate filing that announces upcoming dates and platforms for other sports titles in 2010. Asked if NHL 2K has been canceled, a 2K Sports spokesman replies only that no plans have been made for that property, which is taken as a "yes," by most. Furthermore, the same listing shows NBA 2K10 - by far 2K Sports' best team property - as "TBA" for the platforms to which it will release. This likely means the end of that series' brief Wii experiment.

Baseball Been Bery, Bery Bad to Take-Two
This was a terrible year for horsehide under the 2K Sports brand. MLB 2K9 wasn't just a regression from the series' previous offering, it went out the door with a staggering number of glitches in the product. Terrible graphics and even comical player faces also contributed to the savage reviews it received. Spinoff titles like The Bigs 2 and Front Office Manager, concocted to help offset what one analyst thinks is the $40 million paid for MLB exclusive licensing back in 2005, failed to sell according to expectations. In December, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick singles out the company's baseball franchise for blame when the company announces it will miss earnings projections. Two weeks later, Take-Two announces a $137.9 million loss for the fiscal year.

Warning: This is a very long column. There are more than 40 games described below. I've highlighted the playoff results in yellow if that's what you're really interested in.

One of the most false debating points in the college football playoff argument is the idea that somehow the bowls diminish a playoff, or vice versa. I maintain that the bowl postseason should be preserved, running alongside a meritorious, 16-team playoff inviting the champion of every conference. The bowls - the better ones, anyway - have a majesty that far surpasses any "football NIT" label some think they'd acquire if the NCAA implemented a Division I football playoff.

My idea is that, while a game like the Orange Bowl may not prefer a pairing of conference runner-ups, provided the sides are appropriately matched the games can be no less memorable. The bowls relentlessly tout their tradition, but forget that tradition, until the early 1990s, felt no obligation to help determine a national champion. And for a sporting culture so built on haves and have-nots, a holiday-based bowl structure as a consolation prize offers a much more meaningful postseason "reward," as one of the talking points always describes the bowls, to teams that rarely, or have never visited fabled venues like the Sugar or the Cotton, rather than sending them to Birmingham to play in an advertisement for Papa John's.

The bowls have a great value. But they have no place in determining a national champion. The Bowl Championship Series is the most meritless selection of a champion in major sports in the entire world. Worse than boxing. Worse than international soccer's reputation for draw-rigging and other shenanigans. The Bowl Championship Series is a system that is built on backroom dishonesty, not one exploited by it. And it's almost proud to announce it up front.

Well, not in the reality I control, which is NCAA Football 10, my most favorite model railroad of sporting sims. So this week I set up a 16-team playoff, and then painstakingly redrew the bowls as close to their existing conference ties as the pool of eligible teams would allow.

For an eloquent argument in favor of a 16-team playoff, and the legitimacy that comes from inviting every Division I conference champion, I encourage you to read Dan Wetzel's recent column for Yahoo! Sports. To it, I'd only add that teams like Troy are either major college football participants or they're not. It's not a self-declared thing. The NCAA admitted these teams to the highest level. But the comments and behavior of BCS conferences and the bowl committees hellbent on dividing the pie for the fattest do more to diminish a football program like East Carolina than the quality of the Pirates' schedule ever does.

Alright, here's the backstory of what happened in my reality this week. After creating this 16-team playoff, the NCAA made one demand and one concession. All bowls had to be completed before national title game. In return, the NCAA would never schedule a playoff game on Dec. 31 or Jan. 1. (or Dec. 24 or Dec. 25, for that matter). The larger bowls, cutting their own TV deals, then began a run back to traditional New Year's and New Year's Eve dates, bringing us back to the days of the Rose, Cotton, Sugar and Orange, all on the same day.

The championship game was booked for San Diego, largely because the city has a strong track record hosting Super Bowls, and because it's not home to any of the (very likely pissed off) former BCS bowls. And also because Qualcomm Stadium is an available venue in NCAA Football 10.

The football playoff seeding was then handed to an NCAA committee much like the one that handles the basketball bracket. The seeding considered mathematical formulae but, ultimately, it was a human decision, the same as the basketball tournament. Since everyone is so fired up about protecting the sanctity of the regular season games, I made a rule that no at-large team may host an opening round game. Yes, that effectively seeds a team like Florida ninth. It also turns the eighth-seed into a seat of death (likely facing an at-large team that is seeded artificially lower, and then the tournament No. 1 if they win) but, dammit, this is football. It's hard. We can't pave everyone's way to the semifinals, and a seeding reflects how many games a team is expected to win. Without the rule, this eight seed would drop at least one spot lower, which means it is expected to lose in the first round, anyway. Instead, an eight-seed under this rule gets a game at home - against a difficult opponent, sure - but also the advantage and, more importantly, revenue, of just such a date. I still expect Georgia Tech to hate me for this.

Anyway, following the Big XII championship game on Dec. 5, my seeding committee met and selected the following teams:

(1) Alabama
(2) Texas
(3) Cincinnati
(4) TCU
(5) Boise State
(6) Oregon
(7) Ohio State
(8) Georgia Tech
(9) Florida
(10) Virginia Tech
(11) Iowa
(12) Brigham Young
(13) LSU
(14) Central Michigan
(15) East Carolina
(16) Troy

BYU provides the only selection controversy, bumping Penn State. Both teams are 10-2. Brigham Young had a greater strength of schedule in the Sagarin Ratings and, although the victory doesn't look as good now, the Cougars' victory over then-No. 5 Oklahoma to begin the season was a mammoth upset. BYU also gutted out a victory over a ranked Utah to end the year. Penn State did not defeat a human-ranked team all year; did not beat any team that finished in Sagarin's top 30; lost badly to Iowa and Ohio State at home; played the definition of a cupcake non-conference schedule and didn't do a damn thing except start the season ranked high. Plus, the Nittany Lions finished a decisive third, and the Big Ten is a good conference, but it's not three-teams good. That's the SEC, and LSU is the third team. If I would not take Penn State over BYU, I definitely would not take it over LSU.

Brigham Young also was seeded ahead of LSU to avoid an opening-round rematch of conference opponents. These rematches are unavoidable elsewhere on the bracket, but it can be controlled here. I'm aware that Alabama and Florida will likely rematch in the second round, three weeks after their SEC title game. I prefer - and therefore my committee prefers - that such a meeting take place there rather than in the national championship.

The bowls were then free to invite any .500 or better, six-Division I win team, absent the ones above. Of course this means there are more bowls than can host eligible teams. Six died: the Poinsettia, Meineke Car Care, Little Caesars, Texas, Armed Forces and PapaJohns.com. Lots of horsetrading was involved as the minor bowls scrambled to fill slots. Ultimately, the free market prevailed. The total payout lost with the death of these six: $8.2 million. I think the conferences can spend their share of $8.2 million to reap a much larger slice of a nine-figure television contract for a football playoff.

With all that out of the way, here are all the games - 27 bowls and 15 playoff games - simulated on NCAA Football 10 using the roster and depth chart written by RomanCaesar from Operation Sports. The games are presented in the order they were played on the calendar.

I do not claim that this is a scientific simulation. These games were played once. A simulation for accuracy would require a much larger sample size and more finely tuned sim settings. The games were played with nine-minute quarters to hold down garish scoring and statistical performances. That also skewed a lot of the results to down-to-the-wire finishes.

Dec. 18
at St. Petersburg, Fla.
St. Petersburg Bowl
South Florida (Big East, 7-5) vs. Central Florida (Conference USA, 8-4)
These two Sunshine State up-and-comers did not play their rivalry game this year, so they meet here. USF holds on, 21-17.

at Albuquerque, N.M.
New Mexico Bowl
Wyoming (Mountain West, 6-6) vs. Fresno State (WAC, 8-4)
This pairing is one of a few drawn up that reflect real life. Fresno blasts the Cowboys 55-27 behind 151 yards rushing and two touchdowns by Ryan Mathews.

Dec. 19
NCAA Division I Football Championship
First Round
(seedings in parentheses)

Noon games:
(16) Troy (Sun Belt champion, 9-3) at (1) Alabama (SEC champion, 13-0)
Alabama only leads 24-20 at the half, stoking huge upset interest. But Heisman winner Mark Ingram breaks a 74-yard touchdown run to open the third quarter, en route to a 52-27 first round win for the Crimson Tide.

(15) East Carolina (Conference USA champion, 9-4) at (2) Texas (Big XII champion, 13-0)
Absolutely zero drama here. Texas annihilates East Carolina 52-0.

(14) No. 25 Central Michigan (MAC champion, 11-2) vs. (3) Cincinnati (Big East champion, 12-0)
The fearless Chippewas open with a come-into-the-room-honey 10-point lead early in the second quarter. But Cinderella fantasies prove premature, and the Bearcats respond with 35 unanswered points to win 45-24, behind six touchdowns from quarterback Tony Pike.

2 p.m. games:
(10) Virginia Tech (at-large, 9-3 ACC) at (7) Ohio State (Big Ten champion, 10-2)
The first nailbiter of the playoff. Ohio State leads 26-21 after a touchdown and failed two-point PAT. Virginia Tech faces third-and-18 from their own nine, but the Hokies' Tyrod Taylor responds with a 35-yard bomb to get a fresh set of downs and great field position. VPI scores but also misses its two-point attempt, and leads 27-26. Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor finds Ray Small for a 20 yard gain on 4th and five from the Buckeyes' 42 with 1:09 left, then hits DeVier Posey for a 26-yard gain to get down to Virginia Tech's 8. Aaron Pettrey hits the 25-yard field goal for the 29-27 win.

(9) Florida (at-large, 12-1 SEC) at (8) Georgia Tech (ACC champion, 11-2)
Florida coasts 43-3 in the playoff's first upset 43-3 - in name only - holding Tech's Jonathan Dwyer and Josh Nesbitt to 85 yards rushing combined.

4 p.m. games:
(11) Iowa (at large, 10-2 Big Ten) at (6) Oregon (Pac-10 champion, 10-2)
Another blowout victory, 41-15 for Oregon. The Ducks pile up 507 yards of offense and clamp down on Iowa, holding the Hawkeyes to 283 yards of offense. Oregon's LaMichael James gets only 79 yards rushing, but adds 107 receiving and even throws a touchdown pass.

(12) Brigham Young (at-large, 10-2 Mountain West) at (5) Boise State (WAC champion, 13-0)
Trailing 38-26 late in the fourth, a miracle 85-yard run by the Broncos' Jeremy Avery with 5:22 left makes it 38-33. The Cougars respond with a quick field goal, pushing the lead to eight and giving the Broncos one more drive. Kellen Moore's eight yard out pattern to Austin Pettis on fourth down from their own 44 keeps the Broncos in business. They reach BYU's 17 and throw three incompletions before Moore hits tight end Tommy Gallarda to make it 41-39 with 35 seconds left. But Moore's two-point conversion pass to wideout Tyler Shoemaker is no good. The onside attempt fails, and Brigham Young provides the prototypical 12-5 upset we expect in the college basketball bracket.

8 p.m. game:
(13) LSU (at-large, 9-3 SEC) at (4) Texas Christian (Mountain West champion, 12-0)
The primetime matchup explodes into one of the greatest games ever played in the history of college football. TCU gets out to a 28-10 lead at the half and then LSU puts it in gear, shrewdly making a two-point conversion in the third quarter en route to 25 unanswered points and a 35-28 lead with 1:17 left. TCU gets a 24 yard kickoff return, a 15-yard pass interference call, a 14-yard pickup on 3rd and 1 from LSU's 22, and ultimately an 8-yard touchdown strike from Andy Dalton to Jimmy Young with four seconds left to send the game to overtime.

Both sides trade touchdowns in the first two overtime periods. In the third, LSU cracks, settling for a 46-yard field goal. On third down of their final possession, the Horned Frogs' Joseph Turner shoves two defenders to the ground on the way to a 17-yard touchdown run and the win, 55-52, in triple overtime. Delirious TCU fans rip down the goalposts, forgetting they will need them the next week.

Dec. 22
at Las Vegas
Las Vegas Bowl:
No. 23 Utah (Mountain West, 9-3) vs. UCLA (Pac-10, 6-6)
This kind of matchup proves how a playoff would improve the bowls. In real life, this game brings a school with fans who don't travel (Oregon State) to Las Vegas to face one whose alumni don't drink or fornicate (Brigham Young). Under my system, we'd have Utah and UCLA. Great attendance, and indeed a great game. UCLA triumphs 28-25 in a rare bowl overtime.

at New Orleans
New Orleans Bowl:
Southern Mississippi (Conference USA, 7-5) vs. Middle Tennessee State (Sun Belt, 9-3)
Another real-life pairing. MTSU is probably the best nine-victory team no one's ever seen. For a reason. Senior halfback Damion Fletcher carries the day for Southern Mississippi, 167 yards and three touchdowns in a 28-9 snorefest.

Dec. 24
at Honolulu
Hawaii Bowl:
Nevada (WAC, 8-4) vs. SMU (Conference USA, 7-5)
Yet another real-life draw. June Jones returns to the 50th State for SMU's first bowl appearance since the NCAA leveled the infamous Death Penalty in 1986. Hawaii rolls 41-13 as the Mustangs stumble to just 178 yards of total offense.

Dec. 26
NCAA Division I Football Championship
Second Round

Noon games:
(7) Ohio State at (2) Texas
The Longhorns take a 21-3 lead after the first quarter and never look back, winning 45-17. Terrelle Pryor is intercepted three times, sacked four, and throws no touchdowns. Colt McCoy, meantime, tosses four.

(6) Oregon at (3) Cincinnati
Oregon, leading 20-17, misses a 46-yard field goal to open the fourth quarter. Cincinnati responds with a 71-yard, 14-play drive and a 24-20 advantage. The Ducks take over on their 20 with 1:27 left, getting to the Cincinnati 13 with no timeouts left. Jeremiah Masoli spikes the ball, then on fourth down finds D.J. Davis for a touchdown with 14 seconds left and a thrilling 27-24 victory.

4 p.m. game:
(12) Brigham Young at (4) TCU
TCU connects on a field goal at the beginning of the fourth quarter and leads 17-13. Later, a disastrous, shanked punt gives the Horned Frogs the ball on BYU's 35 with 5 minutes to play. The key play comes on 4th and 2 from the Cougars' 13; TCU elects to go for it, makes it, and Joseph Turner ultimately scores the decisive two-yard touchdown. The Frogs need it, as Brigham Young responds with a desperation touchdown and converts the two-point try but can't recover the onsides kick. TCU wins another thriller, 24-21.

8 p.m. game:
(9) Florida at (1) Alabama
The day's second rematch of conference titleists with runners-up. This dazzler features seven lead changes and a finish even more amazing than the TCU-LSU epic of a week before. Trailing 28-24 with the ball at midfield, Tim Tebow fumbles the snap, falls on it, then converts third-and-18 with a 33-yard bomb to Riley Cooper, and ultimately Tebow carries in a four-yard touchdown himself for the 31-28 lead.

Alabama gets the ball back with three minutes left and all its timeouts. Quarterback Greg McElroy throws three straight incompletions and is sacked on fourth-and-ten from Alabama's 27, apparently sealing Florida's victory. But the Crimson Tide use all of their timeouts, force Florida to kick a field goal, and get the ball back with 1:05 remaining. A miracle 68-yard bomb from McElroy to Julio Jones with 21 seconds left absolutely detonates Bryant-Denny Stadium. Jones has three touchdowns, 175 yards receiving, and never has to pay for a drink in Tuscaloosa the rest of his life.

Dec. 27
at Tempe, Ariz.
Insight Bowl: Iowa State (Big XII, 6-6) vs. Air Force (Mountain West, 7-5)
With two teams going to the playoff, the Big Ten ran out of bowl-eligible teams to send to this game. So I yanked the Zoomies from the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth and sent them to Arizona, home of a more established, higher-paying midlevel bowl. Air Force salts the game away in the fourth quarter when defensive back Anthony Wright returns an interception for a touchdown and the final 35-18 margin.

Dec. 27
at San Francisco
Emerald Bowl:
Navy (9-4) vs. California (Pac-10, 8-4)
Cal and its fans get a short trip across the Bay Bridge, assuming it's functioning. Navy gets a nice holiday in a town with a strong seapower tradition. Jahvid Best, back from his scary injury against Oregon State on Nov. 7, gets 138 yards and three touchdowns. the Bears romp 48-17 in a game not even half as close.

Dec. 28
at Orlando, Fla.
Champs Sports Bowl:
No. 14 Miami (ACC, 9-3) vs. Michigan State (Big Ten, 6-6)
ACC schools are not picked by finish and to a bowl committee, Miami - outside of the Orange Bowl or a national title game - is a money-losing disaster. That's why the Hurricanes fell so far here, but the good news is they stay close to home. Michigan State has the kind of fans who are delighted to go to Disney World for the holidays and call that the biggest thing they've done all year. I'm not sure I believe this result myself, but the Spartans trail 21-7 early before scoring 27 unanswered points and coasting to a 48-24 win. Miami's Jacory Harris is intercepted four times.

Dec. 29
at Washington
EagleBank Bowl:
Northern Illinois (MAC, 7-5) vs. Louisiana-Monroe (Sun Belt, 6-6)
Lacking enough participants from its tie in conferences, this new bowl survives only because it pays (Dr. Evil voice) one million dollars. Unfortunately, it's getting the least desirable matchup - UL-M isn't even going to a bowl in real life. But the Warhawks give a great show, winning 33-26 when Trey Revell and Luther Ambrose hook up on a 30-yard touchdown pass with four seconds left.

Dec. 30
at Boise, Idaho
Humanitarian Bowl:
Bowling Green (MAC, 7-5) vs. Idaho (WAC, 7-5)
Boise State isn't the only school that can go out guns blazing on the Smurf turf. Bowling Green and Idaho combine for more than 1,000 yards of offense - 433 of that from Idaho quarterback Nathan Enderle's arm - as the Vandals win a 44-42 track meet on a field goal with 1:56 left.

Dec. 31:
at Nashville, Tenn.
Music City Bowl:
Boston College (ACC, 8-4) vs. Kentucky (SEC, 7-5)
As a bowl attraction, Boston College is an even bigger disaster than Miami. BC can't even sell out its own stadium in the regular season. But at least Nashville's chamber of commerce gets Kentucky, whose fans regularly go to Tennessee to get their asses kicked without complaint. BC obliges, 35-17.

at Shreveport, La.
Independence Bowl:
Kansas State (Big XII, 6-6) vs. Rutgers (Big East, 8-4)
Rutgers had been slated for the Meineke Bowl, but with the SEC exhausting its bowl-eligible members, I shipped the Scarlet Knights to Shreveport, owing to the fact the Independence has been around longer, pays more, and enough time has passed since it was known as the Weedwhacker Bowl. Rutgers freshman Tom Savage tosses a bowl record six touchdowns in a 47-10 blowout.

at Atlanta
Chick-Fil-A Bowl:
North Carolina (ACC, 8-4) vs. Georgia (SEC, 7-5)
I have to say, for the realism of matchups, I'm proudest of this one. The Chick-Fil-A, formerly the Peach, loves teams from the Old North State. And who better to play in Atlanta than the Georgia Bulldogs? Plus both schools can settle that technical dispute regarding America's oldest public university. For the record, it's UNC, which also wins 35-17.

at El Paso, Texas
Sun Bowl:
Texas A&M (Big XII, 6-6) vs. USC (Pac-10, 8-4)
Brut smells like a man, and in El Paso, the Aggies smell like an armpit, losing 38-13 in a sim that probably did not account for USC's nosedive this year.

at Jacksonville, Fla.
Gator Bowl:
Florida State (ACC, 6-6) vs. Pittsburgh (Big East, 9-3)
The Gator wants to give Bobby Bowden a gold watch? Fine. They can take the 6-6 Seminoles over more deserving ACC teams for this one, too. It's not like Jacksonville's gonna sell out this stadium on Sundays. The Panthers hold on 37-31 thanks to 136 yards and four TDs - two of them receiving - by freshman back Dion Lewis.

at San Diego
Holiday Bowl:
Texas Tech (Big XII, 8-4) vs. No. 16 Oregon State (Pac-10, 8-4)
Unfortunately for Oregon State, Lubbock isn't the only city where Beavers get the Raider Rash. OSU loses 23-19 when, from Tech's 23, Sean Canfield can't hit James Rodgers on a fade as time expires.

Jan. 1
at Orlando, Fla.
Capital One Bowl:
No. 24 Wisconsin (Big Ten, 9-3) vs. Tennessee (SEC, 7-5)
This one is formerly known as the Citrus - which as Steve Spurrier reminds us, can't be spelled without the UT. Tennessee gets the ball on its 20 with 2:45 left, tied a 24. Jonathan Crompton passes of 14, 16 and 20 yards get Tennessee into kicking range, and Daniel Lincoln's 42-yard boot, after missing two previously from shorter distances, provides the 27-24 victory.

at Tampa, Fla.
Outback Bowl:
Northwestern (Big Ten, 8-4) vs. Auburn (SEC, 7-5)
The most major bowl reflecting real life in this simulation, Auburn trails 31-13 early in the third before charging back with 28 unanswered to win 41-31. Tigers halfback Ben Tate helps carry the load with 105 yards and two second-half scores.

at Dallas
Cotton Bowl:
Oklahoma (Big XII, 7-5) vs. Arkansas (SEC, 7-5)
The shooting gallery seesaw begins late in the third with Broderick Green's 60 yard catch-and-run to get Arkansas on top 38-34. Oklahoma hits a 47-yard field goal to draw to 38-37 early in the fourth. Quarterback Ryan Mallett and the Razorbacks storm back with an 11-play, 81-yard drive, 63 of it by air, to lead 45-37 with six minutes to play. Oklahoma stitches together an-eight play, 82-yard drive, and knots the game on a PAT pass from Landry Jones to Dejuan Miller with five minutes to go. Holding Arkansas to a three-and-out, Oklahoma goes back to work from its six, picking up passes of 18, 27, and 34 yards, and rumbling the final 10 to lead 52-45. Mallett gets one last drive, however, bringing the Hogs to the Sooners' 22 with eight seconds left, where he is intercepted by linebacker Travis Lewis to seal the game. Mallett's inhuman 485 yards passing is easily a Cotton Bowl record.

at Miami
Orange Bowl:
Clemson (ACC, 8-5) vs. No. 20 Nebraska (Big XII, 9-4)
By virtue of its tie-in with the ACC, the Orange has been the de facto Kids' Table of the BCS for much of this decade, including a Wake Forest-Louisville matchup in 2007 that should have been broadcast by Raycom. But here the Orange returns to its old Big Eight roots to invite Nebraska, pairing the Cornhuskers with Clemson in a matchup recalling 1982, Tom Osborne and Danny Ford, and the Tigers' only national championship.

Clemson's C.J. Spiller starts the game with an Orange Bowl record 82-yard run from scrimmage for a touchdown as the Tigers sprint to a 21-7 lead by the half. Nebraska rallies to a 28-28 tie, then goes for it on 4th and 1 from their own 35 with 6 minutes left in the fourth - and fumbles. Spiller's ensuing 7-yard touchdown grab out of the backfield from Kyle Parker provides the final margin, 35-28.

at New Orleans
Sugar Bowl:
No. 18 West Virginia (Big East, 9-3) vs. Ole Miss (SEC, 8-4)
After the SEC sent three teams to the playoffs, the bowls were left with an 8-4 Ole Miss, and a bunch of 7-5 teams. So the Rebels visit New Orleans for another A-list nailbiter. West Virginia scores 21 fourth quarter points to take a 35-28 lead. With three minutes remaining, Ole Miss begins driving from its 24, surviving a 3rd-and-18 with a 27-yard hookup from Jevean Snead to Shay Hodge. The drive gets down to West Virginia's 6 with 1:01 left but sophomore Brandon Bolden drops Snead's bullet in the end zone, and the Mountaineers hang on for the trophy.

at Pasadena, Calif.
Rose Bowl:
No. 11 Penn State (Big Ten, 10-2) vs. No. 22 Arizona (Pac-10, 8-4)
This one is indeed the granddaddy of the day. Trailing 27-20, facing 4th and 10 from Arizona's 25 with less than four minutes remaining in the fourth, the Nittany Lions' Daryll Clark hits wideout Derek Moye for a 16 yard gain to keep the drive alive. Then Evan Royster rumbles in from nine yards out to tie the game at 27 with 2:37 left. Arizona quarterback Nick Foles opens the next possession with completions of 11 and 14 yards but, facing 4th and 1 from the 50 - what an agonizing decision this had to be - the Wildcats opt to punt, pinning Penn State on their own 13 with 1:13 to play. On third and 15 his own 34, Clark hits Graham Zug for a 35 yard gain down to the Wildcat 29, and then three rushes by Royster reach paydirt, providing the final margin, 34-27, with 14 seconds to go. Fourteen points in four minutes, 17 in the fourth quarter, and an absolute double-dragon-kick-to-the-nutsack defeat for Arizona in its first-ever Rose appearance.

Jan. 2
NCAA Division I Football Championship
National Semifinals

4 p.m. game
(4) TCU at (1) Alabama
Alabama nails a 44-yard field goal at the end of the first half to take a 13-10 lead, then late in the third quarter goes 77 yards - the last 31 of it on seven straight carries by Mark Ingram - to go up 20-10. Alabama coffin-corners a punt, pinning TCU on its two midway through the fourth quarter, then Justin Woodall intercepts Andy Dalton and returns it for a touchdown. TCU does respond with an 11 play scoring drive, but can't recover an onsides kick, trailing by 10. An Alabama field goal ices the game 30-17. Mark Ingram rushes for 208 yards a playoff record. But then, everything is this year.

8 p.m. game
(6) Oregon at (2) Texas
Texas does not get beyond the 50-yard line in the entire first half as Oregon races to a 24-7 lead. Eddie Pleasant intercepts Colt McCoy on the Texas 27, and a 12-yard swing pass to the redeemed LeGarrette Blount gives Oregon the 31-10 advantage late in the third quarter. Texas responds with consecutive 80 yard drives to draw within seven, then recovers a LaMichael James fumble at the Oregon 18 with 2:11 left. But McCoy immediately tosses an interception, picked off by Spencer Paysinger, to cement the Ducks' 31-24 upset.

Jan. 4
at Toronto
International Bowl:
Temple (MAC, 9-3) vs. Connecticut (Big East, 7-5)
This game would be much better if it were Jim Calhoun and the Huskies back in the day facing John Chaney's Owls on the hardwood in Philadelphia. Instead, these two meet on a gridiron in Canada, with UConn winning 31-28.

at Mobile, Ala.
GMAC Bowl:
Ohio (MAC, 9-4) vs. Marshall (Conference USA, 6-6)
This game survives because of its MAC tie-in, but it had to drag over Marshall as a replacement, absent any ACC participant. Fortunately, it restores the Bobcats-Hundering Turd Thundering Herd rivalry. They last played in 2004, when both were members of the MAC. Marshall wins here, 31-24.

at San Antonio
Alamo Bowl:
Minnesota (Big 10, 6-6) vs. Missouri (Big XII, 8-4)
Another seesaw battle sees Minnesota upend favored Mizzou 35-31 with a 63-yard drive at the end of the game. The Tigers waste 330 yards from quarterback Blaine Gabbert, who also tosses two interceptions.

at Memphis, Tenn.
Liberty Bowl:
Houston (Conference USA, 10-3) vs. South Carolina (SEC, 7-5)
South Carolina's defense gets Houston down 17-0 early, but Case Keenum and the high-powered Cougars come storming back for a 45-34 win that isn't that close. Keenum tosses five touchdowns, two to Tyron Carrier, who also has 175 yards.

at Glendale, Ariz.
Fiesta Bowl:
No. 19 Stanford (Pac-10, 8-4) vs. No. 21 Oklahoma State (Big XII, 9-3)
As the wild card of the major bowls, the Fiesta schedules itself after New Year's Day, and picks Oklahoma State for proximity and Stanford for the star power of Heisman runner-up Toby Gerhart. The Cardinal lead 16-14 at halftime, but the Cowboys pull away for a 35-16 win. Gerhart gets 116 yards rushing but no touchdowns.

Jan. 9
NCAA Division I Football Championship
National Final
at San Diego, Calif.

(6) Oregon vs. (1) Alabama
Alabama punts on its first three possessions. Oregon scores on its first three, on the way to a 28-7 halftime lead. The Crimson Tide draw to 28-17 on a 70-yard punt return by Javier Arenas, but Oregon immediately answers with a 14-play drive covering 75 yards for the 35-17 advantage. Alabama scores again in the fourth quarter, but can't make the two point conversion, and its final drive dies on 4th-and-10 from the Oregon 14 with 2:05 to go.

The final is 35-23, and the first champion of the NCAA's first football tournament is the same as the champion of its first basketball tournament 70 years before: Oregon.

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

Let's recap. In a conference call with investors and analysts last week, Take-Two Interactive said its quarterly and fiscal year figures would be worse than expected, and called out just one current property in explaining why: Major League Baseball. (The delay of an upcoming Max Payne sequel also was cited.) 2K Sports' MLB titles also took the fall for a fourth quarter earnings decrease of 9 cents per share.

That this could happen to a publisher holding the exclusive MLB license for everything other than Sony's platforms raised a lot of schadenfreude in a community disappointed - at best - by what MLB 2K9 showed this year. Savaged in reviews, MLB 2K9 declined in sales as poor word of mouth spread while Sony's MLB The Show became the sport's standard bearer - on a single console - with a superbly received offering.

Of course a better quality game would help Take-Two's position - but only argumentatively, as it misses two key points: The first is that the bad news here is relative to Take-Two's internal numbers. In other words, this isn't about product quality. Take-Two was offering guidance to its shareholders based on what it knew about its titles, and MLB 2K9 has been out since March, with its reputation cemented well since then. Take-Two's projection wasn't likely built on some significant baseball comeback. It was depending on other things.

The second is that those internal figures have factored in a very large overhead number for several years - the exclusive pact Take-Two signed with Major League Baseball back in 2005, largely in response to EA Sports inking a deal to make its Madden title the only NFL game on the market.

So, taken together, it means the size of that deal, and Take-Two's inability to create commercially successful spinoffs to justify its cost - i.e. The Bigs 2 and Front Office Manager - are the fulcrum of the existential crisis facing MLB 2K10, not its poor gameplay reputation.

"They could try to cut corners on quality and marketing, but my guess is that they wouldn't save enough to offset the corresponding loss of sales" said Michael Pachter, the eminent financial analyst covering the games industry. "It's pretty clear that they signed an unprofitable deal, and they are stuck with it."

The Bigs 2 didn't do so badly, in an artistic sense. Released around the All-Star break it met with a generally favorable reception, commensurate with its predecessor. But as most know, good reviews by themselves don't make hot water come out the shower. "The first Bigs game did well, and they presumed incorrectly that the second would do better than the first," Pachter said. "When it didn't, they missed their earnings expectations."

Not helping anything was January's Front Office Manager, an unfortunately conceived offering that should certify that a console is just not the place for a numbers-dependent, behind-the-scenes sports sim. Unfortunately, it came right after EA Sports gave up on its NFL Head Coach series. So 2K Sports, put up to finding another baseball variant to pay the bills, again looked like a copycat fighting last year's war.

Pachter estimates Take-Two is on the hook for $40 million to MLB over the life of the deal, covering 2005 to 2012. "They can't generate enough profitable revenues from the baseball simulation game (MLB 2K) to cover the minimum, so they have tried brand extensions like MLB Manager and The Bigs to expand sales."

To me, it suggests that even a 90-rated MLB title for 2K Sports would still be in trouble this year. Sure, MLB The Show isn't, but it's not shouldering the kind of expectations for SCEA that MLB 2K is for Take-Two.

Face it, baseball is a less telegenic, less intense, less spectacular sport than not only football, but also basketball and hockey. Baseball's unique sales points are its long seasons, its record book and sentiments, and playoff suspense. Good luck translating any of those into video game qualities as compelling as football's hard-hitting desperation or basketball's fast-paced showtime, or anything about ice hockey, undoubtedly the most arcadelike of any team sport in the world.

"Take-Two made the mistake of thinking baseball was as big as NFL, FIFA or NBA," Pachter said. "I don't think any other publisher thought so, which led to Take-Two being stuck with ‘winner's remorse' when it won the bidding war for the MLB exclusive."

This doesn't necessarily portend that MLB 2K will be a title on life support for 2K10, 11 and 12. If Take-Two is looking to cut its losses, adventures like The Bigs and Front Office Manager will be the first to go, while they keep up appearances in the flagship product. (The Bigs' first title was in 2007, the second was ‘09, so maybe it would have skipped this year anyway.)

All this means that this year, more than any sports game has ever needed it in this console generation, MLB 2K10 needs a jaw-dropping comeback. It may not be enough to bail out Take-Two - stung by the loss of the NFL five years ago and stuck with the worst rebound hookup in the industry. But a lackluster showing in March will certify this franchise is in writeoff mode until the deal expires.

A conspiracy theorist might suggest Take-Two's poormouthing of its MLB titles is gamesmanship to open talks to reconfigure the deal, but let's be real. That's a huge contract, and Major League Baseball either has been paid, or will have to be paid a lot more - in a buyout or litigation - to get out of it.

"They can try all they want to get out of the deal with MLB, but a contract is a contract, and nothing short of bankruptcy will get them out of the deal," Pachter said. "Since they aren't likely to go bankrupt any time soon, they are stuck with the terms of the deal they signed. It's really no different than a professional sports team signing a big name athlete who underperforms. They're stuck with the contract regardless."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

Sports sims' increasing complexity and granular game management decisions can be off-putting, even intimidating, to players who just want to wing the ball down the sidelines or blitz the QB. Sometimes even diehards want to play a game without turning it into a film session on Edge NFL Matchup. But stripping a sport down to just its fun parts is risky in its own right. Like, is it still fun?

Loved
Pick Up and Play: Despite its limitations (below) Madden NFL Arcade does a good job of luring you back in for just one more game. The singleplayer games go quickly (although, some multiplayer contests were epic in length), they have all the boring stuff stripped out, and the singleplayer achievements are challenging enough to keep you trying. Even now, I've got 15 minutes to kill before I have to make a phone call and I'm thinking about taking the Patriots out to kick the Browns' ass. Or vice versa. In singleplayer, the ratings are not so overbearing that you can't win with the Lions or Redskins, if they're your favorite teams (and God help you if they are, but that's beside the point.) Online, you'll have to resort to cheese and dirty tricks to win with lesser teams, but that's in real Madden too. Bottom line, Madden NFL Arcade is video game potato chips; even if they aren't my favorite flavor, put a bowl in front of me and I'm a-scarfin'.

Hated
Lack of Variety: Madden NFL Arcade succeeds at delivering a uncomplicated shootout-style football game akin to what you play in the backyard, but doesn't go much further than that. While I don't need a full playbook, two sets of passing routes per play is not enough, and the deep pass fly patterns are too easily defended. The game just begs for hot routes or an audible to a basic run or pass. Just give me one play I can put in at the line of scrimmage. The cartoony players are built on three body types, some looking a little out of character. Colts safety Bob Sanders (5-8, 206) gets a linebacker's tank body but Ravens safety Ed Reed (5-11, 200) looks like Merton Hanks, giraffe-neck and all. The game-changers are a nice touch but two of them, which do nothing more than slow down or speed up the players, are unimaginative, mostly useless, sometimes even helpful to the offense if called by a defense. The rosters, ratings and team attributes are all built on beginning-0f-the-year models from the full Madden title, so Cincinnati, a division leader in real life, is a weak team in the game. Finally, the game begs for stats. Somewhere, even if it's just a boxscore. If this game's supposed to inspire trash talk, stats - beyond your multiplayer win-loss - are necessary.

Game Changers: I wanted to like these, but the gimmick really under-delivers. I won more with playcalling and execution than I did doing things like freezing a defender (or receiver), turning off someone's passing icons or assuring their ballcarrier fumbles when he's hit. The game randomly selects a game-changer cheat for you each play (or gives you nothing), which you may hold over until you really need it (the extra-play for fourth down, for example). You don't get a changer on every down, which is good, but the rotation over-seeds the more useless ones, doesn't bring up bona fide game changers often enough, and the ones that are valuable are useful only in very specific situations (fourth down, or inside the red zone for "make-it take-it.") You can turn the game changers on or off; I would have liked greater control over how many and what quality you get. Sure, against a computer, you don't want to flipflop the score every other down, but among friends, bombing each other with douche moves would add some good-natured spite and revenge to the bragging-rights contest.

Madden NFL Arcade is not boring but it does come off a little bland at times. You've got cartoon players performing the same animations of the real-world sim, for example, and it could really benefit from a little more zaniness, especially in the hitting. For those who want to play some chuck-and-duck football without setting aside time for an hourlong game or learning the finer points of an offense, it'll satisfy your gridiron cravings. Potato chips are a snack; a cupcake is a treat. Madden NFL Arcade is a football snack.

Madden NFL Arcade was developed by EA Sports and published by Electronic Arts for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on Nov. 25. Retails for 1200 Microsoft Points on Xbox Live Marketplace, $14.99 on PlayStation Network. A copy of the game was given to us by the publisher for reviewing purposes. Played about three dozen games, single and multiplayer, on varying difficulty settings using multiple NFL teams. Shut out the Patriots with the Lions. OK, that one was on rookie difficulty.

Confused by our reviews? Read our review FAQ.

"A lot of people have been demanding this in a video game for a very long time," said Carlo Sunseri, 25, a former midfielder for Robert Morris University. "But the market simply isn't that big yet. It's just not possible to do a full blown multimillion dollar game for lacrosse."

But that didn't mean Sunseri couldn't publish a full-blown lacrosse video game for about a multimillion dollars less. Inside Lacrosse College Lacrosse 2010 - hey, the game has a title sponsor, is that bigtime enough for you? - hit the Xbox Live Indie Games channel two weeks ago, a rarity even among that service's eclectic title selection. The game offers a full-featured sports simulation, with a season mode, roster customization and live human announcer, largely what you'd expect in Madden or NBA 2K10 if, you know, either were about lacrosse.

Through the years, a lacrosse video game has often been a why-don't-they-do-that topic in publications or message boards devoted to the sport, Sunseri said. "If you look on the Internet there's always petitions, forums full of kids screaming for a lacrosse video game," he said. Microsoft's rollout of the Indie Games channel last year seemed to be the best shot for such a thing to happen. Sunseri went to work, writing up a business plan built on game sales as well as in-game advertising. It was enough to get a loan, and enough to get him to step down from his coaching gig at his Pittsburgh-area alma mater, forming Crosse Studios to handle the project=

Sunseri needed a developer, of course. For that, he turned to Fritz Ackerley, a 14-year veteran of the games business whose Triple B Studios had recently published the Indie Channel hit Fitba, a soccer simulation. Sunseri figured Fitba's engine could be the foundation for a lacrosse game and he was right, with just one catch: Ackerly knew absolutely nothing about lacrosse.

But, "I've done Formula 1 games and I don't know what like to drive F1 car," Ackerley said. "I've worked on World War II shooters; I don't know what it's like to shoot someone in World War II. So you just have to get the feel for what the sport is about, and Carlo would fill me in on things I had not seen."

Sunseri sent Ackerley video of old lacrosse matches to demonstrate the game's flow, positioning, and concepts such as "forming the L," the game's fast-break offense formation. Passing was built on Fitba's mechanics, as it was a game touted for allowing player motion in one line with passes going along another, something critically important to lacrosse realism.

Shooting was assigned to the right analog stick to allow for more complex shot placement, a demand Sunseri got from potential gamers thanks to buying up ads on Facebook that pointed lacrosse fans to surveys. The surveys alone point to the sport's strong following; Sunseri boasted of clickthroughs topping 80 percent. A Facebook page for the game presently has more than 50,000 fans.

As Ackerley worked on the game, Sunseri pursued sponsorships for it, securing the title endorsement of Inside Lacrosse, the leading publication covering the sport, and other deals from sporting goods makers and sellers.

Players were hand-rendered by animator Joseph Daniels and brought into the game. Sunseri couldn't get collegiate or professional licensing, and had to make the game's 40 teams from scratch without emulating any existing club. His girlfriend consulted on much of the style and color choices.

Originally Sunseri figured on offering the game for $10, with college and professional indoor-rules variations, but he and Ackerley decided late in the development cycle to limit this version to a collegiate outdoor format, name it College Lacrosse 2010, and halve the price to $5. When it released in November, Sunseri held his breath. But Inside Lacrosse College Lacrosse 2010 clocked 40,000 trial downloads in its first two weeks, and today is in the top 5 among highest-rated and downloaded indie games.

It might be too early to declare financial success - Sunseri demurred when asked for development costs or sales figures - but when it comes to evangelizing for the game he loves, College Lacrosse 2010 is a hit,.

"I think the game has the potential to push lacrosse more into the mainstream," Sunseri said. "You look at the youth numbers, they're exploding. It's kind of at a tipping point now, and I hope through video games we can push it over the top, and start getting everyone to notice the game of lacrosse."

Sunseri said work's already begun on a successor version - the professional-rules version, which is played indoor and has different scoring options, is due for January he said. After that he hopes to have a college lacrosse 2011 sequel out around the time of the NCAA lacrosse finals, contested in late May.

"It's amazing, the opportunity Microsoft's built for indie developers here," Sunseri said. ‘I remember back when they announced it. I was still in college, and they said, ‘We're going to be doing the YouTube of video games.

"I said back then it would be perfect for doing a lacrosse video game, finally," he said, "and it ended up working out."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

But that's also the role Evan Longoria, the newly minted Silver Slugger and Gold Glover from Tampa Bay, takes on as the cover man for MLB 2K10, an endorsement announced this past week.

A cynic might view the selection of Longoria - a third-year player from a small-market franchise - as a budget choice for 2K this year, especially in light of MLB 2K9's underachieving performance last year with a Cy Young award winner (San Francisco's Tim Lincecum) headlining it. Longoria on MLB 2K10 is also well overshadowed compared with NBA 2K10 and NHL 2K10, which landed Kobe Bryant and Alexander Ovechkin, easily the top stars of their respective leagues.

But Chris Snyder, 2K Sports' director of marketing, insists the title wasn't settling when it signed Longoria. His team starts looking for the MLB cover man about two months into the season, meets with a pool of candidates at the All-Star Game, and bases the choice on his willingness to contribute to the game, not just its promotion.

"If Albert Pujols or A-Rod want to be in a video game, and give us that kind of time commitment, certainly we'd listen," said Snyder. "It's not that younger players have more time, it's more about them seeing video games as an avenue to promote themselves and their teams, and to be a part of something cool."

Longoria, who goes back to Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball on the Super Nintendo, is part of a generation of sports superstars now in its middle- and late-20s that has been playing modern, 3D sports simulations since at least their teenage years. It's a perspective that brings an innate enthusiasm for the product.

"Whatever I can do to further the realness and the gameplay - as far as things like the data, or the way I step in and out of the batter's box - any kind of input I can provide, I might not ever get this opportunity again," Longoria said.

Increasingly, we're seeing this kind of athlete input. An aside comment from Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals gave NHL 2K10 its "Is Party Now," marketing slogan. Although he wasn't the cover athlete, Edmonton's Zack Stortini consulted with EA Sports' NHL 10 on its new first-person fighting mechanic, and also the finer points of how physical play can be a tactic affecting team morale. Top mixed-martial arts fighters have also visited EA to weigh in on early builds of EA Sports MMA, sometimes with hilarious results.

And although, yes, the majority of a purchase decision will be for the game inside the box, it's why the person appearing on its front is in fact a consequential decision, Snyder said.

"It does matter, not so much for the star quality of the athlete, but what they bring to the table in making the game better," Snyder said.

Fair point. But clearly, Bryant was tabbed for NBA 2K10 - the centerpiece of 2K's sports catalog for going on five years now - as a statement about that game's excellence in the studio's 10th anniversary year. What statement does Longoria make about MLB 2K10?

"It's not so much a message about Evan and the game inside," Snyder concedes. "We start working on 2K10 immediately after 2K9 comes out, and we don't have the cover athlete locked and loaded. But our goal is still to put out the best game possible."

Still, Longoria's announcement is the first public detail about this year's game, and many peoples' assumptions are still built on last year's. "We know MLB 2K9 wasn't a 90-rated game," Snyder says, "but hopefully this shows that we are taking the necessary steps to repair that, and put out a product people are proud to plunk down their dollars for, and for Evan to have his face on."

Longoria's role will be largely advisory, the game-within-a-game rather than the fundamentals of how it is played. "This game's 10 years old now, and every baseball game has catch the ball, hit the ball, throw the ball," Longoria said. So he'll be consulting on subtler aspects - individual matchups, his tendencies and others', how a hitter might guess the next pitch and jump all over it. It's one thing to be standing at third base and see a hunch play out; seeing a video game conform to those expectations is a surefire sign of quality.

"From a major league baseball player's standpoint, that's what really furthers the game for us," Longoria said. "We're fans of video games, we play them, too."

As an example, in his meetings with 2K Sports so far, Longoria's been asked about the tendencies of pitchers he's done well against, and seen those who have given him trouble in real life - such as New York's Andy Pettite - and judged their in-game difficulty.

Snyder said Longoria rose out of "a stable of guys" the team works with throughout the years in a role that is part consultation, part audition. Longoria also worked with 2K through a local GameStop tournament last year, helping his candidacy.

Snyder wouldn't name any of the other ballplayers in the consulting pool when I asked, but did say they were there because of their willingness to contribute. "We touch base with these guys throughout the season, picking their brains on baseball, asking them if they would be willing and able to jump in and help critique the game, and tell us what he'd like to see changed," Snyder said. "When you've got an athlete willing to lend time and expertise, that's a big deal."

But in the end, to be on the cover of this kind of product is primarily an honor. Longoria mused that his career is still young enough that its highlights - a World Series appearance in 2008 and two All-Star selections among them - are only starting to sink in. The significance of a video game cover likely won't strike him until "maybe a 10-year-old kid brings a 2K sports box down to the field for me to sign."

And he went to lengths to reflect his success here back to his teammates, and to Rays lifer Carl Crawford in particular.

"Carl's played his whole career in Tampa Bay, and he's been a part of some really bad teams," Longoria said. "If there was one other guy to have on the cover with me, it would be him. I feel like I stepped into an organization that was ready, ready to do nothing but go up. The year that I had (in 2008) and going to the World Series, it propelled me and a lot of guys who've been really good players into the spotlight. I think Carl has been one of the best players in the major leagues for seven years now. But he didn't have this opportunity, and it's just thanks to him and to the team for me being in this position."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

Ten days ago Kotaku obtained and published a confidential marketing survey showing that Longoria, the 2008 American League Rookie of the Year, was 2K's choice. Today's announcement confirms the decision but also shows the covers leaked out were mock-ups and not at all the final design.

"Being on the cover, right now, it's a process, and we're working on the game and trying to get things going, we're focused on bringing out the best in it." Longoria told Kotaku today. "I won't get to step back and really appreciate this until down the line, when maybe a 10-year-old kid brings a 2K Sports box to the field and asks me to sign it. Then it'll hit me."

Longoria's selection is somewhat of a departure for the series; from 2002 to 2008, its cover athletes were all New York players, including the Yankees' then-first baseman Jason Giambi, and Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter three consecutive times each. Last year's cover athlete was Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants, still a large-market franchise in close proximity to 2K's Marin studio.

In Longoria, MLB 2K10 is selecting an up-and-comer from one of baseball's smaller market clubs - albeit one that stunned bigger spenders in 2008 to win its division and the American League pennant. Longoria has been selected to the AL All-Star team in both of his first two years in the league, and two weeks ago picked up his first Gold Glove award.

His role is not purely promotional; Longoria, an avowed sports gamer going back to Ken Griffey Jr. Major League Baseball on the Super Nintendo, will consult on the game's development and work on components such as its situational authenticity.

"When we met with Evan at the (2009) All-Star Game, we hadn't gotten to the short list about who we wanted on the cover," said Chris Snyder, the 2K Sports director of marketing. "When we met with him, he said he loved the (MLB 2K9) commercial with Tim Lincecum, but he said, 'You know, in it, I hit this home run and Torii Hunter robs me. Can we maybe cut back on that a little?' He was joking, but we caught notice of the fact that he paid close attention to detail, that he saw it was him in the footage int was Torii who robbed him."

Below is a gallery of all the cover options. Don't vote on them here in our comments; head over to the 2K Sports official site if you want to be heard. The game is scheduled for a March 2010 release.

Sports Authority president David Campisi says that the Colorado company, which operated about 450 stores, has been working on the deal for about half a year, but that he was interested in selling the fitness-themed games since Wii Fit first hit stores in 2008.

"This is about getting the nation fit," Campisi told Kotaku. "This could be really, really game changing."

The chain started a soft roll-out of the Wii Fit Experience earlier this month with 102 stores selling the Wii, Wii Fit, Wii Fit Plus, accessories and other sports and fitness-themed games, Campisi said. The experience is set up along side the chain's more traditional exercise equipment like weights and treadmills.

"On Saturday I had people from 30 stores sending me pictures of kids on the Wii Fit board all day," he said.

The official announcement of Sports Authority's deal with Nintendo to sell their console and games will come this Thursday with the help of fitness expert Jillian Michaels, star of The Biggest Loser and her own Wii game Wii Fitness Ultimatum.

Campisi says that Thursday's event at their Torrance, California store will include more than 100 Wii boards and an attempt to host the world's largest Wii Fit Plus workout.

"In our fitness departments we carry a lot of equipment," Campisi said. "There are many, many ways to get fit and exercise, this is just one additional opportunity."

In that image you can see the four different designs survey takers were asked to consider. All have the 2K Sports 10th Anniversary branding which has graced the boxes of NHL 2K10 and NBA 2K10. This tipster sent us other screenshots - including one of the NDA (which of course the tipster broke by sending this) so I'm inclined to believe this is real.

Update: Another reader points out that the top two boxcover examples appear to be taken from Longoria's appearance on the cover of the May 18 edition of ESPN the Magazine. Based on additional screenshots and other information we have, I still believe this is a real survey, even if the top two examples are not original box art. As I wrote earlier, it's not confirmation of the official cover athlete or the box's final design. But asking survey takers how the box cover makes them feel about purchasing the game is a strong indication 2K Sports has settled on its man.

Second Update: The company responsible for administering this survey for 2K Sports complained to Kotaku and Gawker Media about this leak, and asked that the post be taken down. While we respectfully decline, we view such communication as confirmation that the survey and its subject are real.

Longoria is a two-time all star in as many seasons in the league and was the 2008 rookie of the year on a Devil (whoopsie!) Rays team that won the American League pennant. He just picked up his first Gold Glove.

That would be ESPN NFL 2K5, the last and best of an uncommonly good crop of football games in the first half of the decade and, perhaps not coincidentally, the last one before EA Sports inked its exclusive license with the National Football League. Certainly, the stupefyingly good value 2K5 delivered on an unheard-of $19.99 price tag moved the needle on its high regard. But reviews of the game still said things like "the best-looking football game ever made," and "the most entertaining show in video game football."

This coming week will see the last glut of AAA releases in the autumn sales cycle, and then it will be on to the question of Game of the Year. Sports titles are like the offensive lineman in modern Heisman voting. Just being mentioned would be honor enough, because the prize is completely inaccessible to your class of performer.

Maybe 2K5 did the best of any sports game, judged among others, in its year. It's impossible to say definitively. I dialed up Brandon Justice, a producer on the 2K5 team to ask him where that game fit in the larger context of 2004's top titles. Five years later, you can still hear the pride when quotes the game's feature set, as if he was back on the team going head-to-head with the Madden franchise.

"People are out there, today, talking about whether Madden 10 is overall a better product (than 2K5)," said Justice, who later worked on Madden and now is the director of design for Quick Hit Football (profiled Sept. 19.) "Five years later. They're just now doing features that 2K5 did first - and not doing them as well. They now have online franchises; we had that mode. We had SportsCenter presentation with a highlight reel; they're just now doing that kind of thing."

But the feature-packed game wasn't put out there to take home a statue, Justice said. It's not to say that is the sole motivation of any past game of the year, but such artistic recognition is at least in the mix for your typical AAA adventure. Not so with sports titles, which seek a more product-oriented recognition, Justice said.

"Ironically enough, trophies matter little to the sports crowd," he said. It's very much focused on sales and beating direct competition where it exists. "Our main mission in 2K was to beat Madden's score. Whether it wins sports game of the year or not, Madden's still going to sell millions of units every year. More than anything else we just wanted to make a good sports game. And having worked on the Madden team as well, those guys have the same spirit. You want to crush the competition, and make the best product out there."

In 2004, NFL 2K5 couldn't afford to think about taking on Half-Life 2, Halo 2 or Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. That year's Madden also went out to wide acclaim; just beating it would take best-in-class effort.

But it's also a little pointless, Justice said, for a sports game to shoot for anything outside best-in-class accolades. A former games writer himself, Justice said the criticism operations of major opinion leaders just aren't set up to give sports titles the same exposure as shooters, RPGs and other traditional genres.

"Every magazine I've worked for, they have a sports guy," he said. And, working for IGN, he remembers plenty of sports copy being handed off to freelancers. "Everybody plays Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, Fallout, Gears of War, but you really have to find someone who's into baseball games, and then he always reviews it." Inevitably, when that outfit polls its staff for game of the year, few voices speak up for a sports game because few have played them.

"You've got one or two voices voting for a sports game," Justice said. "A lot of time it's a question of volume."

Could a sports title ever win Game of the Year? My gut feeling says the opportunity has passed. Criticism of video games is increasingly considerate of a game's narrative, and a sports simulation fundamentally has none. And sports deal with creative limitations specific to existing rules of a game, plus the veto authority of a licensor who may not buy into daring creativity.

David Littman, a producer on EA Sports' NHL title - taking 19 different sports game of the year awards in 2007 and 2008 - points out another basic limitation of sports games. "These big action games have huge worlds to explore, while sports games take place mainly inside a confined stadium," he told me.

Plus, he said wryly, "Sports games don't have guns. People seem to like guns."

True. Shooters also don't have to outdo themselves every year, lest they be branded as just a prettied-up roster update. The innovations in a sports game, year-to-year, may seem small, but comparing versions three years apart, the way one would Halo 3 to Halo 2, or Grand Theft Auto IV to San Andreas, and maybe a sports title's advancement would look more profound.

"NHL 10 and FIFA 10 are two of the highest-rated sports games ever on this console generation, but FIFA 09 and NHL 09 were also among the highest scores," he said.

Littman's right. This year FIFA 10 and MLB 09 The Show became the first sports titles in the current console generation to post a Metacritic score of 90 or better. (NHL 09 and 10 both got 88.) From 2000 to 2004, every single Madden and 2K football title on every console got at least a 90.

But it's not to say that we'll never see a truly revolutionary sports game again, or that when it does come, its excellence will go unrecognized. There's no way NFL 2K5 could have won Game of the Year five years ago. But it still enjoys a fame that's outlived those that did.

"Do you really think, five years from now, you're gonna hear ‘Is Grand Theft Auto on PlayStation 4 as good as Grand Theft Auto on PlayStation 3? Will Halo 6 people really say, ‘Is this as good as Halo 1?'" Justice muses. "I don't think so."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

Having gone undefeated through 10 games, the Broncos (not a user-controlled team in this dynasty) reached the BCS Top 4, striking distance of Florida, Oklahoma (with an uninjured Sam Bradford) and Alabama. The week 12 standings were strongly analogous to present day standings, absent TCU and Cincinnati, both undefeated in the real world.

And then Boise fell at home to Nevada, tumbling far out of both voting polls' top 10, and to 12th in the BCS. The machine held the lesser-conference team to the same double-standard as the human voters, who have matched one-loss teams from the major conferences in the previous two title games. Further, Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore (sorry, "QB #11") who had led the Heisman voting to that point, bottomed out to third in the final tally. Finally, a two-loss Oregon (to Boise and to Utah) leapfrogged the Broncos, as many expect the real-life one-loss Ducks will do once pollsters realize their votes will affect on a national title and major bowl bids.

The plausibility of all this is not just dumb luck. Games in November always bring into sharp focus just how American college football's poll-driven, playoff-less season and postseason is the most meritless selection of a team champion in the entire world. And yet NCAA Football 10, unlike any other sports simulation, has the responsibility to simulate the same purely subjective conditions, which aren't just the subplots of a season, they are the season itself.

"With sports there is always going to be controversy," said Kendall Boyd, a senior product manager for NCAA Football 10. "We do our best to make sure we have a little drama, but also ensure the integrity of the current system."

As college football, with seven unbeaten teams, lurches toward another inevitable matchmaking controversy, this week I tugged on EA Sports' shirttail, asking how they build a game that, if it mirrors reality, should also screw some deserving team out of a title shot every year. Boyd didn't answer that question head on, and I really can't blame him - the hypercriticized Bowl Championship Series is one of the game's biggest licensors, after all, and it's not doing so to be held up to ridicule or split polls in virtual reality, too. But he did shed light on how NCAA Football incorporates reputation into its team and individual performances.

"The biggest factor of our ‘human element' is leveraged against your conference's prestige," Boyd said. "If you play in a BCS conference, you're going to move up the rankings a lot easier than a smaller conference school would."

Conference prestige - this is different from the six-star rating each program has in NCAA 10 - comes most into play in the game's simulated coaches' poll, the human factor most driving the game's BCS rating. The coaches' poll routinely favors programs from the major conferences, as 33 of 59 voters in this year's poll represent, and still others have previous experience with them.

Boyd said that once the season gets moving, "our media and coaches' poll are very similar." NCAA 10's media poll is, of course, analagous to the AP Top 25, which asked out of the BCS formula five years ago but remains an influential measure for judging the biggest matchups week to week.

"The previous week's rating is evaluated," Boyd said, "and then the following factors are brought in: score versus opponent that week; was it a game on the road? What was the ranking on our ‘Toughest Places to Play' poll versus the opponent you played, if it was road game? And then finally, the separation between the two is simple percentages, so we have a disparity between them."

The game's BCS computation comes into play in Week 8, the same as it does in real life, but it is not a strict replication of the actual matrix. For one thing, the Harris Interactive Poll, which serves as the second human poll in the BCS formula, isn't a factor all that distinct from the game's media poll. And the six indices - with names like Colley, Sagarin, Wolfe and Massey - that form the ranking's computer average are not used in NCAA 10, Boyd said, even though their formulae are public. "We do make it equally interesting," Boyd said. "Without giving too much away, we combine the media and coaches' poll and then add in other variables, such as strength of schedule."

Such as? "Quality wins and losses are a big factor. Losing to a bad team will definitely have a severe impact on the rankings in our game." Also, timing is a key factor, just like real life. "In our game, it's better to lose early than lose late," Boyd said. "If you were to lose in the first few weeks of the season to a strong opponent, you will naturally move up the rankings as long as you continue to win."

The biggest question I had is whether NCAA 10 internally gooses the polling to help out a user-controlled team, in the name of a more fun video game for the person who bought it. Because in more than six years of playing console sports sims, few experiences have been more gratifying than taking over a two-star doormat, storming the Top 10, and getting that "Where'd They Come From?!" headline in the next week's NCAA news.

Answer: No. "We want it to be an even playing field," Boyd said. If you manage to take Temple to the Orange Bowl, you came by it honest. "I believe most of the ways we evaluate the teams would be affected if we skewed it toward the human-controlled teams," he added.

Nor is the voting skewed toward user-controlled players in the game's Heisman Trophy simulation. However, "We do have a special circumstance for potential upsets in the voting to keep it dynamic, for a twist," Boyd said, "but we don't want to disclose the formula, to help keep the intrigue. But this is equal among human controlled and CPU teams."

NCAA 10's Heisman voting likewise reflects the values of its real-world counterpart. It typically goes to quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers, although I have seen offensive tackles and defensive backs get mentioned week-to-week, as they sometimes are in real life.

Significantly, Boyd said that the stats or results of a simulated game in a dynasty carry no additional weight, positive or negative, in the game's Heisman voting. And while it's easier to load up arcade numbers against creampuffs, he said a surer path is to take on tough teams on the road and log credible performances that contribute to a win there.

And no, Boyd said, there is no East Coast Media Bias helping players or teams from that region, in either the polls or the Heisman sims.

After our conversation, I went back into NCAA 10 to try to test out what Boyd had to say. I ran another simulation pitting Boise State versus a much tougher nonconference schedule this year. The Broncos went 8-3, losing to Oregon at home and Alabama and Texas in Tuscaloosa and Austin. Boise still ended the season at No. 11 - remarkably, the highest-rated three loss team in the nation, although all of the defeats came early. In fact, 11 is an uncommonly high rating for any three-loss team, let alone one from the WAC. Strength of schedule, with two Top-5 games on the road early in the season, clearly was in play here.

But it was impossible not to notice that a lesser team, North Carolina - whose football ranking I've long said is propped up by the school's basketball reputation and the votes of people who wish they went there - had hit No. 2 by the end of the regular season on a schedule as weak as the last swallow in a 2-liter of Cheerwine. And that literally raised up the old State alum anger in me, seeing the despised Tar Heels exalted by a system that would never ever give the Wolfpack the same benefit of the doubt, which is pretty much how we think about things in real life, too.

But then in the conference title game, Carolina suffered the kind of crushing loss that is so common to arriviste college football programs - 28-13 to Clemson, the ACC's original football power, booting UNC back to a lesser bowl, the Gator. And I threw a fist and roared with delight at, again, the true-to-life fidelity of NCAA 10.

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

"You hear that," Dougan, a producer in EA Sports' Vancouver studio, said after humming the tune "and wow - that is college basketball."

EA's college hoops title, even though it's in the second year of a competition-free, exclusive license arrangement, is taking a huge bite with this year's presentation. Full broadcast immersion - the package of real network announcers, graphics and music - has been on a sports gamer's wish list for a long time in many titles. NCAA Basketball 10 will be the first to dip its toe in the deep end of those expectations not once, but twice this year, presenting its games in the broadcast style of CBS and ESPN.

In season mode, "if your team is that good," of course, says Dougan, your weekday games will be broadcast with ESPN's Brad Nessler and Dick Vitale, using that network's signature key graphics, screen wipes, and music. Play on Saturday or Sunday, and maybe you're the over-the-air national game on CBS - called by Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery, with that network's visual package.

It gets better. If, say, you're North Carolina, playing down in the Maui Invitational, ESPN has the rights to that tournament in real life, and it'll be presented as such in this game. In the conference tournaments, you know how sometimes the broadcasts trade hands? For example, the SEC's semifinals are on ESPN but the finals are on CBS? NCAA Basketball 10 will switch accordingly. "We wouldn't be able to get approval otherwise," Dougan said, "and we wanted to do our best to make our broadcast partners happy."

It is a hell of a stab at sports immersion, taking on the guise of two real-world networks where no game has fully rendered one before. It's even ballsier considering there's no competing title, and that the Johnson-Raftery team not only had to come in to build that audio library from scratch, but the game will end up competing with itself as both will be measured against Nessler and Vitale's experience and deeper soundfile.

"To do one network's broadcast package is hard enough, and we had to do it well," Dougan said. "We're not going to be the first ones to do it for EA Sports and not nail it. We don't have that option. And here we decided to do two."

Creating the graphics wasn't as simple as dialing up a point of contact in Bristol, Conn. or New York, and asking for the network's files. "The way their systems work, their art doesn't translate well for us," Dougan said. "So we had to recreate it, based on references provided by them, or we just got it off tape. That's the overlays, the popups, the 3D screen wipes you see when they cut to a replay or the guy at the foul line."

Those wipes are both unique, not only in visual content, but in the space and time they take up on the screen. Keep in mind they're branded with the logo of the team in the game. And there are more than 300 in NCAA's Division I.

"And every broadcast package has multiple size logos. And then you have to times that by two," Dougan said. "It was a nasty challenge."

It gets so pointilistic, Dougan said, when a player comes to the line in a national broadcast, the networks usually throw up his vital stats, which include his college major. NCAA Basketball 10 had to build in a randomizer to give players a major for just such a presentation. "We've got the guys in there who are communications, or undeclared. We've got biology, performing arts," Dougan said, chuckling. (If you create a player, he will get a major but it'll be assigned by the game, you don't get to pick it.)

When tournament time comes, Dougan said, the graphics will incorporate bracket progression and other tournament specific details, entirely done in the branding of CBS, the Final Four network since 1982. And that ...

Well, that brings up the number one question:

"No, it's not in the game," Dougan said. "We do not have ‘One Shining Moment.' "

The misty-eyed melody CBS always plays at the end of the championship game, to a reel of the tournament's best highlights, is the one iconic feature of March Madness not present in this build.

"That's something we really wanted to do, but you'd be surprised how much the dude wants - or how much that song actually costs," Dougan said. "But yes, what would be the ultimate, is if we had a video highlight montage with that song."

I asked if this broadcast immersion was a proof of concept for other EA Sports titles; Dougan didn't want to speak to what other EA Sports teams were doing (though they do work together EA Tiburon helped out with the Lucas Oil Stadum build, the site of this year's Final Four in Indianapolis.)

But he made clear that, even though 2K Sports is no longer a competitor in college basketball, it doesn't mean College Basketball 2K10 has no competition. It is the last major sports title to release before the holiday season, when gift givers are considering not only which sports game to buy, but which game overall.

"You look at where we are, NCAA Basketball isn't as popular as, say, Madden," Dougan said. "But we're still competing with it. We're competing with other sports video games, or even Call of Duty. If someone only has $60 to spend on one video game, we need to give them something that's going to drive a purchase."

The double-broadcast package was arduous - taking up 60 percent of the development cycle, he guessed. But it was worth it.

"This is something we need to provide people, in order to grow our game and market."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

It looks like this video (NSFW language), posted by Infinity Ward, just went up. I'm not sure if Hamels is one of the celeb voices in the game or if they're just being timely with his appearance in the World Series (pitching Game Three tomorrow, no less). That is his voice however. And he tosses in a "what the fuck" for good measure, I guess because Chase Utley wasn't available.

Fighting Against Grenade Spam PSA [YouTube]

Pasta Padre, on the ball as ever, speculates "no." Even though we're about four months away from the game's typical release date, "from a public relations standpoint 2K cannot feature Phillips in the game," he says, and I agree. Phillips is a recidivist philanderer, and the latest ESPN scandal is top-of-mind for baseball fans. If his only television appearance in 2010 is on a gaming console, it makes his dismissal more conspicuous by half, and it's 2K's problem to manage, not ESPN's.

Problem is, what can 2K do about it? It's one thing to not give Phillips any extra work. But his dialogue library is already in the game. To remove him entirely at this stage? Wow. Especially - as Padre correctly notes - Phillips' contribution was one of the few positives in last year's poorly received title.

Right now it is 11:30 U.S. Mountain time, so I don't expect this to be answered, but I have emailed 2K Sports to see if they want to swing at this. If they answer, it'll likely be updated in a new post tomorrow.

It's almost impossible to imagine that hanky panky in Bristol, Conn.. could actually send a game in Novato, Calif., down the toilet. But this is not a welcome development for them, either.

Steve Phillips News Affects MLB 2K10 [Pasta Padre]

New stadium construction is not just a problem knotting up state legislatures and city councils. Any sports title developer - any that presents its game as a true-to-life simulation, anyway - must also cope with changes of venue. In the current console generation, baseball has seen this more often than its counterpart team sports in North America, adding five new parks since 2005. The NFL has seen three and the NBA and NHL one each in the same span, and none of those sports' on-field play involve park dimensions in the way that baseball necessarily does.

A new stadium takes up roughly 60 megabytes of space on a game disc, but building one takes nearly four months of work, according to Shawn Robles, the lead environment artist, and Jody Kelsey, the senior producer, for Sony's MLB The Show franchise. Their studio began preparing for an in-game version of Target Field as soon as they knew it was being built - ground was broken in August 2007 - but the bulk of their construction will come in this game's development cycle, as construction on the stadium nears completion. Only, MLB 10 The Show must arrive in March, more than a month before the first pitch is thrown in real-life Minneapolis.

"There's lots of different material that we use when we build our stadiums," Kelsey and Robles said by email. "We always look to obtain blueprints from the MLB team, but we do plenty of research on our own using video from games played at the ballparks, along with going to the ballparks to take detailed photographs.

"We started doing research as soon as we heard about Target Field," they said. "Most of the early research was done on the Internet, trying to find artist sketches of the new stadium. By the time we were ready to start with the modeling, we were provided with the blueprints."

Kelsey and Robles' team had practice with this over the past two years with the new Yankee Stadium and the Mets' Citi Field, both of which opened this year, and both of which had to be rendered accurately in a game releasing one month before even the first exhibition pitch was thrown. You can see the team's work in these two videos released in January; the parks opened in April.

The video they've used of Target Field and other sites doesn't come from game footage of course. In Minneapolis' case, it's come from a construction webcam posted on the team's official site. And for whatever they can't piece together with blueprints, official dimensions, or cam footage, an on-site visit covers the rest of the bases.

"As we walk through the stadiums, we take a general sweep of the entire stadium from various views along the warning track," Robles and Kelsey wrote. "This gives us a good understanding of how the stadium should look from various areas of the field. From there, we go level-by-level, taking distance shots and close-up shots of the entire stadium."

I was curious just how exacting the in-person visit gets. Does the development crew bust out the survey equipment? Not for the entire venue, they say.

"There are two areas we measure; the bullpens and the dugouts," the devs wrote. "Wall heights and distances are published on the club website."

Taking specific measurements there make sense; dugouts and pens are in play - at least as far as home runs or foul flies and overthrown balls are concerned. A ball in play that reaches the other unmeasured areas of the park, beyond the known playing borders, will likely be a batted ball demonstrably fair or foul.

But that doesn't mean the surrounding confines can be a grandstand shell with a centerfield scoreboard and some major league branding. Even for a new stadium, seamheads are going to notice the little things - pennant and retired number locations, available advertising spaces, and especially late-afternoon shadows - which will return to Minnesota for the first time in 27 years now that the Twins have moved to an outdoor stadium.

While some environmental factors can be controlled, for an unopened park others either have to be hashed out in an approval process or just left unknown for the time being. That said, "All of our stadiums do go through an approval process with MLB before the game gets approved," Robles and Kelsey said. "Anything we have the rights to use, we try to incorporate as accurately as possible."

The four months of manpower it takes to build a single stadium is, of course, a significant commitment to a game with a 12-month development cycle. But while a year that sees a new field does place a priority on its inclusion, "that doesn't mean we abandon our other stadiums," the developers say. Moreover, once a venue is finished doesn't mean the tinkering stops. Additional park factors, dimensions and features, once they become known, will be incorporated in future versions of the game.

"We continue to try to make our current staidums better each year by updating any changes that may have taken place," say Robles and Kelsey. "Along with stadium upgrades, we will be adding new stadiums for use by our triple- and double-A minor league teams."

Then there's the question of what to do with the old stadium - in virtual space. Increasingly, these old venues have a useless currency, as professional U.S. teams move into sport-specific stadia and as developers are boxed in by exclusive licensing arrangements. SCEA doesn't develop any football titles - no one does other than EA Sports - so packing up the Metrodome file for use elsewhere isn't helpful.

That said, MLB The Show's developers aren't just casting aside the data.

"The Metrodome will be saved," they wrote, "and although not quite of a ‘classic' stadium as the old Yankee Stadium, it will be playable as a classic stadium in MLB 10."

And it may not be the only green cathedral, long gone, to be explored in next year's game, said the two.

"You never know, you may be seeing some nostalgic venues in MLB 10."

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

Last year's version of NBA Live finally helped the franchise pick itself off the mat in the next generation of consoles, where barely acceptable offerings had trailed NBA 2K10's best-in-class effort for years. This year EA Sports Vancouver pushed the focus to team play rather than flashy individual performances and animations. The product is a clean, accessible game with a strong underpinning of realism, and a level of player control that sets it apart.

Edit: In the interest of accuracy, the opening sequence does not use the word "revival." Instead it's "arrival." However, the sentiment stands. It's a revival of the franchise.

Loved
Everyone's under control: Whatever your style of play, the ability to custom-move off-ball player with a trigger-button-stick combination is a strong positive. This isn't a command to an AI, this is you physically moving one player while another has the ball. It creates lots of catch-and-shoot opportunities at the perimeter and do-it-yourself plays that are more technically satisfying than run-and-gun basketball. They're also more efficient - sometimes a little too efficient - than some of the set plays you draw up. You also have the "dynamic quick play" button which basically tells your hottest (or nearest) scorer at the moment "get open." These wielded in combination with the quick pick-and-roll's improved control, give you an impressive sense of power getting the ball in the basket, without ever beating your man off the dribble or going one-on-one. It rebalances the focus on team play and easily does the most to recommend this game.

Fancy passing is no passing fancy: In addition to the above, freestyle passing allows you greater directional control over where you whip the ball, even in traffic, rather than hoping the game AI doesn't send it to an unintended man covered up on the play. With this and the trigger/button direct-pass mechanism, there's almost never a reason to flick A/X unless you're just bringing the ball up. Like Magic and Bird, the controls make the assist cool again. Hell, it makes the outlet pass cool. More importantly, with a clampdown on speed and what you can get away with taking the ball to the hole, NBA 10 places a greater premium on spacing and open shots, and with the passing controls, it gives you the tools to create those opportunities.

Dynamic DNA: It's back again with another layer of fine-tuning and a year's worth of data to build upon. Not only do you get players whose performance is broken down by attribute score and tendency, you're presented with a thumbnail scouting report of your AI opponent in every game and the means to go much deeper in your franchise mode. By no means do I study player or team tendencies of the NBA, but I could sense that, in certain game situations, bad teams defaulted to type, superstars tried to take over (sometimes succeeding), and many other AI choices that seemed to be based on the game's breakdown of players, and not a coaching directive. You get the Lakers down by eight late in the game and Kobe's going to start bombing away, I assure you. Yeah, that's an easy call for any AI to make, but I swear that players who would prefer drives to one direction would hit a point in the game where they would take whatever was in front of them, suddenly defense got a lot easier, and that point at which every team in the NBA makes its run had passed.

Dynamic Season: This is fast becoming all the rage in games, and I don't know who exactly innovated it. But once the season gets going NBA Live 10 will allow you to drop back in time and replay any game on the schedule. That's different and that's a plus. Right out of the box you can pick key moments from the 2008-2009 regular and postseason, and almost immediately I started playing the epic Bulls-Celtics opening round series from the playoffs. It's not integrated into Dynasty Mode; but diehards can play along with their favorite team and change history for any disappointing result in real life.

Hated
Tone-deaf defense: Compared to 2K10, there's less subtlety in the distance your player covers when you move the stick even minutely, and playing man-to-man defense really exposes this. I overran a lot of plays and couldn't quite find the touch necessary to keep from being beaten off the dribble constantly. The standard ball-you-man fundamental, to cut off passing lanes, is hampered by an imprecise way to engage and stick to your man. In defending a shot, getting your hands up seems to have no effect, unless you keep them down, in which case you can count that bucket. It's the cross borne by defense in a game style that largely entertains with scoring, but the defensive controls doesn't feel as responsive as the offense. As such, it is more work and less fun in NBA Live 10.

Setting boundaries:: Again, pointing to the lack of finesse in player motion, there seemed to be some real AI issues with the boundary lines. Passes to the corner can be a faith-based affair, because your man will sometimes set up with a foot over the line and sit there. It does not happen all the time, but it's often enough to be unacceptable. There were also some backcourt violations that defied reality - I had a player run back across the timeline to take a pass in a kind of reset-the-offense way, even though we'd already inbounded the ball to that side of the court. The upside, I guess, is you can work this to your advantage. Sideline traps work often enough to feel like an exploit. Just call a double team, get the hands up and wait for the opposing ballhandler to step out of bounds. I got to the point where I did it on three straight possessions in a Finals game.

Who's (play) calling?: If you're not familiar with what basketball looks like beyond screens, picks, and drive-and-kick, calling set plays in this game will still be a puzzle for you. I'd order a play that had Nene posting up and he'd stand there, facing the basket, while Chris Andersen was backing down his guy and everyone had a full-color pass icon overhead. So I'd wonder if I was supposed to start the play by passing to someone else first and if so, who. Some icons are grayed, some are not. Pretty sure this exposes my lack of proficiency and familiarity with the game, but hey, I don't study the triangle-and-two in my spare time. The game touts playcalling that was advised by NBA scouts for added realism, but the execution was nowhere near as intuitive as NBA 2K10's, where icons on the floor direct you every step of the way. Plus, there's no practice mode in Live to try this out. Your games are your practice.

Postal Disservice: Down on the blocks you are on your own this year, big fella. The trigger/right-stick combos that formed your post-up offense are gone and replaced by ... nothing actually, which is a curious choice for a game featuring Dwight Howard on the cover. It's now entirely handled by the CPU whether your player posts up or not, and much like defensive engagement, I never got a feel for what automatically got me backing my guy down, ass to the basket. My advice is to wait for your swingman to do it on his own and then pass to him, maybe even direct him there with the off-ball control. But taking away post-up is going to leave some feeling really exposed, especially since the game's tightened up on what you can get away with in the lane and in traffic this year. Without the assuredness that you will actually stick your big ass into the defender and not face him head on and start running, interior play feels arbitrary and can make you look silly at times.

Sure, that's a lot of red ink up there, but on the whole, these are problems you can overcome or work through. NBA Live 10 is still a very inviting game. The crowd reaction is exceptional and the atmospheric difference between a regular season tilt - even a tight one - and the drama of the playoffs or the Finals, is quite palpable. To motion your man to the top of the key, shedding his defender as if you'd called for a screen, and then bury an overtime jumper provides a cathartic feeling of satisfaction. And the ability to order up this emotion in a quick play game is a definite plus, indulging the prototypical hoop dream of playing for the title, even when all you want to do is just play one game.

NBA Live 10 will deliver great moments and, especially with Dynamic Season, the individual games you want to play. The long haul of a season's worth of play is a different measure. With a direct competitor in 2K10 the first, if not only question for many is simply which one wins this year. But it is not a zero-sum proposition. I do consider NBA 2K10 to be the better package of the two, but NBA Live 10 is no less a worthy and enjoyable game in the presence of competition than it would be in the absence of it. It may not be a triumph over its rival. But in delivering a strong game for a second straight year, NBA Live is seeing the revival EA Sports wants it to be.

NBA Live 10 was developed by EA Vancouver and published by Electronic Arts for Xbox 360 and PS3 on Oct. 6. Retails for $59.99 USD. A copy of the game was given to us by the publisher for reviewing purposes. Played all game types in singleplayer mode and tested online multiplayer.

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To continue the metaphor, NBA 2K10 delivers both. All sports titles face a justify-your-existence question of what to offer every year beyond a roster update. NBA 2K10 has been such a clear leader that it's almost exempt from such what-have-you-done-for-me-lately questions, and has the luxury of refining its visuals and presentation. That's not to say the game doesn't add new ways to deliver, and experience, the performance art that can happen any given night in the NBA.

Loved
Where Basketball Happens: So much of a sports game review fixates on what's new in a game, but the guts of it still have to be there, and NBA 2K10 shows restraint in its gameplay tinkers. This year's update focused more on nailing down animations for players' signature moves and even facial expressions, rather than how you manipulate them. But the most conspicuous control is how your speed burst works. You have a finite supply of it, and not only can it run out over a single play, going to the well too often will deplete his overall stamina. You cannot sit on the trigger in this game and expect to get away with it for long. This brings some useful balance, especially to run-and-gun multiplayer games. Shot selection is more of a key this year as the game seems to have tightened up on on the ease of shooting. That could also be because of changes in shooting animations, as your point of release means everything to whether the ball goes in. Otherwise, the control scheme remains solid and caters to your preferred style, whether that's set plays versus a more freelancing approach, or basic player manipulation vs. more advanced shooting and post play. If you prefer to make things up as you go along, you can still have a great time in NBA 2K10. My only gripe is that players seem slow to get open on their own, meaning you'll need to do so at least through a quick play from the menu or draw the defense and kick it out yourself.

This is a presentation of the NBA: I halfway expected to hear a 4th quarter announcement that any rebroadcast without the express written consent of the NBA is prohibited. Out of the box, the commentary of Kevin Harlan, Clark Kellogg and Cheryl Miller is much stronger and less repetitive than the competing title from EA Sports. Although the season has not started yet, when it does their remarks, supported by on-screen graphics, will reflect what's taking place in the league, such as recent big performances, slumps, etc. I'm assuming. The point is that the game will serve you up - even if it's just for a one-off matchup - more than the current rosters but the current state of the league and its players. This may not as technically detailed as NBA Live 10's Dynamic DNA, which will break a player down to his tendencies, not just his skill strengths. Gamers who can make use of that information will have to make the choice for themselves; what 2K10 has done here is good enough for me.

That's My Player: This is a compelling mode of play, one that really makes you want to be a better player and learn the game. But you really have to know what you are getting into because you will be judged very strictly in it. In My Player, you are starting off with a rookie rated near the bottom in everything and only slightly better in some core positional attributes. Then, through conditioning drills and scrimmages in a summer league you build yourself into a draftable talent. Or not. Most everyone will head through the NBA Developmental League first. I just don't see how you can accrue the points necessary to make an NBA roster right off the bat and even then, I'm not sure what good it would do because your playing time would be minuscule. But back to the development - your success will depend upon knowing your position and how it contributes to a game. And I mean, if you have no organized basketball experience and are only a casual spectator of the game, it will be rough on you. You need to pay attention to your teammates if someone's calling for a pass. You've got to proactively set picks. You've got to call for the ball only when you're open and even then, you'll be bitched at for doing it too often. You need to do these things more than you need to score, because the development places a premium on being a good teammate. Even burying an spot-up jumper will get you tsk-tsked for taking one too soon, with an attendant reduction in teammate grade. All this said, I know I am a bad baller, so even if I was frustrated I didn't feel like I was being judged unfairly. And I can see that for someone who knows and loves basketball, how the challenges offered and won by My Player stand out not only for this sport, but among all career modes of pro sports gaming. If you're not 100 percent sure you know what you're doing in the game, you should stick to the team mode, unless you are really committed to using My Player to teach yourself video game basketball in a very granular, intensive way.

Multiplied multiplayer: The first two days of the release I could not connect to the 2K servers at all. As of the weekend, the problems appeared to be solved, but this was still an unfortunate black mark against a game going out the door packed to the gills with multiplayer modes. The most intriguing of these is the Team-Up, where you can form or join a crew and run ball in a virtual league against teams comprised entirely of other users. If you don't want to commit to that you can create a pick-up game for a single instance only. My preference trends strongly to singleplayer in sports titles and getting my ass kicked online in this game definitely reinforced that. But the game's deep multiplayer offerings, along with its season simulation, once again make it this year's winner.

Hated
Fritzy framerate: Certain shots during cutscenes, or certain gameplay sequences - especially going into heavy traffic with everyone breaking back to the rim - dropped the framerate quite noticeably on my 360 version. It may be, unfortunately, because of the superior character modeling combining with the crowd animations and background to overwhelm the console. 2K says it's working on a patch, but others have noted that even 2K9 still had its own framerate stutters in some of the same situations.

Information overload: The game triples the number of plays you can call this year, breaking them out by the five positions on the floor plus a menu for calling quick picks and isolations. Unfortunately, the menu deals in floor positions, not which player's number is being called. So if you're running automatic substitutions and don't know everyone on the floor by name and position, you might find yourself in the dark about who you're dialing up. It's petty to gripe about greater options, but it can feel like a big one when you're getting run out of the gym by a superior opponent and trying desperately to think of something that will work.

(No) thanks for the advice: I did not care for the Stephen A. Smith-esque cartoon figure who appears in your season sim and who pretends to be a mentor in My Player. No, his voice isn't as obnoxious as Screamin' A, HOWEVAH, I found him to be condescending to the point of discouragement in My Player, and I could have just taken the pointers in a bullet-point text box. For someone who's pretending to have a close relationship to your player, he needs to have a real face, or at least a more recognizable voice. I'd respect what this guy says a lot more if I knew who it's coming from, instead of someone who passes off another player's quotes as inspiration.

The little things that NBA 2K10 does right could fill a review twice as long as this, but of course they should get a nod here, for pushing the whole enterprise over the top and again delivering this year's NBA choice. Your crowd will chant MVP! when a star player on a hot streak comes to the line for his and-1 free throw. When this happens in the playoffs, it just feels right. The off-ball players' animations, usually where you see forced or sped-up repositioning when the AI has to move them, are very refined and build that overall sense that you're watching an NBA telecast. The players and the coaches' features are mesmerizingly accurate - I loved any cutscene with George Karl in it and could instantly pick out Stephen Curry - a straight-up rookie - from the standard camera angle.

NBA 2K10 represents the brand of choice among hardcore ballers and reputation counts for plenty in both real-world professional basketball and its virtual counterpart. Outside of My Player and the multiplayer modes, the game delivers more subtle changes than profound to your experience. When it's in control of a game, a winning team maintains that lead, and focuses on execution. That's NBA 2K10.

NBA 2K10 was developed by Visual Concepts published by 2K Sports for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC and Wii. Retails for $59.99 USD (PS3 and 360) and $49.99 (Wii and PC). A copy of the game was given to us by the publisher for reviewing purposes. Played all singleplayer game types and tested multiplayer quick play mode.)

Confused by our reviews? Read our review FAQ.

This week's release of NBA 2K10 and NBA Live 10 mean the major North American professional sports have all seen their video game releases for 2009 - FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer's stateside releases to come later, as well as NCAA Basketball 10. But sports game development teams usually begin work on next year's release almost immediately after this one's goes out the door.

In that spirit, here's what an expert panel - read: mostly me and my drinking buddies and college friends - came up with in the realm of revolutionary new features and realism that sports games can deliver in the coming year, bearing in mind the current state of the art, existing game complexity, and what the market might reasonably allow.

Of course, down in the comments, feel free to drop in what you'd like to see next year in your favorite sports title.

Now, because inevitably someone won't read this preamble and will immediately run to the comments, thinking we're talking about features actually in development: These are all suggestions offered in a spirit of fun. They should not be confused for concepts actually in development.

• Madden NFL 11: The Throwback Kick Pack. This was the first thing hashed out. The fellas and I figured there should be a DLC package comprised of three features: A straight-ahead, Mark Moseley place-kicking animation; a drop-kick animation, and, most importantly, enabling the fair catch kick rule.

John Madden himself loved the fair catch kick, and would bring it up any time a punt returner made a fair catch around midfield, especially if the punt came at the end of the first half. The rulebook allows for any team making a fair catch to attempt an uncontested field goal on the spot which it is caught. Since this is a running start akin to a kickoff, it's plausible to make one from a distance well longer than a standard field goal. Of course, you give up possession whether the kick is missed or made, so the instances in which it makes sense to attempt one are rare. Incredibly, we saw this twice last season, the first time in 40 years two fair catch kicks were attempted in the same year. The last successful fair catch kick was the Bears' Mac Percival's 43-yarder to beat the Packers in 1968.

Fun factor: Is this fun? Are you nuts? Every day in America, 674 teams go for it in the first quarter on fourth and 26 from their own 10. This kind of frivolous, self-destructive special teams play would be a multiplayer sensation, especially if you dropped it on a guy who doesn't pay attention when he's punting from his own endzone and just boots it straight ahead.

Think It Could Ever Happen? Well, there's no licensing involved, and it doesn't make fun of the game, and bottom line, it does involve an actual rule in the book. It's two new mo-cap animations and one playbook formation. Plus, I honestly think people would buy it at $4.99. It's not something you tout in your halftime ad on Monday Night Football, but among the gaming and sports blogs it'd be a big sensation.

• NBA 2K11: The Trillion. The Trillion comes from the box score line of a player with one minute played and absolutely no other stats (nine zeroes, in other words.) Late in his career, Tree Rollins became synonymous with this feat, notching an unofficial record 14 Trillions. Here, the Trillion would be a mystery trophy/achievement, and you'd get it for making manual substitutions in the fourth quarter that bring in a guy rated 60 or lower for one minute and then sending him back to the bench with absolutely zilch - no foul, no missed shot, no nothing. Getting the Trillion delivers 50 Gamerscore or a gold trophy and unlocks Shade Tree in the Blacktop dunk contest.

Fun factor: Being among the first to unlock a mystery achievement is usually a badge of honor. But when it comes to dunking, Tree was more famous for being posterized by Jordan.

Think It Could Ever Happen? The achievement by itself is a low maybe. Bringing in Tree Rollins would be an outstanding touch but would require a contract and two lawyers. The 2K guys in Novato are a fun bunch and big basketball fans, but their achievement packages deal a lot with strong individual performances or emulating a superstar's big game numbers from the past. Tree's Trillion in Seattle isn't exactly Kobe's double nickel in New York. Plus Microsoft caps a title's total Gamerscore and restricts how many achievements you can offer at launch. So 2K would have to want to waste one on this, and the Gamerscore cost might be a little high.

• MLB 10 The Show: Moundball. In real life, this is a side wager in which friends at a baseball game bet on whether the ball lands on the pitching mound's dirt or the infield grass when the fielder making the last putout lobs or rolls the ball back to the mound. In the game, let's say if your first baseman makes the final out, then as soon as the post-play animation begins you get the chance to hit the square button. How long you hold it down determines the toss's trajectory. Land it on the mound for a win, and accumulate more winning tosses for a trophy unlock.

Fun factor: Could be a great Easter egg. Once word spread virally, players would be trying to get that groundout to first with two away, instead of a blow-away strikeout, just to see moundball or get another crack at it. If you set the trophy total to, like 15 winning tosses, completionists and platinum trophy seekers would go stark raving mad playing moundball.

Think It Could Ever Happen? Eh, nah. MLB: The Show is a best-in-class simulation and a very serious game, and probably wouldn't diminish that reputation by spending much time on this, much less touting it as some feature.

• NCAA Basketball 11: Different broadcast graphics packages. EA's really made a push into paid DLC with its sports titles, and here's another one that might work: a pack that skins your games with graphics from the following broadcasters: Raycom (ACC); The Big Ten Network; and then classic ESPN and classic CBS graphics. The last two would use the networks' old-school key graphics from the early 1980s, as ESPN did in some of its turn-back-the-clock anniversary broadcasts a while back. For the throwback games, players would wear high socks and belted nuthugger shorts, and coaches would have horrendous plaid jackets and pants.

Fun factor: It doesn't change gameplay any but then, sports titles have a strong appeal based on aesthetic touches like this. Hardcore fans who live or grew up in the regional markets included would love it.

Think It Could Ever Happen? Assuming the licensing could be worked out - and they already have CBS and ESPN aboard - I could see it happening, at least for the classic graphics. Getting paid for it doesn't hurt, either.

• NCAA Football 11: New formation - Kickoff Return Reverse. You see a lot more gadget plays in the NCAA where teams have a wider disparity in talent and certain coaches have greater risk tolerance than their NFL counterparts. With a two-returner formation, you can call this play to hand off to the left or right. If the kick comes to the wrong direction, the handoff is faked. Granted, wide receiver reverses rarely work, but part of that is because the defense starts three yards from the handoff. If you manage to call this in the correct direction it could reap a huge gain. I know I've been waiting six years to see this play in NCAA Football.

Fun factor: Depends, as always, on what kind of blocking the AI gives you but kickoff and punt return touchdowns are absolutely electrifying. Why not give them some razzle dazzle?

Think It Could Ever Happen? Yes, and if not this, something else will. NCAA Football constantly updates and tinkers with its plays and formations.

• NHL 11: There's so much in EA Sports' NHL series that we were at a loss for what to add in, and I'm not even sure these aren't already included. I've just never encountered them. But anyway: 1) Goalie fights. These were a possibility in earlier versions of the game but they seem to have disappeared. The problem is, for realism, they only happen when both teams' entire on-ice personnel are engaged in a fight. 2) Shattering the plexiglass. Wild pucks take out a couple panes a year; unlike real life, this wouldn't require a 30-minute play stoppage to correct, just a cutscene. Offer a gold trophy or 50 gamerscore achievement for shattering the glass with a check. 3) Allowing your goalie or defensemen to deliberately dislodge the net from its posts. In real life, if the refs spot this being done intentionally, that's either a delay-of-game penalty or a goal depending on the circumstances. It's cheesy at best, but it does stop play and cause a faceoff if you want to reset your defense and shove an opponent into the net.

Fun factor: Like I said, the NHL game already has most everything you'll ever see in a hockey game, so these suggestions are largely atmospheric. Although a goalie fight, the rara avis of hockey brawls, would get everyone off their couch chest-bumping and winging punches in the air.

Think It Could Ever Happen?: Offhand, I'd say in this order: no; maybe if EA Vancouver's bored; and probably not, respectively.

• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11: Incorrect scorecards. There are dozens of ways to sign an incorrect scorecard on the tour, most of them dependent on the sport's honor system and self-policing of stroke penalties. In this case, let's follow the example of Sergio Garcia at the 2007 PGA Championship, in which he signed an incorrect total kept by his playing partner that round, and was disqualified for the tournament. So with this multiplayer feature activated, the stroke count display is turned off. Players must keep track of and manually enter their playing partner's score after every hole. At the end of the round, you get your scorecard, inspect it for accuracy and sign it. Signing an incorrect card invalidates the score and disqualifies you. Collector's or tournament editions of the game would come with a stack of scorecards and novelty pencils for keeping track.

Fun factor: Unfortunately, this would also enable deliberately erroneous scorekeeping, and to do so in real life would definitely get you sanctioned by the Tour, if not suspended from it altogether. But it'd be hilarious if you manage to pull it off. The first time. The second time your playing partner drives to your home and murders you with a shovel.

Think It Could Ever Happen? Considering the potential for abuse, ragequits and destroyed controllers, hell no. If it really did carry a DQ penalty, this would be probably be implemented only if you were responsible for entering your own score, not someone else's. And even then it's kind of petty. But in real tournament golf, these details are no less important than hitting a 7-footer for birdie.

• Top Spin 4: Code violations. Whenever the next version of this comes out, let's say players have a temperament rating. Make a few unforced errors in the second set, or play poorly in general - or, especially, get victimized by bad officiating, and uh oh, a rage meter appears. As you stand there contemplating your horrid play or how best to tell the chair umpire his lines crew has been f—-ing you all day long, your objective is to stop the rage meter within a blue zone whose size and placement depends upon how levelheaded your player is. Fail to do this and you smash your racket or cuss out the ump, resulting in a warning the first time, a point penalty the second, and ultimately a match default.

Fun factor: Adds some realism and some hilarious animations, I'm sure. Most everyone would actively try to make the situation worse the first few times. Would be best paired with an achievement or trophy titled "You can NOT be serious!!" earned during Grand Slam play.

Think It Could Ever Happen? It's funny, but no. People who fixate on tennis tantrums are not the kind of core fans who'd go looking for a serious simulation in the first place. Serious tennis fans tire easily of this stereotype. Plus, any of the real players who license the use of their image likely wouldn't approve of being portrayed this way.

So, there you are: Stick Jockey's wish list for the sports titles you'll see in 2010. Obviously, you've got ideas of your own. Feel free to share 'em below.

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

NHL 2K10 sees the franchise at somewhat of a crossroads. It's in its 10th year overall, scrapping with a competitor afforded both cult status and best-in-class accolades. But 2K Sports' hockey offering is also in its second year on the Wii, where it remains wholly unopposed. Will NHL 2K10 on the core consoles veer more to a casual experience, or will it fight for the puck in a realistic league simulation?

Loved
Multifaceted Multiplayer:This is a game noticeably built for multiplayer, adding it into every mode of gameplay and then some. It's best deployed in season mode, where you are now able to play any in-season game against an online opponent. It's not a full online dynasty but it doesn't need to be, and it provides a great incentive to keep your season going even if you've grown bored beating down the computer AI. This innovation really should be imitated in other full-season games. A cooperative mode also has been added, allowing you to call in a wingman and combine forces against the CPU, with devastating results if you're both on your game. One feature touted in the manual that I didn't get much of a look at (for a lack of NHL-playing friends with the game) is a new persistent online team mode that allows you to staff a full side, and battle other user teams, supporting up to 12 players on separate consoles. Assuming everyone stays committed, it can be like a league night for video game hockey instead of bowling.

Do Wii Want Some Hockey?:The Wii Version: This review is based on the Xbox 360 version but I did get the chance to play the Wii version with a friend. Unfortunately, we did not have MotionPlus, which is where the most substantial improvements are said to have been made. But the game's presentation on the Wii gets a thorough upgrade, particularly in the graphics. And I know some might consider it trivial, but the Mii skills competitions - shot accuracy, skating speed, etc., as seen at the NHL's All Star Game - are an enjoyable way to play this game with others without having to commit to a full-blown match.

The Great Outdoors:Surprisingly, NHL 2K10 and not NHL 10 is the game with outdoor stadiums from the NHL's extremely popular Winter Classic series. This year it adds Wrigley Field, where the Blackhawks and Red Wings played last year, to Buffalo's Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the 2008 game. If this matters to you, and it does to some, keep that in mind. Also, diehards who hold a torch for the old Hartford Whalers will find their sweaters, home and road from 1993, in the Carolina Hurricanes' uniform options. These are two big ways in which the game's visuals are very enjoyable. Also, the playoff beards are one of many neat hey-look-at-that touches.

Hated:
Sludgy Skating: The nimbleness of your players does not seem that much improved over previous versions, and the speed is still nothing to write home about. It left me sitting on the speed burst trigger any time I wanted to get anything going. By contrast, opposing players make tight turns and immediate stops, get back on defense in a flash and always break first to a loose puck. Some of this is attributable to the fact that when your player begins an animation he's in it until it's over, so if you blow out someone with a check, you're still finishing that up unless you can jump to a free man. Remember that tuning up the speed in the sliders affects all players, so while you boost your own performance, the defense is still there with you, meaning it's still largely a game of taking the puck to the wings and flipping out a hot centering pass for an unbeatable one timer. I felt the speed issues hindered my attempts at other forms of offense, such as dump-and-chase hockey, making me almost one-dimensional in my attack.

Bland Season-ing: It felt like little attention was paid to improving or deepening the season mode, and it's where NHL 2K10 is most vulnerable to criticism that it's last year's game with an updated roster. Yes, it has added in a dynamic player progression mode, but this is a background feature and won't be fully realized until the NHL season begins and the game starts incorporating player performances. Trade AI is kind of shrimpy and you'll get the better of most deals, which suits a game with heavy offense and a have-it-your-way tone. Again, season mode's biggest selling point is the multiplayer capability as opposed to anything in a simulation or singleplayer mode.

Them's the Dekes: In hockey, I am still a crude enough player and button-spammer that an extra control set is like pearls before swine. While last year's mindboggling two-analog setup for your fakery gets a welcome streamline to a shoulder/face button combo (or shoulder/right analog, similar to NHL 09), they never seemed to respond fast enough to mean much in what is definitely a bang-bang style of hockey play. Then again, as I said, I'm probably not the guy most able to take advantage of this. But while the dekes and their cousins, the stumbleshots, are pretty to look at, functionally they seem a little removed and triggered mostly by chance. When I bore down to score goals I focused more on spacing and passing, not whether I could beat my man or a goalie 1-on-1 or huck garbage into the net from my ass.

Singleminded Intelligence: The opposing AI is not hated per se, because even a rank amateur like me could blow out Detroit 6-3 in its own building shortly after picking it up. It's not formidable as much as it feels singleminded. With some teams, even in a power play you're getting pressed hard, making it difficult to square off your men and work the puck around like you see in the real-life game's set pieces. It can drive you back to run-and-gun arcade hockey even with a man advantage, and can also lead to cheap shorthanded goals against you. The box says they completely rewrote the AI, and maybe I didn't play last year's close enough, but you still seem to be faced with a singleminded opposition that doesn't incorporate a lot of variables in hockey strategy. I only really noticed it late in the third period, with the CPU up by two goals, and then the opposing team finally started playing a puck-control, clear-out-the-zone game to frustrate a comeback.

Even for all its shortcomings - which are rightly viewed in light of Electronic Arts' uncommon excellence in its NHL title, and 2K Sports' conspicuous focus on its Wii presence and multiplayer strengths - NHL 2K10 is not a bad or unworthy title. But nor is it particularly compelling if you are principally playing it in singleplayer modes.

It can, however, be a blast when you're winning and racking up the goals, pushing over your man, taking the puck and top-shelfing it to turn the Pepsi Center into a morgue. These kinds of things just don't feel that hard-earned. But if playing arcade hockey on a core console is a disappointment to fans wanting a deeper game, flip the coin: 2K10 offers the only core hockey on a casual console, and after last year's shoulder-shrugging debut on the Wii, is significantly upgraded there. For those on the 360 or PS3, who want to relive dorm-room hockey nights with next-gen presentation, or those who are just new to hockey and its finer points would be lost on them anyway, NHL 2K10 can still be a comfortable and fun experience.

NHL 2K10 was developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K on the Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii on on Sept. 15. Retails for $59.99 USD on Xbox 360 and PS3, $49.99 on Wii. Rated E10+ on all three platforms. Reviewed on Xbox 360. Played on all singleplayer and multiplayer modes except for "My Team."