NCAA Football 12

 PlayStation 3
User Score
5.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 41 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 41
  3. Negative: 11 out of 41
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  1. dz9
    Aug 21, 2011
    4
    Starting off, I completely understand that it is next to impossible to come up with amazing new innovations to a football game every year and that I should expect just a graphics & roster update... but after 10 years of the same product, this is absolutely unacceptable. The only thing separating this title from '11 is slightly better graphics, a debatably better tackling system, and a fewStarting off, I completely understand that it is next to impossible to come up with amazing new innovations to a football game every year and that I should expect just a graphics & roster update... but after 10 years of the same product, this is absolutely unacceptable. The only thing separating this title from '11 is slightly better graphics, a debatably better tackling system, and a few tweaks to Campus Legend and Dynasty. Let me 'tackle' the new tackling system, the game mechanics are exactly the same... and these mechanics, in large chunks.... actually work WORSE without the warps and suction glitches. For example: passing the ball now feels impossible, when you throw the ball. Defenders, instead of warping into position... will just step infront of you, leaving your receiver running-in-place while they intercept the ball. And to add insult to injury, this title STILL has "super" defenders. Meaning that defenders will act upon the throw even before the receiver, and they will be 10x faster than a normal human being. Blocking is half-in-half... overall, this already broken and outdated mechanic feels even more broken without the warps. Often, your O-Line will just be standing around doing nothing, as if they don't know what to do without warping into the blitz. The actual tackling, in my opinion is a decent update... but at the end of the day, it is JUST an update. In the new tackling system, the animation are still 120% intact, but in the slightly improved detection system... animations will sometimes fight over which one should be used... and this overall is clunky and ugly. When it comes down to it, a few tweaks and updates, but this game plays exactly the same as the EA football games have played for the past decade. Still has all the bugs, and has even managed to add more. Backbreaker, looking past its obvious flaws, and with a little getting used to, was a much better and innovative title... and although Backbreaker was not an outstanding experience, but it did show us the future of football games, and I thought EA would've been smart enough to take advantage of this and utilize it in their new game, atleast a little bit. The Good: Great graphics and presentation, working controls. The Bad: Nothing more than a recycle, bugs that are too numerous to mention, the new level up system in Campus Legend is boring and broken, Dynasty mode is bland. Honestly if you have played NCAA Football 02, you have already played this title to its fullest… Expand
  2. charlieb12
    Jul 31, 2011
    1
    A big step back from last year. Blocking is broken. Roster bug is a joke. OH yeah, and the fact we still have to deal with psychic DB's is ridiculous. Will be trading this garbage in soon.
  3. Thehoseagain
    Aug 25, 2011
    2
    First off, I signed up for this site just so I could write a review and maybe save someone the head and wallet ache that this turd will give you. It's just not fun. The pros: the running game is improved with the new tackling system. Cons: the menus are EXTREMELY laggy and clunky. Just changing a players # takes a second between each move. The passing game is broken. Linebackers are insaneFirst off, I signed up for this site just so I could write a review and maybe save someone the head and wallet ache that this turd will give you. It's just not fun. The pros: the running game is improved with the new tackling system. Cons: the menus are EXTREMELY laggy and clunky. Just changing a players # takes a second between each move. The passing game is broken. Linebackers are insane getting in every lane. Dbs cut right through receivers to get picks and seem to always know where the ball will be before the receivers. This franchise has really done nothing to improve in too long. I mean for years I'm wondering why I don't have the option to turn on the commentary in RTG. oh the replay system sucks too. Waste of money/time. I recommend taking your $60, buying an eigth and a pizza and play NCAA 08.… Expand
  4. V3smic
    Oct 26, 2011
    0
    Save your money. The AI in this game has to be the worst in many, many years. Instead of correctly balancing the game, it uses a way of balancing that was used in the older NFL Blitz games. This was of course making absolutely absurd things happen just to make the score of the game closer. In NCAA football 2012 you can easily expect a team which has a higher rating than another to have atSave your money. The AI in this game has to be the worst in many, many years. Instead of correctly balancing the game, it uses a way of balancing that was used in the older NFL Blitz games. This was of course making absolutely absurd things happen just to make the score of the game closer. In NCAA football 2012 you can easily expect a team which has a higher rating than another to have at least one touchdown of 80+ yards. I have had situations in which more than 3 kick-offs were returned for touchdowns in the same game. This is just simply a case of very lazy development with a shiny box. With Madden out there is no reason to play this game. If you really desire the NCAA experience, buy an older version for 10 bucks.… Expand
  5. realndn
    Jul 12, 2011
    7
    I kept hearing how the graphics were "new & improved" for this version of NCAA football, but after playing it I'm wondering where the improvements were made. Playing in Pittsburgh on a rainy day the field looked straight out of the 90's. Every white athlete on the field had a skin tone akin to the vampires from the Twilight series. It's not all bad though, the gameplay does seem to beI kept hearing how the graphics were "new & improved" for this version of NCAA football, but after playing it I'm wondering where the improvements were made. Playing in Pittsburgh on a rainy day the field looked straight out of the 90's. Every white athlete on the field had a skin tone akin to the vampires from the Twilight series. It's not all bad though, the gameplay does seem to be improved over last year, and the new tackling system is a good as advertised. The computer still tends to cheat, even on Varsity, which is as annoying as ever.… Expand
  6. mbrownd
    Jul 15, 2011
    8
    Road to Glory mode is easily the best feature of this game. Gameplay and the tackling system has improved, noticeably. However, not too much different from NCAA '11.
  7. dimitry7688
    Jul 16, 2011
    9
    The best ncaa to date hands down.Online dynasty is awesome and road to glory improved with a full year of high school play. Graphics improved and gameplay as well.Overall pretty on point....There is still room for improvement though that why score not a 10....
  8. sidekickly
    Dec 6, 2011
    6
    first off the graphics do not look as good on the ps3 as it does on the xbox 360 version, but you don't buy sports games primarily for their graphics anyways. The slow and steady gameplay tweaks of this version addresses a little bit of the problems of the past titles with modest results. EA Tiburon subtly added new things such as diving catches and less suction tackling which are goodfirst off the graphics do not look as good on the ps3 as it does on the xbox 360 version, but you don't buy sports games primarily for their graphics anyways. The slow and steady gameplay tweaks of this version addresses a little bit of the problems of the past titles with modest results. EA Tiburon subtly added new things such as diving catches and less suction tackling which are good additions but does not do much in improving the overall gameplay since the artificial intelligence if you are playing on All-American or Heisman difficultly can be incredibly cheap. On the bright side this game is very fluid and fast compared to Madden 12. The online at times can be very cheap where people will spam powerful players or plays the whole game. The dynasty mode is fun if you can find people to play with but it is time consuming to have to try to recruit new players for like ten minutes every in-game week. This game is still very enjoyable but the sport of American Football does not lend itself to many changes and it is a bummer that the NCAA has the college players can't make money off of their name or school rule. Well enjoy the NCAA Football series while it lasts because it will probably be discontinued like NCAA Basketball some day.… Expand
  9. LittleMeow
    Oct 14, 2011
    8
    Definitely a fun and addicting to the NCAA franchise. The Road to Glory mode is awesome, but has some minor glitches that can add to some frustration. Dynasty mode is pretty solid and offers a great experience to expanding your school. There were some noticeable additions to animations and the tackling is way better than previous games.
    The biggest 'Con' in this game is the Safeties and    Definitely a fun and addicting to the NCAA franchise. The Road to Glory mode is awesome, but has some minor glitches that can add to some frustration. Dynasty mode is pretty solid and offers a great experience to expanding your school. There were some noticeable additions to animations and the tackling is way better than previous games.
    The biggest 'Con' in this game is the Safeties and Corners seem to be able to warp through receivers to make a tackle, defection or interception. Hopefully that will get patched or fixed by the next installation in the series.    … Expand
  10. Cmdchris
    Aug 8, 2011
    7
    ok, here it goes, NCAA football is back, well sort of, the game def has a "i wanna play when i get off feeling' but there still is a couple issues. ON the O side of things, the run game is pretty solid, ensure u follow the play thru, dont rush to the line and youll find openings fairly easy. Passing ??? hmmm, it pretty much kinda well really sucks at time, if you try to throw on the run,ok, here it goes, NCAA football is back, well sort of, the game def has a "i wanna play when i get off feeling' but there still is a couple issues. ON the O side of things, the run game is pretty solid, ensure u follow the play thru, dont rush to the line and youll find openings fairly easy. Passing ??? hmmm, it pretty much kinda well really sucks at time, if you try to throw on the run, the QB throws a horrible ball, and makes you think is he really a starter or a qb on the scout team. The lead pass pretty much sucks a$$ to, I had a slot receive streaking up the middle, and a MLB was underneath so I push up on the analoge and wow o wow, he threw the ball damn near 15 yards in front of him. SMDH. Thats the most annoying thing this yr.. Defense pretty solid, but if your going play zone, make sure u play one of the S's position b/c they get confused sometimes and run up like there gonna be a pass, even tho the qb doest fake the handoff
    O and th offensive createde playbook, is great!!! but here the spoilers, it sometime doesnt work, and your force to call a timeout, I mean all ur players will be bunched together at the line like there waiting to get on th field...    … Expand
  11. BrendanUng
    Aug 13, 2011
    7
    NCAA Football is a good game, nothing great but good. The Graphics is excellent. Game-play is fun but it does get boring after awhile. Road to Glory is probably the best feature in the game. But it gets way to repetitive after awhile. You go up the ranks, Practice, Play Regular Season Game, Conference Championship, Bowl game, then repeat. The Upgrade System is impressive but not aNCAA Football is a good game, nothing great but good. The Graphics is excellent. Game-play is fun but it does get boring after awhile. Road to Glory is probably the best feature in the game. But it gets way to repetitive after awhile. You go up the ranks, Practice, Play Regular Season Game, Conference Championship, Bowl game, then repeat. The Upgrade System is impressive but not a challenge to fully upgrade yourself. Also, the game has a feature where you could upload your player stats to a EA website to show the world your skills. At the end of the day, I recommend NCAA Football 12 to College Football Fans that wanna show there colors and pride or fans of the NCAA Football Franchise cause this is the best NCAA Football to date. But for anyone that likes sport games, but never played a NCAA Football Game, play the demo to give you the final say. So I give NCAA Football 12 a "7".… Expand
  12. Drew213
    Sep 2, 2011
    6
    Having only previously played last years version and then playing this one i had much anticipation! So sat down played 2 player game and was vastly disappointed in the overall selections. No new plays! Nothing new playbook wise other than create your own, which btw is awesome but a pain the arse to load every time! AI wise yes is better, i had to lower the difficulty to learn to play. TheHaving only previously played last years version and then playing this one i had much anticipation! So sat down played 2 player game and was vastly disappointed in the overall selections. No new plays! Nothing new playbook wise other than create your own, which btw is awesome but a pain the arse to load every time! AI wise yes is better, i had to lower the difficulty to learn to play. The Dynasty features are good but overall the game has taken a step back. Its a disappointment, the sounds/stadium drum rolls are silent this year which made NCAA 2011 king. If your looking for more Dynasty wise then buy it, if not I do not feel the urge to purchase this game.… Expand
  13. Beard254
    Sep 17, 2011
    7
    I Really like the game, the worst thing for me is how long it takes to sim from week to week and get to next season. Recruiting is fun but takes awhile. Game play is good, but I have played a football in awhile. Sometimes wondered how I lost rank after a easy win. Can add plays to play book which is good. Changing routes and plays are done with ease. I think it would be better if itI Really like the game, the worst thing for me is how long it takes to sim from week to week and get to next season. Recruiting is fun but takes awhile. Game play is good, but I have played a football in awhile. Sometimes wondered how I lost rank after a easy win. Can add plays to play book which is good. Changing routes and plays are done with ease. I think it would be better if it would let u know who you are going to lose to the draft. Overall like the game recruiting keeps game fun but slow between weeks… Expand
  14. jc15
    Oct 3, 2011
    8
    I really think this game has very solid replay value. I will say the game play is not the best, but the dynasty mode is pretty solid, with picking up recruits, coaching contracts etc... i enjoy playing it
  15. Jeimz
    Jan 21, 2012
    7
    I really enjoyed playing this game, at times... The new features in Road to Glory and Dynasty are admittedly awesome but this game is insanely frustrating. It's like my WRs don't know how to play the game of football, either the ball will hit them in the head or go sailing right past their faces. I've also had defenders literally run through my WR and pick off passes. Also sometimes theI really enjoyed playing this game, at times... The new features in Road to Glory and Dynasty are admittedly awesome but this game is insanely frustrating. It's like my WRs don't know how to play the game of football, either the ball will hit them in the head or go sailing right past their faces. I've also had defenders literally run through my WR and pick off passes. Also sometimes the game will just strait up make it impossible to win at times. I've had my share of frustration playing this game but that doesn't mean I don't like it. I like it a lot actually. That's why I'm giving it a positive review, even with all my complaints.… Expand
  16. mweisbe1
    Oct 1, 2012
    7
    Very good overall, but improvements need to be made in editing the playbook. Loading the online dynasty can be difficult at times, and improvements need to be made to custom conferences. In later versions I would like to see users have the option to edit the amount of conference games their team(s) play in a given season. Other than these issues, I love the game.
  17. SkyrimGuy935
    Dec 7, 2014
    5
    Yet another re-skin with a tweaked roster and graphics. The gameplay is fun for a little while and the game itself isn't unbearable, but mediocre at best. People who buy these year after year and blindly praise them are deluding themselves. People accuse CoD of never changing the gameplay, but these sports games literally never change. I'm not necessarily saying they need to, but why spendYet another re-skin with a tweaked roster and graphics. The gameplay is fun for a little while and the game itself isn't unbearable, but mediocre at best. People who buy these year after year and blindly praise them are deluding themselves. People accuse CoD of never changing the gameplay, but these sports games literally never change. I'm not necessarily saying they need to, but why spend $60 every year for the same game over and over when you already have it just with a handful of different players?… Expand
  18. emlugo123
    Feb 23, 2015
    7
    Not a game that I would play for hours straight but still, its good to pick up every once in a while. I just wish they would just add the damn names to the players already.

Awards & Rankings

47
#47 Best PS3 Game of 2011
86
#86 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Sep 5, 2011
    70
    There's still loads to like here. [Oct 2011, p.115]
  2. TotalPlayStation
    Aug 14, 2011
    90
    A great installment that any college football fan will enjoy (and has probably put hundreds of hours into already). With a good group of friends for an online dynasty this game won't leave your PS3's disc tray anytime soon.
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  3. Playstation: The Official Magazine (US)
    Aug 2, 2011
    90
    The most noticeable improvement is the brand-new tackling system, which allows for simultaneous hits and more realistic contact. [Sept 2011, p.87]
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