While once content to lie in big brother's shadows, the NCAA franchise has begun to gain equal footing with EA's other pigskin juggernaut, Madden, over the past few years. Last year's next-gen release played well and was a step in the right direction, but there ended up being far too little to do. To fix that problem, EA has created several new modes that make this NCAA release one of the best yet; one that may give long-time Madden fans who have yet to try it another reason to get excited about football.

Although the number of additions to the game are numerous, one of the most prominent is the new recruiting option in Dynasty mode. The mode itself is largely unchanged, playing as it has for years; taking over the school as it's head coach, you must adjust your line-up, try to create a high-ranking schedule to make the top twenty-five in the polls, and do whatever it takes to win (including disciplining some of the players). The focus on recruiting has, however, been amped up considerably.

The gameplay hasn't changed much, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Initially there are thirty-five possible recruits, and from here you, as the head coach, can call them up. You're given options to talk to them in much the same way you were before, pitching whatever your school's strengths are and hopefully what interests them. Things like program prestige, location, and playing time are still big factors, but you can now talk about other things like television coverage, facilities on campus, and other topics that may be important to a new recruit. If the player likes what he hears, he stays on the phone and eventually a visit can be scheduled. Beware though. If they dislike the pitch or the conversation, they may hang up and you will lose your shot at that player. If they choose to visit, you are given three activities to choose from to do with the player. It's best to choose what they are most interested in, such as showing off the facilities. With only ten hours to talk throughout the week, it's important to pick and choose wisely as players will leave unhappy if you cannot show them what they want to see. You are also given the chance to offer a scholarship at any time, which can be rejected or accepted. If you pitch well enough, it might be an easy choice, or they may look at all of their options instead of jumping right at your offer.

Once the off-season comes, you can choose to offer commitments to players, like playing time, in your recruiting. If you make good on those commitments, your integrity rating goes up, meaning players are more likely to play for you. When this happens, you are given access to more options to promise players. Coaches that do not follow suit will lose integrity, which means that their promises mean far less to players, so wrangling in new recruits can grow tough. The only issue with the whole system is that it's incredibly time-consuming. Each recruit in the season takes an incredible amount of time, most of it on the "phone." Although the new options are great, if they had included a way to either turn off or limit the amount of recruiting needed, it would have been far better. In the end, you are left with a great system that loses luster solely because of the time factor.

Campus legend returns again this year with a bit more depth. You start by choosing a high school and a position. From there, you play in the state playoffs for that school. With scouts watching each game, players will need to show off their abilities so that a top-tier school will draft them. Even the highest ranking players must work their way up in a top twenty-five program, which is far more realistic than last year's mode where players were immediately starters no matter their ratings. Past that addition, this is very similar to last year's version of the mode. Once in the season you can win the job and from there, it's yours to keep. You still choose what to do in-season, from homework to socializing, which can raise or lower attributes depending on your choices. In game, the camera once again stays focused on you. If it has been said once it must be said one thousand times: there should be an option to turn this off. It makes sense that you should only be able to see from your player's perspective but it's incredibly restrictive and your field of vision at times feels obscured. There are times while running that a player can knock you out from just off camera, nullifying what looked like a huge run.

The actual gameplay on the field is identical to last year, which is to say it works quite well. The controls are tight with the on-field action moving at a steady rate, as long as you don't move your game online. The gameplay options are still a major factor, almost more so than in actual college football. For some reason passing is near-perfect, with far fewer turnovers than in previous years. Unfortunately that does not go for the rest of the game, with players turning the ball over at a rate that's almost unbearable. Some years are worse than others, but seeing sixteen turnovers between fumbles and interceptions in one game is just ridiculous. Finally, an option to simulate has been added which makes most other missteps null and void. Now players can simulate a single play, possession, quarter, or a game. It's great that they finally added this because there have been many games in the past where the computer is down by thirty or forty points (especially with all the turnovers this year) and the option to sim past all of that is a great addition.

Online multiplayer can get a bit laggy.

It still feels like college, presentation-wise. In-game the fans scream in packed stadiums, which there are now far more of. Graphically, the game looks slightly better than last year, the incremental increase coming more in the way of more varied body types. The biggest difference lies in the main screen area which is now a trophy room. Each won trophy is shown here with Chris Fowler speaking about their history. A video screen shows clips of your greatest plays which can be recorded at any time and there are also stills which work in a similar way. It's a neat way to finally implement the trophy system that they have been attempting for years. This is one of the things that really make the college game stand out. The sound is unchanged, with the same commentary from Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Brian Nessler. In fact, there's so little difference that it's uncertain whether anything new was even recorded. Everything was a retread which, although not unexpected, will leave you clamoring for more.

Multiplayer on the home console is largely unchanged, playing exactly like the single player, in that it generally runs smoothly with only a few hiccups. Online is hardly so kind to players. For whatever reason, the game does not translate well, with animations that jump sporadically and a game that lags terribly. The lag also makes running the option nearly impossible, as the timing changes from play to play. Players have either ranked or unranked matches to choose from with the new Weather Channel option available. Players can play in the actual weather occurring at the stadium the game is featured in. Of course, for now, that feature is merely interesting due to little variety going on past rain this time of year. However, once the cold comes and schools like Notre Dame get some snow, it could be entertaining to use the feature. There are also the same mini-games to be played; the bowling, tug-of-war, and option dash from last year. Unfortunately, there are no new additions, which may disappointment those who have already played NCAA Football 07. Despite being repeats, the mini-games can still be enjoyable for those new to the franchise or who did not make the next-gen jump last year.

NCAA Football 08 ends up being a far better game than last year's edition, which is technically the only competition it has. This year's model runs great and, excluding the turnovers and online hiccups, is one of the most enjoyable football games ever put on the market. It's definitely recommended for fans of football in general or anyone that just wants to play a great sports game with a lot of depth. Before you option over to Madden, you should give NCAA 08 a chance. You will not be disappointed.