- Quick specs
- Price: Free to try (Limited gameplay);
- Operating system: Windows 2000/XP
- Date added: June 15, 2006
- Total Downloads: 54,146
- Downloads last week: 38
- See full specifications
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 5 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET Staff
NFL Head Coach takes a good idea--a 3D football-management simulation--and nearly pulls it off, with a dizzying array of options, plays, and tasks for any would-be football coach or general manager. Managing in-game options is intuitive, but the 3D graphics slow down the gameplay in places where fancy graphics aren't needed, such as during drafting and making roster changes. The action is broken up into three main sections: preseason scouting and drafting, practice, and games. Though the demo ably demonstrates the depth and breadth of content available, it leaves out some key game elements such as the play designer.
The demo begins one week before the draft, although preseason options are quite limited. You can only access office hours, a coaches meeting, and the NFL draft, where you will be making selections in three rounds for the Houston Texans, who have the draft's first pick. The action is much more hands-on during an actual game, where you can call every single play, motivate your players with speeches, and make slight strategy tweaks to help your squad. In the practice sessions, you can offer specific advice to your players that they will remember come game time. For example, you can tell your quarterback to always look to the sidelines during a specific passing play, giving you a good option when you need to stop the clock. The game in the demo only allows for one-minute quarters, but there's a full set of time-outs to maximize the gameplay. On our system (2.4GHz CPU and 512MB RAM), however, the action by the players on the field was incredibly slow, enough to almost ruin the experience. Navigating menus by mouse is often frustrating, but the keyboard shortcuts work fine.
Publisher's description
From EA Sports :NFL Head Coach is the first 3D strategy sports game that challenges gamers to build and manage every aspect of a football team from the ground up. A simple conversation system and a 3D graphical interface allow users to immerse themselves into the lives of an NFL head coach. As head coach, you develop a team strategy, execute it on and off the field, and try to build a winning organization year after year. Your status as a coaching legend will rise and fall based on all of your actions as you strive to become the greatest head coach of all time. Behind the desk, on the practice field, or while wearing the headset on game days, take the reins of your favorite NFL team and lead it to victory.
Get your team ready for the draft in this demo for NFL Head Coach.
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User reviews
- Average user rating: 3.7 stars out of 5 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 5 user reviewsSee all 5 user reviews
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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: NFL Head Coach updated demo
"if your in to the NFL this is a good one"
Pros: Lot's of fun and love everything about it. like to get this for my PS2 OR MY XBOX. i don't like playing games on my pc as much. but will if this is the only way i can get it.
Cons: Not much that i can think of.
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5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
Version: NFL Head Coach updated demo
"Good start, but maybe TOO involved?"
Pros: Great for geeks that want to get into every, and I mean every aspect of head coaching.
Cons: Boring meetings with the owner, etc. You got to be really into it to enjoy all aspects of the game.
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Version: NFL Head Coach updated demo
"all the files never download"
Pros: cant play it!
Cons: everytime i download the game there is always a file thats missing, foe example the d3dx9-27.dll file never loads with the game
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1 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Version: NFL Head Coach updated demo
"Not an improvement over what Sierra did"
Pros: I like the concept of the game as I have played similar games in the past like MicroLeague's Sports Illustrated '97 football game and also the various Sierra Front Page Sports Pro Football games. It is fun to be able to manage and then just play call a game instead of having to play arcade type games like Madden which get ridiculous after awhile with the high scoring games and unrealistic stats. Simulations are fun when done right. EA attempts to do a sim and so at least I give them credit for that cuz alot of people just won't play this type of game. They need to see extreme graphics.
Cons: It felt incomplete and yes it is a demo but it worries me cuz I assume the interface is going to stay the same and quite honestly it made for a horrible experience. They really need to change that if possible for the final product even at this late stage. It takes so long to move through the plays I found I was getting delay of game penalties and ahhh sheesh it is just not like what Sierra and MicroLeague had ... the interface was perfect for those games.
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1 out of 4 people found this review helpful
Version: NFL Head Coach updated demo
Pros: The storyline is really good and the graphichs are excellent.
- See all 5 user reviews Write review

