NFL 2K4 is no more.

Instead it will be given a new name. :p I don't care for sports games, but I know some of you here like 'em.

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June 04, 2003 - According to Gamestop, Sega's new football game will no longer be called NFL 2K4, but ESPN NFL Football. The game's release date has also been changed from August first to September second. If this is true, that means that the game's main competitor, Madden NFL 2004, will be out a full month before Sega's struggling franchise.
When Sega bought the rights to the ESPN license across all of their sports games in 2002, the rights were granted so late they had little time to fully implement all of the ESPN personalities and attitude associated with the cable sports network. This season, however, Sega promises that the ESPN talent will be included in all of their sports titles, as well as using stat pages that look like they were ripped straight from espn.com.

Last year Sega forecasted sales in the millions, but instead of reaping the rewards of their critically-acclaimed game, Sega's football title was still outsold 10-1 by Madden NFL 2003. One of the main reasons attributed to this sales disaster was the fact that Sega released commercial's that looked almost identical to the ads for the Madden series. And since Madden is the better known of the two when it comes to the mainstream audience, Sega essentially spent all of their money to help push their competitor's games right off of the shelves.

Adding the ESPN name, however, is not an instant cure-all for sales. A few years ago, Konami released ESPN NFL Primetime and it was one of the worst-selling (and most poorly-rated) sports games in recent memory.

Sega has no official comment at this time, although a spokesman said that Sega Sports would be making a couple of big announcements about their NFL game in the near future. Whether the NBA and NHL games will also change their names to reflect the power of the ESPN license also remains to be seen.

IGN will have more on this story as it develops.

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Well, I guess Sega can count on low sales again for their NFL games.

A whole MONTH after Madden? :eek:

Likely a good move. just advertise the SEGA sports name along with it so fans of the 2K games don't get confused.

Why does Sega keep putting millions into a franchise that isn't helping them? Might as well put those dollars into games that I like to play, like SPACE HARRIER ;p

Football is much more fun in real life.

Sounds like the same old Sega U.S. way of thinking:

First: they spend MILLIONS of dollars to acquire the ESPN license and never planned to implement it into their 2004 sports franchises even though they had over a year to do so.

Second: they have decided, at the last minute to implement this license just a couple months before shipping which causes a delay which will no doubt hurt sales.

They're dealing with the monolith that is Madden for christ's sake. Stupid mistakes and missed opportunities will seal their doom for 2004.

Just Brilliant :rolleyes:

Sega of America is fucking dumb, is anyone surprised by a dumb ass move?

Whoa, you almost gave me a heart attack with this thread title.

When Sega bought the rights to the ESPN license across all of their sports games in 2002

Wait a minute - they paid to have an ESPN commercial at the beginning of their game? Go Sega!!

Anyway, if this has Chris Berman and Tom Jackson in it, then that could be really cool. If I have to listen to Joe Theisman and Paul McGuire through the whole thing, that would be so really not cool.

As for the extra month, that'll hurt them this year, but it would hurt even more if they pushed the game out the door. One year of not being as good as EA, and the whole franchise could die. Over time, it still has the potential to knock off Madden.

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Originally posted by BoBVila
Might as well put those dollars into games that I like to play, like SPACE HARRIER ;p

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Yeah, cuz I'm sure sega lives only to make games you like to play. Dumbass.

Ahh Space Harrier, another game that wouldnt sell for shit...

Great... because we know how respect the ESPN liscense gets in gaming. Maybe next year they can liscense the Quarteback Attack name.

EDIT: I meant Quarterback Club, but Quarterback Attack would be even funnier. FMV Football! Tom Zito was a visionary.

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Originally posted by Frogacuda
Maybe next year they can liscense the Quarteback Attack name.

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I think that's their backup plan if the negotiations with HeHateMe and the CFL fall through.

Sega... how stupid can they be?

Releasing their football title a full month after Madden 2004, who many are saying could be the best version yet, practically guarantees it will get worse sales than 2003.

Bunch of amateurs.

EA is laughing at them, I am too.:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

EA's too busy buying them.

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Originally posted by JMET
Ahh Space Harrier, another game that wouldnt sell for shit...

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Clam up see... Space Harrier 3 is going to KILL Halo.

I am still waiting for a home port of Planet Harriers... :(

Uggggh.. I guess this will probably happen to all Sega Sports 2K games. Ugh ugh ugh. I loathe ESPN and my interest in buying NHL 2K4 has just been halved (sorry I could care less about American football).

Maybe that NHL Hitz Pro game will be decent since they are turning it into a sim. :\

C'est la vie....

I bet when Madden kills them again this year they all wonder why.
Poor bastards. I liked the game but the play calling interface was fucking shit and running just didnt feel right. The ESPN stuff last year was damn cool though. I still liked how Madden played more overall though.
And sports games dont all suck. I'm tired of people bitching about them. If you dont like em dont play em and dont tell us how much you hate them in every sports related thread. Obviously some people like them when Madden can sell millions of copies every single year.

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Originally posted by Mr_Furious
First: they spend MILLIONS of dollars to acquire the ESPN license and never planned to implement it into their 2004 sports franchises even though they had over a year to do so.

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On the contrary, they always planned to implement the ESPN license into this year's games. In fact, this was supposed to be the first year where it would be fully implemented. At the time they obtained the license last year, their 2K3 sports games were already quite far along in development, so they didn't get to do everything that they wanted.

What surprises me is that they're dropping the whole "2Kx" thing now. They spent the last four years building up their sports label to the point where it is now somewhat respectable. People who are into sports video games know that when you say "NHL 2K3" you mean Sega's hockey game, and not EA's which is "NHL 2003." It might not sell as much as EA; nonetheless, it sells a respectable number of copies, to the point where Sega Sports is currently the only serious alternative to EA Sports as a sports video game label.

What will they call next year's football game (if they make one), "ESPN NFL Football 2K5," or "ESPN NFL Football 2005"? Or maybe they can really mix things up and call it "ESPN NFL Football MMV." :)

If they want to inject the ESPN name into the game so much, then why not simply call it "ESPN NFL 2K4," with the ESPN logo being integrated into the game logo, rather than in small print near the corner of the box? That would be the best of both worlds--it can call attention to the ESPN name, and at the same time keep the "2Kx" tradition that they've built up for a few years. I think that would please most people.

The name is not what is holding them back. They said that their commercial for NFL 2K3 was too similar to EA's Madden NFL 2003 ads...well, then, that might be part of the problem. How about doing something different that EA doesn't usually do, like include playable demos of some of their other sports games (basketball, hockey, etc.) on the disc? There are plenty of creative ways to differentiate your product from the competition.

Well from what I read, it sounds to me like Sega's just now deciding to "fully integrate" the ESPN license including play commentary by ESPN personalities and such. This should've been the plan from the day they picked up the license. Having a couple textures displaying ESPN in the game and a logo on the box doesn't sound like smart and valued use of the license. They could go so much farther with it but will they.

Actually, the more I think about it, the more this sounds like marketing's making the call here.

Either way, I see this as Sega's poor planning and/or crappy marketing affecting yet another Sega title that'll end up spelling another disappointment for them.

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Originally posted by Lordmrw
Yeah, cuz I'm sure sega lives only to make games you like to play. Dumbass.

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He was being a goof.

Shinobi you ass, you almost killed me.:(

i want to meet the guy who made that decision so i can kick him in the nuts!1

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Originally posted by EvilMog007
I bet when Madden kills them again this year they all wonder why.
Poor bastards. I liked the game but the play calling interface was fucking shit and running just didnt feel right. The ESPN stuff last year was damn cool though. I still liked how Madden played more overall though.
And sports games dont all suck. I'm tired of people bitching about them. If you dont like em dont play em and dont tell us how much you hate them in every sports related thread. Obviously some people like them when Madden can sell millions of copies every single year.

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01. Is Sega still using that fucking "football shape" play-calling interface? Because if they are... you gotta be kidding me.

02. Sports games are good, more often than not. I agree with you. Im not a big hockey fan but NHL games are awesome. Fast action, quick reflexes necessary, tons of game modes, competitive multiplayer... shit if you attach all these qualities to a shooter you'd have this entire message board creaming their pants. But since its a NHL game and thus not hardCORE, no way.

John Madden works for ABC, and ABC and ESPN are owned by the same parent.

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Originally posted by diffusionx
02. Sports games are good, more often than not. I agree with you. Im not a big hockey fan but NHL games are awesome. Fast action, quick reflexes necessary, tons of game modes, competitive multiplayer... shit if you attach all these qualities to a shooter you'd have this entire message board creaming their pants. But since its a NHL game and thus not hardCORE, no way.

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What part of why nerds don't like sports mystifies you? I thought it was a given.

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Originally posted by diffusionx
01. Is Sega still using that fucking "football shape" play-calling interface? Because if they are... you gotta be kidding me.

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I don't get why people have a problem with that. You push in the direction of a play, it appears projected onto the field. What's awkward there?

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02. Sports games are good, more often than not. I agree with you. Im not a big hockey fan but NHL games are awesome. Fast action, quick reflexes necessary, tons of game modes, competitive multiplayer... shit if you attach all these qualities to a shooter you'd have this entire message board creaming their pants.

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Or if it was made in Japan. But Frog's right - if half these guys spent high school getting wedgies from ninjas and one-man-army starfighter pilots, they'd probably have reason to hate those games too.

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Originally posted by StriderKyo
But Frog's right - if half these guys spent high school getting wedgies from ninjas and one-man-army starfighter pilots, they'd probably have reason to hate those games too.

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:lol: That was golden, Strider.

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Originally posted by StriderKyo
Over time, it still has the potential to knock off Madden.

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No, it doesn't.

Remember the old ESPN sports games during the 16-bit era? Weren't they all horrible?

I worked in retail the last two football seasons, both in a games dept. People would ask me about Madden, and out of curiosity, I'd sometimes ask them "Why Madden? Why not NFL 2k2 (or 2k3)?" They'd ALWAYS give me the exact same answer.

"Well dude... it's Madden. I mean, I've been playing it for a long time, and it's always been good, so I might as well stick with what's good". Now with Sega doing a name switch, they are just hurting their name recognition even further. Sports games are what most people who own a system buy, and they don't have any reason to NOT choose Madden.

Sega needs to pull something fantastic out of their sleeve to stop people who have been playing Madden since the Genesis.

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Originally posted by Roufuss
I worked in retail the last two football seasons, both in a games dept. People would ask me about Madden, and out of curiosity, I'd sometimes ask them "Why Madden? Why not NFL 2k2 (or 2k3)?" They'd ALWAYS give me the exact same answer.

"Well dude... it's Madden. I mean, I've been playing it for a long time, and it's always been good, so I might as well stick with what's good". Now with Sega doing a name switch, they are just hurting their name recognition even further. Sports games are what most people who own a system buy, and they don't have any reason to NOT choose Madden.

Sega needs to pull something fantastic out of their sleeve to stop people who have been playing Madden since the Genesis.

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Naw. It stil wouldn't make a difference. Both series NBA2k-NBA2k3 and NHL2k2 - NHL2k3 were FANTASTIC games in their respective sports, yet NBA live and NHL 2000 outsell them like crazy. It's not through a lack of trying on Sega's part. NHL2k3 is atleast about 10x the hockey game NHL2003 is. In gameplay atleast. Maybe they just have to jack up the presentation and make some sick graphics and show that off in commercials. Like actually put money into the game instead of advertising.

Note to SEGA - If you dare put Stuart Scott in my favorite NFL/NBA game, I will be forced to never buy it again.