"NCAA Football 13"

Platform: PlayStation 3 5/8 Xbox 360

The Bottom Line: 8.75/10

If you've been waiting for the "NCAA" franchise to hit its stride and capitalize on the time developer EA Tiburon has had with the current generation of consoles, that moment has arrived. I don't think this applies to the casual fan, but if you've been playing this series for as long as I have, you're going to be heartened by some of the changes and additions.

The passing game is revitalized by a slew of improvements that make slinging the ball less frustrating and more fun than ever before. Even with an average quarterback, I like being able to throw to many different parts of the field through a combination of factors like the new ball trajectories, added placement control, and variable throwing speeds. Timing deep balls is still a little tricky, but it's good to know that you can throw to more routes than ever before.

The passing game is also improved because the linebackers' jumping abilities have been toned down. This means you can finally throw medium-ranged routes around the middle of the field with confidence. That being said, defenses aren't at a loss in "NCAA 13"; you have to be careful with the ball. When a defensive back is visually tracking the quarterback and the receiver, they'll aggressively jump routes for interceptions. This is great, but the flipside is that receivers are still too passive, never challenging for the ball and thus having a disadvantage in jump ball situations. "NCAA's" offensive and defensive balance is also maintained by the fact that receivers drop more balls outside of their normal catch radius and lose more contested balls than in previous years.

The on-the-field gameplay sells this game, but scouting in "NCAA's" Dynasty mode is another important addition.