ESPN NFL 2K5
| ESPN NFL 2K5 | |
|---|---|
Box art for the Xbox version
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| Developer(s) | Visual Concepts |
| Publisher(s) | SEGA |
| Series | NFL 2K |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2, Xbox |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Football (American) simulation |
| Mode(s) | Single player, Multiplayer, Online |
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Aggregator | Score |
| GameRankings | (PS2) 87.84% (Xbox) 90.52% |
| Metacritic | (PS2) 90/100 (Xbox) 92/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| 1UP.com | B+ |
| Game Informer | 9.5 out of 10 |
| GamePro |  |
| GameSpot | 9.1 out of 10 |
| IGN | 9.3/10 |
ESPN NFL 2K5 is an American football video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports and the Sega Corporation. It is the sixth installment of the NFL 2K series. The game was originally released on July 20, 2004, for both the PlayStation 2 and Xbox video game consoles. It was the last NFL 2K game to be released before Electronic Arts signed an exclusivity deal with the NFL to make 2K's rival Madden NFL series the only officially licensed NFL game. It was also the last game to be made by Sega before that happened.
The game features a franchise mode with a SportsCenter feature hosted by Chris Berman. He outlines the games of the current week with his co-host Trey Wingo who talks about the latest injuries and free agent deals and trades during the season. Mel Kiper hosts the draft portion of the segment while Suzy Kolber reports from the sidelines. There is also weekly preparation for the coming week which allows the player to make decisions on training and preparation. The player can also create his or her own team deciding the team logos (over 10 are available), team name, the teams city, the teams stadium look and build, jerseys and how good the team is. It also has a feature called first-person football, which gives the player the experience on the field looking from the eyes of the players. There is also the traditional create-a-player mode.
ESPN NFL 2K5 was the first in the 2K series priced at $19.99 the day it shipped, much lower than market leader Madden NFL at $49.99. This greatly reduced Madden sales that year; one EA Sports developer recalled that "[i]t scared the hell out of us". EA reduced Madden NFL 2005's price to $29.95. In December 2004 EA Sports acquired an exclusive rights agreement with the NFL and NFLPA to be the sole creator of NFL video games. The deal terminated 2K Sports production of any further NFL games. The ensuing season, Madden 2006, saw pricing returned to the $49.99 MSRP.
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