NCAA March Madness 06

Next Level Gaming

The gameplay is improved a good deal from last year, giving you more of a realistic feel while maintaining a fast-paced arcadey kind of feel.

IGN

This year's March Madness is better than last year's effort and the franchise is definitely moving in the right direction where it's truly a college basketball title and not a re-skinned, stripped down NBA title.

Game Over Online

It’s not often that you can say it, but this year the college game actually comes off better than the professional title. NCAA March Madness 06 features a more complete presentation of the emotional and tactical facets of the game.

Gaming Age

Even long time fans of the series will find plenty of new and exciting things to do to last you another full year.

GameZone

While there are things that could be improved upon this game will capture you for many hours while you are trying to just get one more win.

Worth Playing

The lockdown stick really adds an extra realistic dimension to the title, and with the addition of back/off screens, offense is a lot easier too.

GameSpy

The game's minor tweaks here and there do a lot to smooth out some of the weakness from before, and the new gameplay features add just enough to the game's familiar formula to make things interesting.

PSM Magazine

The game's pace, even the relative quickness of the players, feels sluggish at times compared to "Live." Otherwise, this rocks. [Nov 2005, p.92]

Electronic Gaming Monthly

A frenzied student section, suffocating full-court presses, Dickie V. shouting about God knows what - that's college basketball, all right. And it's exactly what you can expect from EA's university hardwood. [Nov 2005, p.131]

Official U.S. Playstation Magazine

A pretty quick AI that takes advantage of give-and-go's, pick-and-rolls, and backdoor cuts. [Nov 2005, p.115]

G4 TV

Factor in some respectable online gameplay, and NCAA March Madness 06 is a much more solid game than what we played last year. For once the control additions make sense and deepen the game.

Armchair Empire

March Madness 06 is no Madden and no NCAA Football, but EA is getting very close to making a very good college basketball game.

GamePro

Someone once called basketball a thinking man's game. NCAA March Madness 06 certainly got that right.

PSX Extreme

Easily the best game in the franchise’s history, but it’s not leaps and bounds better over last year’s game.

Gaming Horizon

The new lockdown stick makes defense in a basketball game fun again, and the return of the field general play calling easily make this feel like you’re playing a true college basketball game. Despite some of the horrid blemishes that make this feel like a somewhat incomplete game, NCAA March Madness is still a decent college basketball title.

Game Informer

The game controls like an awkward 6'7" giant. [Nov 2005, p.148]

GameSpot

While some great strides have been made since last year, as far as the actual gameplay is concerned, the dynasty mode is still broken, which makes the game feel like an incomplete product.

eToychest

The lockdown stick is a terrific addition, and is a step in the right direction for future basketball games to include in making the defense more player-friendly. However, the slow tempo and the blurry graphics completely bring down the in-game experience, which are really the meat and potatoes of any sports game.

Game Revolution

Though it sees a nice addition in the lockdown stick, the game stays stubbornly true to its already paid-for code, repeating the fouls of its past and failing to graduate to the next level.