I have always been intrigued by American Football. It seemed like the most universal thing ever.
It has been name-dropped or actually shown on pretty much every American thing I have ever seen, from the likes of "Growing Pains" and "ALF" to "Star vs the Forces of Evil" and "Gravity Falls"... and yet, every time I tuned into an actual match, I ended up switching it off, frustrated by the slow-paced action and constant play-calling.
It all started to change when I watched SB Nation's excellent documentary on the Atlanta Falcons, which highlighted just how fun and heartbreaking the sport could be. Still, I found this masterpiece of story telling right in the middle of the off-season and I didn't wanna watch old games... American Football matches can go on for quite a long time and I wanted something fresh. So, what did I do? I played some videogames.
But if only it were that simple...
A big reason of my distaste for the sport came from the fact that many of its video-game counterparts were downright impossible to pick up and enjoy due to their arduous nature and frankly annoying set of menus upon menus, which ended up resembling some sort of managing/FO simulator more than an on-the-field activity. I eventually found what I was looking for, though! "Fanatical Football" on Android, a PS2-like game that gives you the very basis of the game and not a lot more. A casual game to be certain, but not a bad one at all. Still, I wanted to experience the real thing and a bit of searching took me to "NFL 98", a SEGA Genesis game that I would have loved as a kid.
THIS was what I was looking for and after just a few minutes, I was already running down the field.
This game (whose only shortcoming seems to be its utter refusal to let you play matches shorter than twenty minutes) completely ignited my love for the sport. It also did a few other things:
1) It turned me into an Arizona Cardinals fan. Why? Because anyone masochistic enough to play on that kind of weather deserves some respect. I also became drawn to the team because I love bird-based teams and they go very well with my beloved Blue Jays.
2) It made me appreciate how fun is to take on the New England Patriots, a team that I ended up mowing down 60 to 0 after exploiting their defenses a bit. I quickly learned that hating on the "Pats" is something that a lot of fans agree on, so that was nice.
3) It made me develop a ton of strategies and counters that were actually a ton of fun to implement. I love going for the two-point conversion, man and I enjoy running down the receiver until I can tackle him for a Safety. Of course, seeing your tackling attempts fail and the runner just taking off until he gains more than twenty yards is one of those terrifyingly beautiful things that puts blood on your veins, much like giving up a long flyball on a baseball game that you are certain is gonna clear the fence, just for some invisible force to drop it into a fielder's glove right at the warning track. I live for those moments and I honestly feel like I had been missing out on them.
So yeah... I still have a lot to learn, but I'm really enjoying my time of it.
Go Cards!
It has been name-dropped or actually shown on pretty much every American thing I have ever seen, from the likes of "Growing Pains" and "ALF" to "Star vs the Forces of Evil" and "Gravity Falls"... and yet, every time I tuned into an actual match, I ended up switching it off, frustrated by the slow-paced action and constant play-calling.
It all started to change when I watched SB Nation's excellent documentary on the Atlanta Falcons, which highlighted just how fun and heartbreaking the sport could be. Still, I found this masterpiece of story telling right in the middle of the off-season and I didn't wanna watch old games... American Football matches can go on for quite a long time and I wanted something fresh. So, what did I do? I played some videogames.
But if only it were that simple...
A big reason of my distaste for the sport came from the fact that many of its video-game counterparts were downright impossible to pick up and enjoy due to their arduous nature and frankly annoying set of menus upon menus, which ended up resembling some sort of managing/FO simulator more than an on-the-field activity. I eventually found what I was looking for, though! "Fanatical Football" on Android, a PS2-like game that gives you the very basis of the game and not a lot more. A casual game to be certain, but not a bad one at all. Still, I wanted to experience the real thing and a bit of searching took me to "NFL 98", a SEGA Genesis game that I would have loved as a kid.
THIS was what I was looking for and after just a few minutes, I was already running down the field.
This game (whose only shortcoming seems to be its utter refusal to let you play matches shorter than twenty minutes) completely ignited my love for the sport. It also did a few other things:
1) It turned me into an Arizona Cardinals fan. Why? Because anyone masochistic enough to play on that kind of weather deserves some respect. I also became drawn to the team because I love bird-based teams and they go very well with my beloved Blue Jays.
2) It made me appreciate how fun is to take on the New England Patriots, a team that I ended up mowing down 60 to 0 after exploiting their defenses a bit. I quickly learned that hating on the "Pats" is something that a lot of fans agree on, so that was nice.
3) It made me develop a ton of strategies and counters that were actually a ton of fun to implement. I love going for the two-point conversion, man and I enjoy running down the receiver until I can tackle him for a Safety. Of course, seeing your tackling attempts fail and the runner just taking off until he gains more than twenty yards is one of those terrifyingly beautiful things that puts blood on your veins, much like giving up a long flyball on a baseball game that you are certain is gonna clear the fence, just for some invisible force to drop it into a fielder's glove right at the warning track. I live for those moments and I honestly feel like I had been missing out on them.
So yeah... I still have a lot to learn, but I'm really enjoying my time of it.
Go Cards!
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