'Madden NFL 2005'

Good news, Steelers fans. This year's Madden cover jinx puts the kibosh on AFC North rival Baltimore and Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. So that must mean the same football ills will befall Ray-Ray as the fellas before him: Mike Vick last year (broken leg), Marshall Faulk (ankle injury), Daunte Culpepper (stinkeroo passing season) and Eddie George (stinkeroo running season).

Otherwise, the video-game franchise is back in full form. "Madden NFL 2005" (EA Games; GameCube, PlayStation2, PlayStation, Xbox, PC, Game Boy Advance, $24.95 to $49.95; Rated Everyone) didn't make many improvements over its previous edition, but when you're the Super Bowl champion of games, why tinker much?

Oh, the Hit Stick -- to clobber ball carriers -- and defensive-audible updates are neat. The Storyline aspect of Franchise Mod -- with Fox Sports Radio's Tony Bruno on virtual radio replete with real player and coach interviews plus hometown headlines (including our own Post-Gazette) -- is a cool addition. Though what struck this media type as da bomb is the player Stature and Morale gauge, such as the one that describes Steelers receiver Plaxico Burress in his contract year thusly: "I might become a problem if my morale drops any lower."

The Mini-camp and Practice remain the best gamer preparation around, in lieu of August two-a-days. Its play and playbook are still decent, its audio fine (with Madden and Al Michaels joined by ESPN sideline reporter Jill Arrington, who wasn't wearing a virtual halter) and its crowds ... Well, some things just don't improve.

'ESPN NFL 2K5'

To many players, this game is a headhunter cornerback closing fast on the strutting Madden. Maybe considerable ground was gained because this sucker went on the market at bargain-basement half price. Granted, there is good play to "ESPN NFL 2K5" (Sega; PS2, Xbox; $19.99; Rated Everyone), to the point where some claim it's better than Madden. It certainly looks better, on many fronts -- it's as if you're watching an ESPN Sunday night broadcast.

Still, this screams college dorm. Or bachelor's pad. Or teen sanctum. After all, the biggest change to this edition is The Crib, the player's personalized room replete with Trivia Machine, Darts, Air Hockey, Paper Football and ... an Easter Egg Hunt? The phone rang in my Crib, and it was Steve-O on the horn wanting to challenge me to a game. (You don't know Steve-O? You're too old. Hint: He's from that MTV show that starts with "Jack.") Other celebrity callers in this game include David Arquette, Funk Master Flex and that football goddess Carmen Electra. Just what we all need, Electra virtually dissing us during a game.

Like Madden, this game went for the Big Hit upgrade. It added an ESPN 25th Anniversary mode, which even includes the Immaculate Reception, which happened seven years before the four-letter network was born. The pick-your-own-celebration-dance mechanism ought to make cover boy Terrell Owens happy.

Lots of gamers have been charmed by the halftime and post-game ESPN virtual-highlights shows starring Chris Berman, who, to me, looks an awful lot like Ray Romano's television dad, Peter Boyle. The backgrounds are better than on the Madden game, though Pittsburgh's three rivers never looked so blue, not even immediately after the Ice Age. And what's Lee Mays doing in some prime Steelers plays, anyway?

'NCAA Football 2005'

Former Pitt star Larry Fitzgerald graces the box of what just may be the most entertaining of the football lot this fall. Come on, where else can you play mascots vs. mascots and watch the Panther seemingly trip over his own tail? Where else can you play Pitt-Penn State, and, if you use mascots, label it A Tale of Two Kitties.

Staying true to the college game, "NCAA Football 2005" (EA Sports; GC, PS2, Xbox; $49.99; Rated Everyone) even sells its virtual soul, with the Pontiac College Classics for historical matchups and Sports Illustrated info added as, well, product placement. There are four classic Penn State teams (1982, '86, '92, '94) from which to choose, but no single Pitt bunch save for an all-time team including Dan Marino, Tony Dorsett and ... Bill Fralic at left guard instead of tackle? It also offers Division I-AA play from Alabama A&M to Youngstown State.

EA added similar changes here as with the Madden game, tweaking up players' composure gauges, pumping up the volume and the home-field advantage, tossing in the impact tackle and the customized celebrations. Yes, now the virtual collegian can inanely dance after an everyday tackle or stupidly exalt after a routine play. Things the composed Fitzgerald never would.