Yes, college football season has begun. In July! We've just posted our review of NCAA Football 06, which ships to stores this week. We've been playing this one for well over a week now. It's safe to say that this year's version is much better than last year's and arguably better than everyone's favorite, NCAA 2004. What might not be so obvious is why. A lot has been made of the new Race for the Heisman mode, but I found that to be just a nice twist or distraction away from the primary dynasty mode. Recruiting (which is more than half the fun in the game) is taken out of your hands in Race for the Heisman, so that's a big downer. I think most of you will probably create yourself in the game, win yourself a few Heismans, but that'll be it. Dynasty is still where it's at, and the new wrinkles in recruiting definitely add to the fun.

　　As far as the actual gameplay goes, moving a lot of the jukes and other moves to the right analog stick was a great design choice. The game plays so much more intuitively, and you won't be caught wondering if the L1/R1 buttons are for juking or if they're for stiff arming. I also like that you can sprint out your quarterback by holding down X (or A on Xbox), without bringing down the passing icons. Rollout plays work so much better with this tweak, and look more realistic.

　　There are no more College Classics, but to be honest, you won't miss them at all. The spring drills minigames are a much better distraction, and actually serve a useful purpose, as the skills you develop by playing them will help improve your game in a regular match.

　　I'm still a little miffed that even after our 10-2 year, Cal's not ranked in the game, and they still haven't included our fight song in the college bands soundtrack. I guess like everyone else, the developers are took a wait-and-see attitude with the departures in all the offensive skill positions, and the entire linebacking crew. That's OK though--the ratings on the Bears' returning wide receivers were overly generous, even if they didn't give quite enough credit to our JC and freshman recruits. Right now, I'm just looking forward to continuing Cal's multiyear streak of consecutive national championships in my dynasty.

　　Just 54 more days until Cal's season kicks off... NCAA 06 is definitely going to help while away a lot of those days for me!