espn 2k5 is by far the best. The only thing madden beats it in is defensive gameplay, otherwise it is worse in everything. I mean the graphics look like they're from psone still, espn looks like doom in football, you get chris berman doing hightlights, sportscenter, online is much better set up, and it's only 20 bucks. I know regardless of how good espn is people will still by madden because it's the number one football game in the public's eyes and is the most popular. I was a madden fan ever since Super nintendo, but I got so sick of Madden being cheap ass and not changing anything in the game. Right now the game plays basically the same way and looks the same as it did in 2002. To me that just shows that the people behind madden have no commitment to giving the people the best game they can. They just cut back and save money because they know regardless of how bad it is people will always buy it. On the other hand you have espn always re upping their effort every year and this year for only 20 bucks. That shows they have an a motivation to make their game the best and make it worth it for the people who buy the game.
I haven't played the espn game, but in my experience, and for my money, I can't go wrong with Madden. The playbooks on these games are the most realistic I've seen, hands down. To me, that's important than the graphics. Plus, you can step into any Madden game, any year, without reading the instructions. Running offensive plays in Madden is so much better and easier--the route runners are easy to find when passing, and Madden offers more formations more consistently than any other game on the market.
Of course--that having been said--I will try the other game, and put it to the test--