NFL GameDay (series)

NFL GameDay was a football video game series for both the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 video game consoles. NFL GameDay directly competed with EA Sports' Madden NFL Football and Sega's NFL 2K franchises. The NFL GameDay series began with NFL GameDay released for the 1995-96 NFL season and ended with NFL GameDay 2005 following EA's acquisition of NFL licensing. The games were designed by 989 Sports throughout their nine-year duration.

NFL GameDay
NFL GameDay was the first video game in the NFL GameDay series, and was released in 1996 on the PlayStation video game console as a competitor to the Madden football game series.

NFL GameDay 99
NFL GameDay 99 was a sequel to NFL GameDay 98. It was a football video game for the PlayStation and PC. It was first released on August 26, 1998 by 989 Sports, On the cover is Terrell Davis.

Reception
It was originally criticized for people feeling "like (they) were in an arcade with extreme difficulty." Nonetheless, GameDay quickly became a best-selling series.

NFL GameDay 2005
NFL GameDay 2005 was the last game in the NFL GameDay series, and unlike the last couple of GameDay video games, it was only available on the PlayStation one console, and not on the PS2.

Competition
The GameDay series had been on a decline since GameDay 2000. It was formerly the highest ranked football game, ahead of Madden, the 2K Sports series, and NFL Blitz, but it was now behind not only its main competitor, Madden, but also the NFL 2K series. Due to sales being low, NFL GameDay made what seemed to be a last ditch effort to get back on top by going back to the PlayStation exclusively, possibly trying to give it back the "original gameplay feel" it originally had. In any case, it was still not a big enough hit to put it through, and it, along with all other NFL licensed games, were discontinued due to the NFL signing exclusively with Electronic Arts.

Reception
Mostly critics agreed that this looked like a "Hail Mary", to save the series, and it was "Incomplete". The game enhanced the graphics, and put in a new configuration that would make you feel like you are "the quarterback yourself." Critics said that they felt like they were "getting the same game they got years ago, just out of style." Other complaints included that sound was off, and that it was too easy, which is a strange complaint considering the first game was criticised too hard.

Declining popularity
In response to the criticism that the game felt "too arcadey", the series took on a more Madden-inspired style of play starting with NFL GameDay 99. Some people felt that the change of play-style made the game less fun and, combined with Madden switching to polygon technology, the GameDay series lost the crown as the best selling football game the following year.

The end of the GameDay series
The NFL GameDay series did not transition well to the PlayStation 2 platform and lost a great deal of market share. In the end, the GameDay series, along with all other non-EA football games, were doomed to extinction when Electronic Arts acquired exclusive rights to the NFL license.