NCAA Football 14: Last-Minute Guide to This Year's New Features

Get ready for one of the best versions of NCAA Football on the current gen consoles.

Since moving to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, the developers have failed to really build a game that was as fun and addicting as the previous gen versions. Six or seven years ago, you saw games that kept getting better and better.

Recently, though, NCAA Football has fallen into a bit of a lull, failing to offer much different as each year's game is released.

With NCAA Football 14, you've got what should be a great callback to the great games of years past. EA Sports has managed to take what has worked over the last few years and then add some new tweaks that should keep the series regulars satisfied.

As the July 9 official launch is just hours away, here are three of the new features added to this year's game.

Ultimate Team

Fans of EA Sports games will be very familiar with Ultimate Team. It's been featured in both the Madden and FIFA series and allows gamers to unlock stars and create their own superteams. It's a fun mode for some, and to others, it's largely a cash-grab for EA.

When it came to light that NCAA Football would have Ultimate Team, it was interesting to see how the developers would implement it into the game. After all, they couldn't put current players into the game. Instead, they made a very cool move and have included the greats from the past.

Here are some glimpses at Barry Sanders and Bo Jackson.

According to the game's website, there's over 1,400 former players up for grabs, so you shouldn't worry about only getting the same players every time.

There was some controversy after it was revealed Aaron Hernandez would be an available player in Ultimate Team. IGN's Andrew Goldfarb is reporting that EA Sports has pulled Hernandez from the game, though, and will be replaced by Alex Smith.

Infinity Engine 2

As with any new feature, there are some kinks that need to be improved upon in the first go-round. With NCAA Football's Infinity Engine 2, fans should see a much smoother game.

Most of the improvements involve the running game, which has been a problem with the game for a few seasons now. The movement isn't very realistic. It's something the developers wanted to address this year.

You should see your blockers do a much better job downfield, so no longer will you watch a defender get a free hit at you while you're teammate runs aimlessly downfield.

One of the better additions is "Stumble Recovery." This allows you to control your runner as he's about to stumble to the ground. You can either get him to regain his footing or even right himself and head for greener pastures.

Coach Skills

Not all head coaches are made equal. NCAA Football does something to try to demonstrate that.

With Coach Skills, you can earn yourself advantages that can be used either on the field or on the recruiting trail.

When it comes to the "Game Management" side of this feature, you can do everything from allowing your quarterback to be unaffected by a raucous road crowd to allowing the play-action pass to be set up much earlier in the game so you can burn the secondary at a vital time.

In terms of recruiting, you can increase the chances of an instant commitment and increase your recruiting points totals at crucial stages in the process, among others.

These are great incentives to continue playing your dynasty mode. You won't want to just simulate through all the big games; otherwise you're missing out on a great opportunity to earn the points for your Coach Skills.