The Five Best Sports Video Games of 2007

I love college football…but I have a confession to make. I’m totally one of those “gamer girls.” Yeah, one of those. Anyone out there, I’ll challenge you to a one-on-one game of Halo, right here, right now.

And there’s nothing that makes me cream in my jeans faster than a combination of two things I love – sports and videos. Well, nothing except maybe Johnny Depp. But that’s another story. What I’m talking about right now is video games based on sports. First person shooters and the like are fun, but you have to admit, there have been some great sports video games. Here are the games that I personally believe are the top five best sports video games of 2007:

5. NHL ‘08
There’s a reason why EA is a leader in sports games – they know how to make a “team” sport game fun. I’m a huge hockey fan, and I’ve found that the 2008 version of this game is much better than past versions. As opposed to some other sports games, this one has great online play too, which allows you to create team play and leagues.

4. Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007
Football in the United States is all about first downs and field goals, but everywhere else in the world, football is the same thing as soccer – and soccer is huge. PES is one of the best soccer (”football”) games out there, and that’s saying a lot because personally I don’t think that soccer translates to video games very well. If you’re a fan of the sport, though, this is definitely one you should have in your video game collection.
3. Wii Sports

Wii Sports is in a different category by itself because you aren’t pretending to be players on the screen. You are the player. Your personal sports ability dictates how well you’ll do in the game. That doesn’t mean that you have to be a start to do well…but you have to be able to swing a bat and punch at an opponant to do well. Ok, ok…I know that Wii Sports isn’t a “new” game. But come on. It’s still fun, and there hasn’t been a sequal released…

2. Madden NFL ‘08

John Madden is a tool. Listen to him announce just one game and you’ll want to puncture your eardrums with a dull fork. That said, Madden NFL ‘08 is pretty cool, in true Madden NFL fashion. There are more features than last time around, making the gameplay a bit harder (to the game’s benefit). If you have a sports fan on your holiday list this year, Madden makes a perfect present.

1. Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground

I have a confession – I’ll never be able to get into “team” sports video games as easily as I can get into one-person games…and if you want a great sports game where you can be the star, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series the the best thing on the market. Tony Hawk himself is badass, so it’s no wonder that his video game is as well. In Proving Ground, you get to skate around Phily, Baltimore, D.C. (I love that real-life aspect of the game), and you can unlock a bunch of uber-cool features are you skate through the career mode. Yep, it deserves the #1 spot in my book.