Blitz: The League II
| Blitz: The League II | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Midway Games |
| Publisher(s) | Midway Games |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 |
| Release date(s) |
‹See Tfd› |
| Genre(s) | Sports, American football |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Blitz: The League II is an American football video game developed by the now-defunct Midway Games as part of its Blitz series. It was released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on October 13, 2008. There are five new teams included in this installment: The Los Angeles Riot, the Houston Riders,[1] Vancouver Beavers, Milwaukee Hounds, and Atlanta 404; and four older teams have been relocated. Lawrence Taylor (L.T.) is featured in the game, voicing a role as Quentin Sands.
The game also alludes to real-life scandals involving NFL players, as former Washington Redhawks quarterback Mike Mexico is now serving time in prison. This situation is similar to the Michael Vick, who used the pseudonym "Ron Mexico" when seeking treatment for herpes, as well as Vick's conviction for running an illegal dogfighting ring. There are also allegations of the New England Regulars cheating in a championship game, a reference to the New England Patriots' "Spygate" scandal. The game also features an incident with the Minnesota Reapers, reminiscent of the Minnesota Vikings boat scandal.
Teams
Division 1:
- Mexico City Aztecs (formerly Dallas Aztecs; the team relocated between the two games)
- Denver Grizzlies
- Arizona Outlaws
- New York Nightmare
- New England Regulars
- Vancouver Beavers
- Minnesota Reapers
- Seattle Reign
Division 2:
- Los Angeles Riot
- Kansas City Crossfire
- Atlanta 404
- Washington Redhawks
- Chicago Marauders
- Miami Hammerheads (formerly Orlando Hammerheads; the team relocated between the two games)
- Las Vegas Aces
- Carolina Copperheads
Division 3:
- Philadelphia Brawlers (former player-created team moved to Philadelphia by the Commissioner)
- Baltimore Bearcats
- Houston Riders
- Milwaukee Hounds
- Detroit Devils
- Cincinnati Crusaders
- Cleveland Steamers (formerly San Diego Cyclones; the team relocated and renamed between the two games)
- Player-Created Team: The player then creates their own team by choosing from a variety of cities or states, and creates its own nickname for the team. The player chooses from a variety of logos, and customizes its team's colors. The player-created team starts out as the eighth team in Division 3, the next season moves up through Division 2, and eventually in the third season moves into Division 1 to challenge for the League Championship. The team's canon name is the Anaheim Spartans, as this is the default name. The name of the player-created team cannot be changed later on during the campaign. The logo, location and team colors cannot be changed either. The player-created team is also available in exhibition and bonus mode.
Story
The game starts off during the league expansion. Two teams are joining the league. The first team is the player-created team, in which the player may choose the city, team name, and team colors. The second team is the Los Angeles Riot. This team is the main rival team in the campaign mode, and is led by Bruno Battaglia, the former player from the player-created team in Blitz: The League. The Riot are the commissioner's baby team, and he has decided that they will win the championship this year. He has fortified this by starting the Riot in Division 2 and by stocking up the team with star players. The only player left to add to the Riot is the projected #1 draft pick Kid Franchise. But Franchise surprises the entire league when he announces that he will be playing for his home team, and only his home team (the player-created team). This puts Franchise on the commissioner's bad side, and immediately creates a rivalry between the player-created team and the L.A. Riot. Franchise is the only player in the league to play both on offense and defense. During a pre-season interview, Franchise is asked nine questions that will determine his position on both sides of the ball and his player attributes. Answering certain questions give higher attributes early on in the campaign.
Division 3
Because there are a lot of teams, the game will take place over 3 seasons (a season per division). The commissioner notices that he will need help to put away the player-created team so the Riot have an easy Championship victory, so he tells New York Nightmare LB star, Quentin Sands, to destroy any hope for the player-created team of advancing. After Game 2, Quentin Sands joins the player-created team. The team must win at least 5 out of 7 division games to reach the Division 3 championship. The player-created team plays the Milwaukee Hounds and Conrad Damon at the division championship. After the win, a cutscene will be played, in which Quentin Sands is seen spiking Franchise's drink.
Division 2
Before the start of Division 2, Franchise is put in the Milltown Correctional Facility because he "violated" the league's drug policy. Luckily, Milltown plays football as well. The warden tells Franchise that if he can lead Milltown to a win against the rival Super Max Facility in their annual football game (without getting injured), then he will be released early. Mike Mexico makes an appearance here. After defeating Super Max, Franchise returns to play for the player-created team preparing for their season in Division 2. The player-created team is allowed to draft one team captain from Division 3 to play for them in Division 2. The Riot have made upgrades as well by adding Cleveland Steamers WR Justin Jonas (who was also a rookie from the first Blitz game) to the team. During a cut-scene, Riot captain Bruno Battaglia informs Franchise that Quentin Sands spiked his drink and sent him to Milltown. This results in a fight between Sands and Franchise, and a feud that lasts throughout Division 2. Once again, the player must win 5 out of 7 division games to enter the Division 2 championship. Surprisingly, the Riot do not make it, and instead the Miami Hammerheads make it through MVP Julius Williams (unless Franchise wins the MVP). After the win, it is revealed that the Minnesota Reapers have been in a boat crash and have decided to fold. Therefore, another team besides the player-created team must advance into Division 1. And in a "random" drawing in the commissioner's office, the L.A. Riot will be the second team to advance into Division 1.
Division 1
During the off-season, Karl Tiriptz, former captain of Super Max Facility, joins the player-created team. The L.A. Riot, despite the controversial advance into Division 1, are favored to win the championship. They have added Washington Redhawks captain (and rookie QB from the first Blitz game) Clayton Wescott, Kelvin Diggs and Tyrell Price of the Kansas City Crossfire, Justin Jonas of the Cleveland Steamers and Kimo Talofa of the Atlanta 404. Once again, the player needs to win 5 out of 7 games to reach the League championship. The Riot, however, go undefeated (unless they are defeated by the player-created team). During division play, the player-created team will face off with the New York Nightmare, Quentin Sands' former team. Before the game is played, Sands tells Franchise to forget what happened between them and work together to defeat his former team and win the league championship against the Riot. Franchise and Sands decide that they will also get back at the corrupt Commissioner. Sands offers the Commissioner to give him the captain spot on the L.A. Riot if he tells him important information (which is fake). The information is that Franchise has an injured Achilles tendon and will not be the same player on game day. The commissioner agrees and tells the other men in the room to buy stock on the Riot. Sands, however, records the entire conversation outside of the office. After the player-created team defeats the L.A. Riot in the League championship, the commissioner is arrested for insider trading, money laundering and extortion. Thus, ending the season for the player-created team going from Division 3 to Division 1 and getting the League Championship.
Features
- Realistic Injuries/Down-To-Detail Injuries.
- Minigames to heal or juice.
- Create Touchdown Celebrations.
- Create your own player as well as new team. (dubbed "Kid Franchise", team dubbed "Franchise's team")
- Darker, Deeper Campaign.
- Precision Aim Tackling System.
- Improved Graphics.
- New Late Hit Beatdown system (you dirty hit someone, you can go back and attack them, by, for example, taking their helmet off and hitting them in the face with it.)
- Ability to receive any player he or she wants (only after winning Division 3 Championship and then, depending who you get, you get Karl Tarpitz as a LB, DL, or DB)
Voice talents
- "Franchise" – GLC
- Agent – Jay Mohr
- Quentin Sands – Lawrence Taylor
- Color Commentator, Warden, Offensive Coordinator – Frank Caliendo
See also
References
- ↑ "Blitz: The League II - Welcome to the League". IGN. July 8, 2008. Archived from the original on July 9, 2008. Retrieved July 9, 2008.