CYBERSPORTS NFL 2K1 CRUSHES MADDEN FOR REALISM.

Byline: - Tom Hoffarth

They've emerged as the two hottest football video games of the season. But really, which is better, Sega's NFL 2K1 or EA Sports' Madden 2001?

Our two-cent comparison:

Top five features of NFL 2K1:

1. Only football game on Sega DreamCast.

2. You can play it online with SegaNet - never before offered in a console football game.

3. It's the first eight-player game (if you've got seven other friends).

4. More than 2,000 motion-capture animations give it a much fuller range of motion, even more than Sega's NFL 2K from last year.

5. A General Manager feature allows you to sign players and build a roster in accordance with a salary cap.

Overall rating: For anyone older than 5, like watching a real game in many ways.

Top five features of Madden 2001:

1. John Madden-endorsed.

2. All-Madden teams from the past can play games.

3. For one to four players.

4. Every player is slow, lumbering and herky-jerky.

5. The game comes in packaging made with 78 percent recovered fiber and 73 percent post-consumer content.

Overall rating: For kids 5 and under, a not-so-bad way to kill a few hours. Let's hope it looks much better in the new PlayStation 2 version, but we're one of the unlucky ones who don't have one yet.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo: (1) no caption (video game cover -- Madden 2001)

(2) no caption (video game cover -- NFL 2K1)