To be fair, this year's QB Club is better than last year's effort, but it is still by no means an excellent game. The chief mistake with the previous version was the ridiculous catch button, which was not only a bad idea, but didn't really work even if it was a good one. This year, the catch button has been modified to "increase chances to make a catch." However, this only "decreases the chance to annoy us."

There are some things that the game engine has to do for the player, like bump the corners at the beginning of a route and be sure not to grab a handful of jersey in front of the ref. Other things should be left up to the player, like choosing the receiver or finding the hole at the line. Catching should be based upon the qualities of the receiver and how well the player threw the ball. It's extraordinarily frustrating to see Keyshawn Johnson or Isaac Bruce drop the ball right in their hands because we didn't hit the X button fast enough.

In a multiplayer game, this problem applies to everyone. But in the single-player version, it can be supremely frustrating to complete a pass -- especially when the computer doesn't seem to have that problem. This is probably the second biggest problem with QBC 2001, and it is revealed through the passing game. Your supporting AI -- the brain behind the other guys on your team -- is weak at best. The secondary seems to have little idea how to do its job, with poor teams like the Saints marching up and down against our Titans or Bucs. Tackling seems to be a mystery to some players on your team as well, so expect to rotate to the player nearest the ball carrier on just about every play.

Part of the tackling problem seems to stem from the poor animation. Some pre-set plays are obviously motion captured and look great. For example, on a hook pattern, when the receiver jumps up to make the catch, the corner often low bridges him and sends the wideout flipping head over heels. It looks great and adds some real flavor to the game. However, most of the time the animation is extremely choppy and looks just plain bad. The game doesn't do itself any favors, either, when it goes into automatic replay mode and gives gamers a nice close-up view of the wooden men inside the uniforms.

That sort of clumsiness sadly extends to the controls as well. Dropping out of the pocket can sometimes be a hassle, but that isn't nearly as bad as controlling the runner. Going from the QB to the running back can be extremely awkward, and by the time we did regain control of him, the gaping hole in the line was now filled by a linebacker. In one instance, we pitched out to Emmett Smith and he fell down in the backfield for no reason. In another instance, an opposing d.b. was running up the sideline for a certain touchdown before he ran out of bounds for no apparent reason. QB Club 2001 is full of those bizarre little moments that give it the feeling of a second-rate title.

That feeling is exacerbated by the lackluster production values. The poorly animated player models are blocky, the stadiums look bland and interchangeable and the environmental effects, like rain and snow, are generic. There are little touches meant to add spice to the game, like player taunts and sideline celebrations. But after the first dozen times, these sorts of antics grow tiresome.

The audio commentary has, unfortunately, made few improvements from last year's terrible effort. While we couldn't find any outright mistakes like last year, there doesn't seem to be much that's new. Mike Patrick goes through the routine as the play-by-play announcer, and Randy Cross provides his usually patter of banal and often stupid observations. After some of the dozens of incomplete passes, Cross will often inexplicably blurt out: "Nice Catch! Both of them!"

There are a few nice touches in QBC 2001. The VMU will display the play you've chosen, and this year you can save your best replays. There is an enormous wealth of options for the football fan, including the ability to design your own plays, players and profiles. There are managerial modes for the bean-counters out there, and plenty of historic teams for the old-schoolers.

But these small touches aren't enough to salvage a game that simply doesn't have big-league talent. It cannot boast a single aspect that it does better than last year's NFL2K, much less this year's superior update to that game. It's not easy to suggest a solution, as it needs more than cosmetic surgery. And as any good athletic orthopedic surgeon would tell you, sometimes the best solution is to just retire.

Bottom Line: An improved version of last year's disaster is still not worth the having.