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Everybody knew that
there would be an
NFL season this
year. That didn’t
keep millions of us
from checking sports
sites every day and
looking for updates.
It was like a
ridiculous version
of the cold war.
Everybody wondered
about what was going
on without having
any real answers,
but at the end of
the day was it a
pertinent thing to
worry about? For the
fans, it probably
wasn’t. But for the
part of the economy
that relies on NFL
football, it was
important. Part of
that economy is EA
Sports and its
yearly franchise of
Madden. On the
surface, Madden
wasn’t affected by
the lockout.
However, if you
think and analyze
things a bit, Madden
was impacted by the
lockout in a very
positive way.
Madden was impacted
by the lockout in a
positive way with
vast gameplay
improvements. Where
the offseason of
upgrades and fancy
roster moves by a
few different teams
might have been a
distraction, an
offseason of
uncertainty made EA
rise to the occasion
and make the most
authentic and best
Madden to date. And
it’s not just a step
up the never ending
staircase of
improvement for the
franchise, its
several steps up.
Madden has been
upgraded in 100s of
tiny ways. Most of
these upgrades have
been made in
gameplay and
gameplay
presentation.
Updated in gameplay
are different
running styles,
character
animations, carrying
styles, tackling
animations, and
collision physics.
This looks and plays
like the most
realistic Madden to
date. Even the grass
is 3D and reacts to
what’s going on with
the players and on
the field. The
lighting effects are
equally impressive.
The sun moves across
the skyline and
shadows and effects
are more realistic
than ever. The
Madden 12
development team
even used tech
that’s similar to
what James Cameron
used in Avatar to
capture real life
NFL and NFL films
presentations and
camera work so you
can see things
between plays a
little differently.
The gameplay works,
looks, and plays
better than ever. If
you’re a Madden nut
and have been
disappointed by the
simplicity and the
casual elements
thrown into Madden
over the past few
years… you will love
this version and
you’ll be delighted
that it’s focused on
the more experienced
Madden gamer. The AI
this year is
ridiculously
advanced with player
specific traits, hot
and cold streaks,
tendency development
and a ton more
features.
The gameplay is
improved but
everybody’s favorite
mode- Franchise mode
has been improved
substantially as
well. Implemented
into Franchise for
the first time are
cut days. You start
a preseason with a
full roster and by
the end of preseason
you have to trim
down your roster to
regulation. It’s
kind of funny that
the NFL minimized
the impact of that
this season, but
it’s still a great
feature. Franchise
also has a new free
agent bidding
system, a new
scouting system, new
player development
features, new
team-based AI, and
tons of other
features.
The Superstar and
Ultimate Madden Team
modes got some
modest improvements
but remain largely
the same. You can
trade cards in UMT
and there’s a new
point development
system in the
Superstar mode. Both
of these modes
aren’t bad, but the
improvements
compared to what’s
been done in actual
gameplay and the
franchise mode…
well… they pale in
comparison.
There’s no way one
review can rundown
all of the
improvements in
Madden. Even the
music direction has
been improved. There
are tons of features
and improvements and
they took out and
cut back on what was
deemed as
unimportant by fans
from the last few
updates. The one
place that this game
lacks… Gus Johnson’s
commentary is fine.
Chris Collinsworth’s
color commentary is
fine too. But the
engine for that
commentary is
somewhat off.
Sometimes it’s not
even accurate. That
stuff will be
addressed in an
update possibly, but
the commentary is a
little weak this
time around. That’s
the only small quip
about a game that’s
otherwise fantastic.
Madden fans can
rejoice with the
game’s best update
in years.
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