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cdj
05-13-2011, 02:52 PM
Players rarely maintain the same level of performance throughout a season. There are good days and bad. In Madden NFL 12's Franchise mode, consistency and confidence are major factors in how a player's performance varies throughout a season.

Michael Vick can be thrilling to watch one week and agonizing to watch the next. His inconsistency can swing his Madden rating by some 20 points, which sounds crazy, but isn't too far-fetched. Peyton Manning, by contrast, remains the most consistent QB in the NFL. When Peyton steps onto the field, you can be fairly certain of the quality of his performance.

Rookies tend to be less consistent, capable of jaw-dropping plays followed by boneheaded ones week in and week out. And as players learn and mature (if they mature), they gain consistency. It matters this year if a player is a rookie – not just because they may have a lower overall rating, but because that rating can fluctuate greatly. Letting a rookie sit and learn is actually a viable strategy in Franchise mode.

The other weekly factor in dynamic player performance is confidence. This comes down to hot and cold streaks. If Antonio Cromartie remembers all his children's names and gets a pair of picks against the Giants, he's going to be riding high into the next week. So much of the game is said to be mental and so a player's mindset factors into their stats on Sunday. Streaks only last a maximum of three weeks before resetting, preventing a player from having an inflated rating the entire season.

Player Roles

Tom Brady is a playoff performer. He's good in the regular season, but something kicks in during the playoffs that boost his ability to win games. Mark Brunell has become a mentor. His role is to support the development of Jets QB Mark Sanchez. Having Brunell as mentor has Sanchez learning and improving at a faster rate. Adrian Peterson is fumble prone. It's in his head now. In big moments, he's more likely to cough up the rock. Sadly, that's his role right now on the Vikings. (EA hasn't revealed if Peterson has the Fumble Prone role; if not, we should riot.)

Roles aren't given, they're earned. In each offseason, every player is analyzed to see if they meet specific criteria for a role. If so, they enter the next season tagged as such. These roles can have a big influence in games. After all, clutch performers can do things they just couldn't ever hope to do the first 55 minutes of a game. A switch turns on and they make good things happen. Some roles can have a positive effect on a player or team and others, like the unfortunate "fumble prone" role, can be negatives that follow a player until they find a way to shake the tag.

But roles go beyond game-day performance. The general manager for each computer-controlled team factors roles into his decision on free agents and draft picks. After all, if you have a "quarterback of the future" on the team, there's no reason to draft a QB in the first round. If a team is built on pounding the ball up the middle, they're going to try and sign a running back in free agency who fits the role.

And, of course, roles are going to change the way you build your own franchise. Roles aren't defined at the draft but on the field. So you won't know who is a showboater versus a work horse, but the difference could impact your ability to win games in the long run. And who knows, maybe over time a player will settle down, gain a veteran's mentality, and get serious about winning a championship. When trading or signing free agents, you're going to have to give extra weight to a player's role. All things being equal, I'm taking the playoff performer – heck, he's worth an extra million a year if he can help get us to the Super Bowl.

Click here for the full article (http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/116/1168180p1.html). They will announce more Franchises changes on Monday.

morsdraconis
05-13-2011, 04:08 PM
VERY interesting. PLEASE have this in NCAA as well.

steelerfan
05-13-2011, 05:01 PM
I haven't enjoyed Madden at all on the current generation of consoles. The biggest factor has been a sub-standard Franchise Mode. This addition looks very intriguing and I am definitely looking forward to more news on the Franchise Mode front. Maybe this year Madden will win me back.

Paakaa10
05-13-2011, 06:27 PM
When it comes to EA SPORTS and their football titles, I have definitely been more of a "Madden guy" in the past. That said, over the last two years I've invested much more time into the NCAA releases. Hopefully all of the information we're getting about Madden NFL 12 works as well in-game as it sounds in the press releases and write-ups we've had so far, because if that's the case then this could well be the first Madden game that feels truly "next-gen" since the start of the Xbox 360/PlayStation3/Wii generation.

Sounds like there's even more to Franchise improvements than Dynamic Player Performance and Player Roles too, from what developer Josh Looman said on Twitter about the Franchise/Superstar blog going online Monday:


[...] I think the blog I turned in this week was more than 10 pages long with images. That's just the tip of the iceberg.
http://twitter.com/#!/Josh_Looman/status/69123693124661249

From the early sounds of Dynamic Player Performance and Player Roles, it definitely seems like the teams won't feel like 32 identical squads with different uniforms and home fields but instead more like organic franchises that need special care and maintenance to function at the highest level. Really psyched for the full blog release on Monday.

JeffHCross
05-13-2011, 08:24 PM
The Player Roles is definitely interesting to me. It's similar to a mechanic that NFL Head Coach 09 had that I enjoyed a lot. Anything NCAA or Madden can add that comes from Head Coach 09 (well, mostly anything), and I'll be a fan.

Jayrah
05-14-2011, 09:39 PM
Wow this is superstar news! Sign me up coach!

JBHuskers
05-14-2011, 09:47 PM
The Player Roles is definitely interesting to me. It's similar to a mechanic that NFL Head Coach 09 had that I enjoyed a lot. Anything NCAA or Madden can add that comes from Head Coach 09 (well, mostly anything), and I'll be a fan.

Yep, and the different types of roles has me interested for sure.

ram29jackson
05-15-2011, 05:23 AM
I hope it actually is interesting. I really dont see this first time around those player roles fleshing themselves out on the field...?

and they should change, a rookie cant be bad too long...? roles have to change. Will my back up QB ever get a win ?

souljahbill
05-15-2011, 07:36 AM
I hope it actually is interesting. I really dont see this first time around those player roles fleshing themselves out on the field...?

and they should change, a rookie cant be bad too long...? roles have to change. Will my back up QB ever get a win ?

All roles are subject to change at the end of every season.

CLW
05-15-2011, 08:24 AM
Interesting but is this just Weapons (or whatever it was called with the silly icons) 2.0?

JeffHCross
05-15-2011, 09:14 AM
Interesting but is this just Weapons (or whatever it was called with the silly icons) 2.0?Based on my interpretation of it, no. It's much closer to the NFL Head Coach 09 system where the pieces of your offense was much more than just individual OVR ratings. I haven't been a fan of the Weapons system, or the stuff like it in other titles. But I was a fan of Head Coach 09 because it did drastically differentiate between players at the same position.

jaymo76
05-15-2011, 04:00 PM
Interesting but is this just Weapons (or whatever it was called with the silly icons) 2.0?

I kind of thought the same thing.

morsdraconis
05-15-2011, 05:09 PM
Based on my interpretation of it, no. It's much closer to the NFL Head Coach 09 system where the pieces of your offense was much more than just individual OVR ratings. I haven't been a fan of the Weapons system, or the stuff like it in other titles. But I was a fan of Head Coach 09 because it did drastically differentiate between players at the same position.

+1

Sounds exactly like the Head Coach 09 system, which was GREAT and really made that game fun.

SmoothPancakes
05-15-2011, 05:59 PM
+1

Sounds exactly like the Head Coach 09 system, which was GREAT and really made that game fun.

I think I still have Head Coach 09 for my PS2. I might have to whip that baby out for some old school gaming with all these sudden mentions of it. :D

JeffHCross
05-15-2011, 07:14 PM
Head Coach 09 only came out for 360 and PS3. The original Head Coach (which wasn't nearly as good) came out for PS2.

SmoothPancakes
05-15-2011, 07:51 PM
Head Coach 09 only came out for 360 and PS3. The original Head Coach (which wasn't nearly as good) came out for PS2.

Alright, so I was thinking of the wrong head coach then. :D Like I said, it's been a LONG time since I played any Head Coach so definitely easy for me to get the two mixed up. :D I may have to look at picking up HC09 sometime as a cheap as hell buy just to give it a try. I remember the original one, and while I had fun, from what I have read just now about 09, definitely sounds like 09 is much better than the original ever was.

JeffHCross
05-15-2011, 07:57 PM
The biggest difference between Head Coach and Head Coach 09 was they completely streamlined the interface. The original Head Coach was perhaps more immersive (with the office and everything), but it was difficult to keep track of. I love the Clipboard mechanic of 09.

SmoothPancakes
05-15-2011, 08:08 PM
Nice. I'll definitely look at picking up 09 sometime, especially since it's been out for a couple years now and will be really cheap. I remember the fun I had with the original one, so no reason I shouldn't have lots of fun on 09.

morsdraconis
05-15-2011, 09:22 PM
Nice. I'll definitely look at picking up 09 sometime, especially since it's been out for a couple years now and will be really cheap. I remember the fun I had with the original one, so no reason I shouldn't have lots of fun on 09.

It's ridiculously cheap on Amazon. Was going to link to it with the thing from here that gives them credit for buying through Amazon, but I can't figure out how to search for stuff and keep the credit toward them in the url...

morsdraconis
05-15-2011, 09:32 PM
Here we go - $7.83+shipping for the PS3 (http://www.amazon.com/NFL-Head-Coach-09-Playstation-3/dp/B0018Z7W4I/ref=as_li_tf_sw?&camp=212361&linkCode=wsw&tag=thegamtai-20&creative=380789)

SmoothPancakes
05-15-2011, 09:34 PM
Yeah, I looked it up on Amazon a little bit ago. For that price, I think I will go ahead and pick it up, if anything just as something to have to toss in now and then and enjoy, though I'm sure it will get it's fair share of hours.

morsdraconis
05-15-2011, 09:36 PM
Yeah, I looked it up on Amazon a little bit ago. For that price, I think I will go ahead and pick it up, if anything just as something to have to toss in now and then and enjoy, though I'm sure it will get it's fair share of hours.

Your My Player is very disappointed that you aren't spending more time with him. ;)

JeffHCross
05-15-2011, 09:37 PM
It's ridiculously cheap on Amazon. Was going to link to it with the thing from here that gives them credit for buying through Amazon, but I can't figure out how to search for stuff and keep the credit toward them in the url...
PS3 link: http://www.amazon.com/NFL-Head-Coach-09-Playstation-3/dp/B0018Z7W4I/ref=as_li_tf_sw?&camp=212361&linkCode=wsw&tag=thegamtai-20&creative=380797

SmoothPancakes
05-15-2011, 09:56 PM
Your My Player is very disappointed that you aren't spending more time with him. ;)

:D I really need to get back into before I lose the timing memory on shots that I've picked up so far. Thankfully, I finished the storyline in AC: Brotherhood last night, and am now just working on collectibles, secret locations, and other side quests. So My Player is going to be getting the bulk of my playing time again very shortly.

ram29jackson
05-16-2011, 01:33 AM
Head Coach 09 only came out for 360 and PS3. The original Head Coach (which wasn't nearly as good) came out for PS2.

I got it with the Madden anniversary pack but didnt get too into it. Never got into that huge menu