Madden NFL 25 - PS3/360 Impressions

[jaymo76]

With season ticket Madden about to launch in 30 minutes we need an impression thread ready so here it is.

[Rudy]

I have to leave in 25 minutes for my annual office golf scramble. I'd rather be reading Madden impressions lol. I don't have season ticket so I look forward to reading the impressions (please check out the special teams sliders too).

[jaymo76]

PS3 download is now available. It's a pretty hefty file... 7.8 GB! Currently my download time is 79 minutes.

[I OU a Beatn]

Having problems on 360. When you go to download, it says "There are no items available for purchase at this time." Why am I not surprised?

[I OU a Beatn]

Now it's working.

[jaymo76]

Wow! Servers must be busy... I jumped from 79 mins to 122 mins...:(

[JBHuskers]

Timing hits up the middle definitely results in more drops than it does in NCAA with the few games I've played so far.

[JBHuskers]

Menus are LAGGY, but the playcall screen isn't thankfully.

[JBHuskers]

IGN with an 85 (http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/08/23/madden-nfl-25-review)

360 Meta (http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/madden-nfl-25)

PS3 Meta (http://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-3/madden-nfl-25)

[jaymo76]

I hoped the return of owner functionality in Connected Franchises would be that advancement, but its revenue and fan happiness NFL ranking system is confusing (how could my Team Success rating get lower after going deep into the playoffs?) and, in the end, didn't matter. Even with a seemingly toxic combination of a bad stadium, a losing team, and high prices, I still could sign players and renovate my stadium. I like the fact that your team funds correlate directly to how much of a signing bonus you can offer players, the staff you hire, and the state of your stadium, but there are other franchise/money-related features that are still missing. These omissions include being able to offer different contract options to players and restricted *free *agency.

These latter two points may be relatively insignificant, but the franchise mode still hasn't recovered all of the features that were previously purged, and presents limited choices such as not being able to negotiate rookie or in-season free agent contracts. Minute details like this are wrapped in larger-scale oddities such as a menu system that still buries or omits info.


This is a passage from Game Informer that I really didn't like. Yeah it's a really good game but..." Only playing franchise mode all of the functions and options need to be there for next gen.

[jaymo76]

Pasta Padre...

http://www.pastapadre.com/2013/08/23/madden-nfl-25-complete-initial-impressions

[jaymo76]

This is pasta's Owner Mode write up. It's a great read and very detailed.

http://www.pastapadre.com/2013/08/23/madden-nfl-25-complete-connected-franchise-owner-mode-impressions

[jaymo76]

This sucks... 1.5 hours in and I am only at 59%. This may be one of the slowest downloads I have experienced in a long, long, long time.

[skipwondah33]

This sucks... 1.5 hours in and I am only at 59%. This may be one of the slowest downloads I have experienced in a long, long, long time.Not sure what I'm at

Brought my PS3 to work with me because we are currently getting

http://www.speedtest.net/result/2919604276.png

It was 42 down and 41 up earlier

I don't have it hooked to a monitor because I don't have the adapter lol. Bought one earlier from Amazon for next time or if I just want to bring my PS3 in to play

It was at 4% before I left the house at 2. Took about 40 minutes to get to that.

Took a friend of mine little under an hour 20 minutes. He has FIOs though

[jaymo76]

Just a few little things.

1. The 26mb patch for ps3 has fixed the invisible players glitch
2. nice and SHORT intro speeds things up
3. the windows 8 tile approach is easy to navigate (eg download updated rosters, etc.)
4. the default roster is very inaccurate at this point and time
** custom will be the way to proceed IMO
5. using l1/r1 to navigate makes a lot more sense than r3 like last year.

[jaymo76]

PS the community files is a really cool feature. I will look into this more at a later date. I will probably upload my own sliders at some point.

edit: i downloaded the top 25 plays playbook just to see how it works.

[jaymo76]

Rudy, this one's for you... special teams sliders are different for hum and cpu!!!

[jaymo76]

I started a test dynasty (online) with the Rams. I chose to be a new owner (former player). First off the hoe screen is so much cleaner and far better organized. There is a lot of stuff to check out.

First off... if you change your schemes they stay changed... I switch to a balanced offense and it didn't revert!!!
Second... I originally set relocation to normal only to find out that I could not move. Oops, I had to change it to everyone.
third... there is a pretty big lag from loading between screens.

[jaymo76]

Relocation has begun as I have that ball rolling. Just to bug the fans I have jacked up ticket prices and made the jersey $165 and chicken salad $20

[jaymo76]

So one little annoyance... you have to practise if you want xp. You cannot simulate it this year. I see they have changed some of the practise packages too. They look a little shorter too.

[jaymo76]

Ugh! We still can't change the cpu unis unless we use a second controller...

[JBHuskers]

Just a few little things.

1. The 26mb patch for ps3 has fixed the invisible players glitch
2. nice and SHORT intro speeds things up
3. the windows 8 tile approach is easy to navigate (eg download updated rosters, etc.)
4. the default roster is very inaccurate at this point and time
** custom will be the way to proceed IMO
5. using l1/r1 to navigate makes a lot more sense than r3 like last year.

There is a roster update.

[WolverineJay]

Jaymo will you please check out if you can relocate a team more than once and keep the previous relocation name and uniforms. You don't have to relocate again for the Rams just check if you are able to relocate again at the start of year 2. I really hope this is possible because I want to create teams like the Memphis Blues or LA Express but those names aren't available unless you choose it in a prior relocation to Chicago or San Antonio.

PS I sure hope there is defense to be found in the retail version especially pass defense.

[jaymo76]

Ahhh! My Raiders are moving to Brooklyn...

In week two of pre-season I chose Houston and in week three of pre-season I picked the Oilers logo.

[jaymo76]

Jaymo will you please check out if you can relocate a team more than once and keep the previous relocation name and uniforms. You don't have to relocate again for the Rams just check if you are able to relocate again at the start of year 2. I really hope this is possible because I want to create teams like the Memphis Blues or LA Express but those names aren't available unless you choose it in a prior relocation to Chicago or San Antonio.

PS I sure hope there is defense to be found in the retail version especially pass defense.

Okay I am still working through the first season but I will let you know as soon as I can.

[I OU a Beatn]

.

PS I sure hope there is defense to be found in the retail version especially pass defense.

I played around with it for about an hour and had no problem moving the ball through air. I think it's a tad bit better defensively than NCAA, but not by much


Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4

[jaymo76]

Wow! If you choose the Oiler you are only given one uniform option (a combo of two historic styles). I was hoping we would get to choose a new modern look.

[WolverineJay]

I played around with it for about an hour and had no problem moving the ball through air. I think it's a tad bit better defensively than NCAA, but not by much


Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4

Thanks IOU for the impressions on Pass D. I know your pretty pass heavy and usually light up human opponents on all-pro so I assume that was the level you played on. Hopefully All-Madden is more of a challenge because in the demo I destroyed the CPU through the air. Defense :dunno:who would think it would be so neglected year after year by EA Tiburon.

[WolverineJay]

Okay I am still working through the first season but I will let you know as soon as I can. Thanks. Yeah I can wait no need to hurry. Enjoy the game first, test out things second.


Wow! If you choose the Oiler you are only given one uniform option (a combo of two historic styles). I was hoping we would get to choose a new modern look.
That is disappointing seems like they could have been more detailed and in-depth with some of the relocation items (uniforms, logos, names, and cities).

[jaymo76]

Sorry Rudy, I take back my comments. In play now sliders for special teams are sperate BUT in dynasty mode they are the same for cpu and hum.

[jaymo76]

The little things drive me crazy about this game. For the second year in a row FORMATION SUBS do NOT save! This should be such an easy fix. Sometimes I just don't get EA.

[jaymo76]

I will say that moving the pass reaction slider to 70 really tightens things up. In my first game I threw three picks and Carson Palmer threw FIVE picks. I have ints at 30 but I will need to lower that. Zone and man seem to be a lot tighter in retail.

[steelerfan]

Sorry Rudy, I take back my comments. In play now sliders for special teams are sperate BUT in dynasty mode they are the same for cpu and hum.

I'll pass on Madden, again.

I'm using Tapatalk 2 and the Cleveland Browns STILL suck.

[jaymo76]

Okay the boys have soccer. I will be back in a few hours. Cheers gents! Tonight I will get more into cfm.

[SmoothPancakes]

After getting around to downloading this earlier tonight around 5pm, I've delved into owner mode a little bit. Reminds me of back in the day on Madden 06 (or thereabouts).

I technically only on week 1. I created a second save of the franchise so I could get first hand experience with rebuilding a stadium. I'm trying to decide if I'll just put some band aids on Mile High Stadium with a couple remodels here and there, or just sink the money in and go the distance with a full rebuild. If I were to rebuild, I'd lose probably 500-600 suites with the changeover, but I'd gain a little more in overall capacity, and would most likely be able to make up the loss in tickets available for suits with increased capacity in club, mezzanine and upper level tickets.

Just simming through, while my new stadium is built, currently in week 10. I'll probably sim through the season and get to next year when my stadium is done, and then return to my original save and start over from week 1, actually taking the time to go through it properly.

I definitely think, with the addition of owner mode, that I'll get a lot more time and fun out of Madden 25 than I've gotten out of Madden 13 in the last 8 months since I've bought it. The only thing will be waiting until November or December to buy it, since I'd rather just wait and get it for Xbox One (provided it is 100% the same as the 360 version) instead of buying it now for 360 and then either not having it on Xbox One or buying it again for Xbox One.

[Rudy]

So one little annoyance... you have to practise if you want xp. You cannot simulate it this year. I see they have changed some of the practise packages too. They look a little shorter too.

You couldn't simulate the practice last year could you? As long as there are more varied and shorter scenarios it will be better. I still like the idea of using Madden moments in practice for XP. Maybe next year.


Rudy, this one's for you... special teams sliders are different for hum and cpu!!!

YES!!!!!!!

Edit - just read the next post.


Sorry Rudy, I take back my comments. In play now sliders for special teams are sperate BUT in dynasty mode they are the same for cpu and hum.

Why the hell did they do this? It makes no freaking sense!!! The only positive I can take from some impressions are that cpu FG kicking is allegedly super good. Maybe I can lower the FGA slider enough so both of us actually miss a few FGs.

[Rudy]

OS review. They do comment on how run blocking on dives and isos gets too much push and is too automatic. I hope EA is listening.

http://www.operationsports.com/reviews/717/madden-nfl-25/

[GatorfanStovy]

live stream of Madden 25 from OS .

http://www.twitch.tv/usaf_hart/

[Rudy]

One guy on twitter said the sliders work a lot better on retail than the demo. I hope that's true.

[Deuce]

I've played one game on all Madden with no slider adjustments. I lost 28-7 using Jacksonville against Miami. Ill see if I can keep interested over the next few days. I'm moving Jacksonville to OKC. Hope the game play holds up but so far so good. I'm hoping I win 4-5 games this first season.

[jaymo76]

One guy on twitter said the sliders work a lot better on retail than the demo. I hope that's true.

I would tend to agree. They do seem more effective. With cpu pass coverage at 70 I struggled with Bradford to throw the ball. There were several instances of mirror route running which resulted in the cpu sacking me on multiple occasions.

[jaymo76]

Also, really disappointed in the lack of stat overlays in this game. No score ticker and minimal immersion really impacts the experience. Presentation made no visible jump IMO. With the exception of the sideline reporter it's almost identical to Madden 13.

[jaymo76]

My penalty sliders (posted in the sliders section) resulted in 13 penalties last game (though five were roughing the passer). However it's always the same: holding, clipping, facemask, and roughing the passer. Nothing else is called. Another thing with sliders... auto-subs are 50 in 50 out as default. You MUST change these before you play or else your players NEVER come out. I also moved fatigue to 65 and that helps a lot.

[jaymo76]

Just another quick note... assisted tackles are almost non-existent and it seems the cpu almost never gets them. Also, gang tackles must be a thing of the past because it seems like all tackles are solo ventures? I miss the days of pro-tak in Madden 10 where multiple players would contribute to a tackle.

[jaymo76]

After getting around to downloading this earlier tonight around 5pm, I've delved into owner mode a little bit. Reminds me of back in the day on Madden 06 (or thereabouts).

I technically only on week 1. I created a second save of the franchise so I could get first hand experience with rebuilding a stadium. I'm trying to decide if I'll just put some band aids on Mile High Stadium with a couple remodels here and there, or just sink the money in and go the distance with a full rebuild. If I were to rebuild, I'd lose probably 500-600 suites with the changeover, but I'd gain a little more in overall capacity, and would most likely be able to make up the loss in tickets available for suits with increased capacity in club, mezzanine and upper level tickets.

Just simming through, while my new stadium is built, currently in week 10. I'll probably sim through the season and get to next year when my stadium is done, and then return to my original save and start over from week 1, actually taking the time to go through it properly.

I definitely think, with the addition of owner mode, that I'll get a lot more time and fun out of Madden 25 than I've gotten out of Madden 13 in the last 8 months since I've bought it. The only thing will be waiting until November or December to buy it, since I'd rather just wait and get it for Xbox One (provided it is 100% the same as the 360 version) instead of buying it now for 360 and then either not having it on Xbox One or buying it again for Xbox One.

Well I don't know what to do. I started this ONLINE Rams franchise as a test dynasty. However, something has happened along the way... I came to the conclusion that I like this team. I tried to make a few trades but the cpu would not bite so I have added some pieces through free agency and this team has a lot of potential. Plus, moving to Houston I want to see that season. My oldest son picked the Deluxe futuristic stadium design and we have already given it a nickname: "THE SPACE CENTRE." Damn I should have made this offline so I could do multiple save points...

Another issue I may have and I know it's small but to ME it's huge... MY Raiders are no more...The Brookyln Yanks begin play next year. From online reports it sounds like the frequency of teams moving is too high. I would much rather see new stadiums than a handful of relocations in five years. In addition, you cannot move a team back once they are gone.

[jaymo76]

I started a 2nd franchise with the Raiders. This is offline. Once again I am happy to report that schemes do in fact save in offline franchise. Also I noticed that you do not have to choose your stadium option in the first week. You do have time to decide (not sure how much just yet).

I cannot find how to change play positions. I know you can do it outside of the season but I guess it must only be available at the end of the 1st season, not before the first season starts. It seems like most rosters are NOT filled to the 75 man limit. The roster update was NOT really an update as most teams are missing a lot of players.

[jaymo76]

In week two of the preseason the Rams announce they are moving to LA. I decided to dismiss the relocation option. After dismissing I no longer had the ability to relocate for that season. I still have the option to upgrade or rebuild.

In week one of the season I decided to import draft classes from NCAA just to see how it works. I scouted one of my players from Arizona ST. Strangely I was the OC and our team ran a 3-4 yet the scouting says his scheme is a 4-3. I guess there isn't much tie in to the NCAA series...? I confirmed this by looking at some of my other players. They all basically have new life stories.

I like how at anytime (offline) you can create or terminate a new character. All you have to do is push down (re on ps3). This is a nice addition. I took over the owner of the rams and then tried to trade between my two teams Austin for Barnes). The trade offer was accepted which leads me to believe this could be used as a work-around to get a trade that you want.

Having control of multiple teams you are given the "force advance" option if you don't want to play/do anything with one of your multiple people. The twitter feed and news will be identical for any owner/player, etc.

By week 4 I am now locked out of stadium rebuild. All I can do now is upgrade so that's what I chose. However, the Coliseum is too old so I am left with renovating. I chose to renovate the seating and the concessions. Twitter gave mention to my efforts. All upgrades and renovations are NOT visible in the game FYI.

[jaymo76]

I still cannot unlock the advanced features for food, etc because I cannot upgrade the stadium. Interestingly, the trade that brought me Tavon Austin also brought me 344k of jersey sales last week. This guy is a marketing magnet.

[jaymo76]

I have not seen one player mentioned on twitter or in the news who is in the NCAA draft class. I guess they are isolated totally from cfm. I will NOT be using NCAA classes as this really kills the cfm immersion.

Another area of note... I was not asked to negotiate any deals until week 8. They have also changed the screen and removed all the stuff about player interest, fit, etc. Why would that be removed??? That just seems silly to me.

[jaymo76]

Renovating your stadium really makes a difference. I have went from 31st to 23rd in stadium ranking just from three renovations.

[jaymo76]

The news feed was celebrating the last game in St. Louis (week 14). I decided to play the first quarter and just like I thought... not one word about it from the broadcast. Again Madden, you need to figure out the little details. I hope this would be addressed for ps4 but with Tiburon I really don't know...

side-note: a 1-13 team moving next season should not have a sold out stadium IMO.

[jaymo76]

Bizarre! In the last week of the season I find out that Minnesota is getting a new stadium (via the news). Why was that not mentioned before???

End of the season:

Raiders made 44.4 million
Rams made 30.9 million

league leaders:
passing: Rodgers 4,869 24td 12 int
td: Brees 37
ints.: Shaub 21
rushing Peterson 2,492 16 td's
catches: Nelson 117 catches
receiving yards: Calvin Johnson 1622 yards
tackles: Kuechly 184

[jaymo76]

During the wildcard week I fired Fisher and the Rams trainer. I dismissed the options for the Raiders. After dismissing the re-signing options I am not able to fire the coaching staff. For the Rams there were only 10 head coaches available. Why is the pool so small? I didn't choose anyone and now I don't have a HC. I'm not sure what is going to happen with that???

It's now the Superbowl and I can edit. Oops... I just realised NOT all players can change positions. Maybe I could have made changes earlier??? You cannot change kickers, punters, quarterbacks, middle linebackers, wide receivers, fullbacks, halfbacks, centres, or cornerbacks. Basically all you can move is left to right (eg LE to RE or ROLB to LOLB or FS to SS). This really sucks and is very misleading information from the Tiburon team. Why can an MLB not be moved to an outside linebacker or to LE? This is absolutely crazy!!!
EDIT: It appears that there are more positions available for certain players (eg LOLB to LE). I'm not sure if this is player specific OR if it occurs the later into the post season/off season??? On second thought it must be once you get past the suer bowl because there is a lot more available now.

[WolverineJay]

Bizarre! In the last week of the season I find out that Minnesota is getting a new stadium (via the news). Why was that not mentioned before???

End of the season:

Raiders made 44.4 million
Rams made 30.9 million

league leaders:
passing: Rodgers 4,869 24td 12 int
td: Brees 37
ints.: Shaub 21
rushing Peterson 2,492 16 td's
catches: Nelson 117 catches
receiving yards: Calvin Johnson 1622 yards
tackles: Kuechly 184

Nelson 117 catches and Peterson with almost 2500 yards, yikes. Not too realistic there I'm afraid.

I and others appreciate the info Jaymo, Thanks.

When you do the draft is the commentary any different? Any improvements during the draft at all(post-draft team grades)? I would love for them to mention each of the 1st rd picks. I want the game to recognize when a division champ or Super Bowl Champion is on the clock. I would love some brief analysis on who the experts think my team should draft.

[jaymo76]

Generally speaking I am very disappointed with the lack of depth with regards to coaches (hiring and firing). There are only ten choices and all are fake except for fired staff. This could have been so much better IMO. Why go halfway on a feature like this? We should be able to contact current coaches; we should have access to dozens of coaches; we should have retired coaches, etc.

[jaymo76]

Nelson 117 catches and Peterson with almost 2500 yards, yikes. Not too realistic there I'm afraid.

I and others appreciate the info Jaymo, Thanks.

When you do the draft is the commentary any different? Any improvements during the draft at all(post-draft team grades)? I would love for them to mention each of the 1st rd picks. I want the game to recognize when a division champ or Super Bowl Champion is on the clock. I would love some brief analysis on who the experts think my team should draft.

I imported draft classes so there was no discussion at all. In my non-test dynasty I will use the created classes. IMO I would not recommend people import NCAA classes because you lose so much immersion.

[jaymo76]

Just a side note but you can edit players BEFORE your first pre-season game (season 2).

[jaymo76]

I had an exhibition game vs SF. WOW! Levi Field is a beauty! However, there was no commentary regarding the new stadium (maybe because it was pre-season?).

[jaymo76]

Jaymo will you please check out if you can relocate a team more than once and keep the previous relocation name and uniforms. You don't have to relocate again for the Rams just check if you are able to relocate again at the start of year 2. I really hope this is possible because I want to create teams like the Memphis Blues or LA Express but those names aren't available unless you choose it in a prior relocation to Chicago or San Antonio.

PS I sure hope there is defense to be found in the retail version especially pass defense.

With the Rams I moved them to LA. However, in season two I was not able to begin relocation again because the stadium is brand new. You will need to let the stadium deteriorate to below 20 (and it's currently at 99). You can probably move your team again but it will take a long, long time. Sorry.

[jaymo76]

Okay wow! I took all night simming through to see the Rams play in their new stadium and in week four of pre-season the game freezes. It's a hard freeze and my system is totally locked. Unbelievable! I haven't saved anything because this was just a test dynasty. This royally sucks!

[WolverineJay]

Okay wow! I took all night simming through to see the Rams play in their new stadium and in week four of pre-season the game freezes. It's a hard freeze and my system is totally locked. Unbelievable! I haven't saved anything because this was just a test dynasty. This royally sucks!

That does suck big time. I had same thing happen last year with my test dynasty in NCAA 13. I started up a quick Dynasty with Army played 2 games and decided to recruit before saving and shutting down for the night, bad decision game hard froze on me while scouting. I lost my dynasty and some of my good will towards 13 in the process. I saved every chance I could get after that, but truly stinks when you're excited to see something then game pulls the rug out from underneath you.

[WolverineJay]

Just a side note but you can edit players BEFORE your first pre-season game (season 2).

Edit as in player ratings? Position changes? Or just equipment?
If you can edit ratings that is huge for me, HUGE.


With the Rams I moved them to LA. However, in season two I was not able to begin relocation again because the stadium is brand new. You will need to let the stadium deteriorate to below 20 (and it's currently at 99). You can probably move your team again but it will take a long, long time. Sorry.

I thought I read an article during E3 you can override that in the options menu and relocate anytime. If not that sucks and ruins my plans.

[jaymo76]

Edit as in player ratings? Position changes? Or just equipment?
If you can edit ratings that is huge for me, HUGE.

No you cannot edit ratings at anytime. Player positions are also only available in the offseason. Physical appearance can be edited at anytime though.

I thought I read an article during E3 you can override that in the options menu and relocate anytime. If not that sucks and ruins my plans.

I have "everyone" on for relocation, which is the highest level. However, it didn't let me move the team again so I'm not sure.

[jaymo76]

There are a ton of dropped hum passes in this game. Any contact across the middle and it's 50/50

[jaymo76]

Really annoying when the sideline reporter says my player is gone for the game and then he is back a few plays later.

[jaymo76]

Alright it's far too late so I am going to bed. One last thing though: way too many high rating players in the FA pool.

Okay, overall I am really enjoying this game. Yup there are lot's of issues but it's a pretty fun game (with the right sliders) and the owner mode, while having a lack of sustained depth is still a worthwhile experience.

[Rudy]

Alright it's far too late so I am going to bed. One last thing though: way too many high rating players in the FA pool.

Okay, overall I am really enjoying this game. Yup there are lot's of issues but it's a pretty fun game (with the right sliders) and the owner mode, while having a lack of sustained depth is still a worthwhile experience.

Madden and most sports games have always done a horrible job with the FA pool. I will edit these guys in a custom roster before I fire up my first franchise.

Great impressions Jaymo! I heard injuries were too high although I know you love injuries. Any thoughts on that from the actual in-game engine vs. the sim engine?

[SmoothPancakes]

Yeah, I ran into some seriously awful lag last night. First the menu lag is ugly. It's manageable, but damn does it make everything take forever. Then when I got to season 2 in my "sim" owner mode save, yeah, I think I got to week 4 of the preseason, when just about every action I made in the game start causing it to completely freeze for 5-10 seconds at a time. It'd go back to normal, I'd advance the week or something, and it'd go right back into a solid freeze. I called it a night shortly after that and just straight up shut down my 360, didn't even bother to dashboard out of Madden first. If that lag and freezing is going to continue being an issue whenever you get to season 2 (or beyond) that could be a game-killer for me.

[SmoothPancakes]

I also may need to look at someone other than Denver for my owner mode in the future. Things were going good season 1. Started off 8-1, hit a little bit of a rough patch and finish 11-5. Beat Kansas City in the Wildcard, but lost for the second time to the Patriots in the Divisional round (Super Bowl was Seattle dismantling New England 31-13 by the way). Got into the offseason at end of year 1, and Peyton Manning retired, leaving my very potent offense being led by Brock Osweiler. He's a decent QB, but with him starting, we got off to an 0-5 start in year 2 before I shut things down last night.

Something tells me we're looking at a repeat of Joe Paterno in the last two or three NCAA games, with a majority of people seeing Paterno retire at the end of the first season. I expect we're gonna see the same thing here. A majority of people will see Peyton Manning retire at the end of year one, with almost everyone else seeing him gone by end of year 2. In that case, I might look at starting with a different team. While Denver is in great shape otherwise, having maybe one good or great year and then be right back in rebuilding mode with a lack of Peyton Manning at QB, I might opt for an up-and-coming team that has some solid, young talent, especially at QB, that I can work with and try and build up a team around within a year or two.

Otherwise, I'm gonna be forced to sit there jumping from free agent QB to free agent QB while hoping I can somehow draft the next Peyton Manning from a draft slot anywhere between #10 and #30.

[Rudy]

If it's any consolation Smooth, in M13 Peyton hung around for at least 3 more years for me one time while some guys retire a lot. I do think it was random (to a degree) last year.

[Rudy]

Some good foot planting in Madden retail. Ray Rice is controlled by the cpu too.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwe2Dq4KC9M&feature=youtu.be

[jaymo76]

Yeah, I ran into some seriously awful lag last night. First the menu lag is ugly. It's manageable, but damn does it make everything take forever. Then when I got to season 2 in my "sim" owner mode save, yeah, I think I got to week 4 of the preseason, when just about every action I made in the game start causing it to completely freeze for 5-10 seconds at a time. It'd go back to normal, I'd advance the week or something, and it'd go right back into a solid freeze. I called it a night shortly after that and just straight up shut down my 360, didn't even bother to dashboard out of Madden first. If that lag and freezing is going to continue being an issue whenever you get to season 2 (or beyond) that could be a game-killer for me.

YES, it's not just you. There is a terrible lag in this game. Moving between screens is like experiencing glaciation up close. The game starts quick but CFM is deathly slow.

[jaymo76]

I also may need to look at someone other than Denver for my owner mode in the future. Things were going good season 1. Started off 8-1, hit a little bit of a rough patch and finish 11-5. Beat Kansas City in the Wildcard, but lost for the second time to the Patriots in the Divisional round (Super Bowl was Seattle dismantling New England 31-13 by the way). Got into the offseason at end of year 1, and Peyton Manning retired, leaving my very potent offense being led by Brock Osweiler. He's a decent QB, but with him starting, we got off to an 0-5 start in year 2 before I shut things down last night.

Something tells me we're looking at a repeat of Joe Paterno in the last two or three NCAA games, with a majority of people seeing Paterno retire at the end of the first season. I expect we're gonna see the same thing here. A majority of people will see Peyton Manning retire at the end of year one, with almost everyone else seeing him gone by end of year 2. In that case, I might look at starting with a different team. While Denver is in great shape otherwise, having maybe one good or great year and then be right back in rebuilding mode with a lack of Peyton Manning at QB, I might opt for an up-and-coming team that has some solid, young talent, especially at QB, that I can work with and try and build up a team around within a year or two.

Otherwise, I'm gonna be forced to sit there jumping from free agent QB to free agent QB while hoping I can somehow draft the next Peyton Manning from a draft slot anywhere between #10 and #30.

My simmed year one Manning, Brady, Gonzalez, Seymour, Moss and Palmer all retired. My bigger concern tough is that the cpu cuts a lot of quality talent. There were 14+ 79ovr or higher players left in the free agent pool after free agency. That's nuts! They should be in the sixties or lower.

By the way Smooth, Dalton was cut and Ryan was NOT resigned at QB... you will have options for the right price.

[jaymo76]

Madden and most sports games have always done a horrible job with the FA pool. I will edit these guys in a custom roster before I fire up my first franchise.

Great impressions Jaymo! I heard injuries were too high although I know you love injuries. Any thoughts on that from the actual in-game engine vs. the sim engine?

Honestly injuries with a high slider and a 50 slider don't see very different IMO. Right now in my online Rams (maybe test) franchise in week two I have four players out. Most are 1-2 week injuries or all game injuries but it will be tough as Bradford is out 8 weeks. Clemens is my backup so we will see how it goes. Right now we are 1-1 and in tough.

P.S. Rudy, I know it's not your thing but I really encourage you to try out owner mode. You can skip the stuff you don't like but it adds a lot more options to the game.

[SmoothPancakes]

My simmed year one Manning, Brady, Gonzalez, Seymour, Moss and Palmer all retired. My bigger concern tough is that the cpu cuts a lot of quality talent. There were 14+ 79ovr or higher players left in the free agent pool after free agency. That's nuts! They should be in the sixties or lower.

By the way Smooth, Dalton was cut and Ryan was NOT resigned at QB... you will have options for the right price.

Brady?! The hell? They really need to work on the retirement logic in this game. :D

And your simmed year was MUCH kinder to you than it was to me. The highest rated QB come free agency in my simmed year, Chad Henne. Nothing against Chad Henne, but Brock Osweiler was still better rated than him, so Osweiler ended up the starter. Maybe it was just an odd year between retirements and free agency.

I may fire things up again in a little bit and try it again. I've got my initial save back at week 1 of season 1 with Denver, I'll probably make a serious trek through it and see how things go. It'll also give me a chance to see if that 5-10 seconds long game freezing lag every time you enter or exit menus or advance the week returns at some point in season 2 or if it was just a very, very freak occurrence last night.

[countryboy]

question:

Can you turn relocation off in franchise mode?

[Rudy]

question:

Can you turn relocation off in franchise mode?

I hope so. Is that just an owner mode thing or is that for all modes?

[countryboy]

I hope so. Is that just an owner mode thing or is that for all modes?

I believe its just an owner mode thing Rudy.

Its a great idea don't get me wrong, but its not something thats for me. :)

[SmoothPancakes]

Yes, you can turn it off. Options for relocation are Off, Normal (default) and Everyone On (or whatever exactly it's worded as).

[jaymo76]

Yes, you can turn it off. Options for relocation are Off, Normal (default) and Everyone On (or whatever exactly it's worded as).

Everyone means that you can move a team even if they have a decent stadium. Plus what is great is that you can change the settings at anytime. After I move I may turn it off. However, once you see a team has plans of relocating you can take over another owner (of the team that wants to move) and squish their plans. Sadly, I figured this out to late with Oakland.

[Rudy]

For regular franchise (GM/head coach) are there still options for the type of coach? I liked team builder last year.

[jaymo76]

For regular franchise (GM/head coach) are there still options for the type of coach? I liked team builder last year.

Yes, you have to choose your profile for player, coach or owner. It's the same setup across the board except what each role is. There are still very few options though to build your character (physical appearance).

[jaymo76]

I don't know how you guys feel about it, but as I said with the demo, I really feel that infinity took a step back this year. At times it looks just awful and the big hit animations are insane. Group tackles are almost non-existent. I don't know if Tiburon tuned it down too much but put me in the camp that thought it was better last year.

[jaymo76]

One observation that I forgot to share is that I am noticing in madden 13 the cpu ran the ball too much but in Madden 25 it does NOT run the ball enough. In three CFM games versus Arizona, Atlanta, and Dallas the cpu rb's have NOT run for over 100 yards and no one rb has had more than 14 attempts. Maybe it's just the teams I have played but I really feel this might be an issue moving forward. The demo is different from retail and honestly I think the game played better in the demo... just my .02c.

Tonight (after giving the kids a bath, story, tuck,-in, etc.) I have my first meeting with SF. I will be watching closely to see how the cpu AI handles things. I hope that Kap. will run wild but only time will tell.

[jaymo76]

I cannot confirm this because my game froze last night (the week before I would have played my home opener after relocation). However, some people have reported that if you relocate and keep the team name, your ENDZONES will be the same!!!???!!!???... I just cannot believ that Tiburon would be that sloppy. The people have said that the LA Rams endzone will clearly have the word St. Louis in the endzone art and that the Jags will have the word Jacksonville in their relocated stadium. This is ridiculous if true. Why would the word Oakland appear in the endzone if I move the team to Dublin, as an example? How could that be overlooked? Can anyone confirm this? I suspect it's true as it has been mentioned by multiple sources.

[jaymo76]

Playing the first game as the Salt Lake Raiders. I first noticed that the nose bleed seats were not full (i charged a higher price for that level). Then when the game started there was some brief commentary about the newest franchise in the NFL.



refer to my misplaced posts in the madden reviews thread for the back story (oops...)

[Rudy]

Here are a couple screen shots about positions changes via Madscientist on Twitter. Like Jaymo said in the other thread, you can make small changes in the pre-season and during season. Big changes are available in the offseason. But some changes are one way tickets. A WR can't change to anything else.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m195/rudyjuly2/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesPreseason.jpg (http://s104.photobucket.com/user/rudyjuly2/media/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesPreseason.jpg.html)

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m195/rudyjuly2/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesOffseason.jpg (http://s104.photobucket.com/user/rudyjuly2/media/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesOffseason.jpg.html)

[Rudy]

Reading on OS where people feel the PS3 patch has been a negative in terms of gameplay and player movement. Guys that liked the demo better are saying the 360 un-patched version is better. Of course, PS3 guys would have invisible players without the patch so I don't really think it's an option.

[Deuce]

Welp, I gave madden the ol college try (pun intended) and I just can't get into it. I'm sure if I found the right slider set I could find some enjoyment. I finally found a decent set for NCAA so ill be sticking with the college game. Not even sure ill get next gen madden.

[countryboy]

Yes, you can turn it off. Options for relocation are Off, Normal (default) and Everyone On (or whatever exactly it's worded as).

Thanks Smooth!

[jaymo76]

Here are a couple screen shots about positions changes via Madscientist on Twitter. Like Jaymo said in the other thread, you can make small changes in the pre-season and during season. Big changes are available in the offseason. But some changes are one way tickets. A WR can't change to anything else.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m195/rudyjuly2/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesPreseason.jpg (http://s104.photobucket.com/user/rudyjuly2/media/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesPreseason.jpg.html)

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m195/rudyjuly2/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesOffseason.jpg (http://s104.photobucket.com/user/rudyjuly2/media/Madden/Madden%2025/PositionChangesOffseason.jpg.html)

Something else I noticed is that Madden implemented position specific numbers. I drafted an MLB in my test dynasty but the only sequence of numbers I was allowed to select were in the 50's. Plus my drafted rb was only allowed to choose a number between 20-49. I know certain numbers are for specified positions in the NFL but come on, if I want my rb to be #14 what is the big deal?

[MuckyPup]

hello fans, do you have control of all teams ? i am asking cause i've s stroke . thank you

[Rudy]

Something else I noticed is that Madden implemented position specific numbers. I drafted an MLB in my test dynasty but the only sequence of numbers I was allowed to select were in the 50's. Plus my drafted rb was only allowed to choose a number between 20-49. I know certain numbers are for specified positions in the NFL but come on, if I want my rb to be #14 what is the big deal?

I believe those are purely NFL rules. Only QBs, kickers and WRs can wear 1-19. Defensive front 7 guys have to be 50 and up. DBs are 20-49. OL are 50 to 79.

[jaymo76]

I have to say that I was a little disappointed last night. I played game 3 of the season vs SF. I was hoping that the 1-1 49ers would go to town on me. Well, I won 20-17 which is fine but the victory was never in doubt. Kap. was 11-26 for 139 yards 1 td and 2 ints. Gore was rushing the ball well but only had 11 carries for 63 yards and 1 td. My sliders are crafted from all madden. I really had no right to win this game but SF didn't show up. Bradford is out for 8 weeks and Clemens is the backup... he should not be game mvp 13-19 201 yards and 2 td's and 1 pic. I may just put cpu zone d to 75 (all madden default) because my qb play has been too good.

My concern with Tiburon football continues to be the lack of challenging cpu AI combined with weak sliders. Tiburon really needs to commit to massive cpu AI upgrades for PS4. I don't want to play online and that's a personal choice so I need the developer to step up and create a AI that challenges my ability like it did back on ps2.

[jaymo76]

Reading on OS where people feel the PS3 patch has been a negative in terms of gameplay and player movement. Guys that liked the demo better are saying the 360 un-patched version is better. Of course, PS3 guys would have invisible players without the patch so I don't really think it's an option.

Yes I agree. As I posted earlier the demo plays a much, much better game of football in my honest opinion. I found the demo to be far more challenging.

[jaymo76]

For those of you who thought getting xp was too slow last year, don't worry about it this year. It's easier to get xp (and more of it) and the packages are cheaper! You will be able to max out certain traits very quickly.

[Rudy]

Yes I agree. As I posted earlier the demo plays a much, much better game of football in my honest opinion. I found the demo to be far more challenging.

The demo was harder? Oh boy. That was easy enough. EA screwed up the entire difficulty and slider stuff when they tried to combine the difficulties into a global slider system. They set the sliders so 75 was rookie and 25 All-Madden but it doesn't have enough power to truly make changes. It's a decent idea but the execution has to be good and it's horrible. They just need to go back to true difficulty settings like NCAA and make the sliders a LOT more powerful. Why the hell do you let us change the sliders by one point when it takes 10 points just to see a glimmer of a change?


For those of you who thought getting xp was too slow last year, don't worry about it this year. It's easier to get xp (and more of it) and the packages are cheaper! You will be able to max out certain traits very quickly.

That sounds too fast to me. My coach was maxed out after 2.5 years I think. Players I have no clue. I set that to auto.

[jaymo76]

Relocation is a lot of fun but there are several issues, glitches and minor annoyances.

1. commentary: your team is still often referred to as "Oakland" even though you are in Salt Lake
** pls year one commentary still plays in year two
2. field art: multiple teams will have the former city name in their new field art (eg. Jacksonville/St. Louis)
3. uniform glitches: as the Dreams I have had two game with different uniforms: one I picked the other I didn't
** sometimes the player isn't visible to show you uni combos...
4. after relocating you will never see the outside of your stadium again
* plus you cannot make a roof retract
5. all stadiums are identical: far enough into CFM, all the teams will have identical stadiums
6. the primetime clip for your new city is short and generic as compared to the opposition team
7. you cannot rename your stadium- aka: move the Oilers back to Houston and you will play at the "Oil Rig"

These are just a few examples. However, it's still a lot of fun and I highly recommend you try it at least once.

[SmoothPancakes]

They really need to rewrite some of this stuff for the Top Stories and the Twitter feed. In the Divisional Round of the playoffs, Denver beat Houston 31-10. What does everything say in the News section?

"Spoiler alert for those who haven't seen the highlights yet, Broncos won a close one at home."

"Broncos win a close one to keep their Super Bowl hopes alive...for now."

Really? Since when the hell is 31-10 considered close? :fp:

[SmoothPancakes]

Even worse! Denver beat Baltimore 42-10 in the AFC Championship Game.

"Broncos just wanted to make their fans squirm today #closecall"

"Broncos win a close one to reach the Super Bowl"

:fp:

[SmoothPancakes]

Ok, I have officially discovered the fuck-up of all fuck-ups.

Denver ended up making the Super Bowl in season 1 of my owner mode franchise (just simmed the regular season games so I could get through at least one or two seasons before the Season Ticket access dies Tuesday). It was Washington and Denver. I decided to play the game, wanted to see what EA did for the Super Bowl in the game.

Long story short, I ended up smoking Washington, beat them 42-10. So we get to the end of the game, the announcers doing their usual Super Bowl winner spiel, then something seems a little odd, a Washington player on their bench pumping his arms. And then what do I see on my TV? THE LOMBARDI TROPHY BEING AWARDED TO FUCKING MIKE SHANAHAN AND CB JEROME MURPHY OF THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS! With a little on-screen pop saying Jerome Murphy just won a Super Bowl!

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME EA? HOW THE FUCK DO YOU FUCK UP A SIMPLE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRESENTATION IN THE BIGGEST GAME IN THE ENTIRE GAME OF MADDEN?!?!? :fp: :fp: :fp:

[jaymo76]

Ok, I have officially discovered the fuck-up of all fuck-ups.

Denver ended up making the Super Bowl in season 1 of my owner mode franchise (just simmed the regular season games so I could get through at least one or two seasons before the Season Ticket access dies Tuesday). It was Washington and Denver. I decided to play the game, wanted to see what EA did for the Super Bowl in the game.

Long story short, I ended up smoking Washington, beat them 42-10. So we get to the end of the game, the announcers doing their usual Super Bowl winner spiel, then something seems a little odd, a Washington player on their bench pumping his arms. And then what do I see on my TV? THE LOMBARDI TROPHY BEING AWARDED TO FUCKING MIKE SHANAHAN AND CB JEROME MURPHY OF THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS! With a little on-screen pop saying Jerome Murphy just won a Super Bowl!

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME EA? HOW THE FUCK DO YOU FUCK UP A SIMPLE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRESENTATION IN THE BIGGEST GAME IN THE ENTIRE GAME OF MADDEN?!?!? :fp: :fp: :fp:

:fp: Brutal. I have noticed in a lot of cut scenes the right coach will be in front of the wrong team but that's not as bad as what you saw.

[jaymo76]

I was waiting for a beat down and it finally came at the hands of the Texans... 38-17. What an ugly game!!! Shaub had 318 yards passing and the Texans rushed for over 200 yards.

[skipwondah33]

create a AI that challenges my ability like it did back on ps2.Maybe you are just alot better than you were then? Then too the AI has changed.

Not being funny just saying

I don't ever recall it being fun or competitive playing the CPU at any point of playing Madden or NCAA. Which is why it was house rule that we didn't play CPU in franchises or seasons haha

Only time I recall it being competitive vs the CPU was when I played in NCAA OD's here recently and the sliders are changed drastically. Resulting in easy dropped passes, neutered defense and zero pass blocking lol.

[jaymo76]

Maybe you are just alot better than you were then? Then too the AI has changed.

Not being funny just saying

I don't ever recall it being fun or competitive playing the CPU at any point of playing Madden or NCAA. Which is why it was house rule that we didn't play CPU in franchises or seasons haha

Only time I recall it being competitive vs the CPU was when I played in NCAA OD's here recently and the sliders are changed drastically. Resulting in easy dropped passes, neutered defense and zero pass blocking lol.

True enough... I am a much better player now. But I did find that with the right sliders I could have a real challenge with ps2 (especially the year with that darn vision cone...:smh:)

[jaymo76]

One thing I must give credit to Tiburon for is that upgrade position screen and the trade screen. These are both easy to use and very well done.

[jaymo76]

I haven't fired up the game this morning (and I'm not sure if my season ticket has now expired) but I am still on the fence with this game. Now first let me say that it's a very good and FUN game. If you haven't purchased Madden recently...buy this game. However, I have owned every single madden since 04 (that's when I switched from 2k) and I'm not sure if I should buy this game. If I didn't own 13... I would pick this up in a heartbeat but I am still having a lot of fun with 13. Some things are superior with 13 (IMO...infinity etc.) and some things from 25 blow 13 out of the water.

I truly enjoy owner mode but my wife stumped me today. I was telling her about the new Salt Lake Raiders and owner mode and how it was a lot of fun. Then she asked me the question of questions... "so you moved your team... what are you going to do now?" I have thought about this a lot. After you move your team it's back to madden football. Owner mode and relocation are really good but they are also incomplete. So much more needs to be added. Here's the kicker though... Tiburon's track record is "one and done." Will they touch this mode ever again? In all honesty I really don't know. I went with the deluxe hybrid stadium with all the bells and whistles. Local fans have some loyalty but I don't know why they do or don't. I can see how my team is doing marketing wise but I cannot market nor can I choose which players to promote. Players have popularity and personality ratings yet there is no way to know what their personality is until they are in the league. In addition, if Chris Long has a 79 for personality what does that mean? Why is he a 79? Another huge addition needs to be division realignment. With the LA Dreams playing in the NFC North that will be an issue.

Then we get to the issue of ps4... will the game files transfer over or not? If I can continue my ps3 franchise(s) on ps4 then after work tomorrow I will probably divert to Best Buy (thanks for the heads up on the trade-in policy Rudy). However, EA has not said a word which makes me think it's probably a no go. No way in hell do I want to pick up a ps4 version of the game without knowing everything is there! (damn you Madden 06/07/08!). Plus as we have seen from the NCAA team, will there be minimal support and patches for the last big Madden title on ps3? The betting man inside me says Madden will be launched and then by October support will be 100% gone and it will be all ps4.

Then let's not forget... GTA... (after the kids are sound asleep of course / even my wife enjoys driving around in the GTA series).

Unlike a lot of people on TGT, I am a Madden player. I enjoy playing Madden (most years) and I can get a lot of fun out of it. It seems like based on most impressions that the majority of people with season ticket are skipping this version. Put me in the category of undecided. I can tell you this though: if my season ticket hasn't expired yet, I will play the hell out of this game tonight. My Rams (it was a test now it's not) franchise is chugging along at 4-2 and my season 2 Salt Lake Raiders franchise is shocking the league at 2-0

[jaymo76]

Ok, I have officially discovered the fuck-up of all fuck-ups.

Denver ended up making the Super Bowl in season 1 of my owner mode franchise (just simmed the regular season games so I could get through at least one or two seasons before the Season Ticket access dies Tuesday). It was Washington and Denver. I decided to play the game, wanted to see what EA did for the Super Bowl in the game.

Long story short, I ended up smoking Washington, beat them 42-10. So we get to the end of the game, the announcers doing their usual Super Bowl winner spiel, then something seems a little odd, a Washington player on their bench pumping his arms. And then what do I see on my TV? THE LOMBARDI TROPHY BEING AWARDED TO FUCKING MIKE SHANAHAN AND CB JEROME MURPHY OF THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS! With a little on-screen pop saying Jerome Murphy just won a Super Bowl!

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME EA? HOW THE FUCK DO YOU FUCK UP A SIMPLE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRESENTATION IN THE BIGGEST GAME IN THE ENTIRE GAME OF MADDEN?!?!? :fp: :fp: :fp:

I just discovered this thread at OS. It's like 7 pages long with lot's of people saying they win the SB and then the award and MVP go to the loser. Wow! That's a major screw up I would have difficulty getting over.

[SCClassof93]

Ok, I have officially discovered the fuck-up of all fuck-ups.

Denver ended up making the Super Bowl in season 1 of my owner mode franchise (just simmed the regular season games so I could get through at least one or two seasons before the Season Ticket access dies Tuesday). It was Washington and Denver. I decided to play the game, wanted to see what EA did for the Super Bowl in the game.

Long story short, I ended up smoking Washington, beat them 42-10. So we get to the end of the game, the announcers doing their usual Super Bowl winner spiel, then something seems a little odd, a Washington player on their bench pumping his arms. And then what do I see on my TV? THE LOMBARDI TROPHY BEING AWARDED TO FUCKING MIKE SHANAHAN AND CB JEROME MURPHY OF THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS! With a little on-screen pop saying Jerome Murphy just won a Super Bowl!

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME EA? HOW THE FUCK DO YOU FUCK UP A SIMPLE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRESENTATION IN THE BIGGEST GAME IN THE ENTIRE GAME OF MADDEN?!?!? :fp: :fp: :fp:

A few months back I was thinking of getting this game as it has been a few years since I played it, but with the TW14 debacle and lack of support on NCAA I think I will pass....again:D

[SmoothPancakes]

I just discovered this thread at OS. It's like 7 pages long with lot's of people saying they win the SB and then the award and MVP go to the loser. Wow! That's a major screw up I would have difficulty getting over.

Glad to see it really wasn't only just me witnessing it. :smh:

Come on EA, really? How could you possibly bone up the Super Bowl post game that bad? I mean that is atrociously horrible. I'm seriously starting to wonder if EA really does have any QA there in Florida. Between NCAA and now this, I'm honestly starting to think they just skip that part of the process.


A few months back I was thinking of getting this game as it has been a few years since I played it, but with the TW14 debacle and lack of support on NCAA I think I will pass....again:D

Yeah, I'm starting to give second thought to picking this up in a couple months for XBox One.

Like jaymo, overall, it's a fun game. I've played more Madden in the last three days than I have in the last 3 years. But there are so many glaring issues, glitches, bugs, menu lag and then just overall piss poor jobs done by EA on various aspects of the game. Just like the Super Bowl post game and trophy presentation. How in the hell could that possibly even make it out of the offices like that? Over all these months of them working on this game, and NO ONE ever caught that and said "hey, this needs to be fixed!"?

And it's like that with a bunch of different things. Then you have owner mode, which while I love that they finally brought it back, like jaymo said, it's shallow. They added the basics, but did nothing else. It reminds me of coaching carousel in NCAA. They finally added offensive and defensive coordinators, but did pretty much nothing else with it. No position coaches, nothing tied to the actual coaches you have, other than they change the playbooks of CPU teams. That's it. Just tacked on some basic base layer and called it done.

Right now, if I had to make a decision at this moment, yes or no, if I would be getting Madden for Xbox One, even with as much fun as I've had these last three days, I'm going with no. With so many issues and poor coding in this game, it's not worth $60, $40 or even $20 to me.

[SCClassof93]

Glad to see it really wasn't only just me witnessing it. :smh:

Come on EA, really? How could you possibly bone up the Super Bowl post game that bad? I mean that is atrociously horrible. I'm seriously starting to wonder if EA really does have any QA there in Florida. Between NCAA and now this, I'm honestly starting to think they just skip that part of the process.



Yeah, I'm starting to give second thought to picking this up in a couple months for XBox One.

Like jaymo, overall, it's a fun game. I've played more Madden in the last three days than I have in the last 3 years. But there are so many glaring issues, glitches, bugs, menu lag and then just overall piss poor jobs done by EA on various aspects of the game. Just like the Super Bowl post game and trophy presentation. How in the hell could that possibly even make it out of the offices like that? Over all these months of them working on this game, and NO ONE ever caught that and said "hey, this needs to be fixed!"?

And it's like that with a bunch of different things. Then you have owner mode, which while I love that they finally brought it back, like jaymo said, it's shallow. They added the basics, but did nothing else. It reminds me of coaching carousel in NCAA. They finally added offensive and defensive coordinators, but did pretty much nothing else with it. No position coaches, nothing tied to the actual coaches you have, other than they change the playbooks of CPU teams. That's it. Just tacked on some basic base layer and called it done.

Right now, if I had to make a decision at this moment, yes or no, if I would be getting Madden for Xbox One, even with as much fun as I've had these last three days, I'm going with no. With so many issues and poor coding in this game, it's not worth $60, $40 or even $20 to me.

Well I have decided no more EA Sports titles AT ALL for me until Quality control and customer service improves. I will at least need to see their own forums blushing over a game for a change. I used to play pretty much just golf, college football, with an occasional Madden and Halo. My tastes have broadened thanks to many of you and your suggestions and reading about the "fun factor" many of you were having at whatever game etc was being enjoyed. I play way too many diverse types of games now :D in what free "game time" I have. It is sad that my two passions that brought me back to games after a long absence are just so frustrating now. It is utter disregard for your customer base to provide a forum and go months without answering customer ??? about a game or patch. They have killed TW14 this year, just read the ea tw14 forums, where are the devs??? Where are the answers to many of the problems many are having AFTER the first patch? The online community for HTH is dead due to the bugs. NCAA communication has been lackluster this year to say the least as well. In any event, I am glad that my interests have broadened but my first and second loves really suck now. Oh to have Links again and a College Football alternative....

[bdoughty]

Well I have decided no more EA Sports titles AT ALL for me until Quality control and customer service improves. I will at least need to see their own forums blushing over a game for a change. I used to play pretty much just golf, college football, with an occasional Madden and Halo. My tastes have broadened thanks to many of you and your suggestions and reading about the "fun factor" many of you were having at whatever game etc was being enjoyed. I play way too many diverse types of games now :D in what free "game time" I have. It is sad that my two passions that brought me back to games after a long absence are just so frustrating now. It is utter disregard for your customer base to provide a forum and go months without answering customer ??? about a game or patch. They have killed TW14 this year, just read the ea tw14 forums, where are the devs??? Where are the answers to many of the problems many are having AFTER the first patch? The online community for HTH is dead due to the bugs. NCAA communication has been lackluster this year to say the least as well. In any event, I am glad that my interests have broadened but my first and second loves really suck now. Oh to have Links again and a College Football alternative....

Well technically 2K is giving you some Golf with GTA V. :P I am still hoping 2Ksports brings back Links. Already have Madden on the way and the only reason I am going to keep it is I do not plan to jump into Next Gen for awhile. If I can tolerate the issues in NCAA 14, this should not be that hard to swallow. I just wish we could go back to the PS2/Xbox days where we had choices for every sports game and college basketball and college baseball still existed. Sadly, I think that will end up the glory days for sports gamers (actually for me it was the Genesis when EA could do no wrong in my eyes).


I will at least need to see their own forums blushing over a game for a change.

So you will never play any EA Sports game ever again? EA could male the greatest football game of all-time and you are still going to have a mostly negative forum over there.

[SCClassof93]

Well technically 2K is giving you some Golf with GTA V. :P I am still hoping 2Ksports brings back Links. Already have Madden on the way and the only reason I am going to keep it is I do not plan to jump into Next Gen for awhile. If I can tolerate the issues in NCAA 14, this should not be that hard to swallow. I just wish we could go back to the PS2/Xbox days where we had choices for every sports game and college basketball and college baseball still existed. Sadly, I think that will end up the glory days for sports gamers (actually for me it was the Genesis when EA could do no wrong in my eyes).



So you will never play any EA Sports game ever again? EA could male the greatest football game of all-time and you are still going to have a mostly negative forum over there.

I miss those Genesis days as well :D. I never said I would never play an EA game again:D. I can detect whining as easy as sunshine pumping :nod:. I am open to Madden on the ps4 but I will need to be convinced.................oh I miss Links............:(

[CLW]

Signed up for GameFly again this weekend (been meaning to resubscribe for awhile now) and got the bad boy coming my way. I'll pop it in pop the 20-30 trophies I got and I'll mess around for awhile and try to whore out the :plat:

[SCClassof93]

Signed up for GameFly again this weekend (been meaning to resubscribe for awhile now) and got the bad boy coming my way. I'll pop it in pop the 20-30 trophies I got and I'll mess around for awhile and try to whore out the :plat:



I assume those trophies will pop. Have you forgotten NCAA:D

[CLW]

I assume those trophies will pop. Have you forgotten NCAA:D

Touche. I'd have the :plat: in that one but for EA being a steaming pile of you know what. I've gotta go back now and get the ODU year 1 bcs title one oh joy. :smh:

[Rudy]

Freaking Canada Post. My game was shipped by Future Shop out of Toronto (Mississauga) late Sunday and it was in Windsor at 1:00. Now I check the tracking and the game was sent back to Toronto! What the heck? I'm ticked right now.

Edit: I guess they forgot to scan it one time in Toronto and put the scan through now screwing up the tracking. Is still in Windsor and I hope to have it tomorrow although chance snail mail may not show up until Wednesday. I'm only 1/2 an hour from Windsor.

[jaymo76]

I just played a game with the LA Dreams. My gosh Adrian Peterson is a monster! I had 30 carries for 277 yards and a td plus three receptions for 19 yards and a td.

[jaymo76]

Holy cow! Eureka. I just found out that you can take control of all 32 teams and then for the teams you don't want use, you can simply turn on AUTO-PILOT and the cpu will do everything until you turn it off. This is amazing as you don't have to play any games you don't want but you still have the power to change depth charts, relocate, scout, switch unis, etc. etc. etc. I just put the jags and Rams under auto-pilot and I am still tinkering with the Raiders and Dreams. This is A huge find IMO.

[SCClassof93]

jaymo, would you agree with this review?
http://www.gamespot.com/madden-nfl-25/reviews/madden-nfl-25-review-6413685/

[CLW]

jaymo, would you agree with this review?
http://www.gamespot.com/madden-nfl-25/reviews/madden-nfl-25-review-6413685/

For whatever its worth that is the score I'd give it based off of my season ticket weekend with the game. Couldn't find sliders to make the game any more enjoyable than NCAA is either so I'm renting it and we will see with PS4.

[SCClassof93]

For whatever its worth that is the score I'd give it based off of my season ticket weekend with the game. Couldn't find sliders to make the game any more enjoyable than NCAA is either so I'm renting it and we will see with PS4.

I had season ticket but have been away for a few days..........if I get it at all I am thinking ps4.

[CLW]

I had season ticket but have been away for a few days..........if I get it at all I am thinking ps4.

imho it's not worth $60 especially if you might upgrade to ps4 (even with the $10 special that may or may not apply to madden)

im renting it from gamefly to pass the time until GTA comes out and a few other titles i'm interested in.

[jaymo76]

jaymo, would you agree with this review?
http://www.gamespot.com/madden-nfl-25/reviews/madden-nfl-25-review-6413685/

Oh boy! That's a tough question. Let's look at gamespot's premise.


Madden NFL 25 marks a quarter-century of football gaming with a disappointing addition to this venerable franchise.

The Good

Still a very comprehensive and full-featured treatment of NFL football
Undeniably exciting to play at times, especially on offense
New run free and heat-seeking tackling offer control scheme enhancements.

The Bad

Core gameplay barely changed from last year
Offense still overpowered and defense still not smart enough
Disappointing presentation
New Connected Franchise mode lacks depth.


Madden 25 is NOT disappointing IMO. Having said that, I agree with all of the above points listed. To give this game a 6 is a little too harsh IMO. I think people need to be realistic with their expectations of this yearly Madden release on it's last ps3/360 year. Personally I would give this game a 7.5 to 8 rating. It is a different game from last year but the gameplay is pretty much the same as it is every year. If you are NOT into OWNER MODE then you don't need to buy this title. Almost everything in the article I agree with, except for the rating.

Ask my wife and kids, for as much as I complain about issues with this game I have been playing it every second I can. Frankly the "fun factor" is significantly higher in Madden 25 than it is in NCAA 14. In the history of Madden I am doing something I have never done... play with multiple teams. Currently I have two different franchise experiences. I have an online CFM with the Rams and I have an offline CFM where I am controlling the Raiders, LA Dreams (Vikings), and auto-piloting the London jags and LA Rams. Although I wish owner mode had more depth and options I do find myself somewhat interested in occasionally checking what the fans think about our concessions. But again, if you don't want owner mode and you don't want to relocate/rebuild your stadium (and deal with some of the bugs and glitches...) then I don't see a compelling reason to buy Madden 25 IF you own 13.

If you are hoping for a real sim football game then this isn't it and if you love defense you have come to the wrong game. If you like fun arcade football with a sprinkling of realism then I think you will love this game. If you don't like NCAA then you probably won't like this game, even though it does play much, much better than NCAA.

Just my .02c

[jaymo76]

EA write-up on popularity. HOWEVER, there is no mention if it's dynamic...

http://www.easports.com/madden-nfl/news-updates-gameplay/article/personality-rating

[SCClassof93]

Oh boy! That's a tough question. Let's look at gamespot's premise.



Madden 25 is NOT disappointing IMO. Having said that, I agree with all of the above points listed. To give this game a 6 is a little too harsh IMO. I think people need to be realistic with their expectations of this yearly Madden release on it's last ps3/360 year. Personally I would give this game a 7.5 to 8 rating. It is a different game from last year but the gameplay is pretty much the same as it is every year. If you are NOT into OWNER MODE then you don't need to buy this title. Almost everything in the article I agree with, except for the rating.

Ask my wife and kids, for as much as I complain about issues with this game I have been playing it every second I can. Frankly the "fun factor" is significantly higher in Madden 25 than it is in NCAA 14. In the history of Madden I am doing something I have never done... play with multiple teams. Currently I have two different franchise experiences. I have an online CFM with the Rams and I have an offline CFM where I am controlling the Raiders, LA Dreams (Vikings), and auto-piloting the London jags and LA Rams. Although I wish owner mode had more depth and options I do find myself somewhat interested in occasionally checking what the fans think about our concessions. But again, if you don't want owner mode and you don't want to relocate/rebuild your stadium (and deal with some of the bugs and glitches...) then I don't see a compelling reason to buy Madden 25 IF you own 13.

If you are hoping for a real sim football game then this isn't it and if you love defense you have come to the wrong game. If you like fun arcade football with a sprinkling of realism then I think you will love this game. If you don't like NCAA then you probably won't like this game, even though it does play much, much better than NCAA.

Just my .02c

:up:

[jaymo76]

My season ticket is running out but another quick impression: the cpu always recieves when they win the coin toss... every single time. Plus during breast cancer awareness month the commentary (re: the cause ) each game is the same word for word.

[Rudy]

I'd say 95% of the time NFL teams choose to receive at the beginning of the game unlike college. It's rare when they defer imo.

[jaymo76]

Ugh! It takes sooooooooooooooooooooo long to manually upgrade players this year! You choose the trait and then you must confirm it and it loads... there is huge upgrade lag. I have progression set at end of the year again as with 13 there were cpu issues if you didn't progress at the end. Other than a few key players and positions I will give the cpu full control. It just takes too long otherwise.

[Rudy]

The retail version of Madden 25 is tuned differently than the demo and M13 (PS3). I agree with those that feel the Infinity Engine has been scaled too far back. I think the M13 demo looks better in this regard. Player movement is a bit jerky as well. It doesn’t feel as smooth for some reason. Because of this I tried playing at Very Slow and it felt better but I just don’t like the lack of explosiveness at that speed so I will be sticking with Slow. Overall I had fun playing a bunch of different games - many of the one half variety to check out different styles. The first thing I noticed is that on All-Madden the cpu offence is a lot better than the demo. The run blocking is far superior and the cpu QB is ridiculously accurate.

PASSING GAME

After some testing I think cpu accuracy at 3 is about right. Even at 5 guys like Jake Locker and Kevin Kolb rarely misfire. Human accuracy is good at 5 imo although what does that say about EA when you have to have sliders so close to 0 (or 100). This year’s Madden is similar to the past in that balls rarely hit the ground. To see actual misfires where neither WR nor DB touches the ball you have to have the accuracies near 0. Low accuracy can also result in too many picks so the interception slider has to be turned down. I like adjusting sliders but there is no question that Madden at default is tuned to be a very arcade style game where every pass is completed or nearly picked off at default. I tested out playing a couple games with and against Locker as he’s one of the worst starting QBs in the game for accuracy. That list also includes Pryor, Vick (a little surprised by how bad they made his accuracy) and Sanchez. Quite frankly the QB accuracy ratings are fairly poor. How does a bum like Scott Tolzien have better short and medium accuracy than any of those QBs listed? The rookies have inflated ratings as well imo.


The cpu QBs do seem to make pretty good decisions and it is nice to see a great cpu QB tear apart my defence this year. I think this area is a huge upgrade over M13 as in M13 it was a near miracle to get the cpu QB to throw for 300 yards. I was actually worried the cpu was too pass happy as Romo practically lived in the shotgun but teams like the Bills and Titans ran the ball a lot more. WR catching seems to be too good. Even at 45 I played an entire game with Miami and Dallas and there wasn’t a single dropped pass by either team and both of the teams passed the ball a lot.

RUNNING GAME

User run blocking is too easy. I have to put user run blocking at 0 to keep it in check and it felt good there in my first few games. I felt a team like SF was too easy to run with in the demo and I’ll have to take them again and see if Boldin continues to wipe out CBs while Gore rushes for a ton of yards. I will do that soon. It was far too easy to run the ball in M13 last year on any slider setting. I’m hoping that won’t be the case in M25 and it may be good. Again, I HATE that a slider should be at 0 (or 100) to fix something. With all the complaints about the over-powered user running game I’m hoping EA tunes this a bit. The cpu running game is good. The RBs spin and make good decisions generally speaking, the run blocking is strong for them and running QBs take off and the run the way you like to see them. Pass blocking is over-powered at default (it seems as though nothing is good at default lol) but sliders do fix this imo.


DEFENCE

I’ve read many complaints about the lack of cpu pass defence on curl routes but I’m not seeing that problem right now. With cpu coverage boosted up a bit I saw DBs blanketing my WRs and even some mirror coverage at times (note that I’m not a great passer). What I did like was that both teams can hit the deep ball and the cpu will burn you if you bring the safeties up. Right now I think user defence is good and overall defence is good in the game WITH slider adjustments. I had one game at 7-6 at the half. My only concern is if the cpu will be good enough to stop the user running game. At 0 run block it appears OK for now.


SPECIAL TEAMS

I messed around with the special teams sliders and noted that the cpu kickers aren’t that accurate if you push down the FG accuracy. At 40 or less they start to shank them too much but the cpu kicking game is pretty good near default. User kick returns are a bit too easy while the cpu never breaks a long return. My biggest issue with special teams is how ridiculously easy it is to kick FGs again for the user. The sliders are horrible and can’t be used to fix the problem. You get separate human and cpu sliders from the main menu but can’t touch them in game and you only have global sliders apparently in franchise mode. It doesn’t really matter though as I tested human FG accuracy at 0 and you will still make every kick! The r-stick does virtually nothing! Just aim the accuracy error pre-kcik, swing your stick to ensure enough distance and don’t worry about the aim on the r-stick as you will make it every time. I kicked a near 50 yarder with my r-stick at 45 degrees off from where it should have been and made it. How can EA not get this area right? Clearly EA must think that the customers want to make every freaking kick but why not fix the sliders so I can actually get realistic outcomes if I want them? (EA must be right because I have yet to read a SINGLE review that points out how easy it is to make every kick).

PRESENTATION

This area could use a boost. The cut scenes are a bit repetitive (switch to real time please) and I wish they had more press box angles for replays. I like the commentary. I really enjoyed Simms and Nantz last year and like them this year. A few more stat overlays would be nice but overall I’m satisfied in this area. Not great but not horrible either imo.

OVERALL

Overall the game feels good but it is disappointing that IE has been tuned down. I’m hopeful the cpu play calling is better in franchise and that there aren’t too many bugs unlike the buggy mess of M13. I do like the Legacy camera and went back to that. I don’t see this as a huge upgrade so far to M13 but a nice evolutionary upgrade in terms of gameplay. I think the improvement to the cpu offence, particularly in the passing game is worth the purchase. I’ve only played about the equivalent of three or four games so my thoughts can change.

[Rudy]

I'm still wondering what the point of the precision modifier is. If that's supposed to be a super move with guys highly rated why would I do the basic move and not the super move? Why not just keep those controls the same as before? I just don't see the point of having to hit L2.

Careful with auto subs or your RB disappears to never come back. I scored a TD with Victor Cruz who got tackled in the end zone. He did his salsa dancing only to find out he busted something when he got tackled and was out for the game. Not exactly immersive lol.

I think saving separate cpu and user sliders is unnecessary myself. I wish we had access to the tuning mechanic instead of just the weak sliders they give us.

[jaymo76]

Man I am throwing a lot of pics. Yes many are my fault but on occasion I will see one of those "madden moments" where you just roll your eyes. I might actually drop the cpu ints down as I am averaging two pics per game. I'm not sure why but for the last couple games I have really struggled offensively.

[GatorfanStovy]

Has any of you been doing the draft for this year ? How is the draft classes and draft mode for the game this year ?

[Rudy]

I haven't gotten that far Gator. Just doing Play Now. And yes Jaymo, I have stretches where I throw a bunch of picks. They are normally a result of me pre-determining my read and/or forcing it into tight coverage. Sometimes I just have to learn to scramble.

I took the 49ers against the 49ers and we both ran for quite a bit of yards. Only time for one half of play but it was fun. I'm seeing some good things now and that does include defence.

[jaymo76]

I haven't gotten that far Gator. Just doing Play Now. And yes Jaymo, I have stretches where I throw a bunch of picks. They are normally a result of me pre-determining my read and/or forcing it into tight coverage. Sometimes I just have to learn to scramble.

I took the 49ers against the 49ers and we both ran for quite a bit of yards. Only time for one half of play but it was fun. I'm seeing some good things now and that does include defence.

Yup I lock at to a reciever and it's hell or high water. With the zone d at 75 and ints at 30 any bad pass may be picked off. Have you seen a lot of route mirroring? In my last game vs Tennessee my recievers were totally blanketed.

[jaymo76]

Has any of you been doing the draft for this year ? How is the draft classes and draft mode for the game this year ?

Draft is pretty much the same as last year and all classes are pre-made. However, I imported NCAA class i my test dynasty. I recommend you don't do that as it totally removes all of the commentary insights and completely removes players from the twitter feed discussion for the entire season. IMO you need to keep the fake classes so you can keep the immersion factor. Apparently in the fake classes there is occasional commentary from a second announcer.

[Rudy]

Yup I lock at to a reciever and it's hell or high water. With the zone d at 75 and ints at 30 any bad pass may be picked off. Have you seen a lot of route mirroring? In my last game vs Tennessee my recievers were totally blanketed.

I've only got pass coverage at 65 for cpu and I saw one bad example of it. The rest has been tight coverage at times but nothing that I can't say is cheating. If I make good reads I can move the ball. Your patience and decision making is key. The one weakness I still see in the coverage is the zone press from the CB on streak routes. If you recognize it you can still get the ball in behind the CB and in front of the safety too easy. The CB needs to trail the WR a bit more before he stays in his short zone imo. He can't just jam the WR and let him run free down the field completely.

[jaymo76]

It's funny how certain qb's play in this game for different people. I have faced Wilson and Kaepernick and both games they weren't great at passing and rarely ran the read option. However, a guy who just destroyed me is Cam Newton. Newton trucks linemen and lb's for breakfast! Jake Locker is also really tough to contain.

[jaymo76]

I'm still wondering what the point of the precision modifier is. If that's supposed to be a super move with guys highly rated why would I do the basic move and not the super move? Why not just keep those controls the same as before? I just don't see the point of having to hit L2.

Same here.. what us the point exactly? It's really awkward to try to work acceleration while at the same time trying to push l2 for a spin move.

[GatorfanStovy]

Draft is pretty much the same as last year and all classes are pre-made. However, I imported NCAA class i my test dynasty. I recommend you don't do that as it totally removes all of the commentary insights and completely removes players from the twitter feed discussion for the entire season. IMO you need to keep the fake classes so you can keep the immersion factor. Apparently in the fake classes there is occasional commentary from a second announcer.

That freaking sucks balls! I was all stocked for importing classes. Stupid player rights! Looks like iw ill stick with NCAA this year until Madde or a football game lets us actually use the names again. That was so much in franchise mode. ugh. such a let down.

[jaymo76]

Humbled... I just lost 33-17 to the Bears. Bradford threw four pics and my rb's combined for three fumbles. I'm dropping cpu pass coverage back to 65. As with all Tiburon football games, why will the receiver not go up and fight for the ball???

[Rudy]

That freaking sucks balls! I was all stocked for importing classes. Stupid player rights! Looks like iw ill stick with NCAA this year until Madde or a football game lets us actually use the names again. That was so much in franchise mode. ugh. such a let down.

You can still get the real players in the draft. It's just the extras like draft stories you miss out on. I personally don't want to do that myself and will just use the generated ones. But if you are waiting for this to change I wouldn't be holding your breath. There is a decent chance EA never makes another college football game.

[Rudy]

I am finding that there is a very fine line between the cpu having a great passing attack and the cpu having a bad one. With some slider tweaks I took Miami into Foxborough and Brady was 10-23 with 4 INTs in the first half. A lot of that is how bad his WRs are and the fact they try to run a short two TE passing game and Hernandez is not there. No Welker hurts cpu Brady as well. I'm making a couple small tweaks and will see how it goes. The cpu does not run the ball enough. While Brady threw it 23 times in the half, I think Ridley had less than 5 carries.

I do find it odd that after every injury the cpu QB seems to take 10 seconds to snap the ball. The cpu likes to give the hard snap count but all it ever does is draw their own OL offsides. Whenever I make a big play the head coach of the other team can be found yelling at a player on his bench but the dumb thing is he's yelling at the wrong unit. If their WR drops a ball he's yelling at a LB. That could use improvement.

[JBHuskers]

NCAA was the exact same way on a lot of things. Fine line from impossible playing against the CPU to easily rolling them.

[jaymo76]

I am finding that there is a very fine line between the cpu having a great passing attack and the cpu having a bad one. With some slider tweaks I took Miami into Foxborough and Brady was 10-23 with 4 INTs in the first half. A lot of that is how bad his WRs are and the fact they try to run a short two TE passing game and Hernandez is not there. No Welker hurts cpu Brady as well. I'm making a couple small tweaks and will see how it goes. The cpu does not run the ball enough. While Brady threw it 23 times in the half, I think Ridley had less than 5 carries.

I do find it odd that after every injury the cpu QB seems to take 10 seconds to snap the ball. The cpu likes to give the hard snap count but all it ever does is draw their own OL offsides. Whenever I make a big play the head coach of the other team can be found yelling at a player on his bench but the dumb thing is he's yelling at the wrong unit. If their WR drops a ball he's yelling at a LB. That could use improvement.

Yes, and then you add DPP into the mix. If the cpu is hot and your D is cold... it gets ugly quickly!!!

[Rudy]

I think the game may have taken a step back in graphics and I think it's mainly because of the lighting. I didn't realize the Colts stadium could be opened. I thought it was a closed dome. I played a game there with it open and it was ugly as sin. The lighting and shadows were bad. I also took the Dolphins into Ford Field and lost 35-20. I was happy to see Stafford throw the ball around. Both CJ and Pettigrew were big against me. But the lighting just doesn't look that good. The Dolphins pants aren't white for some reason - they are off white or almost grey in the game. Even the Lions blue pants looked bad. It's as though the game doesn't use real lighting so it throws fake shadows on their lower bodies while the upper bodies stay clean and brighter. It doesn't look good for some teams and the Dolphins all-white look is one of them.

There was quite a bit of comments from EA pre-release about having more player momentum and things but I'm not seeing it at all. It may be worse. I caught a crossing pass with Mike Wallace going across the middle and he was going full speed. I instantly stopped on a dime and then went up field. The demo was better in this area and IE imo. It's not game breaking or anything but it should be better than this - much better.

[jaymo76]

I think the game may have taken a step back in graphics and I think it's mainly because of the lighting. I didn't realize the Colts stadium could be opened. I thought it was a closed dome. I played a game there with it open and it was ugly as sin. The lighting and shadows were bad. I also took the Dolphins into Ford Field and lost 35-20. I was happy to see Stafford throw the ball around. Both CJ and Pettigrew were big against me. But the lighting just doesn't look that good. The Dolphins pants aren't white for some reason - they are off white or almost grey in the game. Even the Lions blue pants looked bad. It's as though the game doesn't use real lighting so it throws fake shadows on their lower bodies while the upper bodies stay clean and brighter. It doesn't look good for some teams and the Dolphins all-white look is one of them.

There was quite a bit of comments from EA pre-release about having more player momentum and things but I'm not seeing it at all. It may be worse. I caught a crossing pass with Mike Wallace going across the middle and he was going full speed. I instantly stopped on a dime and then went up field. The demo was better in this area and IE imo. It's not game breaking or anything but it should be better than this - much better.

Visually, what happened to progressive lighting? I think this has taken a huge step back this year. As to momentum, I don't see it a lot but I still ascertain that IE has taken a major step back from last year.

[jaymo76]

Here are a few things I really want to see fixed ASAP. These are not the biggest issues but they are things that are getting on my nerves.

1. CPU HIT STICK... it seems like every hit from a safety or LB is a hit stick. Tone this down!!!
2. Patch in the option to open the roof in retractable stadiums. Currently it is IMPOSSIBLE to open a roof for a RELOCATED team
3. Fix the endzone art in CFM OWNER MODE for RELOCATED teams (Rams, Jags, Panthers, etc.)
4. Enough with these terrible replays... limit the replays but bump up the stat banners
5. Tone down the amount of ints. each game. I have NOT played one game without either a hum/cpu int (avg. 3 per game hum/cpu combined)

[jaymo76]

Sidenote... forgot to mention that we were told commentary was improved and would be more dynamic... NO!!! At this point commentary is the weak point in this game as it now stands. This needs to take a massive jump next year. For ps4 commentary needs to be dynamic and we really need to see a 2nd team. Plus this game does NOT have a broadcast feel... this needs to change.

[Rudy]

My passing game has gotten worse. I'm terrible right now. I'm not reading the defense, I'm panicking and rushing my throws and staring down one receiver. It's ugly.

[jaymo76]

My passing game has gotten worse. I'm terrible right now. I'm not reading the defense, I'm panicking and rushing my throws and staring down one receiver. It's ugly.

Tell me about it. In my Rams CFM Bradford has been hurt and or struggling and the backups haven't faired much better.

Bradford: 4 td's 11 int's
Clemens 3 td's 10 ints.
Davis 1 td 4 ints

The problem I am having is that my receivers do not fight or come back to the ball while the cpu defender does. This is just another madden legacy issue that NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED FOR NEXT GEN.

[Rudy]

There are a lot of legacy issues but there is no reason for me to believe it will be much different on next gen. I hope I'm wrong.

[jaymo76]

Weird glitch... I am picked off in the endzone (that's a shock...) and the cpu goes out of bounds in the endzone. Next thing I know I have been given two points for a safety and the cpu is punting the ball to me. Brutal! :fp: :down: :dunno:

[Rudy]

The game isn't tested very well. I was playing against my son and there were times (questionable out of bounds catch) where neither of us could challenge. It wasn't inside two minutes or a TD play and we had only challenged once before at most. One time I did challenge with Miami in Detroit and I heard the crowd boo before the ref actually talked which I thought gave away the play but he confirmed the play (good for Detroit). Then I saw Miami on the field pre-snap for both offence AND defence. It was fine when we went to play but it was goofy.

My 6 year old daughter actually said the game didn't look that good or real lol. I think the player models actually look a bit skinny. Overall I do think the game took a step back due to lighting and IE being toned down. It still looks good but something is off. I may play the M13 demo tomorrow to verify.

[jaymo76]

The game isn't tested very well. I was playing against my son and there were times (questionable out of bounds catch) where neither of us could challenge. It wasn't inside two minutes or a TD play and we had only challenged once before at most. One time I did challenge with Miami in Detroit and I heard the crowd boo before the ref actually talked which I thought gave away the play but he confirmed the play (good for Detroit). Then I saw Miami on the field pre-snap for both offence AND defence. It was fine when we went to play but it was goofy.

My 6 year old daughter actually said the game didn't look that good or real lol. I think the player models actually look a bit skinny. Overall I do think the game took a step back due to lighting and IE being toned down. It still looks good but something is off. I may play the M13 demo tomorrow to verify.

See that's the funny thing because when I compared the demo vs. madden 13 a few weeks ago I thought the demo looked really good, especially Green Bay. I agree with your take that the players are smaller although in some ways it is better IMO because I have always felt the players were too big for the field. However, some players, especially small rb's look funny as the head and body size don't match up.

[jaymo76]

Anyone else notice that on your first drive Nanatz refers to your team by the wrong name. It's 50/50 whether he will say the Rams. I am referred to as the Raiders and the Eagles just as regular as I am called the Rams.

[jaymo76]

Cpu really seems to run a lot of zone in this game. I would say 70% of the coverage is zone. I'm not sure what the real NFL stats are but that seems high.

[Rudy]

My son uses Ask Madden on defence. Tons of zone suggestions. Part of the problem is that there are so few man defences. They removed all the double team options and there are no backet or shading options other than in the hot route menu. He CPU just isn't given enough to choose from.

[jaymo76]

Rudy have you started your franchise yet or are you still in play now?

[WolverineJay]

Here are a few things I really want to see fixed ASAP. These are not the biggest issues but they are things that are getting on my nerves.

1. CPU HIT STICK... it seems like every hit from a safety or LB is a hit stick. Tone this down!!!
2. Patch in the option to open the roof in retractable stadiums. Currently it is IMPOSSIBLE to open a roof for a RELOCATED team
3. Fix the endzone art in CFM OWNER MODE for RELOCATED teams (Rams, Jags, Panthers, etc.)
4. Enough with these terrible replays... limit the replays but bump up the stat banners
5. Tone down the amount of ints. each game. I have NOT played one game without either a hum/cpu int (avg. 3 per game hum/cpu combined)

Jaymo,

1. I recently played with your sliders for 3 games. I completely agree that the CPU hit stick is way way overdone using your slider set. I get that the occasional big hit occurs in the NFL, but it seemed like in those 3 games 75% of the tackles were WWE over the top type tackles.

5. Yes the Interception total was high 7 combined picks (5 thrown by CPU), 5 combined picks (4 thrown by CPU), and all 4 picks in game 3 were by the CPU.

I am finding this game to be way way to easy for me. I have played a total of 7 games in Franchise (mostly pre-season and couple regular season) and only punted twice, that is mindboggling. I have no fear of the CPU and my slider set really can't get any harder in pass coverage (50 INT and 100 for both Pass Reaction and Coverage). The sliders are beyond weak in my book. 0 run blocking does not slow me down at all, I still average 7+ yards a carry with a pro style run game and almost 10 per rush using Shotgun Option. Like I said I saw your Franchise thread about the Rams and said maybe I will try those and my mind hasn't changed in the slightest, M25 sliders are extremely weak. The biggest problem comes from the ones they removed (Run reaction, Block Shed, Pass Rush) their gone and so is the ability it seems to slow down my Offense to realistic numbers. I am really disappointed in the lack of CPU defense and special teams coverage in M25. M13's defense and special teams coverage is light years ahead of this game and that was too easy. I am still working on my slider set but there isn't much wiggle room left (0 HUM pass blocking, 3 HUM QB Accuracy, 0 HUM Run Blocking, 75 CPU Tackling, 50 Interceptions, 100 Pass Coverage, 100 Pass Reaction).

I have been really slow to post any impressions because I am having such a hard time getting a competitive game out of the CPU. I really want to like this game but when it is an afterthought no matter the matchup (last game was Rams vs Broncos I won 48-9 for crying out loud), it is hard to stay positive. I will keep at it but I don't know how much longer.

[Rudy]

EA screwed Madden up royally for the really good to elite gamers (I'm not one of them) when they went to their global difficulty/slider system. They should have left 50 as the default across all levels and tuned the game behind the scenes to be harder like they used to do and the way NCAA does it. They had to soften the sliders to make it fit and they don't really give a shit about sliders anyways or test them. As a result the game has gotten way too easy the last two years. No Madden Game changers exist to push this issue. I'll ask about sliders and most never even check them.

So now you get All-Madden which starts off at 25 sliders which hurts and the sliders are weak and that hurts some more. User run blocking at 0 is pretty decent for me but still a bit too strong. NOBODY should ever have a slider at 0 or 100 imo. That means your sliders are ineffective or stink. I'd honestly love to go down to EA Tiburon and not even play the game. Just work on sliders and test them. You have a 100 point scale EA - make them stronger!

And Jaymo, I will not start a franchise until I know the opening day roster for Miami. That has to be accurate for me to begin my franchise. I'm just anal that way.

[Rudy]

I went back and played the demo and then the retail version using the same teams and stadium and I switched back to the new Standard cam. I don't see much difference between the two. I do think M25 looks good in the afternoon outdoor lighting. Indoors it looks bad though and the Dolphins all-white uniforms are irritating since their pants are a different colour (off-white) than their tops. It looks odd and annoys me especially since it's my favourite combo of their new uniforms. The Dolphins blue in the game is the wrong colour too and hasn't been updated. I hope this gets patched.

I do think I'm going to stay with the new camera. It's a nice and fresh change from Legacy.

[bdoughty]

I was throwing a few more picks than usual in my franchise so I go and look at the sliders and notice there is a glitch that bumps up CPU pass coverage to 75 anytime you start a connected franchise (have only tried coach/owner so far). I play on All-Pro and everything is 50 Human/CPU but for some reason that one slider gets bumped up to 75. Dropped it down to 50 and will see if that helps a bit.

Odd little bug and would be interested to see if it is happening to others. Not really a slider guy so I tend to avoid messing with them in a fear of making things worse.

[jaymo76]

I was throwing a few more picks than usual in my franchise so I go and look at the sliders and notice there is a glitch that bumps up CPU pass coverage to 75 anytime you start a connected franchise (have only tried coach/owner so far). I play on All-Pro and everything is 50 Human/CPU but for some reason that one slider gets bumped up to 75. Dropped it down to 50 and will see if that helps a bit.

Odd little bug and would be interested to see if it is happening to others. Not really a slider guy so I tend to avoid messing with them in a fear of making things worse.

I have the cpu zone at 65 because I found with 50 the zone is just too weak. Plus the cpu plays zone most of the game.

[Rudy]

They have some specific commentary in the game for certain match ups. I played Browns at home against Cincinnati and Nantz and Simms commented on Wyche's comments in a game 20 years ago. I remember that game and the garbage thrown on the field in Cincinnati. Loved his comments! Nice touch in Madden.

[WolverineJay]

Messed around with scouting earlier and here are my quick impressions:

You hire a scout for your coaching staff who is suppose to give you a small bonus, but it doesn't work. I was Dallas and their scout is suppose to give 25% discount on WR SP and it doesn't apply at all for any WR prospect. Tested with Intangible which costs 1000 SP so should have been 750 with discount, nope still took 1000.

The point values have gone up on many individual ratings. Overall is now 1500, Intangibles 1000, Physical 1000, Speed 750, Acc 375 while scouting points seem less. In fact different positions have different SP amounts like OL and DL Speed is 375 so much easier to scout some positions than others. Mindboggling that EA Tiburon would make it harder to create a draft board in M25 than it was in M13(too low of SP last year as well). I got 1860 SP starting in wk 2 of season for J. Garrett. At week 11, I reached 12000 XP so I bought Scouting pack that is supposed to double weekly SP(Nope doesn't 2x, it only added 1000 in offline CFM just like last year:smh: ).

It seems that the AWR grade is much improved across the board in M25. Last year it wasn't unheard of to get rookies with 20-40 AWR (especially late round and undrafted rookies). I scouted AWR on tons of late rd guys and routinely saw D grades for AWR, actually not sure if I saw any F's.

The game has put in the 70 or so extra players they add to fill out the draft class at the beginning of the season so everyone can be scouted in M25. In M13, the extra players only showed up on draft day and usually contained a few studs with very low AWR(see above).

**** Edit ****
I picked the Giants and discovered that the cost for many ratings are higher than Dallas. Overall is 2000 and speed is 1000 and intangible was 750 due to a 25% discount. I guess Dallas gets 25% discount on all players speed and Overall even though like I stated above they are only suppose to get 25% SP discount on WR Overall.

Other things I noticed are that some of the ungraded extra players are very good. I scouted the last 2 QB's with no draft grade and 1 of them was 1st/2nd rd talent. He had B Throw power, B SAC, B MAC, C DAC, B PAC, C Throw on the run, and C Awareness. I also have seen F for Awr but no where near as many as last year.

One final note is that Coughlin was like level 26 and he still had the option to purchase the scouting package at 60,000 XP so I guess that means you can keep getting that package over the years. Coughlin got 2940 SP per week to start so another 1,000 would definitely help especially with the increased cost of certain ratings.

[Rudy]

The cpu QB takes too long to make a decision on throwing the ball. And it's not because someone isn't open. Their route awareness is poor. Much like a real NFL QB throws the ball before the break (and even we can do that on comeback routes a little) the cpu QB doesn't do that. They wait for WRs to make their break and throw the ball a second later. Their timing just isn't quite good enough. They also don't lead their WRs deep enough on corner routes.

I feel cpu QB accuracy has some awareness built into it. Trying to lower it to get more inaccurate throws that just hit the ground seems to make them dumber. Maybe it's just me. I also think that way too many bad QBs have good accuracy ratings resulting in QB accuracies that aren't spread out enough. Guys like Cam Newton and Kaep have worse short and medium accuracy than Scott Tolzien and Graham Harrell. I just don't believe that's accurate.

[Rudy]

I will say this, I have gotten very different results. I had the Bears at home against the Panthers and was beating them 34-0 at the half. Cutler was sharp, Brandon Marshall was strong and Carolina was terrible. Then I take Seattle into SF and was down 17-0 at the half. Ouch. I wasn't using Harvin but I should have. Golden Tate is great at catching in traffic though. I've played a couple games with Seattle and he takes shots and holds on.

I've actually been thinking about starting a Browns franchise. I love the 3-4 and all the LBs they have but the formation subs in Madden makes it a pain. Trying to sub Sheard in at DT on passing downs while getting Mingo and even Coples in the lineup takes awhile and is a pain in the ass. Plus you have to do that crap EVERY game. Why can't they add NCAA's formation sub menu? Will start a franchise soon.

I'm guessing Donny Moore will have an official roster update out before tonight's game. Let's see if they get Cam Wake right. I've been tweeting at him to finally put him at LE where he belongs. EA has had him on the right side the last two years. It's wrong. I even tweeted him the PFF numbers showing he rushed from the left side 89% last year and 87.5% the year before. I know I can edit it but he's a star player and they should have it right.

I've played with a couple of teams where they have their all-white uniforms correct as the colour of the top matches the pants (Browns are fine as an example). Why can't they do that for Miami? They are off and it bugs me. The pants are dirty and off-white, half way between white and the Giants grey pants.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BTZMQjaCMAA-6C6.jpg

[Rudy]

Dolphins mismatched offwhite pants can be fixed by using throwback whites (stripes on pants won't match though). But current all-white unis are off: http://www.easports.com/media/play/video/169950835. I recorded that to show Lamar Miller tripping Tannehill lol. The 2012 and 2013 white pants are dirty/off-white. 2011 and throwbacks are white. The throwback white pants look decent with new white tops. That's what I will use.

The challenge system is off. The commentary and fan reaction is backwards at times and on this play Grimes picks off the ball but it's rule incomplete early in the first quarter. I had no option to challenge.
http://www.easports.com/media/play/video/169950794

Man align is off this year as guys aren't directly across from their man at times and sometimes it shows as covering the guy on the other side of the ball. I can fix that usually by using the man align hot audible but I shouldn't have to. At times they don't flip the CB in nickel plays to cover the slot WR. One time I noticed it was when he was blitzing but other times I don't understand. Usually it's good.

I get really annoyed when a WR runs a route to the flat and ALWAYS gets taken out of bounds with the ball, sometimes with the catch or not. Even when running the play to the wide side of the field the awareness of the WR is terrible other than the occassional animation for toe tapping as you go out of bounds. How about slowing down and allowing yourself to get upfield? Especially when you are wide open!!

[Rudy]

I really think the challenges got screwed up this year. I've challenged plays and lost despite looking at replays afterwards and being convinced the player was either out of bounds (game rewarded a catch) or in bounds (game ruled out of bounds). I don't remember this being that bad before. Plus I can't even challenge at times (not inside two minutes or turnover) and the crowd reacts (boos, cheers) opposite of what they should. The home town wins a challenge and the fans boo. Huh?

[Rudy]

I will say I'm getting pretty good games on Play Now even though the user rushing up the gut is too easy. I use Ask Madden a lot though so just spamming I-formation ISO plays isn't something I do. The running game is dynamic as you really have to read the LBs. Just taking it to the designed hole will not get you nearly as many yards as cutting back or outside when you need to. I took my Dolphins on the road against the Browns and lost 24-7 in game one. They handed it to me. I won 34-28 in game two. I'm up 13-3 at the half using the Giants against the Giants.

Definitely planning on getting my franchise started this week and I'll be able to see how franchise plays. Tracking the cumulative stats will be interesting. I want to see how many sacks I get vs give up as that was something quite off last year (especially LE vs RE). Same goes for INTs. I don't want to get too many. I've read the simulated stats are terrible for QBs so hopefully that gets patched. Probably won't see that patch until the end of September at the earliest.

I've also changed the speed to Normal. It feels better for some reason. Maybe it's just that it's different but I don't mind the speed right now after playing Slow the last few years.

[Rudy]

I find I run better out of power formations, especially up the gut which can be too easy. Running outside seems tougher and I haven't run we'll out of 3 WR ACE formations. The opposite seems true for CPU. Just me?

[jaymo76]

I really think the challenges got screwed up this year. I've challenged plays and lost despite looking at replays afterwards and being convinced the player was either out of bounds (game rewarded a catch) or in bounds (game ruled out of bounds). I don't remember this being that bad before. Plus I can't even challenge at times (not inside two minutes or turnover) and the crowd reacts (boos, cheers) opposite of what they should. The home town wins a challenge and the fans boo. Huh?

Yup challenges are a joke period. I long for the days of 2k3-sk5 challenged where they actually worked and you could choose what you were challenging.

[jaymo76]

I find I run better out of power formations, especially up the gut which can be too easy. Running outside seems tougher and I haven't run we'll out of 3 WR ACE formations. The opposite seems true for CPU. Just me?

Outside runs are very difficult for me. If you don't have a blocking TE expect to be gobbled up in the backfield. As for running up the middle, I also get a lot of yards. However, ace formation is nowhere as effective as I, STRONG, and WEAK.

[CLW]

Well I whore'd out the :plat: It was a very easy one to get after grinding out the MUT trophies its just a download and sim 3 seasons away. :nod:

[jaymo76]

It's funny. I had some down-time today so I decided to play an NCAA 14 dynasty game. I am surprised to say this because I am having more fun with Madden but in all honesty, I find that NCAA plays better and infinity is superior on NCAA this year.

[Rudy]

I'm not sure if it's because Madden feels pretty similar to last year or if I'm just busier with my kids but I haven't been playing Madden much this year. It would really help if I had in game saves but the desire to play is low unfortunately.

[jaymo76]

I'm not sure if it's because Madden feels pretty similar to last year or if I'm just busier with my kids but I haven't been playing Madden much this year. It would really help if I had in game saves but the desire to play is low unfortunately.

I know what you mean. I haven't played Madden a lot lately. In fact I haven't played any games lately other than NCAA last night. Work and the kids just leaves me with no time right now and when I do have some spare time late at night I just cannot find the motivation to fire up Madden. I am having a good time and I want to take the Oilers to the SB but I am just not all that into it right now. CCM last year, regardless of all it's issues was fresh but CFM feels very stale already. PRESENTATION and IMMERSION eed to take huge steps for next year.

I am on the fence whether or not I upgrade to the PS4. Right now I don't see any reason to do buy Madden next gen. The fact that not a whisper has been made about the game confirms for me that there is nothing to tell. If I could transfer my ps3 dynasty then sure but at this point I can't really see a good reason.

[CLW]

I agree with you guys that NCAA feels better than Madden this year but ultimately both suffer from the same lack of defense. I'm not sure if its intentional or just bad programming/AI but I'm doubting purchasing Madden 25 on PS4 and just keep busy with some of the other titles and see how it all pans out next year.

[Rudy]

How hard is it to program guys on swing or flat routes not to run full speed out of bounds? Seriously RBs in the NFL run at half speed out to the flats and when they catch it they are ready to get upfield. In Madden its a miracle if they don't run out of bounds and if they do catch it in bounds they aren't in a position to get upfield.

The game needs to be more dynamic in the trenches. We've had the same basic runs and the same basic outcomes. I want more movement on the lines and more gang tackling. I'd like defence to be more fun.

With the terrible sales this year I'm expecting a new person to be put in charge soon with a new 3 year plan and new catch phrases. Maybe EA will realize that many people still love offline play and franchise and give us more love (CPU AI, in game saves, working sliders, less bugs).

[Rudy]

Well I beat the Falcons in a close game and I didn't feel much doing it this morning. I'm just burnt out on Madden football I guess. Time for a break.

The game itself has a cartoony look and feel imo. I have NEVER liked the way the players have moved and controlled this generation. I miss the feel of the PS2 days where I could actually play pass defence without switching. The way the game plays and moves isn't close to real football imo. Other sports games are real close but not this one. Maybe next gen will get this right but I'm not holding my breath.

My brother lent me Red Dead Redemption and that will give me a break. It would be nice if EA patched the Dolphins uniforms. They aren't even close to being the right colour and the 2012 and 2013 "white" pants are off-white and don't mention. Just adds to the list of little things bugging me about the game right now.

[Rudy]

I just played a game of the NCAA 14 demo earlier today. It seemed like there was more movement on the lines in terms of blocks than Madden. Was I imagining things?

[WolverineJay]

I downloaded a group of NCAA draft classes from OS to test how they import into M25. I noticed something strange when I scouted a player's Overall rating which costs between 9,000-12,000 SP this year depending on your scout. I got the game to generate a draft story for every player that had his Overall fully scouted. QB Johnny Manziel was an 80 Overall and in the news feed it said, "Are the Steelers taking Johnny Manziel in April's Draft?" Along with a picture of him throwing the ball in his A&M #2 jersey. Also Teddy Bridgewater was an 85 and the Jaguars scouted him and the twitter feed said, "Jaguars clearly interested in T. Bridgewater. Plenty of other teams know he's a top end talent too." I thought there was no chance of getting news stories or tweets when you imported, guess I was wrong. Pretty cool to see the stories and pics in the game.

[Rudy]

It costs over 10,000 points for the overall? Is that the generic letter grade or the full unlocked grade?

[WolverineJay]

It costs over 10,000 points for the overall? Is that the generic letter grade or the full unlocked grade?

Depends on your scout but the points are either 1500 or 2000 SP to unlock the letter grade and then an additional 7500 or 10,000 SP to get his actual rating (9-12,000 total SP).

Letter grades are not very reliable though since I noticed 88-99 is the range for an A grade, 77-87 is B, and 66-76 is a C grade. I would think that having another letter grade unlocked before overall using the + and - grading system would be much better. I would make it 500 for generic overall letter grade then 1000 for specific +/- letter grade than 5000 for actual rating. I don't see why a player would waste his SP on actual ratings if the +/- scale was like 97-99 A+, 93-96 A, 90-92 A- that would give you a pretty good idea unlike now with the large ranges for letter grades.

[Rudy]

Scouts are only in owner mode I believe. I was just doing franchise but haven't played much at all.

[jaymo76]

Scouts are only in owner mode I believe. I was just doing franchise but haven't played much at all.

Since the news broke on NCAA I have been playing quite a bit, regardless of all the flaws. However, I haven't been struck yet by the need to play Madden.

[WolverineJay]

I've been trying to get auto subs to work but just can't get it right. If Fatigue is set too high 58+ then certain positions(HB, DE, OLB) often fail to return to the field sometime in the 4th qtr. If you lower fatigue to 55 then you and the cpu can run continuously with 1 HB the entire game getting 30+ carries every game since running is overpowered. Because of this I am at a loss, I don't think there is a sweet spot so to speak and the auto subs just seems broken even if you put it at 90 sub in and 85 sub out the #1 HB gets all the carries.

[Rudy]

We've heard nothing about a patch. I have to think their work on next gen has slowed this stuff down.

[jaymo76]

We've heard nothing about a patch. I have to think their work on next gen has slowed this stuff down.

I would suggest no patch is coming. Next gen is now and the current console is pretty much forgotten.

[CLW]

I would suggest no patch is coming. Next gen is now and the current console is pretty much forgotten.

Yep thankfully they added GRASS and SMART GLASS*

*but only if you purchased XB1.

[Rudy]

I'm about done with Madden. I just played a game this morning after haven't playing a franchise game in 2.5 weeks. The lack of sideline awareness is really annoying me. Almost all out routes or crossing routes near a sideline end up non-catches out of bounds. The QB constantly leads the ball out of bounds and the receivers show no awareness and are sprinting as though they are trying to get out of bounds. There have been times where I do make the catch and they rule it out of bounds because the WR does a funky animation and the foot doesn't actually touch the ground. The foot planting is so bad that the foot hovers above the grass and then moves forward. What I thought was a clear catch ends up wasting a challenge because the foot hovering screws me. I'm just tired of dealing with some of this stuff.

[jaymo76]

I'm about done with Madden. I just played a game this morning after haven't playing a franchise game in 2.5 weeks. The lack of sideline awareness is really annoying me. Almost all out routes or crossing routes near a sideline end up non-catches out of bounds. The QB constantly leads the ball out of bounds and the receivers show no awareness and are sprinting as though they are trying to get out of bounds. There have been times where I do make the catch and they rule it out of bounds because the WR does a funky animation and the foot doesn't actually touch the ground. The foot planting is so bad that the foot hovers above the grass and then moves forward. What I thought was a clear catch ends up wasting a challenge because the foot hovering screws me. I'm just tired of dealing with some of this stuff.

How different a year makes hey Rudy? Last year as compared to this year is like a totally different reality and not for the good IMO.

[Rudy]

A kid is selling NCAA 14 for only $25 off Kijiji. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow after my son's football game. If I don't like it I will be able to get my money back through trade-in/resale no problem. I've played the demo a little bit today. NCAA players seem to have more weight to them. I don't see the sideline issues as much. Maybe that's because when I throw to the wide side of the field it's really wide and/or you only need one foot in bounds so I don't get pissed off as much. I like the co-ordinator cam the best simply because it's the only one where I can see the outside WRs the whole time. I must say I have SUCKED at the demo the last few games. I'm getting my butt handed to me.

Edit - not picking up the game. The kid doesn't even have the case and is just trying to unload it. It's probably stolen so no thanks.

[judgejog]

Another season for NBA 2013-2014 has just started again. In my opinion, for this season's game players are more eligible because they are much younger:) Goodluck to the next winning team!

[ram29jackson]

ps3-
finally got the game new from target the Thursday after Christmas for 39$.

the animation and camera depth in general makes the players kind of small to me. I just think they should be a little bigger in general.

the infinity engine seems worse and not better and the game in a lot of ways doesn't play different than ncaa but the interceptions come a little more frequent. Offensive line play is still bad.

why cant all mighty madden add real time weather like ncaa can ?

[GatorfanStovy]

NCAA >> Madden for this year ..