During EA Play 2017, Madden NFL 18 revealed "Longshot", the first story mode to be a part of the Madden NFL franchise.
Longshot is led by an impressive cast: J.R. Lemon (
The Night Shift) as Devin Wade, Mahershala Ali (
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, House of Cards, Moonlight) as his father Cutter Wade, Scott Porter (
Friday Night Lights) as his friend Colt Cruse, and Dan Marino (
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective) who will serve as Devin's mentor. It also includes Chad Ochocinco and NFL coaches & players.
In development for the last four years, the mode will play out as an interactive movie with influence from the Telltale Games series. There is no hub or in-mode interface for users, but rather the player will go straight from cutscene(s) to gameplay. Users will play high school, college, combine, 7v7, et al.
but will not play as Wade in an NFL game. Once the mode ends, users will receive rewards and content for use in Madden Ultimate Team.
Worth noting in the trailer is the inclusion of college football teams, namely the Oregon Ducks and Texas Longhorns. As of this time, it is unknown if additional college teams will be the mode and if the user will be able to spend significant time playing as either.
(Sidenote: How or why did EA pick these two schools? Neither the Longhorns or Ducks are represented by the Collegiate Licensing Company.
Texas left the CLC in 2005 and signed a ten-year deal with 289c Apparel as their official master licensee for retail needs.
Oregon signed a seven-year partnership with Fermata Partners to serve as the University’s first-ever trademark licensing agency in 2014. This leads to a series of questions of which we may never know the answer: Did part of the NCAA Football settlement restrict deals between EA & the CLC? Is it easier to reach a deal with schools not part of the CLC? Is there bad blood between EA and the CLC? Does this begin the road towards the return of NCAA Football and college gaming?)
Continue on to see the Longshot trailer and cast descriptions.
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