I think a lot of the way the defense plays and the whole "psychic" feel of it has a lot to do with the canned animations that madden has and just the unnatural movement and lack of true football player movement. It seems if they fixed that the one on one play and like movement would fixed itself a lot and in essence make the stuff like space the field and revamp the redzone a much easier fix. *If they fix the animations across the board to be human like the rest of the stuff they fix would be icing on the cake for me
Yep. All the animation/movement issues cause so many win/loss situations to play out in unbelievably contrived sequences. Sometimes things look great, but far too often we see either completely inhuman or totally oblivious spatial awareness scenarios as well as inertia defying movements play out that would literally never happen in a real life, but do so in Madden due to the deficiencies in the movement system.
Do this today: Instead of $%*#!@& on a game you're not going to play or movie you're not going to watch, say something good about a piece of media you're excited about.
Do the same thing tomorrow. And the next. Now do it forever.
My one and only true wish is that they put an intense focus on franchise mode for once... It always ends up as an afterthought, receiving minimal meaningful tweaks. It gets swept aside for ultimate team. I mean I get why...it's their money maker, but CFM shouldn't be completely neglected.
For specifics:
1. Draft class edits - Customize draft classes prior to the draft and/or create & import a class
2. More customization within franchise - don't lock out owners for offline franchises once you "retire" from a team, let players see and select the other pants/jersey/helmet options for relocated teams instead of being stuck with only 2 options, edit years pro.
3. Easier customization outside of franchise - let us edit contract #s, years pro, contract years remaining, provide faster interface for doing so, or allow exporting to a computer via usb to edit
4. Easier contract editing - the old interface of selecting a digit value for each place value was so much more efficient than the current slider model. It takes 5-10 minutes to edit a big contract in when it should only take seconds.
5. Better computer AI - Some system for computer teams to avoid drafting the top QB in the draft a year after they selected the top rated QB in the previous draft. (Ex...a team that drafts Sam Darnold this year should NOT spend a first round pick on a QB in the first offseason of 19) ---Also, factor age into value more effectively. A team shouldn't be willing to trade a 21 year old 72 ovr CB with quick dev for a 32 year old vet who is 80 overall.
6. Better coach options - coaching carousel, add real coaches to the coach pool, include coordinators. That would add a whole new element to franchise. Start as an OC for someone, and try to earn a HC gig elsewhere.
There needs to be vastly better AI playcalling. Right now, they run about 60% of plays and the only plays they run on third and long are: HB Draw, Verts, and HB Slip Screen
Even though this is technically a Madden 19 Wishlist, I acknowledge that it would take multiple development cycles to get most of these issues addressed. I've divided this list into sections, with lengthier ones being condensed under spoiler tags.
A LOT OF AWESOME TEXT OMITTED
All of this. Never have I read a post that I agreed with so thoroughly! I want stats, historical stats, team vs team stats, team record books, every type of stat you can think of should be in the game, and if not accessible via game menu, then at the very least exportable somehow!
Even though this is technically a Madden 19 Wishlist, I acknowledge that it would take multiple development cycles to get most of these issues addressed. I've divided this list into sections, with lengthier ones being condensed under spoiler tags.
General
Spoiler
Missing game modes from the PS2/Original Xbox/GameCube era (rushing attack, two minute drill, situation mode).
A post-season/tournament mode.
Return of the coin toss (or at least an option to have it).
Continue to add classic jerseys to the game. For example, as a 49er fan, I’d love to see the team’s 1998-2008 home and road uniforms added to the game.
Classic stadiums, such as Candlestick Park, Texas Stadium, and the pre 2002 renovation version of Soldier Field.
Punters as the default holders on field goal and extra point attempts instead of 2nd string QB’s. Or, at least a holder position added to the depth chart.
A dedicated long snapper position.
QB hurries and hits becoming tracked stats.
Make the PA announcer have a bigger impact on the atmosphere. For example, when the visiting team is on third down, have him raise his voice and say something like "...and now it's THIRD DOWN FOR THE SEAHAWKS". Then, have the crowd react accordingly. Something like this, just with a bit more intensity.
When using classic and legends rosters offline, I think it would be really cool to have the option to play with older rules (pre-2011 kickoff rule, pre-2015 PAT rule, pre-2016 touchback rule, etc.). I have doubts as to weather the NFL would approve of this, though.
Launch rosters should feature a team’s entire 90 man pre-season roster (or at least have the capacity for 90 players). Being a 49ers fan, I had to create and add players like Matt Breida and Kendrick Bourne myself and there wasn’t even room to add players like Nick Mullens and Erik Magnuson.
Multiple (ideally five; one mimicking FOX, one mimicking CBS, one mimicking NBC/SNF ,one mimicking ESPN/MNF, and another mimicking NFLN/TNF) presentation packages (similar to MLB: The Show). And, perhaps for in CFM, one that’s specifically tailored to your team’s color scheme and/or logo to mimic a local TV broadcast (example).
Also a couple of “retro” presentation packages for use with classic/legends rosters. Maybe one mimicking the 1994 Fox presentation package and another mimicking the 2001-2002 Fox presentation package.
Custom soundtrack support in the vein of MLB: The Show's "Sounds of the Show"; allowing music ripped to the hard drive to be used in certain in-game situations (kickoff, touchdown, etc.) and while perusing menus.
Year-to-year saves for CFM and roster files, a la MLB: The Show.
Gameplay
Spoiler
Continued improvement to OL/DL interactions, pocket formations, QB pressures, QB hits, etc.. In my opinion, this is the last area of Madden’s gameplay that needs MAJOR attention.
Continued improvement to CPU play call logic and clock management. Namely, I'd like the CPU offense be a bit more aggressive late in the game when they have a chance to put me away with one more score.
Authentic coaching styles and tendencies; something along the lines of the VIP system from ESPN NFL 2K5.
CPU controlled teams that to a better job at playing to their strengths.
Continued improvement to QB scrambling tendencies.
Continued improvement to QB inaccuracy. It, unfortunately, still seems like the vast majority of incompletions are either extreme misfires, interceptions or throws out of bounds.
An ESPN NFL 2K5 inspired challenge system that enables you to choose exactly what you want to challenge.
Injuries
A great idea from MoonlightSwami: separate injury sliders for each position. As of right now, it seems that any increase in the injury slider causes a disproportionate and unrealistic amount of quarterback injuries as opposed to other position groups. Separate injury sliders for each position would remedy this.
Graphics/Visuals
Continuous improvement of tackling/collision animations.
Continue to add detail to sidelines (player names on jerseys, accurate player models with accurate equipment, more assistant coach models, more varied coach wardrobe, etc.).
Continued improvement to weather effects, in terms of both visual effects and how gameplay is affected.
More scoreboard and ribbon board animations. Also, for the scoreboards, have the basic game info (score, quarter number, game clock etc.) displayed continuously as well as a feed of the game from the broadcast view (like this). And also have basic game info displayed on the ribbon boards, like this.
Player Creation
An increase to the amount of players that can be created/present in a roster file.
When creating a player born outside the United States (Lawrence Okoye, for example), give us the option to forgo the “state” option and type in his country instead. That way, I can get “Croydon, England” instead of “Croydon, California”.
For players who went to a college not listed in the game, let us type it in instead of choosing “N/A” or “No College”.
The ability to edit the amount of years pro for created players.
More skin tones and, for caucasian players in particular, faces when creating players.
Given that real tattoos can be problematic (legally speaking), it would be nice to have some generic, licensed designs to choose for players.
The ability to edit coaches and playbooks, both in Play Now, and within CFM.
An option for jersey sleeves that's between the current ones of "Standard" and "Long". For example, Philip Rivers' sleeves fall in between these two options.
I admittedly don’t play a lot of MUT, but I’d like to be able to practice with my team and export it into Play Now.
CFM
Spoiler
I've divided my Franchise wishlist into two categories: "Needs" and "Wants". Simply put, stuff in the "Needs" section needs to be in the mode within the next few iterations. I'd certainly like to have everything in the "Wants" section included as well, but I can understand why they wouldn't be (too niche, not feasible, etc.).
Needs
We need coordinator positions to add depth to the coaching staff aspect of CFM. Coach firings and coaching searches are some biggest real life stories every January (outside of the playoffs, of course) and it's a shame that this isn't reflected in Madden. Each assistant coach would come with certain boosts for certain position groups and fit the scheme of the head coach. There also needs to be a system that keeps the pool of NFL coaches fresh. For example, after getting fired from a head coaching position, say, twice in five years, that coach can only be a coordinator from that point forward. Going two seasons without being employed at all would result in being removed from the coaching pool entirely. There would also be a system that would weigh age and success in regards to coaches retiring. Ideally, we'd also have full editing of coaches (name, appearance, attire, playbooks, etc.)
One recent CFM improvement that I felt went a bit under-the-radar was the redesigning of player cards in M16 and M17. They're much more well-organized and aesthetically pleasing than they were a few years ago. However there's still a lot of room for improvement. The career stats screen should list the team played for and the season stats screen should be in chronological order with weekly opponents listed. Player cards should also include complete injury and transaction histories.
This speaks to a greater need for historical stats preservation. While it would be cool to have every individual, team, and league stat archived within a CFM, i'd be content with at least standings, week-by-week scores, league award winners, and Super Bowl champions.
Another page to take from MLBTS: year-to-year saves for CFM files.
One of my favorite ideas from DeuceDouglas' infamous CFM overhaul was a menu ticker that would be dedicated solely to the happenings of your league (scores from the previous week, next week's matchups, injuries, stat leaders, transactions, etc.). Ideally, this would be combined with a weekly video wrap up show (in the vein of NFL 2K5 or M10/M11) or radio show (in the vein of MLB: The Show or M05-M07). This ticker having NFL Network branding could also add another degree of realism/immersion.
Presentation elements in playoff games that better convey their scale and importance.
Another idea that Deuce presented so well was that of improved preseason depth chart management. One would be able to divide his/her roster into a first team, second team, etc. like so. Then, you could set how long each team would play for, either by selecting a number of possessions or the end of a given quarter.
Having to select seven inactive players prior to each game. Simply put, this is something that happens prior to every NFL game, so it should be in Madden. Hopefully, implementing this would also lead to more realistic practice squad rules.
It was great to see the gameplay of special teams addressed in M17, but there's still a ways to go. We need a dedicated long snapper position, and punters should be default holders on field goal and extra point attempts. Also, formation subs need to be expanded to include kickoff return and coverage teams.
We should be able to get a general idea of a prospect's physical abilities prior to the NFL combine, possibly as a 4th "trait" to be unlocked. This pre-combine info wouldn't need to be incredibly specific, but should tell the user which physical traits are exceptional for the prospect's position, which are average, and which are poor.
The ability to create and share custom draft classes, or, at the very least, the ability to edit prospects during the regular season, with the option to either edit everything (including ratings) or just names, player type, physical appearances and equipment (allowing the game to generate ratings as usual).
More realistic regular season scheduling. No more than two (on a rare occasion, three) home or road games in a row. Also, the ability to choose preseason opponents.
Wants
90 man rosters to begin each preseason, with realistic cut down dates to 75 and 53 players.
Uniform numbers that are retired in real life should be off limits to rookies and free agent signings. Seeing a 49er wearing #80, a Bear wearing #34, or a Dolphin wearing #13 is just plain wrong. However, there should also be an option to turn this off if you want to start a CFM using classic rosters.
The ability for teammates to share a uniform number in the preseason. For example, Matt Breida and Lorenzo Jerome of the 49ers both wore #49 during the 2017 preseason.
The ability to name team captains.
The ability to edit a player's face while keeping his real life headshot (if he has one).
The ability to edit a player's body proportions in CFM.
PFF-eque player grades. These could be useful for evaluating, say, linemen, whose performances often don't translate to traditional stat sheets in useful ways.
Being able to access scouting beginning in Week One, as opposed to Week Three.
Lighting that changes as the season progresses. A 1 p.m. kickoff in September should be distinguishable from a 1 p.m. kickoff in December.
More city, team name, uniform, and stadium options (maybe even create a stadium?) for relocation in CFM. It feels like most of this aspect of CFM has gone untouched since its introduction in M25.
The ability to export CFM teams into Play Now.
The ability to play the Pro Bowl.
Here is some of the new Nike gear for next season. Hope they all get added with proper color scheme or can be customized for individual player.
1. Get rid of Ball Hawk. I get it, Richard Sherman is a great CB, but he should not have an unrealistic speed burst to get an INT when the ball is 5-7 yards away.
2. Huge, huge, huuuge offline overhaul. I’m not just talking about throwing in useless game modes that can be completed in 5 hours. Franchise Mode needs to go back to its’ routes; hell, throw in Superstar, too. This whole CFM project was a mess from the very beginning. Make Franchise great again.
3. New commentary partners. Gaudin and Davis are okay, but some of their lines are immersion breaking and repetitive. I shouldn’t be reminded that I’m playing a video game by Davis.
4. Stadium creator. If you can’t give us classic stadiums, at least give the option to those who’re great at building them. They could easily be put into the Share/Manage File section and shared.
5. Scrap the physics engine completely. In its’ current state, Madden looks downright ugly. Why can’t I have a missed blocking assignment because of low ratings and not because an animation didn’t trigger?
6. You’ve made good strides on presentation and halftime shows. Still, it feels like they’re missing that authentic Sunday feel.
7. Draft Class Customization. Enough said.
8. A lingering injury effect in Franchise, similar to that of 2K’s. RG III’s knee should be blood red.
9. Playing personalities. Again, good strides with the QB scrambling, but Tom Brady and Brandon Weeden should not be able to shred the same defense. Same goes for receivers. Antonio Brown should be able to beat up on garbage CBs 70-90% of the time.
10. Offseason drama. This whole Dez Bryant thing should and could serve as an inspiration. This is a stretch, but bring back suspensions, even if they’re vague. Make Discipline an actual rating, too.
11. Lastly, don’t make a football game for the average gamer. Make a football game for the football fan.
A significantly better interior run game against Light players, especially when the advantage is clear. In addition, a significantly better interior running game against spread alignments IF the defense is not stunting 2nd and 3rd level players. Wide 9 should just not be a good run stopping defense unless the coordinator is stunting 2nd and 3rd level players. I don't care who you have up there, this front should have trouble stopping interior runs and power plays.
After this, definitely spacing. Overall, spacing is my #1 issue with madden followed closely by player movement and trench play. The movement has been getting better every year but it still needs a lot of work.