I must be missing something after hearing reviews from the closed beta

[tru11]

Nothing changed to franchise.

[PhillyPhanatic14]

Quote: Originally Posted by kehlis

PS4. (10char)

EA Access comes to Ps4 on July 24, same day as the beta, so you should be good. Buy the monthly subscription, play your 10 hours & pre-order to get it for $53.99, then cancel your subscription and they will refund you the $4.99. So you get 10 hours free and you get the game for $6 off.

[roadman]

This is probably a pretty fair assessment of the beta reviews that I've read.

https://www.thenanoblitz.com/blog/20...hat-he-thought

[ijumpedthegun]

Yeah, what everyone else has said. Franchise was no different in the Beta, but there's a chance that what we got is a really watered down version of what will ship. Face of the Franchise will apparently/possibly carry some of the features that are also being added to Franchise mode, so some of the scenarios/etc got left out.

The bread and butter of this year's Madden is the gameplay and ratings spread. Usually I'm the first person on this board to cry foul, say that's not good enough, and that I won't buy it without significant CFM improvements. While it's disappointing (and unsurprising) that CFM is as far behind as it is... the gameplay this year is good. Really good. Good enough to justify my purchase.

[kehlis]

Quote: Originally Posted by PhillyPhanatic14

EA Access comes to Ps4 on July 24, same day as the beta, so you should be good. Buy the monthly subscription, play your 10 hours & pre-order to get it for $53.99, then cancel your subscription and they will refund you the $4.99. So you get 10 hours free and you get the game for $6 off.

Ah got it. Thought I missed something else.

I don’t even pay for PS plus, and don’t play enough of any game to buy EA access.

[PhillyPhanatic14]

Quote: Originally Posted by kehlis

Ah got it. Thought I missed something else. I don’t even pay for PS plus, and don’t play enough of any game to buy EA access.

It might require PS Plus... Not sure about that. But yeah, I don't use EA Access except for the 10hr trial of madden and fifa.

[underdog13]

I must've logged into the wrong site, too many reasonable and rationale takes in here.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

[JoshC1977]

The Beta gameplay was refreshingly challenging just with running a default All Pro setup. I saw definite improvements in AI play-calling, the running games were quite good, and the CPU ST play was greatly improved (let's not discount that....field position is SO critical). Once I began testing with rosters following a long-term sim (to better mimic the new ratings than the odd base roster we had in the beta), the player ratings differentials became quite apparent as well.

But you're asking about franchise mode...well, Madden has been a franchise mode that is "game-heavy" for a long time now (and honestly, I don't see that changing). The true intrigue of one's Madden franchise (during the season) occurs on the field (vs the menu screens) and this is why those changes are so key IMO. It's amazing the difference in immersion that results from a) being challenged and b) seeing roster ratings matter. If you find the gameplay "easy", then you'll never feel the need to dive into things deeper (like poring over very specific positional ratings to get an edge).

The franchise improvements for M20 are very much in that same vein consisting primarily of gameplay improvements to help drive improvement within the franchise mode itself. The new X-factor system and ratings spread are two gameplay improvements that also directly impact the franchise experience (the ratings spread is, in particular, a franchise-mode oriented change). On top of that, they've done a lot of 'under the hood' changes within the franchise mode itself to compensate for it (draft class tuning as one example). Lower ratings for some players (who you may be forced to rely upon in key roles) adds further to team development and lengthens that 'build time'.

To me, these are core franchise mode improvements that will greatly add to the experience and why I am really excited. These types of enhancements are in my 'wheelhouse' and exactly how I like to see franchise modes developed. Now, for others who enjoy spending more time micro-managing every element of their teams in the menus or having loads of options along the lines of what you would see in a text sim, then the mode enhancements may not be enough for you.

I think you just have to decide what aspects of the mode matter most to you. If you're like me and are primarily concerned with seeing your roster's ratings and your team-building translating on the field, then this may be a buy for you. If you want a deeper, micro-management style mode, it may not be.