Honestly, Madden 09 the game that's sucked the enthusiasm out of me

[MJenness]

Quote: Originally Posted by dave374

Another reason why these mainstream reviews suck donkey poo. These idiots play the game three or four games and declare games "the greatest evah!"

fixed

And what scares me most is that Ian and his devs believe Madden 09 is a great game....that concerns me very much, and causes me to be pretty skeptical about what we're going to see for 2010.

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by AlexBrady

No, Madden is not a good game. It is a mediocre bordering on bad game. When you get tired of playing it after 10 games then there is a problem.

its nice to know that your opinion is the only one that matters.

Madden is a good game with a lot of postives they can build upon. Unfortunately, Madden is also a game that lacks the enthusiasm that keeps a player coming back for more. It doesn't have that certain something to draw players in. Instead of feeling like you're part of the game, you feel like you're playing a game.

[TheWatcher]

I hear the word "boring" popping up an awful lot. I agree to a large extent, and then I worry that the devs might take that and overdo things, thinking it makes the game more exciting.

Another thing... we all know that making a video game isn't an easy thing to do. With that in mind, I wonder what the devs think when we complain and make specific points to what is lacking in the presentation of the game when so much it doesn't appear to be anything to overly complex, or out of the scope of what they're already doing.

Take a look at my ideas in the Wishlist thread. I'm talking about changes to camera angles, simple cosmetic touches, and a more realistic way of approaching overlays all of which would actually make a big difference to the way the game is presented. But in all truthfulness, my ideas are nothing more than things that either we've seen on TV all of our lives, or things (I'm sorry I gotta say it) 2K did for years. 4 seasons pass and we don't have selectable camera angles, something that's almost impossible to fathom a football game wouldn't have... oh, but we got REWIND!

We don't have progressive weather or even progressive lighting. We don't have realistic injury sequences... why? Because they believe the casual crowd--the majority buying Madden--doesn't care. I understand that they have to do what they think appeals to their largest buying audience, but there is another part to this. There is the part where the question has to be raised: do the people making this game REALLY love their jobs? Are they just putting a game together every year only because they're contracted to do it? There is also another question: are the people making this game hardcore players or are they just casual players? A lot of things said by devs (I've read A LOT of their posts) would suggest that they are just casual players of Madden. That's not good.

I truely believe that a lot of pro football players , even in this day and age, play not just for money but also for pride and love of the game. You see guys who are already rich beyond their wildest dreams, risking their careers to play a few more games that year, or to play in just one game and risk their health. You see players who aren't paid much, who's career is about to end after the last game, and their team is WAY out of playoff contention, yet they still go out and give it their all. That means, they do everything they can, the big things and the little things, because they take deep pride in what they do and they also happen to love it.

To me, Madden has for a long time felt like a game with no soul. No passion, no fire. It makes me feel like the little things get cast aside because the people making the game just don't have a deep labor of love mentality. Take a look at some of the important extras you got from other developers over the years. You know they didn't have to add some of those things, but they did and it was great. And I'm talking sports games... just go back and take a look at some of the extra features in other sports games that you probably couldn't imagine playing without. Then come back and look at all of the missing ones in Madden that you have no choice but to accept or stop playing the series.

Like I said before, this gen doesn't have much longer to go. Now I'm worried about next generation. What will be different next generation? They'll be starting all over again, so what will be different? Whose to say that we all won't be right back here in 2010/2011 talking about the same issues all over again about Madden on XBOX 720 and PS4? I'll consider Madden 2010 as a rehearsal of things to come, and I'm hoping it's a strong rehearsal. I really do believe that Ian and Phil have some good things brewing, but if things continue to go upward will the momentum carry over to the next gen? If Madden 2010 isn't an over-the-fence homerun I'll be convinced that we'll still be left with much to be desired next generation.

[DonRSD]

heres my madden 09 story.....

i bought it on release day and i played 2 games. for some odd reason i was already a "master" at madden.
i sold it within 3 days of its release.

even a month ago i went to a friends house to play madden 09 and we turned it off before halftime.

im 28 years old and madden isnt what the nfl is.
madden does NOT replicate what happens every sunday. besides the REAL players & REAL stadiums.....madden is lucky to replicate 10% of what the REAL NFL is about.

long live nfl 2k!!!!

[Flamehead]

In the midst of all of the discussion, I think one point that gets glossed over repeatedly is this:

Last spring an article was released http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Sto...558.htm?Page=1 where a member of the Madden team was interviewed. He boasted, ironically enough, that several members of the staff were "discovered" at tournaments.

Doesn't that say it all?

With that fact in mind, it's easy to see why all design decisions (big or small) are impacted by, or flow from, this mindset. The game is designed by and for tournament play--short and sweet games where simulation is an afterthought or an accident.

This game is made by the "Madden Nation" crowd, for the "Madden Nation" crowd--for better or worse.

[bigpapa_bliss]

Watcher,

Nice Post, I could not have written any better. Its disheartening the state that next-gen football is in.

ANd we all buy it, hoping that the EA team has gotten it right for once, and no, they dont.

Oh, its better than last year, and def better than 07. but to wait 4 years just to get FG Nets, still no refs on field, no chain gang, no customizable camera, etc etc, isnt acceptable. We wont even mention all the features missing from it.

I purchased Ps2 Madden09, and absolutely love it. Its gameplay is unsurpassed, it draws you in, a nice NFL experience.

Its refined, and since I've been stuck w/high-def for 3 years, the Madden/Michaels announcing team was refreshing. Yes, the engine is the same, we've all seen for years, but a customizable camera, and the refinement make it this years best choice, IMO.

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by DonRSD

and madden isnt what the nfl is. madden does NOT replicate what happens every sunday. besides the REAL players & REAL stadiums.....madden is lucky to replicate 10% of what the REAL NFL is about. long live nfl 2k!!!!

it replicates the NFL pretty darn well on the PS2.

[treq21]

Quote: Originally Posted by bigpapa_bliss

Watcher, Nice Post, I could not have written any better. Its disheartening the state that next-gen football is in. ANd we all buy it, hoping that the EA team has gotten it right for once, and no, they dont. Oh, its better than last year, and def better than 07. but to wait 4 years just to get FG Nets, still no refs on field, no chain gang, no customizable camera, etc etc, isnt acceptable. We wont even mention all the features missing from it. I purchased Ps2 Madden09, and absolutely love it. Its gameplay is unsurpassed, it draws you in, a nice NFL experience. Its refined, and since I've been stuck w/high-def for 3 years, the Madden/Michaels announcing team was refreshing. Yes, the engine is the same, we've all seen for years, but a customizable camera, and the refinement make it this years best choice, IMO.

Its really quite simple why all these things do not make it into the game. You are all waiting for refs, accel clock, comp sliders , right? So am I. If they put a few of those features in this years game, what incentive do you have to go out and buy next years??? BUT, if they put some of those features, but not all, in next years game, then you are going to want that game because it has SOME of the things that the current version does not have. BUT, then they will REMOVE some of the features that are in the current version. They've done this over and over again. Only to add them back at later date. Then you want that game because it has the promise of better graphics, better gameplay, ALONG WITH the features that were once in the game that you grew to love.

Its a vicious cycle, and unless the sales fall, its not going away anytime soon....