Proposed Future Changes to Madden's Development Cycle...

[Maelstrom-XIII]

If I were the unquestioned ruler of the world, my first act in office would be to make that a real position. After that, there would be some changes. Of course, there'd be the whole world peace/domination, ending world hunger and all that hubbub, but the most important thing I could do would be to change the way Madden NFL is developed. My proposed changes are below.

1. Employ TWO teams of developers, in a process similar to the development of the Call of Duty games by Infinity Ward and Treyarch. Have Team 1 start development on Madden 11, while Team 2 starts working on Madden 12. Sure, many detractors may point out that Infinity Ward's iterations are of a higher quality, so how can we ensure consistency and quality across the titles? But I say to you my fellow football fanatics--both development teams would be in-house...That is, both development teams would work in the same building, both in EA Tiburon. Appoint a designer to head up BOTH teams...so, in essence, Ian would be in charge of the development of both of these games. Furthermore, the teams would hold weekly meetings, wherein they would share what they have been working on, ensuring that both teams know what is going into which title (a rough "feature list" would be set up for both games prior to development), and how it is working. This would allow for a greater period of time for ironing out kinks, implementing far more content per title, and also allowing for the synthesis of a far more effective engine than is allowed under the current 10 month cycle.

2. Speaking of engines, I believe that the engine has met its limit for what it is capable of, regarding OL/DL interaction, WR/DB interaction, etc. With more time, the developers could work on this engine, and produce an entirely new engine capable of representing the nuances of the game of football. In the meantime (and even after this) developers should employ a team of actual football players with motion-capture equipment. The developers and former/current players go to a field (whether it be high school, practice field, or a pro field...you'd have the blessing of the NFL, I would think...) and run plays. Have the offensive line vs the defensive line, and work on every formation and every outcome that could occur....ie, double teaming, pancake blocks, the tackles running a DE/OLB wide, a player coming unblocked, etc. This would allow the devs to see what each player is doing on a given play, which would allow them to implement a much more realistic blocking system. This could be done for 4-3 and 3-4 defensive fronts...

What do you think? Feel free to come up with (constructive) criticisms why this system would work, or come up with some ideas of your own. Remember, constructive criticisms!

[Victor Fox]

Yeah, it's definitely the way these games should be made, and many people on this forum have had the same idea -- albeit far less coherently laid out.

That said, it makes a lot more sense than the idea of making EA release a title only every 2 years with roster updates in the meantime. Then the issue of "EA knows Madden is a cash cow" and would never limit their profits to once every two years.

Sorry, I'm rambling. Love your idea, if you need votes to become the unquestioned ruler of the world, I'll vote for you.

[Maelstrom-XIII]

Quote: Originally Posted by Victor Fox

Sorry, I'm rambling. Love your idea, if you need votes to become the unquestioned ruler of the world, I'll vote for you.

Sweet! Only 3 1/2 billion more votes until I have majority.

[roadman]

Your theory has been submitted several times before, but as the poster above said,

1) EA's investors would sell their stock if that ever happened

2) The NFL also dictates a yearly release.

I'll give you an A effort for presentation.

[tooldude79]

Quote: Originally Posted by roadman

Your theory has been submitted several times before, but as the poster above said, 1) EA's investors would sell their stock if that ever happened 2) The NFL also dictates a yearly release. I'll give you an A effort for presentation.

EA would still produce the game..just not Tiburon every year

like CoD.. Activision produces w/ IW and Treyarch

[marktg30]

So would that make Tiburon the 'Treyarch' of Madden if that were the case?

I think so.

[tooldude79]

Quote: Originally Posted by marktg30

So would that make Tiburon the 'Treyarch' of Madden if that were the case? I think so.

...too true

[roadman]

Quote: Originally Posted by tooldude79

EA would still produce the game..just not Tiburon every year like CoD.. Activision produces w/ IW and Treyarch

ok, gotcha.

Still, the license is the holdup.