Let's Talk About Football Commentary

[roadman]

Chase;

I don't know if you caught MSU vs Wisconsin last night, but Gus Johnson was doing the PbP and he sounded much better live than in Madden.

He become more excited at the big plays vs the normal ones. In Madden 12, this philosophy sounds reversed.

You'll need to ask him about his reference to chicken salad. He used it as the players were lining up for a XP and I think he used it like, he made them look like chicken salad after the TD was scored. I thought it was funny and just came out of nowhere.

I'm not sure if anyone missed this, but sometimes the PbP sounds behind the actual playing time because Gus and Chris(either one) was yacking about the play or player before. If you score a TD, it's barely discussed because the commentary kept going and seemed like it missed the TD.

That is really annoying. Sequence of plays and commentary must be better synched if possible.

This is the Gus Johnson we all know and love. Also, notice the atmosphere after the play.

[at23steelers]

@Roadman: Gus really is a great commentator if used properly. Even though the big, exciting plays are what he is known for, his regular play by play is what IMO sets him apart.

@Chase: A large part of Chris' commentating though is analysis IRL. He circles what happens in replays and tells the audience what happened that either caused the play to work or how it broke down, usually offensive line play.

Here is another video by Gus Johnson, that another user posted awhile go to add to what Roadman said, that really displays Gus' talent. This video shows a good mix of storylines and analysis. This is a great video IMO to try to emulate. His commentary really makes you want to know what's happening in the game.

http://

[Culture Rot]

The last thing I like to hear on game commentary are the speils about the previous season.

[Big FN Deal]

@ChaseB, I am glad to see you commenting on the posts in this thread, thanks.

With regard to "he" providing more fluid commentary than fill in the blanks, piecemeal, thanks for the explanation. In that case, maybe having visuals synchronized, like camera zoom ins and stat overlays with the "he" the commentators are referring to, would make it feel more player specific.

Also, focusing on making specific commentary and banter more team instead of player based. Like I mentioned in an earlier post, it's a guarantee that teams in the same division will play twice a year and each year there will be cross division matchups. (ie the NFC East will be matched against the AFC West and NFC South one year, two others the next).

So it should be possible to have tons of fluid team/division specific commentary and banter around guaranteed rivalries, dynamic general commentary with current team staples (ie great defense, pass attack), team match ups (ie the #1 pass defensive team against the #1 pass offense team), current cross division records (ie the Redskins v Jets-the Redskins are 0-2 against the AFC East-the Jets are 1-0 against the NFC East), etc and generic "he"/"they" commentary accompanied with overlay graphics/camera zoom for key injuries and/or any current trades made between the teams.

[ChaseB]

Quote: Originally Posted by roadman

I'm not sure if anyone missed this, but sometimes the PbP sounds behind the actual playing time because Gus and Chris(either one) was yacking about the play or player before. If you score a TD, it's barely discussed because the commentary kept going and seemed like it missed the TD. That is really annoying. Sequence of plays and commentary must be better synched if possible.

Yeah, we're certainly working on that, and being able to interrupt banter when big moments occur. I think why it gets behind is simply because the event has to trigger first, and then the trigger gets pushed to the audio and then it reacts, so it's not always simultaneous and on point.

Quote: Originally Posted by at23steelers

@Chase: A large part of Chris' commentating though is analysis IRL. He circles what happens in replays and tells the audience what happened that either caused the play to work or how it broke down, usually offensive line play.

Yeah, Collinsworth is great at talking about line play and all that good stuff (he's up there on my favorite "color" guys overall, which I think is funny because I was not a huge fan of his when he was just doing in-studio stuff). I just know that the Madden "rewind" feature that some people brought up was -- and again I wasn't around for the development of this feature way back when -- very time intensive and it was very hard to do the telestrator stuff. It was really complicated to do the drawing and analysis and everything else all on the screen, and it could only cover so many situations.

Quote: Originally Posted by at23steelers

I understand what you mean. Also, I have heard that Madden's commentary is now implementing Fifa's technology. Is there any news that you can share regarding this?

I do believe FIFA and Madden will be using the same general audio tech now, yes.

[at23steelers]

@Chase: I think there are creative ways to have it done though. The rewind feature took forever and I mostly skipped it, but if you watch the Bills-Phins video I posted, there are ways to still analyze the game, during it and replays without taking all that much time. For example, look at the play at the 1 minute mark and really all throughout the game.

[Big FN Deal]

Was going to add this as an edit to my previous post but see ChaseB already posted after it.

Have the commentators discuss accolades with complimenting graphic overlays/camera zoom at preset points during the season.

Like the first game of the year, point out award winners from the previous season like MVP, Rookie of the Year, etc, just using "he" style commentary with some graphic overlay including last years stats and maybe camera zoom of the player(s). The first playoff game recognize Pro Bowl selections and recognize top draft picks in first preseason game, both with graphic overlays and generic commentary.

Also some special recognition for the Super Bowl Champs including a graphic for returning/departed players with ring ceremony clip/cut scene, Super Bowl loser including a graphic for Super Bowl losers record for returning to the Super Bowl with camera showing NFC/AFC Champion banner, something for division Champs and playoff teams.

I think, even though the audio would be repetitious, the changing visuals would make it feel new every franchise year.

[at23steelers]

Remember, nothing is ever special if it is repeated over and over again! Also, do not have any repetitive lines that are said EVERY game: homefield advantage, if there's no star on the offensive or defensive side, although I hope you add more players to this. Not to mention, there should be different key players every game. Hearing Polamalu on D every game is quite annoying. Talk about who's a key player for that specific game.

Btw, what are the 3 biggest commentary failures in Madden 12 that you want to try and fix?

Mine would be: Sounding like it was recorded at different times, making inaccurate statements (long pass on a kick return), and the repetitive lines that are in almost every game!