Weak Madden Sales Signaling Trouble for Game Industry

[REDRZA]

Quote: Originally Posted by mrprice33

from later on in the thread... I still play Madden 08 on the PC, which is based on the last gen version of the hardware, and the dbs do not run routes before the receivers like they do in the current incarnations of the game. What is happening now is primarily because the wr route running animations were changed to make their feet chop more at the point of the cut, while the dbs footwork and locomotion have remained basically the same. This causes the db to move faster than the wr, and therefore run the route ahead of the wr. That did not happen in last gen Madden/NCAA (especially not in the 2001 Madden/2002 NCAA, which were notorious for bad db AI play). It's certainly possible that we misunderstand each other on this point, but I'm specifically talking about that issue. If that's not what you are talking about, then I apologize.

Price, no offense but there is no point debating with you. Stop trying to analyze it by talking about WR and DB footwork. That isn't even what we are talking about. Madden, since last gen and probably further, handles man coverage by making the DB mirror the route of the WR. Forget footwork and cuts, im talking about the way the man coverage is coded. They aren't "covering" the WR, they are running the same routes.

Just like i said earlier in the thread, and another long time Madden player in Only1LT, these issues have plagued the game since last gen, because this game isn't "new", its the same legacy code they have used for years, tweaked and tuned a bit different every year. Every year it may improve a slight bit in one area, but at the same time takes steps backwards. This is because the nuts and bolts of this game, the core code or engine(s) should be put to pasture.

[REDRZA]

Quote: Originally Posted by debauchlord

You might be a fan boy, but at least your arguments are valid and dare I say, sane. Rare in this day and age. The two major problems afflicting the Madden series (as I see it): 1. One year "development" cycle. One year is not enough for development. What you can get out of one year is graphical fixes, bug fixes, slight modifications...basically fill the holes and apply a fresh coat of paint. The problem is, you NEED to make it "seem" new (see problem 2), which is where you get 3/4 thought-out "gimmicks". 2. Madden, because of its license, needs to be EVERYTHING to EVERYONE. We could argue for days but, as someone said, ask 100 people and you will get 100 answers. Madden needs sliders, not because the game out of the box is bad, but because YOU think it is bad. Because Madden needs to be everything, it HAS to cater to the LCD (lowest common denominator); that is harsh, but it is the fact. BUT simply because it caters to the LCD, it fails as a yearly game (see problem 1), because your majority LCD do not purchase the same game yearly (or what is perceived as the same game). It is a terrifying, cyclical conundrum. Also notice, I did not add the daily "no competition" debate into the mix, because, honestly, that is not Madden's singular problem right now. I've said this before but just having competition in the marketplace does not guarantee a better product. You can imagine that it does, but what it can also do is produce milquetoast programming where the better marketing strategy wins.

I agree with you 100%, BUT the fact that they are on an annual development cycle does NOT give them a pass. Meaning, they could have, and SHOULD have been working on a better, smarter, more innovative game engine(s) (A BRAND NEW GAME) behind the scenes. How many employees does it take to tweak and tune the same code they have been using for many, many years? They could easily set aside resources to develop NEW stuff, even taking a few years to make it right before releasing it. Other developers have done this, most developers are working on multiple projects even though they may have a big release coming soon.

[JokerswildXOXO]

In Franchise Mode: towel crazy fans, defense jump'in up and down to celebrate losing on third down. color commentary repeating the same lines over and over and over (same opening line on the start of every game). This is just to mention a few flaws. I am just sick. I bought this game for the updated rosters. May trade it in for NHL 11!!!

[turftickler]

Sales numbers just jumped up one more customer. I'm sold on Madden 11 so far, but I will rate it in just a few days after I have had enough time with it.

I must say though, I just played the most realistic game of simulation football ever of any Madden NFL game in M11 against another sim baller by the name of "playloc". I actually won my first game ever of Madden NFL without the other team fumbling the ball away at a crucial time at the end of the game.

[chrome_305]

I found this review from Eurogamer for madden 11 pretty good.

I think it was both fair and honest about the game as a whole.


http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...-nfl-11-review