Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

[spankdatazz22]

So the author admits how seriously lacking Madden has been next gen, but of course - "there's reason for cautious optimism" for this year's game. When has that not been the case? You could say that about any game in any given year. People wondering why Madden wallows in muck it's mired in now need look no further than opinions like this. After Madden '06, the game had no where to go but up - yearly improvements should be expected, not surprising/shocking when they occur. The author goes so far as to say we should expect less, that expecting a 2K5-like makeover is "too much". Madden has been on next gen the longest of any sports game, yet we still have people like this author preaching that it's okay to expect the least from it (or at the least, lower our expectations apparently). And that if you expect more, "you're setting yourself up for disappointment". Laughable.

The problem is people expect so little from it. Then wonder why Tiburon feels they're doing a bang-up job. Hey, at least the game has improved "marginally" from '06 to '07 to '08. That's something to hold onto. Let's not forget that '08 was proclaimed to be the biggest gameplay jump the series has seen - receiving all types of accolades and praise all the way up to the day it released. And here we are a year later talking about how disappointing it was.

EDIT: [/QUOTE]However, people expecting the series to undergo a massive transformation in one year to turn into a next generation NFL 2K5 – or even to fully realize the potential of a “next generation Madden” – will find themselves upset once again when August rolls around, so temper your expectations now.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, but this quote says it all. Btw it hasn't been one year, it's been three years -- four, if I'm to take your advice and only have low expectations of the upcoming game. This generation has produced some of the best sports games in their respective genres to date, yet we're constantly steered to expect less from what most people would feel should be the greatest sports game of them all. If only all sports games were allowed such low expectations

[TheLetterZ]

Re: Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

The author goes so far as to say we should expect less, that expecting a 2K5-like makeover is "too much".

You're missing the point.

I completely agree that the past three releases have been lousy. I said that. This year's game is most likely going to be far short of where it should be at this point in time, given the resources available.

I'm not at all saying that it's acceptable in any way. It's not. They should push the envelope (as I said in the first point).

But do you think that those people expecting - as you put it - a "2K5-like makeover" this year are going to be disappointed? That's all I'm saying here.

Every year people hold out hope that this will be the year that Madden turns it around and releases a revolutionary new game. Then they are tremendously disappointed when the game comes out and it's not what they hoped it would be. So The Point is . . . we know what we're probably getting this year. Don't kid yourself and expect something revolutionary.

[spankdatazz22]

Re: Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

I completely agree that the past three releases have been lousy. I said that. This year's game is most likely going to be far short of where it should be at this point in time, given the resources available.

I'm not at all saying that it's acceptable in any way. It's not. They should push the envelope (as I said in the first point).

But do you think that those people expecting - as you put it - a "2K5-like makeover" this year are going to be disappointed? That's all I'm saying here.

Every year people hold out hope that this will be the year that Madden turns it around and releases a revolutionary new game. Then they are tremendously disappointed when the game comes out and it's not what they hoped it would be. So The Point is . . . we know what we're probably getting this year. Don't kid yourself and expect something revolutionary.

I really appreciate your response. Even though I may have sounded like an azz - it's just frustrating to see a sort of "it's okay to be complacent" mentality pushed around here (imo - not saying you were pushing that view, but that's what it sounded like to me). I agree with you that expecting a huge one-year turnaround is impractical. But, I think what many of us are thinking is that it's not impractical to have expected a cumulative such turnaround over several years, at the very least. That's the problem; we're four years in and we're only at this point. And instead of them raising their game to meet our standards (which aren't outrageous), we're having to lower expectations to meet theirs. Because more isn't expected of them, it's okay for them to progress at the glacier-like pace they have. And meanwhile the site has no problems having negative opinions of games they feel aren't pulling their weight, so to speak - well, certain games that is.

I don't doubt that the people at Tiburon work hard - but their games should be held to the same standard other sports games are held to. Would we ever hear talk about people tempering their expectations of The Show? Of NBA/CH2K? People go in with high expectations. Yet with Madden/NCAA, it's expected that people go in with low expectations because it's accepted that the games don't have to meet high expectations to be considered good. Seems like a lot of hypocrisy around here in what's expected of the games, and how they're judged

[TheLetterZ]

Re: Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

I don't doubt that the people at Tiburon work hard - but their games should be held to the same standard other sports games are held to. Would we ever hear talk about people tempering their expectations of The Show? Of NBA/CH2K? People go in with high expectations. Yet with Madden/NCAA, it's expected that people go in with low expectations because it's accepted that the games don't have to meet high expectations to be considered good. Seems like a lot of hypocrisy around here in what's expected of the games, and how they're judged

I'm definitely not saying we should hold them to a lower standard than everyone else. If anything, they should be held to a higher standard than other games, given their resources and history. But at some point, you have to stop fooling yourself by expecting the world of this game. If it's not good, then judge it accordingly, and as a reviewer, I'd give such a game a low score. However, the uproar that spills over into the forums every year when the game doesn't play like a "2K5-makeover" - and when everyone already knew that it wouldn't - is a waste of time.

[spankdatazz22]

Re: Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

We can agree to disagree. Any uproar that occurs in the forum is because of the quality of Madden itself - not necessarily because it doesn't measure up to another game. Which btw it should; there's just no reason why games on the older systems compare favorably to next gen Madden, no reason at all. Especially when we're talking about games on older systems that are years old. Yet the standard most reviewers hold Madden to is itself - which means it benefits immensely from having sucked previously. Don't get me wrong, I fault consumers just as much for willingly falling for hype time and time again - we can see that's already happening; many people seemingly will always reach for the Christmas-night feeling of anticipation that comes with hyped games. But reviewers on the whole do their constituents no favors by doing their part to help fan the flames.

Like any rational person, I understand that the move was purely a business decision and there was nothing inherently unethical about the purchase, as the masses who scream of a monopoly protest.

To the author: most people are rational enough to factor that the current situation is far more than just the NFL deal. Okay, maybe not most - but I don't think people are crazy or zealots for saying otherwise. I'm not saying there was anything unethical about the NFL deal myself, but the NFL/NCAA/Arena League/ESPN deals that occurred in relatively quick succession were a calculated effort to eliminate competition or at the very least severely cripple it. I don't see how that can be denied

[countryboy]

Re: Madden 09: Three Point Thursdays

football must be near...

Hey boys, EA is talking about their upcoming release of Madden"

[DubTrey1]

Please - EA, no gimmicks. Just Gameplay and presentation this year.....please.