By now everyone here knows about the numerous bugs and glitches in this game. It's excessive to say the least, but it's EA, what do you expect? Almost every version of Madden or NCAA over the last few years, has released with major bugs that get patched later. This is nothing new so the bugs that are being found all over the place is pretty much par for the course for EA. What isn't up to par is the simplicity of the bugs and how easy it is to find them. I mean no one really noticed that the accelerated clock wasn't working in CCM when they were testing this? Really? Now that aspect of this is not normal. I can live with that tho. It's EA. There's almost nothing they can do that can surprise me nowadays.
What I'm trying to figure out tho is how did all these people have the retail version almost a full month early and no one mention anything about all these bugs. We all know that superstar athletes and movie stars an all those guys get the game early, but I'm wondering about the reviewers and the game changers. WTH? I'll admit that I didn't read every review of Madden 13, but I read a lot of them. I don't recall seeing any mention of bugs in the reviews I read. I don't usually rely on game reviews for my purchases, but I do note them. In hindsight, I have to admit that the Xbox magazine review that came out early had the most accurate review of all that I saw(9.0 IGN? Really?).
The biggest concern I have tho is with the game changers silence. Last time I checked, they were supposed to represent the community. They were community members sent to Tiburon to give the devs direct feedback from the community. What about direct feedback to the community? Why did no one from the community have any idea about what a mess CCM is out the box before Aug 28? These "community" guys had the game almost a full month early, yet we have to find out about these bugs and things after release. I understand the release of info like "schemes do not save" would hurt sales, but isn't that what "community" guys are supposed to do? Isn't that why we have thread after thread after thread here now talking about some kind of bug or glitch in Madden 13? Because "community" members wanted to alert the community of a bug or something.
You would think that with EA bringing the community in early to look at the game and give feedback and with them giving community members (game changers) the game early, they would be putting out the best product they possibly can because they would know that if the game was crap, the whole community would know about it because of these community members that would have the game early, but that isn't the case. In fact, one could argue that the product has gotten increasingly sloppy since the advent of the game changers program. Yeah there were bugs before, but the amount of bugs that have cropped up in the last few years is amazing and the number of bugs that can be considered game killers by some is higher than I ever remember it being. Hell we have even had bugs that are literally game killers ie you can't play an entire mode because of the bug (transfer failed error in ncaa, game freezes in Madden).
Now I understand that game changers have to sign a NDA and all, but I always assumed that dealt with discussing features before they are announced or before a given date. I didn't think that it dealt with just discussing flaws and bugs within the game after it was done. If it does, then everything else makes sense and pretty much validates what I think about the program itself. This would also explain why a lot of game changers are pretty nonchalant about a lot of these issues or unwilling to discuss them. Although I would have to wonder if a community member, that can see flaws and bugs within the game, but not discuss them, is really part of the community. I'm not talking about flaws and bugs during development. I'm talking flaws and bugs that are seen in the retail copy that was received a almost month earlier than everybody else.
You'll never see me talking bad about the game changers themselves (even tho I think the program itself is just for marketing). I have a lot of respect for those guys. And you'll never hear me saying I ain't buying Madden, so this isn't a case of me hating or anything like that. I've been a member of the Madden community a long time and as a long time member of the Madden community I feel that what happened here this year, should never happen. It just shouldn't. Soooo, what happened?
What I'm trying to figure out tho is how did all these people have the retail version almost a full month early and no one mention anything about all these bugs. We all know that superstar athletes and movie stars an all those guys get the game early, but I'm wondering about the reviewers and the game changers. WTH? I'll admit that I didn't read every review of Madden 13, but I read a lot of them. I don't recall seeing any mention of bugs in the reviews I read. I don't usually rely on game reviews for my purchases, but I do note them. In hindsight, I have to admit that the Xbox magazine review that came out early had the most accurate review of all that I saw(9.0 IGN? Really?).
The biggest concern I have tho is with the game changers silence. Last time I checked, they were supposed to represent the community. They were community members sent to Tiburon to give the devs direct feedback from the community. What about direct feedback to the community? Why did no one from the community have any idea about what a mess CCM is out the box before Aug 28? These "community" guys had the game almost a full month early, yet we have to find out about these bugs and things after release. I understand the release of info like "schemes do not save" would hurt sales, but isn't that what "community" guys are supposed to do? Isn't that why we have thread after thread after thread here now talking about some kind of bug or glitch in Madden 13? Because "community" members wanted to alert the community of a bug or something.
You would think that with EA bringing the community in early to look at the game and give feedback and with them giving community members (game changers) the game early, they would be putting out the best product they possibly can because they would know that if the game was crap, the whole community would know about it because of these community members that would have the game early, but that isn't the case. In fact, one could argue that the product has gotten increasingly sloppy since the advent of the game changers program. Yeah there were bugs before, but the amount of bugs that have cropped up in the last few years is amazing and the number of bugs that can be considered game killers by some is higher than I ever remember it being. Hell we have even had bugs that are literally game killers ie you can't play an entire mode because of the bug (transfer failed error in ncaa, game freezes in Madden).
Now I understand that game changers have to sign a NDA and all, but I always assumed that dealt with discussing features before they are announced or before a given date. I didn't think that it dealt with just discussing flaws and bugs within the game after it was done. If it does, then everything else makes sense and pretty much validates what I think about the program itself. This would also explain why a lot of game changers are pretty nonchalant about a lot of these issues or unwilling to discuss them. Although I would have to wonder if a community member, that can see flaws and bugs within the game, but not discuss them, is really part of the community. I'm not talking about flaws and bugs during development. I'm talking flaws and bugs that are seen in the retail copy that was received a almost month earlier than everybody else.
You'll never see me talking bad about the game changers themselves (even tho I think the program itself is just for marketing). I have a lot of respect for those guys. And you'll never hear me saying I ain't buying Madden, so this isn't a case of me hating or anything like that. I've been a member of the Madden community a long time and as a long time member of the Madden community I feel that what happened here this year, should never happen. It just shouldn't. Soooo, what happened?
(kidding about thanking us).
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