Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

[roadman]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

To the OS Reviewer: When you are top story on a new release, give a fair assessment of the game. First the platform, then early access with 6 hours of playing time. So we lose 15 minutes due to the boot sequence of next years superbowl, total nonsense and no-one is looking to see this. The constant delay waiting to get synched up is a problem, the menu structure changed again. First look and feel is this makes no sense. Why not allocate efforts in fixing the broken parts. Online was a mess with madden 25, any change there, or are we left with another broken element of the game. Bottom line an unbiased review is helpful, anything is worthless. I don't post much but i do expect a better effort,. You lost me after thinking this is one of the best games ever , after an hour of playing.

That's the beauty of subjective opinions, you have yours, everyone else has theirs.

Not everyone thinks the same, feels the same.

[Mr. Hanky]

It would be quite something if all the people who never have anything positive to say about Madden held these other sports games to the same critical standard they hold Madden to. I mean seriously, it's a video game. Some of the criticisms I see on the net are just laughable. Nitpicking over the most trivial stuff. I'll bet there are a ton of people who often go right to instant replay so they can meticulously scan the field looking for things to nitpick about on their favorite message board. But when it coms to other sports games they'll overlook a ton of of the same type of imperfection.

[Sheba2011]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

To the OS Reviewer: When you are top story on a new release, give a fair assessment of the game. First the platform, then early access with 6 hours of playing time. So we lose 15 minutes due to the boot sequence of next years superbowl, total nonsense and no-one is looking to see this. The constant delay waiting to get synched up is a problem, the menu structure changed again. First look and feel is this makes no sense. Why not allocate efforts in fixing the broken parts. Online was a mess with madden 25, any change there, or are we left with another broken element of the game. Bottom line an unbiased review is helpful, anything is worthless. I don't post much but i do expect a better effort,. You lost me after thinking this is one of the best games ever , after an hour of playing.

What qualifies as a fair assessment to you? Only pointing out the things you don't agree with? His review was very fair he didn't say it was the best game he ever played, he pointed out both pros and cons. It also helps if you read the first paragraph of his review where he says he is playing a retail release. He is not reviewing the EA Access version.

[Mr. Hanky]

I think EA Tiburon should put their egos aside and just copy the presentation elements from MLB The Show and NBA 2k. IGN said the highlights don't even sync properly with the commentary and there are parts where there's Just dead silence. Also, that Super Bowl presentation is mediocre. The Super Bowl is the most watched event in the US every year. Treat it as such. I appreciate the effort, but I don't understand why Madden is so far behind sports games, and don't even mention how far they are, techologically speaking, behind other genres.

The Show? The Show gets way too much cred for presentation. The team celebration cutscenes for The Show have been a complete joke for years. 162 game season plus playoffs and you're rewarded with the most underwhelming, short championship cutscene of any sports game on the market. Madden has had it beat since at least Madden 10, and it's not even close. The commentary on The Show is every bit as repetitive as it is on Madden, especially on RTTS. The pre-game/post-game presentation is pretty much exactly the same in the regular season as it is in the postseason and all it really amounts to are various camera shots of the guys tossing the ball back and forth, stretching, and showing each team's lineup with the same stale commentary during these segments. And it's been the same for years. Madden does it the way it's done on prime time telecasts. The Show has gotten every bit as stale as Madden gets flak for but it doesn't get held to the same standard Madden does.

[A_Quiet_Pro]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

The Show? The Show gets way too much cred for presentation. The team celebration cutscenes for The Show have been a complete joke for years. 162 game season plus playoffs and you're rewarded with the most underwhelming, short championship cutscene of any sports game on the market. Madden has had it beat since at least Madden 10, and it's not even close. The commentary on The Show is every bit as repetitive as it is on Madden, especially on RTTS. The pre-game/post-game presentation is pretty much exactly the same in the regular season as it is in the postseason and all it really amounts to are various camera shots of the guys tossing the ball back and forth, stretching, and showing each team's lineup with the same stale commentary during these segments. And it's been the same for years. Madden does it the way it's done on prime time telecasts. The Show has gotten every bit as stale as Madden gets flak for but it doesn't get held to the same standard Madden does.

Presentation should be at a NBA2k level. They're interviews, they're commentary, and their celebrations are legit. (Imagine if Madden had something similar to 2k real voice?)

[rtkiii]

I watched someone playing it last night through PS4 live stream and I dunno...it did not help sell me. It has great graphics, sure but man it looked the same from when I last played in M13. Yes I know there are animation differences and tweaks to the defense but the view...is still the same. I need more info on player CCFM

[HoundsOfHowl]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

I've played 2 games so far, and love it. Feels like watching a CBS game IMO.

I had 1 penalty occur without touching sliders and that was a Unnecessary Roughness that actually was on the CPU, I was surprised.

From just the little time I've had with the game, since I'm rushing through things due to that 6 hour limit, I'd rate the game 8.5/10 and say it's the best Madden IMO since 2005 (which was my favorite)

[bucky60]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

The Show? The Show gets way too much cred for presentation. The team celebration cutscenes for The Show have been a complete joke for years. 162 game season plus playoffs and you're rewarded with the most underwhelming, short championship cutscene of any sports game on the market. Madden has had it beat since at least Madden 10, and it's not even close. The commentary on The Show is every bit as repetitive as it is on Madden, especially on RTTS. The pre-game/post-game presentation is pretty much exactly the same in the regular season as it is in the postseason and all it really amounts to are various camera shots of the guys tossing the ball back and forth, stretching, and showing each team's lineup with the same stale commentary during these segments. And it's been the same for years. Madden does it the way it's done on prime time telecasts. The Show has gotten every bit as stale as Madden gets flak for but it doesn't get held to the same standard Madden does.

The show makes me feel immersed in a MLB world. Both on the diamond and off the diamond. Madden constantly makes me feel like I'm throwing a quarter in an arcade machine with it's CFM off field stuff.

The commentary in The Show is repetitive, but it's accurate and makes sense. The commentary in Madden isn't even accurate.

I hold BOTH to the SAME standards. MLB The Show reaches those standards for me and Madden doesn't even come close.

[charter04]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

I don't think anyone was trying to insult MMChris, but the" fanboyish" ( yes i just made up my own word lol) impressions become a bit irritating. No offense to MMChris, you are entitled to your own opinion (no matter what that maybe). But please understand that the game can be better analyzed with a non-biased opinion (someone who calls it like it IS). Coming from that perspective, this impression doesn't hold much weight. And regardless if you like or cant stand Madden, we all hope for the best and want solid impressions we can gauge the game with (especially without a demo). Im going to redbox it. I could have found out everything i needed from the demo, but we all know that isn't possible. I think that inadvertently amplifies the "need" for unbiased impressions. Thanks for sharing anyways thou.

So who decides what opinion is an unbiased one? You? So if you agree then that makes it unbiased? I think you're missing what an opinion is? Also there is no such thing as an unbiased opinion.

[Dirk5049ers]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

The Show? The Show gets way too much cred for presentation. The team celebration cutscenes for The Show have been a complete joke for years. 162 game season plus playoffs and you're rewarded with the most underwhelming, short championship cutscene of any sports game on the market. Madden has had it beat since at least Madden 10, and it's not even close. The commentary on The Show is every bit as repetitive as it is on Madden, especially on RTTS. The pre-game/post-game presentation is pretty much exactly the same in the regular season as it is in the postseason and all it really amounts to are various camera shots of the guys tossing the ball back and forth, stretching, and showing each team's lineup with the same stale commentary during these segments. And it's been the same for years. Madden does it the way it's done on prime time telecasts. The Show has gotten every bit as stale as Madden gets flak for but it doesn't get held to the same standard Madden does.

You can't really begin to compare Madden's presentation to MLB The Show's. I won't speak on this year's Madden, because I haven't played it, but MLB's in game commentary always talks about relevant situations to whats going on in the field of play and other historical topics. Just the presentation as a whole is better than Madden's. Watch an MLB game and then an NFL game. Then go play The Show and Madden and tell me which one represents real life presentation more. I'm talking about on the field, as well as commentary, stats, stadium atmosphere etc. Hell, look at the batting stances, how guys behave at the plate. In past Madden's you couldn't tell the difference between Mark Sanchez and Peyton Manning, because every guy had the same mannerisms, throwing motions, etc. And here's the kicker, I don't even like baseball. But I give props where its due.

[SageInfinite]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

Coach Ruckus just gave me all the impressions I needed, lol. Awww man.

[Smoke6]

Re: Madden NFL 15: Retail First Impressions

If anyone here is truly a fan of madden and its presentation, then go and check out the ps1 versions. Their presentation with a real life JB was off the chains, and it actually showed replays and highlights from other games.

Never seen it get better than that though.

[Eski33]

They use real player clips in a PiP window when talking about a key player and it looks sweet. Also, the 2K aspect is there. I was playing against Philly and they had Foles on the screen in digital form palming a football as if he were in a studio while discussing his stats. This happened between quarters.

This is the best presented Madden I have ever seen. It feels like an NFL broadcast.

[Big Bricks]

My impressions through about 3 hours of Madden 15 on XBOX One:

-Post Play animations are absolutely awesome, look great, seamless, and really change the game for me. It's amazing how that small change makes the game so much more realistic and closer to what you see on Sundays

-Coaches (one's who actually allow their likenesses) look very much alike their real-life counterparts. Chuck Pagano looks scary real and Tom Coughlin is pretty close too.

-Graphics overall are way better than last year's Madden 25 on XBoxOne. The cuts in the biceps, the sweat on the arms, and the wrinkles in the jerseys are very impressive

-Fields look good, very close to real life

-Halftime and Post game shows are OK. At least we are headed in the right direction, close to what 2k5 offered

-Gameplay is smooth, the early jump on defense when timed correctly is very satisfying, running with the ballcarrier seems more realistic than last year

Overall I think EA has done a pretty good job through my early impressions.Curious if you guys agree with my impressions above?

[yesrick]

What qualifies as a fair assessment to you? Only pointing out the things you don't agree with? His review was very fair he didn't say it was the best game he ever played, he pointed out both pros and cons. It also helps if you read the first paragraph of his review where he says he is playing a retail release. He is not reviewing the EA Access version.

"I have spent quite a bit of time over the last couple of days playing the retail release of Madden NFL 15, which is set to release in a limited format to EA Access customers later today. To put it simply, this is probably the best Madden ever from a technical perspective and may be some of the most fun I’ve had with the franchise in years."