I was recently reminded of the old Maddens, the "good" Maddens from the Playstation 2 spanning from 2004 to 2009/2010. Starting in '06, the famous Superstar Mode was introduced; it was a game mode I most frequented because I thought it was simply THE BEST. The mode continued through the current gen but was deemed lackluster because so many features had been stripped. I think that's the current case today with Connected Franchise Mode.
Some players love to play out those "what if" scenarios and one of them is probably "What if I could be a superstar in the NFL?". I know mine was and still is. Madden 18 offers that, but it's a bland, vanilla experience that doesn't really dive into the lifestyle of an NFL player. I've drummed up a few ideas for the ideal sports career mode, football in particular. Please feel free to expand on this list with what you'd like to see in a sports career mode.
1. IQ Tests, Pre-Draft Interviews, Workouts/Combines
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2. Ability to sign endorsements, appear in brief commercials, make appearances at store openings, etc.
3. Personalized autograph (I'm sure there's a possible way of making this happen if 2K can take a face scan from a phone$), accepting/refusing to sign autographs to improve/lower your reputation with fans and the media.
4. Schedule conflicts. A teammate throws a party on a Friday night, but there's a film session early Saturday morning before a game. Going means an improved relationship with teammates/lower awareness for that game and less reps, and vice versa.
5. Something like the MyCrib from ESPN NFL 2K.
6. The ability to pursue romantic relationships. You can choose between a celebrity which will ultimately lead to a highly publicized relationship or settle for someone not famous.
7. Bring back movie offers!
8. Bring back agents. Also, be more active in contract negotiations and let direct on-field play influence how much $ you get. Maybe have a checklist of incentives/goals (example: 15 receiving touchdowns could bring your worth up to $30 million)
9. Post-game interviews with questions depending on the final score of the game. If it's a close loss, have the player be able to say something like "Ah, you can't win 'em all, but this team did their best and fought 'til the end" or, on the opposite end, "Y'all a bunch'a f*%#*#g losers" and throw your team under the bus. Or, you could take a passive aggressive (see: Jay Cutler) approach and piss off the media/fans.
10. Controversial actions. Kneeling during the anthem that affects contract negotiations. False accusations of cheating with a teammate's wife (or true should you decide). Suspensions for performance enhancing drugs. Anything to garner negative publicity.
This would be my ideal sports career mode; let me know what you guys think and if you would add/take anything away!