Madden 15

[Brando70]

QB accuracy looks pretty much the same to me post patch. Just played against the Raiders in year 2 of my Bears franchise, and David Carr and Matt f***in McGloin just went a combined 23-33 with no picks. They threw ONE pass that wasn't on target, and that was Carr overthrowing a deep route that I had covered well and would have been in position to intercept.

The coverage AI for human teams is still a heap of hot trash, and the coverage AI for the CPU teams is only effective because of speed boosting, super leaps, and the AI having ESP about the plays you call. I think the whole defensive side of the game is still pretty mediocre in Madden. I really enjoy playing offense, but the way my LBs play way too deep on zone routes and my CBs cannot cover anyone in man-to-man make defense feel very random and arbitrary. Even when I do get stops, it hardly ever feels like I did something good and more like the AI screwed up.

I have one game in my second season left -- I have to win and hope the Lions lose to make the playoffs -- and I need to figure out if the moments of brilliance on offense are worth the defensive frustrations that make me want to light this game on fire.

[Danimal]

I played one game post patch finally, one game is not a sample size but this is what I noticed.

Cam Newton was 80% but he only attempted 12 passes, one of which was picked. They ran the ball 36 times against me and I sacked him 9 times (default all-pro). The game did seem a bit more challenging as I had 3 fumbles after having none in any previous games. One cost me on my opening drive and I only managed 3 points and lost 17-3.

Taking control of a WR or DB and using swat or catch seems more effectively. I had Jefferies go up for several one on ones that would of been picks to break up the INT. At default sliders CPU DB AI is still too reactive as Brando says. Saw better catch animations on mis-thrown balls unfortunately they were only from Jay Cutler. Animations seemed to be triggers a lot better and things overall looked and felt better.

I'll need to tweak the sliders because 9 sacks is insane and if Newton didn't scramble i would of had about 15. The DB / WR and penalties are still the weak points of this game. I don't expect either to be fixed to a realistic level based on tweets coming from the dev team.

[Brando70]

I should add that I played three games since the patch. The other two were against the Chiefs (with Alex Smith) and the Vikings with Kelly Clemons (in for an injured Bridgewater). They might have been slightly less accurate, but it was more or less the same as before the patch with completions in the 65-75% range.

The game is good, but I don't think it has enough going for it to warrant playing more than a season or two. The offseason stuff is still pretty half-baked, the CPU roster management leaves a lot to be desired, and the special teams portion of the game is really dull. The CPU offense also is not very good about feeding the ball to stud receivers or TEs. Playing the Lions or the Saints, I'm more likely to see Golden Tate or one of the lesser Saints receivers light it up than Calvin Johnson or Jimmy Graham.

However, I imagine this would be a blast in a league where you were playing human players all or most weeks. That would alleviate a lot of the issues I have with it.

[TCrouch]

However, I imagine this would be a blast in a league where you were playing human players all or most weeks. That would alleviate a lot of the issues I have with it.

I can confirm that's true. 32-man league is incredible! Sorry you have so many issues with the game, Brando. I know it's not like you're a Madden rookie or anything crazy, and I've seen some of what you describe. I'm still having a blast with the game, though.

[Brando70]

I am especially grouchy after losing to the Raiders I like the game more than these posts would suggest, because of course I'm most motivated to write when I feel like complaining about something.

There's a lot to like. Running the ball is a complete blast for me. I love following the blocks, seeing how the play unfolds, etc. The counter plays work pretty well (and don't work the way they should not). I also love the CPU running game, it's the first Madden I can recall where I have to respect the AI's ability to run. Passing is pretty fun, too. And I am sure that a fair number of my frustrations on defense stem from my limitations as a Madden player -- especially never being able to get the hang of playing as a linebacker or safety.

At the same time, I am thinking of how much trade value I could get toward Shadow of Mordor

[fsquid]

$35 at best buy and they usually give a 50% bonus if you are a rewards member.

[Aristo]

I don't give up nearly the high percentages in the passing game that others have seen. To be honest, I think it is because I end up using the recommend defenses quite a bit, and that means a lot more nickel and dime that I would normally call myself, especially on first down. I do normally seek out zone on early downs, because they will respond to the run better. I will also use the guess pass frequently, although I will back off if I start getting burned.

Now, I usually play with the Chiefs, and their DL really puts a lot of pressure on the QB, even without a ton of blitzing. their DB's are not awesome, but not terrible. I may have a different experience with a different team, although I seem to do find on MUT, too.

It's not been getting as much play lately, but it's my favorite sports game of the big three that have just come out. NHL 15 and FIFA 15 are a lot of fun, too.

[Inuyasha]

Anyone have a problem w/ Madden ps4 today? I am getting that CE-34878-0 error. Had it once before with FIFA 15 and had to reinstall the game. Did the same w/ Madden but when I downloaded the update, it caused the problem again. Any way out of this mess?

[wco81]

OK signed up for a bunch of CFM leagues on the PS4.

So there's no way to message other players to arrange games from within Madden?

You have to use the PSN messaging?

[Inuyasha]

Got the game working again. I'm addicted to MUT. Love the offline game, and finally got enough wins online to qualify for the playoffs.

I'm getting these badges, what are they for? I got a few bronze, one silver, and a gold. Do I add them to the sets and which sets? What do they do? I see I can auction them out too and get a good return. Around 10k for a gold.

[Brando70]

I don't give up nearly the high percentages in the passing game that others have seen. To be honest, I think it is because I end up using the recommend defenses quite a bit, and that means a lot more nickel and dime that I would normally call myself, especially on first down. I do normally seek out zone on early downs, because they will respond to the run better. I will also use the guess pass frequently, although I will back off if I start getting burned.

Now, I usually play with the Chiefs, and their DL really puts a lot of pressure on the QB, even without a ton of blitzing. their DB's are not awesome, but not terrible. I may have a different experience with a different team, although I seem to do find on MUT, too.

It's not been getting as much play lately, but it's my favorite sports game of the big three that have just come out. NHL 15 and FIFA 15 are a lot of fun, too.

There are two issues with coverage I have trouble over coming:

--With man-to-man, my players get beaten constantly on cut routes, especially drags and ins. I have tried using the coverage audible to cheat inside but that doesn't do much. I don't have good press players so I do not bump much.

--With zone, my LBs seem to drop too deep in the middle. A lot of times they are sitting 10-12 yards off the line of scimmage. I have tried using the Underneath zone audible, but without much success.

I get a lot of sacks, so QB pressure isn't an issue. It just seems like, for me, QBs connect unless I sack the QB or get a hand on the pass in most cases.

It's still a fun game, and I decided to keep it for a while longer. Had a nice draft with the Bears before my third season. However, I also learned the hard way that when resigning players, the bonus is how much they get PER YEAR. I accidentally handed Alshon Jeffrey $35 million in guaranteed money instead of what I thought was a $7 million dollar bonus for the life of his five-year contract!

[TCrouch]

Got invited to a 32-person Madden League on XBox One. They play like 3 games a week, and the rule set is extremely detailed and very structured. You're not going to be running it up when up by 21, you have to have a minimum pass/run attempts per game, you can't nano-blitz or do the goalline D all game, etc. That's all well and good, but leagues have failed all over the place. These guys are in their 15th season, first one on Madden 15. They didn't have but 3 teams available--the Eagles, Bucs, or Saints...so I took the Eagles.

But what makes it crazy is that the league is full of NASCAR Sprint Cup guys--the owner of the Redskins in the league is Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (The real one )
Sprint Cup Champ Brad Keselowski plays as the Lions, Dale's spotter TJ Majors is the Bills (and the Commissioner), Ty Dillon is the Raiders, etc. Basically, it's a league of 32 "friends" that are all racer guys or somehow involved in racing.

So it turns out that one of the teams (the Jaguars) is on college internet and has massive connection problems. So TJ asked me this morning if I had anybody who may want to play in this league with us, a "sports" guy and not necessarily a video game guy. I told him I'd check with 'my boys' (that means you guys haha) and see if anybody is interested.

The bottom line is this: they run 3 games a week, with advances usually Monday/Wednesday/Friday nights at around 9ET. Everybody has been incredibly good at getting their games in, and there's a chat app on the phone that we all communicate with constantly. The Jags are currently 2-3 with the Colts sitting at 4-1 ahead of them in the division.

So the question for me is are any of you guys that still have fun with Madden on XBox One interested in getting in on this? It's easily the coolest experience I've ever had with Madden in all the years I've played it. And some of the guys are GOOD--I got absolutely thumped the other night 42-21 when I made some mistakes and gave up a ton of long runs against the undefeated Rams, but there is a pretty good mix of skill levels there.

If nothing else, it's a full 32-man league that advances quickly and is very active. If you like Madden and can commit the time (joining and then not being available would look really bad), send me a PM.

[Danimal]

You know I would be in but I don't own it on XB1 and have made a rule not to buy things on multiple platforms this generation.

[MizzouRah]

I'm going to kick off another franchise and see if I can't get back into Madden. Are most of you who have been playing still on AP defaults with 15 min/15 play clock settings?

[TCrouch]

No, I run on that Armor & Sword slider set from OS, but with QB accuracy upped 5, WR Catching dropped 5, and tackling upped 5 on both human and CPU. 10 min quarters, 18 sec runoff (only because that's what the league I'm in runs).

[icvu42]

No, I run on that Armor & Sword slider set from OS, but with QB accuracy upped 5, WR Catching dropped 5, and tackling upped 5 on both human and CPU. 10 min quarters, 18 sec runoff (only because that's what the league I'm in runs).

I also use A&S Sliders except I upped the Roughing the Quarterback penalty slider to 100. Read that it helps with sacks. So far through 7 games I have registered 31 sacks, so a just over 4 a game. A little high but not too far out of whack. I also might up human interceptions. So far I only have 1 on the season.

I play 15 min quarters and have the clock run down to 16 seconds.

Even though I am 2-5 with the Dolphins, I am really enjoying this game.

Rick

[Danimal]

League average right now for sacks is about 2.2 a game, you're averaging 4.4 so double.

I'm a stats geek so wanted to just look at the numbers, I'm not commenting on your enjoyment of the game

[icvu42]

League average right now for sacks is about 2.2 a game, you're averaging 4.4 so double.

I'm a stats geek so wanted to just look at the numbers, I'm not commenting on your enjoyment of the game

Well to dig deeper, he actual Dolphins are averaging 3.1 per game, so I am about 1 and 1/3 sack per game above.

Rick

[Danimal]

Well to dig deeper, he actual Dolphins are averaging 3.1 per game, so I am about 1 and 1/3 sack per game above.

Rick

Touche

[TCrouch]

What a well-researched and concocted counter.

What the hell is it doing on this board?

[MizzouRah]

Thanks everyone!

[Danimal]

BTW did any PS4 owners man age to download the Madden face pack add on yesterday before it was pulled?

[TCrouch]

Really wish one of you clowns would join the league I'm in! We just finished Super Bowl of year 1, entering offseason. Bengals are still open, only team in the league that has no coach. I know there are XBox One players here, the chat app alone makes the league awesome. Most active thing I've ever been a part of as far as an online league goes, and nobody here wants to play in it? Y'all suck haha

[Pete1210]

Really wish one of you clowns would join the league I'm in! We just finished Super Bowl of year 1, entering offseason. Bengals are still open, only team in the league that has no coach. I know there are XBox One players here, the chat app alone makes the league awesome. Most active thing I've ever been a part of as far as an online league goes, and nobody here wants to play in it? Y'all suck haha

I'd love to be in a full active league again, but the 3 game per week committment is too much for me right now.

[TCrouch]

I hear you. Normally I'd have thought so, too, but it's so active that I'm actually WAITING for my games to come around in this one. I've paid more attention to the happenings in this league than in the real NFL, as funny as that is. I took the Eagles to a 14-2 record (losing to Dale Jr in Week 16 that put him in the playoffs and knocked me out of the #1 seed perch), then had the Madden Momentum screw in my first playoff game, losing 28-20 to eventual Super Bowl winner Arizona. Funny thing is, the same two guys are in the SB every year. I was hoping I'd have something for that, but not in year 1.

I'm stunned at how active and fun it is, as the chat is just going off all day long, and 95% of the guys play awesome. Barely any cheese evidenced by anybody, and even the guys with horrible records are dangerous. I have been losing in the 2nd or 3rd quarter to 1 and 2-win teams in this league. Gotta be on your game every week, and it barely even feels like a huge time constraint to me.