Madden 11 Impressions

[JRod]

To piggy-back off of Terry's point about the boom bust of yardage's --

I wonder how much of it has to do with the smallness of the field. This point has been making it's round at OS and I think it's more complex than just the field is too small.

Madden has always suffered from from a lack of space but all the plays are designed to be boom bust plays. In this year, a 10 yard pass play really isn't anything special like it would be in the NFL. I've been saying for years that the pass plays are all designed too long and creates a lot of yards with not a lot of attempts. This year's madden reminds me of the older PS2 versions where you can go 15-25 for 250.

For running, it's the same problem where either the o-line seals all their blocks or there's a jail break. It's an either or thing, not so much that online pushed up the field and the RB hit the hole and earned 4 yards.

The game feels less like Madden 10 and more like a PS2 Madden where it's an up-and-down Madden rather than a trench war.

[Rodster]

Like i've said before some of you guys way over analyze these games and when you do that you lose the main purpose of the product, 'to have fun'. Take Madden and Backbreaker for what they really are, entertainment. Madden 11 is maybe just a little more fun than last years game and that is what really counts with me.

[JRod]

Like i've said before some of you guys way over analyze these games and when you do that you lose the main purpose of the product, 'to have fun'. Take Madden and Backbreaker for what they really are, entertainment. Madden 11 is maybe just a little more fun than last years game and that is what really counts with me.

I don't understand why people even come to these forums to discuss games, when the actual discussion of the game results in people complaining that it's ruining other people's fun. Or people getting so heated that they have to put others on the ignore. It's a game's forum, the entire concept was to discuss games with posts ranging from the inane to the obvious. That may mean that someone doesn't agree with your opinion but that should be the extent of it. It's just stupid that every time we talk about a game in more inane detail, someone have to come up with the sentiment, "if you didn't analyze the game..." What exactly is the point of saying this? I never could figure it out.

If someone's else's fun is ruined by a post on the inane parts of a game, that person probably has some issues unrelated to gaming.

I think why people do it, in my opinion, is not to criticize a game with the intention of ruining someone else's fun but to discuss to see if there's a way to make the game better. That point is lost on people like Teal or Danimal. Personally, I think if you through all opinions in a pot, someone might have done something to fix the problem he's seeing with a fun, realistic solution.

[Rodster]

I never said you ruined my fun because you haven't.

All i'm saying is your playing a game aka a videogame. This is not NFL Sunday and it's not real life. You can bring up all the negatives you care to and you are entitled to them because it is your opinion on this forum but it doesn't matter. I take this game no more serious than Backbreaker.

If you're looking for an exact simulation on what plays out on Sunday good luck finding it cause you will likely grow old and bitter.

[ScoopBrady]

Guys, this is getting out of hand. Get the conversation back on the game and leave personal stuff out of it. JRod, that was uncalled for calling out Teal and Danimal for no reason. Rodster, lay off of JRod. This thread will be locked if it doesn't get back on topic.

[Rodster]

Guys, this is getting out of hand. Get the conversation back on the game and leave personal stuff out of it. JRod, that was uncalled for calling out Teal and Danimal for no reason. Rodster, lay off of JRod. This thread will be locked if it doesn't get back on topic.

Explain to me how i'm laying into jrod? I haven't gotten personal i'm just saying he's bringing up stuff that makes no difference to EA because Madden will never be a simulation of football like he wants. He's made it pretty obvious he dislikes EA and Madden and thinks Backbreaker is the much better game.

And reread his post he's the one who went on the attack not me and I never went personal with him. Again all i'm saying is these are videogames and they are meant to have fun. This will never be NFL Sunday.

[ScoopBrady]

Guys, this is getting out of hand. Get the conversation back on the game and leave personal stuff out of it. JRod, that was uncalled for calling out Teal and Danimal for no reason. Rodster, lay off of JRod. This thread will be locked if it doesn't get back on topic.

Explain to me how i'm laying into jrod? I haven't gotten personal i'm just saying he's bringing up stuff that makes no difference to EA because Madden will never be a simulation of football like he wants. He's made it pretty obvious he dislikes EA and Madden and thinks Backbreaker is the much better game.

And reread his post he's the one who went on the attack not me and I never went personal with him. Again all i'm saying is these are videogames and they are meant to have fun. This will never be NFL Sunday.

Everybody knew who you meant overanalyzed games. You might not have written the name but you might as well have. Let's just keep the talk on Madden and we'll be fine. If you care to discuss this further feel free to pm me.

[Rodster]

Guys, this is getting out of hand. Get the conversation back on the game and leave personal stuff out of it. JRod, that was uncalled for calling out Teal and Danimal for no reason. Rodster, lay off of JRod. This thread will be locked if it doesn't get back on topic.

Explain to me how i'm laying into jrod? I haven't gotten personal i'm just saying he's bringing up stuff that makes no difference to EA because Madden will never be a simulation of football like he wants. He's made it pretty obvious he dislikes EA and Madden and thinks Backbreaker is the much better game.

And reread his post he's the one who went on the attack not me and I never went personal with him. Again all i'm saying is these are videogames and they are meant to have fun. This will never be NFL Sunday.

Everybody knew who you meant overanalyzed games. You might not have written the name but you might as well have. Let's just keep the talk on Madden and we'll be fine. If you care to discuss this further feel free to pm me.

Exactly that's what was done it was over analyzed, so how is that a problem when nobody but him really cares? I still don't see what the big deal is. Everybody is having fun with Madden but all he cares to bring up is the size of the field, really? The field is 100 yds looks good to me.

[Jared]

Rodster,

Take it to PMs. JRod has already been warned, no need to belabor the point.

[Lancer]

I think Ive decided to turn off gameflow.

To me the game flows really nicer when you're calling plays or with ask madden.

Gameflow hardly calls any run plays for some of the teams I've tried.

I like All Pro now. Getting a good variety of games. I beat GB 42-14 on all pro but then my next game vs NYG, they blew me out 45-21.

The game is too animation heavy and I hope they change that. It really affects the controls. It's like the players have more weight to them compared to NCAA where they feel lighter and agile.

[wco81]

Speaking of blocking. Anyone else seeing pulling guards, fullbacks, etc not blocking? They will sometimes let a tackler go right past them or just stand there like they are confused.

That behavior is not new. They often run downfield rather than sustain the block at the point of attack.

[kevinpars]

I agree that this version of Madden is more 'boom or bust' and it does knock down the fun factor. For me, it is more fun to earn a TD rather than hit a wide open receiver with no safety within a mile of the ball. The game also suffers from an oversimplified and almost pointless special teams game.

I am still trying to figure if I can live with this version or if I would rather go back to last year's game. something about it just doesn't feel right. In a way, it reminds me of one of those shooters that contains far too many cut scenes and far too little in game action. While I like the idea of a simplified and fast game of football, this is not exactly what i had in mind.

But it is too early to come to a decision - I am still playing with sliders to see if I can turn the defense up and the offense down and still keep it entertaining.

[jcalvert]

Speaking of blocking. Anyone else seeing pulling guards, fullbacks, etc not blocking? They will sometimes let a tackler go right past them or just stand there like they are confused.

That behavior is not new. They often run downfield rather than sustain the block at the point of attack.

I wish I could say how much I am seeing this, how much I am seeing blown coverage, missed blocking assignments, etc, but with the PS3 version, more often than not when I check the replay, the replay starts well after the play initiated at the line of scrimmage.

With the Falcons I am able to have success running between the tackles, following my FB, etc. So maybe there are some issues with blocking, but I am not able to see them from one play to the next.

[GTHobbes]

I agree that this version of Madden is more 'boom or bust' and it does knock down the fun factor.

I haven't played the retail game yet, but I've seen a lot of people say similar things and I wish the guys at Tiburon would just tone down the "boom" part. I've always hated the high number of breakaway runs/long bombs./pick-6'es with their engine, if that's what people are referring to, and hoped this year would be an improvement. Maybe a good set of sliders or a patch will help, but it makes me wonder if that's how the game plays out of the box if it's not part of the game by design.

[matthewk]

I don't mind the offense and big plays as long as I have the option to tone it down through sliders if I get tired of it.

The stratpad on defense is useless. No matter what team I play, they snap the ball before I can make even 1 adjustment. Unless of course I make them while the offense is still comeing up to the LOS.

This may sound silly, but I'm really bothered by Madden's choices when it comes to uniforms. Where are all the old school unis for the visiting teams? The create a uniform doesn't help because the game completely lacks the pieces for the away classic uniforms.

I'm not even going to worry anymore about trying to get any football video game to be completely realistic. I want things to be within the realm of possibility (i.e. no linebackers with 5ft verts), but I don't need the yards per carry for every RB to be within .1 of their real average. With that mindsety, Madden 11 has been fun so far.

[JRod]

I don't mind the offense and big plays as long as I have the option to tone it down through sliders if I get tired of it.

The stratpad on defense is useless. No matter what team I play, they snap the ball before I can make even 1 adjustment. Unless of course I make them while the offense is still comeing up to the LOS.

This may sound silly, but I'm really bothered by Madden's choices when it comes to uniforms. Where are all the old school unis for the visiting teams? The create a uniform doesn't help because the game completely lacks the pieces for the away classic uniforms.

I'm not even going to worry anymore about trying to get any football video game to be completely realistic. I want things to be within the realm of possibility (i.e. no linebackers with 5ft verts), but I don't need the yards per carry for every RB to be within .1 of their real average. With that mindsety, Madden 11 has been fun so far.

About the uni's...I didn't check this but I saw that old uni's were available for some times even in franchise. I was able to select the early AFL uni's in a Bronco's franchise game away to the Jags.

[matthewk]

The AFL teams (8 of them I think) are the only ones like that. They were part of the AFL package last year that they included in 11. For the rest of the teams you are SOL.

[Lancer]

They fixed pick 6. Now the defensive players just drop easy ints.

[Leebo33]

I agree that this version of Madden is more 'boom or bust' and it does knock down the fun factor. For me, it is more fun to earn a TD rather than hit a wide open receiver with no safety within a mile of the ball. The game also suffers from an oversimplified and almost pointless special teams game.

I'm having fun with Madden, but those are my biggest gripes so far on default All-Star. I had a nice 10-10 tie against Cincy as the Steelers ruined early in the second half by a string of huge plays back-to-back-to-back-to back... I stopped the game when it was 31-31 with 5 minutes left in the 3rd after about 6 50 yard plus plays in 7 minutes. I'd play more games on default and have similar results. Luckily, I messed a little with the sliders (mainly just upping CPU and human tackling, lowering QB accuracy for both, and increasing my pass rush a little) and had a few fun exhibition games and a very fun 20-13 win in the Steelers home opener vs. Atlanta. We'll see.

I agree the special teams are poor, which is odd because they seem really fun in NCAA. I've been fairly happy with my return game but almost always stop the CPU inside the 20 on kickoffs. Then again maybe it isn't so odd because I find NCAA to be a much better game overall and a blast with mimimal adjustments needed out of the box...at least for me.

[Lancer]

Kick returns seem fair to me. It's very hard to do in real life so I think they represent it well in the game. I played one game with the Bears and got a punt return td off with Hester. He was much faster than some of the other team punt returners. That was good to see. not every player should be the skill of Hester on kickoffs.

for fun factor, the big difference from last year to this year is last year I could not stop playing the game. This year, after 2 games, I get bored easily and it becomes a chore to play.

[Rodster]

for fun factor, the big difference from last year to this year is last year I could not stop playing the game. This year, after 2 games, I get bored easily and it becomes a chore to play.

I've had just the opposite experience this year although I really like M10 but got bored pretty quick.

[bulls23]

The AFL teams (8 of them I think) are the only ones like that. They were part of the AFL package last year that they included in 11. For the rest of the teams you are SOL.

Bears and Packers at least have their classic uniforms they will wear this year. Broncos have the Elway Orange Crush, etc.

You can see all the unis on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=dNBonmi ... re=related

[matthewk]

The AFL teams (8 of them I think) are the only ones like that. They were part of the AFL package last year that they included in 11. For the rest of the teams you are SOL.

Bears and Packers at least have their classic uniforms they will wear this year. Broncos have the Elway Orange Crush, etc.

You can see all the unis on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=dNBonmi ... re=related

To be clear, I'm only talking about the visiting uniforms. I noticed the classics if you are the home team, but most of their coresponding visiting uniforms are missing.

[HipE]

I've played about 10 games of Madden now over the past few nights, and I still don't think I have a good feel for it. It does seem like the game is built around big scoring plays due to broken tackles and blown coverage, both for human and cpu scoring. I do like the variety from team to team and player to player in terms of ability, it really gives a good variety in scoring and how the game plays out from game to game.

Player control seems poor to me so far, at least in comparison to NCAA 11. My players feel kind of like tanks in a way, easy to control in a straight line but hard to turn. It feels like the cpu takes quite a bit of control away from me as well, as the game gets kind of animation heavy and you see a lot of player warping to the ball. At times though the control feels great to me. I had a 3rd and short last night where as the middle linebacker I shot a gap and smoked the rb behind the line to force a punt, something I haven't been able to do often in EA football in the past due to suction blocking sucking up any linebacker trying to get through the line. And not that kicking has ever been well done, but the new tri click meter is a step back. At least try to implement it better, something like the MVP pitching meter would be much better than the current setup. And the strategy pad is just a needless change made for the sake of advertising a new feature.

Presentation in Madden is really hit or miss. The stat overlays are great this year, and the colors seem very rich in the game and not washed out at all like they have been in the past. On the negative side, I find the replays very tough to follow, as the angles used, the speed of the replays and the play calling menu blocking the middle of the screen are pretty disorienting. The crowd is pretty lifeless at times as well, and there needs to be a lot more commentary by Collinsworth and Johnson with less dead air.

Overall I'm enjoying the out of the box all pro difficulty level, and the variety from game to game has been good enough to keep me playing. Long term though I'm not sure how much play this is going to get, especially since I think NCAA is pretty much better in every area. I do like playing with NFL teams and players though, and I like having a playoffs at the end of the season and not having to spend so much time recruiting between each game. Hopefully this game will be improved through multiple patches and tuning file releases in the same manner NCAA has been.

[matthewk]

A few things I have noticed that make the game feel like maybe they didn't give it 100%:

- A lot of times when the chain gang needs to come out to measure, the playcalling screen will be up showing the new down and distance before the animation has played out. Kinda takes the drama out of it when you already know if the frist down has been made.

- I had a case where part of the overlay had 2 layers over it, so I could still see touchdown over the down and distance. This stayed that way for a number of plays.

- On special teams plays when there is a holding call on the recieving team, the ref calls out "replay 4th down".