Let me start off by saying I have been a fan of the Madden series ever since I bought a copy for my Sega Genesis many years ago; yes I’m old. Through the years the EA development team has made significant strides to make this game quite realistic. With that said, there still are some negatives to the game. I’m going to cover what I like and do not like about the latest release in the series. This week I finished my third season playing as the Dolphins and finally won the Super Bowl (with a 12-4 regular season record).
Just to inform you, before Madden 11’ my last copy of the game was Madden 09’. This was due to my switch-over from my PS2 to Xbox 360 and not wanting to buy a game last year for my outdated system. So, some of the changes I mention may have been included in Madden 10’, but they are new to me.
I do not want to discuss the intro or any of the other fluff; I’ll just get right into the game play. The most advertised new feature for Madden 11’ is Gameflow. Before any play a player can choose this option and the game will automatically choose a play which is suppose to be best suited for the situation. The best part about this addition is it shortens the length of games considerably, since less time is spent scrolling through plays. The first few times I played the game I used this option all the time, but I noticed when I was on offense the computer would call pass plays about 70-80% of the time. I enjoy running the ball so after I was comfortable with the controls and game play I stopped using this option. To go along with the play calls, offensive and defensive coordinators actually talk to you after a play is called. A player can get the full affect by wearing their headset. The AI seems to be tougher than in past versions, as all my games have been fairly close, with only a few blowouts.
Running plays and yards after the catch have improved a lot in this version of the game. A new feature named Locomotion takes the majority of the ball carriers controller moves away from the buttons and onto the right stick. Now with a push of the stick, the ball carriers juke, plow forward and step back. After some practice I was able to pull off some wicked moves while running down the field. Another helpful change was making the ball carrier’s speed burst automatic. In the past, players had to push a button to give the runner an extra boost. I enjoy this new feature as I can focus more on getting past the defenders. Ball carriers are especially tough to bring down, much as in real-life. Players cannot give up on a play just because a defensive player is in contact with a ball carrier (like previous versions of the game); this is especially true with players like Adrian Peterson of the Vikings. At times it takes 3 or 4 defenders to bring him down.
The final major positive I noticed was the receivers actually try to stay in bounds after a catch. In the past a receiver would just keep running after sideline/end zone grabs, but as in real-life they now attempt to get two feet in. They also seem to be more aware of the ball when thrown too, well most of the time. I have seen many more diving catches by the receivers than in years past.
Unfortunately I do not notice many improvements on the defensive side of the ball, not that I had any real complaints in past versions. The defensive backs are probably a little more aggressive when trying to knock the ball away or going for the interception.
No video game is perfect and Madden 11’ has its share of mistakes. A constant mistake
I notice is the announcer saying the wrong down (usually stating it’s 4th down when it’s only 3rd down) or the wrong player name (with the Dolphins they say my punters name when I kick field goals). While these are not anything major, they are annoying. A video clip of defensive players celebrating after a touchdown is scored or big play made against them also appears at times. Defenders tend to drop easy interceptions while grapping the more difficult ones. This can mimic real-life at times though. Instead of the first player to reach a fumble gets it, this year if members from both teams go for a loose ball then the player must repeatedly push the controller button to try and get possession. While an interesting concept, I have only gotten the ball once in over 15 tries (maybe I’m just slow to react). I can overlook all the mistakes/negatives mentioned so far but this last one I cannot. When I first played the game twice it locked my system up during games and I had to shut the power off to my Xbox 360. Since then, it has not locked up but occasionally the game freezes for a few seconds then continues on. The freezing put is very annoying because it interrupts the flow of the game and may cause a player to miss a receiver or avoid a sack. I have read some online forums with other users having the same issues.
Overall I really enjoy this version of Madden and believe it is the best one yet. Without the locking up/freezing it would be close to perfect.
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