Madden NFL 10: The Game Which Almost Was

Feature Article

Submitted on: 02/06/2010 by Jayson Young

For all its improvements this year, Madden NFL 10 is still far from being a great game; what it is, instead, is a great first step in turning the franchise around from an industry in-joke to a respectable simulation of NFL football.

When the football season officially ends on Super Bowl Sunday, Madden 10 may not go down as the greatest football game in recent memory, or even the greatest football game on the current consoles; Madden 10, instead, may be remembered as the game that finally got the Al-Davis-esque Madden series back into playoff contention after years of top-10 draft busts and stuck-in-its-ways ownership.

Here are five off-season moves that helped make Madden 10 a harbinger of continued success in 2010:

Improved Presentation

Yes, Tom Hammond sucks the life out of every broadcasting booth he steps into, and yes, features like Fran Charles’ Extra Point and Alex Flanagan’s halftime/postgame shows are about as exciting as watching Hammond do a real-life playoff game with Joe Gibbs and Joe Theismann (that actually happened?), but the larger point is, now that post-game and mid-game presentations are finally back in Madden, next year’s booth and studio work will have a chance to build upon Madden 10’s weak first attempt.

Who let Bilbo Baggins in the booth?

Source: news.uky.edu

Barring any setbacks, next year should finally be the year that Madden's presentation can compete on the same level as Boom and the gang from NFL 2K5.

Signature Animations

Taking another page from the 2K Sports playbook, Madden 10 made kickers and quarterbacks the first positions ever in an EA football game to have player-specific animations. Madden fans should be safe to assume that a few more positions will have their playing style motion-captured in Madden 11.

Running backs seem like the obvious choice for next year’s game, and if All Pro Football 2K8 taught us anything, it’s that seeing guys like Walter Payton and Barry Sanders knifing through opposing defenses with their trademark running style is the kind of thing that can turn a great football game into a legend as timeless as the players themselves.

New Position-Specific Ratings

For many years, throwing power and foot speed were the only ratings GMs needed to look for when finding an elite Madden QB.

Madden 10 finally changed all of that with independent accuracy ratings for short, deep and medium throws, as well as new ratings for play action fakes and throws on the run.

The result is that, even though their arm strength may only be two points apart, JaMarcus Rusell (98 throwing power) no longer performs on the same level as Tom Brady (96 throwing power).

While average from the pocket, a 97 "Throw on the Run" rating and 92 "Play Action" rating make Ben Roethlisberger a bootlegging beast.

Madden 11 could further improve the rating system by adding new QB categories for throws under pressure and throws off the back foot, two skills that all QBs in Madden 10 -- regardless of their accuracy ratings -- are still able to perform at an All-Pro level.

Greater Player Differential

As Madden continues to expand and refine its individual ratings categories, the mysterious “overall” rating has become increasingly irrelevant.

Aspiring GMs can no longer just throw contracts at the guys with the highest overall ratings; instead, Madden 10 GMs now have to look at the game's position-specific ratings to make decisions like:

Do I want a power back or a speed back? A linebacker who can rush the passer, play the run or sit back in coverage? Will my secondary specialize in man or zone coverage, and if man, will they be playing a lot of bump coverage?

But while it’s great that players are finally starting to differentiate themselves based on their unique skill-sets, GMs shouldn’t have to comb over 30 different attribute categories to figure out where those strengths lie.

So why not make Madden 11 the first EA Sports game to get rid of the archaic “overall” rating and bring back a feature that – in true EA Tiburon fashion – was a great concept hindered by poor execution: the weapons system from Madden 08.

Being able to glance at two or three icons to find out whether a player is more of a “pass rush specialist” or a “run stuffer” would make scrolling through pages upon pages of ratings a forgotten nightmare.

Just this time, let’s keep all those icons all off the playing field and leave them where they belong: in the game menus.

Online Franchise

For the Madden fans who live for the adrenaline rush of facing live competition, online franchise has been the feature that’s kept Madden 10 going all season long. Though the mode is far from perfect, competing against 31 different owners for draft picks, free agent signings and the all-important gameday victories are what earned Madden 10’s online franchise the OS Award for 2009's Online Experience of the Year.

Madden 10's new online franchise hub, accessible through your PC or iPhone and targeted by bosses everywhere as a serious threat to workplace productivity

If Madden 11's online franchise can simply shake off the first-year jitters by upgrading features like the barebones stat tracking, bizarre playoff logic and complete lack of salary cap, we could be looking at a repeat champion in 2010.

So what do you think? Is the Madden series headed down the road to victory, or is it, like the Oakland Raiders, still another year or two away from getting back into post-season form?

Sound off in the space below and let your voice be heard!

Madden NFL 10 Videos

Member Comments

# 1 Rocky @ 02/07/10 05:17 PM

I would honestly rather see them focus on the offline franchise than online franchise. IMO, that is still the single most important mode in sports gaming.

I believe I had a great, easy to implement idea in adding storylines to the franchise mode.
http://www.operationsports.com/forum...ibilities.html

The best franchise mode ever (Madden NFL 2007 for the PS2) had something similar to this and I played the heck out of that game.

# 2 stlstudios189 @ 02/07/10 05:18 PM

I think that all of this will be in Madden 11. This game was amazing and a lot of fun to play this year

# 3 BroMontana82 @ 02/07/10 05:34 PM

agreed with Rocky. the game was good but there were way too many bugs and the patch really messed things up. a lot of fixes need to take place.

# 4 Geek-Gaming @ 02/07/10 05:43 PM

Full online franchise and general gameplay improvements will be welcomed. Signature styles will be welcome as well. Cant wait to see what they offer up in madden 11. I think the game is going in the right direction.

# 5 CreatineKasey @ 02/07/10 06:36 PM

I've had a blast this year. My online franchise had to do a lot of manual work to create a functioning offseason system, but now that it's here... it's very enjoyable. I've never had an online league experience like it.

# 6 Crimsontide27 @ 02/07/10 06:38 PM

You know, I read alot of good articles here, but I really think we are missing the point.

While I would love for Madden to improve the ideas that you have set forth, there are a tons of issues that need fixed first.

The game just doesnt play like a football title should. Why write an ariticle about signature animations, when you have punters subbed in at center and doing just as well? Why write about adding yet MORE stat categories to evaluate players, when its proven time and time again they dont work?

Its about time to fix the freaking game. We have had the same issues over and over spanning a decade now and they are never fixed. Focusing over more fluff at this point is meaningless.

Concentrate on making a football game that actually resembles football, then start piling fluff on year after year.

# 7 strictbusiness14 @ 02/07/10 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crimsontide27


	You know, I read alot of good articles here, but I really think we are missing the point. While I would love for Madden to improve the ideas that you have set forth, there are a tons of issues that need fixed first. The game just doesnt play like a football title should. Why write an ariticle about signature animations, when you have punters subbed in at center and doing just as well? Why write about adding yet MORE stat categories to evaluate players, when its proven time and time again they dont work? Its about time to fix the freaking game. We have had the same issues over and over spanning a decade now and they are never fixed. Focusing over more fluff at this point is meaningless. Concentrate on making a football game that actually resembles football, then start piling fluff on year after year.

Technically, if they really want to get the game playing like a real football game, they need to get ratings that translate into the performance they're supposed to reflect. Right now, for the most part, the ratings are just not specific enough to give a true reflection of the real-life counterparts. And actually, I completely agree that using a weapons system (and getting rid of the overall rating) is the best way to accomplish the ratings problem. But you can't fix the AI until you have the proper variables...so you're putting the cart ahead of the horse there. Signature animations may be fluff, but (although I may be wrong; I don't have any intimate knowledge of the development process) I would think that those are mostly an art department thing instead of the core development. If it adds to the realism of the game, I have no problem with it.

# 8 Jump @ 02/07/10 09:24 PM

Harbinger - someones been playing Mass Effect 2.

# 9 jsquigg @ 02/07/10 11:27 PM

This article is obviously written by someone who wants too much out of Madden and sports games in general. I agree that the game will improve, but the tone was just cynical in reference to Madden 10 and past Maddens. And the Barry Sanders in All Pro Football was nothing like the real life Barry, especially with how that game represented the other backs so well.

# 10 t11 @ 02/08/10 01:46 AM

Meh, Madden 11 will be a rent. Madden 12 will be a buy

# 11 TombSong @ 02/08/10 04:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsquigg


	This article is obviously written by someone who wants too much out of Madden and sports games in general. I agree that the game will improve, but the tone was just cynical in reference to Madden 10 and past Maddens. And the Barry Sanders in All Pro Football was nothing like the real life Barry, especially with how that game represented the other backs so well.

How can he "want to much" out of Madden when he is speaking to things that alot of people have wanted in this game for years and also things that have already been implemented in older football games ?

I think the current dev team appears to have the motivation to get the game to where it needs to be, however how long that will take remains to be seen. I am hoping Madden 2011 finally puts closure to the issue of being compared to Ap2k8/2K5. Madden 2011 after its released should be spoken of in terms of how much it does better than those games and what it does new that those games do not do.

I have played this madden more than any on the current gen consoles. Its easily the best for this gen. That said its still weak in some areas compared to the old 2k games and some aspects of old madden games. Because people say negative things about madden does not mean they are "madden bashers" or have "agendas" We just stating how we feel. What needs to be judged is not if whats said is negative or positive. What needs to be judged is if whats said negative or positive is true or not.

# 12 NoFear @ 02/08/10 04:43 AM

All I want is a deep, deep franchise mode. Is that so much to ask? I can honestly go through an off-season in 10 minutes on Madden 10. Might take me 5 minutes to draft, but that's the only thing worthwhile.

More signature playing styles would be a welcome addition too. I think the starting running backs, wide receivers and defensive ends should all have their signature moves.

# 13 SonicZulu25 @ 02/08/10 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NoFear


	All I want is a deep, deep franchise mode. Is that so much to ask? I can honestly go through an off-season in 10 minutes on Madden 10. Might take me 5 minutes to draft, but that's the only thing worthwhile. More signature playing styles would be a welcome addition too. I think the starting running backs, wide receivers and defensive ends should all have their signature moves.

The franchise mode is what I would like to see improved upon as well, and I think the made a good step back in the right direction much like 2005 had.

Overall though, I am having fun with this game. This is much much better than the crap they released the last few years on this gen of gaming. There are definitely some gameplay issues but I honestly believe that we have become very picky....which is fine by me and hopefully will only provide feedback to the devs in making this game play better in the future.

# 14 rudyjuly2 @ 02/08/10 09:49 AM

I gave Madden 10 a shot but my two of my biggest disappointments in it were the camera angles and the fact it's not college football. Obviously they can fix the first issue and not the second. I think Madden 10 was a lot better than NCAA 10 in my short time with it but the lousy camera angles in both games really hurt my enjoyment of the game. Some of us use to play with the blimp camera on the PS2 and like a higher point of view camera. Some of us loved the custom camera angles we used to get in the older versions. Bring some of those options back and I'll be much happier.

Lastly (and this is for Madden and NCAA 11) I think the game needs to go back to being fun. I think a lot of criticism of these games, and I include myself in this, is that the game isn't realistic enough. Whether the 3-4 doesn't generate enough pass rush, the NT isn't occupying enough double teams, the sim stats aren't right, etc, etc. Guess what, none of that stuff was done that well on the PS2 and many of the critics talk openly about how great the PS2 versions were (NCAA 04 or NCAA 06, Madden 03 or Madden 05).

The PS2 versions had lousy line play when you compared it to real life. It was Tecmo style wrestling in the trenches but the game produced decent results and we liked it. One of the things I liked about NCAA 06 were the impact players. I loved seeing the great players dominate and instill fear in you from both an offensive and defensive perspective. I'd like to see a big difference between good and bad players even if it breaks the sim rules. I'd like to see a bigger difference between scat backs breaking my ankles with crazy juke moves versus power backs running me over (and let me do it too). I want the deep ball to be easier to complete for both me and the cpu. Big plays are fun! People want realism but taking a sack or throwing the ball away has never been part of the fun football games in the past.

People do need to look at why they loved the football games of the past and compare what those games did versus what we are asking these new games to do. In many ways they oppose each other. Be careful what we wish for. Maybe someone will build a great football game that is truly sim AND fun. But I'll settle for fun at the moment. It's been awhile.

# 15 michigan21 @ 02/08/10 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tazdevil20


	I find it amusing to read posts like this. It's the single most important mode in sports games in YOUR OPINION... Simply because YOU enjoy it the most. Someone who plays online and likes to have real online leagues will think the exact opposite. A simple solution? How about making all of the modes you have in the game up to par with what is out there already or was done 5 years ago? There's a long way to go for Madden to be worth 60 dollars... Or 20 dollars for that matter.

Its a opinion shared by alot of older gamers like myself. Thirty-six, married, three kids, a job. You know, life. Its really hard to devote a ton of time to play a game online in a franchise. I think Ea can do both. I think they can do something with online franchise, while tweaking and adding to offline.

# 16 HiTEqMETHOD @ 02/08/10 11:00 AM

I haven't bought Madden since '07 and I don't see myself doing so until 2012. I'm being optimistic here because I remember thinking way back in 2007 that 2010 would be a good game and I got burned. I'm just hoping either EA shapes up or someone else makes a great football game by then. APF2k8 was good but I need a franchise mode!

The main problem I have with EA's games are their lack of any sort of mojo or swagger. APF2k8 had it, PES has it, NBA 2k has it. Why can't EA just use all those resources and make a decent football game? Instead I get an easter egg shell with the mona lisa painted on it but when you open it up there's no treat.

Oh and if NCAA Football is as boring and unexciting as it was last year the upcoming college football season will be slightly less enjoyable.

# 17 bbmike15 @ 02/08/10 12:15 PM

I agree with everything but the online franchise. Is anyone actually playing this??? I thought it was a complete bust Iean no salary cap??? Signing free agents and trading at will??? What the point??? And the online award should of gone to the NCAA online dynasty which is FAR superior to madden joke of online franchise

# 18 jyoung @ 02/08/10 02:13 PM

I think Madden this year is in the same shape that Live 09 was two years ago or NHL 08 three years ago:

A good, fun game with lots of flaws that if fixed, could become a great game.

I think the development team they've got in place has the right vision and leadership to get the job done.

Next year should be the year that Madden finally moves out of the "C tier" of sports franchises up into the "B tier" with NBA Live and others.

# 19 RGiles36 @ 02/08/10 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodriggo


	The annual "What I want in Madden" thread. Let me tell you how it ends........they ignore everything you ask for.

Sorry bro' -- the above was applicable every year up until M10. Much of what was implemented this past year came from many wishlists that you claim have been ignored, mine in particular for sure.

It's one thing to criticize Tiburon and staff for their shortcomings. But it's time to let go of all the outdated beefs that no longer fit the bill. They do listen, even if some things aren't implemented to our satisfaction.

# 20 stylezgwhite @ 02/08/10 03:29 PM

I want them to stop worrying about authentic hand towels and start worrying about the gameplay. How about a working IR feature? How about being able to see where you drafted a player? How about an actual scouting system that needs to be used to draft properly? How about some tackle animations that go with the flow of the play? How about making it so the CBs don't make their cut before my WR does? What about fixing the CPU QB so they don't throw a flat route when its 4th and 15?

At least we have hand towels.

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