Little by little, the Madden series continues to chip away at its long list of legacy issues and shortcomings. Madden 15 is a solid step better than its predecessors (Connected Career mode bugs aside), but EA seems to timid to take that gigantic leap that so many other series have already taken. The leap that NBA 2K took when you could look at a picture of James Harden and not be able to tell the difference between a game and real life, or the leap The Show took when little things like a beach ball being knocked around the stadium wasn't just a clever detail - it was a clever detail built on hundreds of others.

These are arbitrary examples, of course. When and if games have reached that new level of realism is largely a subjective thing, but if there's a consensus, and I think there is, it's that Madden hasn't made that leap yet. So we have to ask ourselves: Why not, and what can they do to get there? Well, here are five things that would almost assuredly make the Madden series a part of the growing number of video games that have already given us the "wow" factor it so desperately needs.

1. Signature Animations Across The Board

Look, I don't think any of us are expecting Madden to give each and every player their own unique style. There are only so many ways you can look when running, defending, receiving, and tackling. But there needs to be more variation, and I think that begins with a separate set of animations for each kind of player.

Have a physical corner who loves to get his hands dirty? There needs to be an animation for that kind of defensive back. Have a running back that loves to go head first right at the defense? There needs to be an animation for that. As of right now, we have a pool of what seems to be only a handful or two of animations for each position - all which leave you with no visual distinction between one player or another.

2. Penalties

How is it possible that we still don't have working penalties? Not having one of the most called penalties in football (interference) working in the game is absolutely unacceptable at this point. If you have to rework the engine to get there, then now is the time to do it.

3. Special Teams Variance

This one speaks for itself. No blocked kicks, no returned punts or kicks for the CPU, and terrible ball physics in the kicking game. It's an exaggeration to say that special teams is a third of football, but it isn't an exaggeration to say that it plays a significant role every game. If EA is so worried about this affecting the online community, than having a simple workaround with sliders should do the trick.

4. Variation in Presentation

I'm one of the few who thinks that Nantz and Simms are fine choices for a broadcast booth, but why is that our only option? Disc space is no longer a real issue, and audio can't possibly take up as much memory as some of the other fine details in next-generation gaming, so why can't this be done? Every Sunday, we aren't just used to hearing Nantz and Simms, we are also used to hearing John Buck, Tom Hammond, etc. There's no excuse not to try something a little new, especially when Madden is one of the few game series that refuses to bring anything new to the table. For once, it would be nice to see them innovate.

5. Make The Field Bigger

This isn't a literal suggestion, but one thing that EA's football games have always struggled with is the size of the football field. Everything is always far too cluttered, especially in the passing game. Balls need to hit the ground with more regularity (this year's iteration is a huge improvement here), there needs to be more one-on-one situations in the passing game, there needs to be room for battles in the secondary, etc. Make it feel like we are on the field, and that ever step to one side or the other makes a difference.

What do you think we push Madden NFL to the next level?