Alright boyz, here we go!!! Madden 2006 First Impressions

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

Anyone have any ''Great Game'' stories?

[Emiliano]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

i try Madden 2006 and ncaa 2006

but today i return my xbox at Target for a full refund.

and i am going to sell my Madden 2006 and NCAA 2006 on ebay.

What? Noooooooooo

Just out of curiosity: how much does the Xbox cost now in the US???

[Kodos]

Originally Posted by chinaski

QB Cone is a JOKE... how do they think you can hold a trigger, then select the receiver & then throw to him? To top it off, you cant even select another receiver if youre doing PA, you have to wait until after the fake handoff animation is done. - impossible.

I dunno which system you have, but on PS2, you can move the cone quickly by using the right thumbstick rather than R2 + receiver icon.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by chinaski

I really dont like the game that much, ive played every Madden in existence (far as i know) and its just doesnt do it for me. Too much time wasted on hokey gimmics (Superstar & QB Cone). Superstar is barely neat, and just for the 1st season; then it just becomes tedious. QB Cone is a JOKE... how do they think you can hold a trigger, then select the receiver & then throw to him? To top it off, you cant even select another receiver if youre doing PA, you have to wait until after the fake handoff animation is done. - impossible.

Superstar mode sucks.

The cone is terrific. It makes you think. The PA animation is exactly how things are in real life. A QB can't read the defense while he's running a PA. He has a hot read from the line of scrimmage (and in the game you can change your number one read there) and then progresses from there. He doesn't do the PA and automatically see the entire field.

I'm having great success switching between receivers now. Took me a few games, but I'm absolutely loving the cone. Just my opinion, but I think it's the best addition to any console football game in quite some time.

[MizzouRah]

Hey EF,

Have you tried Bill's sliders and tips just to see what you think of them?

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by Emiliano

What? Noooooooooo

Just out of curiosity: how much does the Xbox cost now in the US???

$149.99 plus tax

[jbmagic]

here a good tip i found

I think i find the secret as well. when passing deep do not use precision passing. press the receiver button AND then after the ball is released press up un the left stick. pressing up at the same time just throws the ball high but not farther. To hit the guy in stride press up after the ball is released.

[Raiders Army]

What does that do? Is it like follow-through for the QB? I'll have to check it out, but I just don't see it.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Hey EF,

Have you tried Bill's sliders and tips just to see what you think of them?

No, I was just commenting without trying them from my quick view of them


I'm fairly happy with the 0 sliders, and probably won't switch unless I hear very positive things from you or others who have given them a shot.

I'll also consider switching after the season if my stats look out of whack.

[jbmagic]

one of my budddies from work has been trying the Footballforever's "Ultimate-ALL-MADDEN" Sliders and he really likes it a lot. he been getting very good realistic result from it. he said its not been super hard or super easy. it just feels right.
he is 7-3 with the Rams in his dynasty with that slider.

madden is like religion to him. he plays it every chance he gets.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

one of my budddies from work has been trying the Footballforever's "Ultimate-ALL-MADDEN" Sliders and he really likes it a lot. he been getting very good realistic result from it. he said its not been super hard or super easy. it just feels right.
he is 7-3 with the Rams in his dynasty with that slider.

madden is like religion to him. he plays it every chance he gets.

Your last sentence is the problem. I think All-Madden skill level (even with those sliders) is going to be too hard for me. I tried a half of it with the Eagles vs the Cowboys, and I was getting beat by 14 points at the half. I need a skill level just slightly harder than All-Pro, but somewhat easier than All-Madden to fit my skill level.

That being said, I'm enjoying All-Pro for now

[Pumpy Tudors]

The zero sliders just didn't cut it for me in the one game I played. There was no running game. By the end of the game, I had bumped run blocking up to 4 for each team, and it still didn't feel right. I'm gonna give it another shot later. With that said, the passing seemed fine.

[chinaski]

Originally Posted by Kodos

I dunno which system you have, but on PS2, you can move the cone quickly by using the right thumbstick rather than R2 + receiver icon.

I have the xbox and you can do the same thing, but its near impossible for me to move the cone over to the receiver I want. The movement of the cone is reaaaaaallllly sensitive on the xbox version appearantly. I really like the idea of the cone, ive always used precision passing in the past, I guess ill give it another week and see if i can perfect it.

[Emiliano]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

The zero sliders just didn't cut it for me in the one game I played. There was no running game. By the end of the game, I had bumped run blocking up to 4 for each team, and it still didn't feel right. I'm gonna give it another shot later. With that said, the passing seemed fine.

Yeah I didn't like that too. I'm sticking with the "Playmakers' Final version" of 2-3 sets ago... I'm getting good games and having fun.

I'm playing Superstar right now, I was drafted by the Vikings in the 2nd round. I'm a RB, I was rated 87 post-draft (I dominated at Ohio State), pretty high. I started immediately and in week 7 I'm 2nd in the league in rushing behind LT. Anyway, as someone as said, it's becoming pretty tedious. After the draft, IQ test, interview and the movie role ( ) there isn't a lot to do off the field... You can't interact at all. On the field I'm having fun, the Vikings are a great team on Madden.

Overall, I'm liking the gameplay. The cone is a huge addition to me, I'm learning it fast with Culpepper.
My 2, BIG complaints:
-punt return doesn't exist (this is really pissing me off...)
-why they didn't include the juke stick to juke left/right like NCAA 2006?
These are really EA mysteries... How can you "forgot" punt return in a football game??? Bah...

[Eaglesfan27]

I take it back that All-Pro is too easy. Using the zero sliders with some slight tweaks - I upped interceptions to 2 for both sides and I upped the CPU run blocking to 2, I just had a good game.

San Diego dominated me in the 1st half. Donnie Edwards was all over my running game and they disguised their coverages well making for a poor day for McNabb. They were up 17-0 at halftime and LT had already run for 100 yards on 20 carries. However, in the beginning of the 3rd, he was hurt and Antonio Gates was hurt. It suddenly changed the whole tempo of the game. Drew Brees had been 11 of 11 in the 1st half, but without LT and Gates he missed his next 10 or 11 passes.

Unfortunately, LT came back in the 4th and ran just enough to put the game away.

SD beat me 27-21.

Stats:

McNabb: 23 of 46 (50%) for 256 yards 2 TD 3 INT (2 of them on passes that the receivers bobbled into the hands of DB's) sacked 5 times on some vicious blitzes.

McNabb: 7 carries for 123 yards including a beautiful 68 yard run in which he received 3 perfect blocks and was caught inside the 10 by a Safety.

Westbrook: 7 carries for 14 yards.

Buckhalter: 3 carries for 9 yards.

Terrell Owens: 9 catches for 93 yards and a TD.

LJ Smith: 7 catches for 69 yards and a TD.

Reggie Brown: 5 catches for 64 yards.

Tra Thomas: 4 pancake blocks.

Trotter: 10 tackles, 2 for a loss.

Kearse: 1 sack.

Dhani Jones: 1 pick.


Brees: 18 of 30 passing (60%) for 236 yards, 3 TD 1 INT, sacked 4 times.

LT: 31 carries for 144 yards (4.6 YPG!! Finally!)

Lorenzo Neal: 3 carries for 11 yards.

Gates: 5 catches for 62 yards and a TD.

Reche Caldwell: 5 catches for 115 yards and a TD.

LT: 4 catches for 42 yards and a TD.

Toniu Fonoti: 9 pancake blocks (the price of upping the CPU Run Block I guess.)

Edwards: 7 tackles, 3 for a loss.

Jamal Williams: 2 sacks.

Antuan Edwards: 2 interceptions.


Overall, that was one of my most fun games of madden ever even though I loss.

[MizzouRah]

Allright, I'm interested to see your sliders EF!

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Allright, I'm interested to see your sliders EF!

I'm upstairs (been working/playing on the computer) but I'll post them tomorrow.

[MizzouRah]

After I get some house work done today, I'm turning the passing cone off and trying AM level once again. The cone just doesn't do it for me and I think if I turn it off, I'll pass much more effectively.

NCAA plays quite well for me without sliders, I really wish Madden would.

[Ironhead]

Has anyone gone through a few seasons of franchise mode yet? I am seeing reports where people say that progression is messed up, and others who say that progression is just fine. I am going to be giving the game a rental soon, but whether I buy it will hinge on whether franchise mode is a viable option a couple seasons down the line.

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

After I get some house work done today, I'm turning the passing cone off and trying AM level once again. The cone just doesn't do it for me and I think if I turn it off, I'll pass much more effectively.

NCAA plays quite well for me without sliders, I really wish Madden would.

if you turn it off, no precision passing and no leading your wr.

[illinifan999]

I turned if off in practice mode and I can still lead/throw behind my recievers like I could in previous versions.

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by illinifan999

I turned if off in practice mode and I can still lead/throw behind my recievers like I could in previous versions.

so if cone is off, it turns off precision passing, but then you can lead the wr like in 2005?



if cone is on, then you can use precision passing, but leading wr is off right?


because with precision passing the ball goes high if you go up.

leading wr makes the ball go forward.


i dont think you can use both precision passing and pass lead wr.

[illinifan999]

You can still use the directional pad to direct the pass, like in previous versions.

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by illinifan999

You can still use the directional pad to direct the pass, like in previous versions.

i try that and ball go high when i go up on the d-pad . that is precison passing.

it even says it on the screen when i do it.

[illinifan999]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

i try that and ball go high when i go up on the d-pad . that is precison passing.

it even says it on the screen when i do it.

Yeah the ball goes high when you press up on the d-pad.....

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by illinifan999

Yeah the ball goes high when you press up on the d-pad.....

so that precision passing.


this is not pass leading like in 2005.

[illinifan999]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

so that precision passing.


this is not pass leading like in 2005.

What the fuck are you talking about?

Whether the cone is on or not you can control where your throw goes just like in previous versions.

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by illinifan999

What the fuck are you talking about?

Whether the cone is on or not you can control where your throw goes just like in previous versions.

what i am trying to tell you


that in madden 2006 precision passing replace pass lead for wr. that why there no pass lead slider anymore.

and it says that if the cone is off, you lose the precision passing.

precisoon passing is different than pass lead.


in Madden 2005 passing leading the wr made the ball go forward if you hit up on the d-pad.

this year its called precision passing and if you go up on the d-pad it makes the ball go high now.

[illinifan999]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

what i am trying to tell you


that in madden 2006 precision passing replace pass lead for wr. that why there no pass lead slider anymore.

and it says that if the cone is off, you lose the precision passing.

precisoon passing is different than pass lead.


in Madden 2005 passing leading the wr made the ball go forward if you hit up on the d-pad.

this year its called precision passing and if you go up on the d-pad it makes the ball go high now.

No...in previous versions it went up, if you pressed down it went low, right would throw it more to the right, and left would go more to the left...

[MizzouRah]

I don't care, I hate the damn cone. It's off. Games are much better now and I still think AM defaults are the way to go.

[TroyF]

Just a quick bump on this. . .

This game has had staying power for me. More than any football game I've played since NCAA '04. It's better than NFL2K5, my favorite pro game released during that time.

I love the cone, I love the running game.

I just finished a terrific game. I've got a slider set I'm pretty happy with and drafted a team. My DL/LB core is simply pathetic. My WR/TE/DB's are solid.

I play the Dolphins in Miami. Leftwich gets off to a hot start for me. Hits Moss on a hook pattern and Moss turns it up field for a 25 yard gain. End up scoring a TD on a short pass on the drive. The Dolphins use Ahman Green to simply thrash my front line. I can't control him no matter what defense I run. They use PA passes and runs to batter me all game long.

I blitz on one of the play action passes and knock their starter (Kitna) out of the game. Their backup is Mauck. Needless to say, this turns them into a one dimentional team. Not that it matters much, outside of a long bomb on a play action to Moss, I can't do anything on offense. They bottle up my running game completely. (Kevin Jones finishes the game with 58 yards on 22 carries) They also pic off a Leftwich pass and take it back to the house for six. (damnit, I never saw the safety sneak up in my pre snap read. One to many slant passes and Mike Minter is dancing in the end zone, ugh)

A back and forth game, we are knotted at 24 with 1 minute left. They ahve the ball on their 40 and I force a punt. I get the ball on my 37 after they shank one and I start my drive with 55 seconds left. A quick slant pass to Gates turns into a 20 yard gain after he breaks a tackle. I run a draw play with Jones for another 12. Two more running plays and the clock goes down. Kris Brown comes in for the game winning kick. They call a TO to freeze me. I hit the chip shot and win 27-24.

I'm not sure I've played a full season on a football game (actually play, not sim some games) since NCAA '04. That's going to change with this game.

[MizzouRah]

Damn... sold mine on Ebay for $41.00 (included shipping), very quick.

Glad you're liking it though Troy, I feel the same way about NCAA 2006.

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Damn... sold mine on Ebay for $41.00 (included shipping), very quick.

Glad you're liking it though Troy, I feel the same way about NCAA 2006.

wow nice price you sold it for.


i going to do that too for Madden 2006 and Ncaa 2006. sell them each on ebay.


how much you charge for shipping and how much was your starting price?

do you have a link. may i use your description as an example.

thanks

thanks

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Just a quick bump on this. . .

This game has had staying power for me. More than any football game I've played since NCAA '04. It's better than NFL2K5, my favorite pro game released during that time.

I love the cone, I love the running game.

I just finished a terrific game. I've got a slider set I'm pretty happy with and drafted a team. My DL/LB core is simply pathetic. My WR/TE/DB's are solid.

I play the Dolphins in Miami. Leftwich gets off to a hot start for me. Hits Moss on a hook pattern and Moss turns it up field for a 25 yard gain. End up scoring a TD on a short pass on the drive. The Dolphins use Ahman Green to simply thrash my front line. I can't control him no matter what defense I run. They use PA passes and runs to batter me all game long.

I blitz on one of the play action passes and knock their starter (Kitna) out of the game. Their backup is Mauck. Needless to say, this turns them into a one dimentional team. Not that it matters much, outside of a long bomb on a play action to Moss, I can't do anything on offense. They bottle up my running game completely. (Kevin Jones finishes the game with 58 yards on 22 carries) They also pic off a Leftwich pass and take it back to the house for six. (damnit, I never saw the safety sneak up in my pre snap read. One to many slant passes and Mike Minter is dancing in the end zone, ugh)

A back and forth game, we are knotted at 24 with 1 minute left. They ahve the ball on their 40 and I force a punt. I get the ball on my 37 after they shank one and I start my drive with 55 seconds left. A quick slant pass to Gates turns into a 20 yard gain after he breaks a tackle. I run a draw play with Jones for another 12. Two more running plays and the clock goes down. Kris Brown comes in for the game winning kick. They call a TO to freeze me. I hit the chip shot and win 27-24.

I'm not sure I've played a full season on a football game (actually play, not sim some games) since NCAA '04. That's going to change with this game.

Even though, I haven't posted much. I'm still very actively playing Madden and enjoying it as well. I expect to go further in my franchise than I ever have (despite the fact that I will likely get Madden for the Xbox 360 in November and give this version to my step-brother along with my Xbox.)

[Pumpy Tudors]

Arrrgggh. You guys have me ready to play it again, and I was just about to step back to MVP Baseball (it's amazing to me that MVP still has "playability" six months after release). Can't play tonight, but I'll get to it again tomorrow, I'm sure.

[Raiders Army]

I can tell this is a great game; however, it's currently shelved until I can complete year 4 of my NCAA dynasty. At that point, I'll pick it up and play it for four years.

Last year I played 9 years of NCAA and 7 years of Madden. I have no doubt that this year will be the same.

[TroyF]

For anyone reading the posts who hasn't purhased the game, there are flaws. The kick return game is just plain broke for instance. The draft hasn't been changed a ton and still has some poor picks. (which may force the serious player to control the draft)

But the game is jsut incredibly fun to play. After that wild 27-24 game against Miami, I followed it up with a 24-6 thumping of the Chargers at home. Leftwich struggled for a majority of the game. They doubled Moss all day, making it very difficult to get the ball to him. Their doubling of Moss allowed the running game to take off, however, and Jones ran for 96 yards (23 carries). Leftwich threw for just enough to put some drives together. The Chargers still ran over my weak D-Line, but the bend but don't break defense worked. I picked off one pass at the goal line (my only INT all game) and forced them into two 52 yard field goals that they missed. The game was 9 - 6 (nothing but field goals) at the start of the fourth quarter.

Every game has a different feel to it. I just didn't find NCAA as fun this year. I doubt I'll spend much more time with it and am only going to hold onto it for the draft classes. (all simmed)

[Kodos]

I'm enjoying it when I get a chance to play, but I have yet to win a game. Still tweaking sliders to help my passing game and the computer's.

[MizzouRah]

Here you go jb:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MESO%3AIT&rd=1

Games are really easy, just input your UPC code and ebay will do the rest. I charge $5.00 shipping for 1 game and a $1 option for insurance. I ship everything Priority mail in the US only.

[Julio Riddols]

I just wanted to say something about punt returns that I have been noticing.. The game doesnt measure the return properly.

Pay close attention to where you actually catch the ball and then listen to the commentary.. it will constantly say that you started your return from 3 or more yards further up than you actually did.. For instance, yesterday, I had a 10 yard return with Peter Warrick, from the 34 to the 44.. However, the announcers said I started my return from the 37, costing me 3 return yards.. I am thinking maybe this is a big part of why there arent realistic punt return numbers in the game.

[jbmagic]

Bad News

there a major bug on the console and pc of Madden 2006.

there is a fatigue bug on sim games. the fatigue is broken for sim games.

so the starters play the whole game. there no Subs at all. only time a backup will come in if a starter gets injure for sim games.

Fatigue only works for in game play.

no wonder the sims stats are off on franchise mode.

This has been reported on Maddenmania forum.

[Emiliano]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

Bad News

there a major bug on the console and pc of Madden 2006.

there is a fatigue bug on sim games. the fatigue is broken for sim games.

so the starters play the whole game. there no Subs at all. only time a backup will come in if a starter gets injure for sim games.

Fatigue only works for in game play.

no wonder the sims stats are off on franchise mode.

This has been reported on Maddenmania forum.

Damn! I haven't played Madden in a while, but I didn't know this.

Hey jb, did you buy the PC version then? If you did, how does it play compared to the xbox?

[General Mike]

I haven't bought this game yet. Is it better than Madden 2005: Collector's Edition?

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by General Mike

I haven't bought this game yet. Is it better than Madden 2005: Collector's Edition?

I liked Madden 2005 much better.. but I didn't give Madden 2006 enough play.