Madden 09 - The Hype Machine kicks in

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Yeah.. do we REALLY need to copy every blog and OS post about each glitch Madden has?

I mean, the NCAA thread was enough for me to ignore it, but it's getting old.

I'm loving NCAA and Head Coach has been great.. I'm not saying don't post about issues you encounter, but when you haven't even played the game, why copy and paste?

No one is requiring someone to read any of my posts. You're going to draw your own impressions without some of the other opinions on the game. For those that are interested, they're welcome to read other opinions on the game.

Where's the complaints about the many links with positive feedback that I've posted about Head Coach '09? Where's the post saying 'Do we need to post ever blog and OS post about each positive aspect of HC09?'? Both games were out on the same day. Why is it old with Madden but not with HC09?

[Big Fo]

Please somebody who has the game say something positive about it so I can go out and get the CE for Head Coach and at least try to halfway justify it.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Sun Tzu

How do you put someone on your ignore list anyway?

Click "User CP" at the top, then click "Buddy / Ignore Lists" near the bottom of the list of option buttons on the list. We used to have this directly in the forum, but for some reason we've only got the buddy option now.

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Yeah.. do we REALLY need to copy every blog and OS post about each glitch Madden has?

I mean, the NCAA thread was enough for me to ignore it, but it's getting old.

I'm loving NCAA and Head Coach has been great.. I'm not saying don't post about issues you encounter, but when you haven't even played the game, why copy and paste?

It's MBBF fan, you shouldn't be really surprised.

I'm skipping on Madden (I haven't bought the game since Culpepper was the cover).

[Logan]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Yeah.. do we REALLY need to copy every blog and OS post about each glitch Madden has?

I mean, the NCAA thread was enough for me to ignore it, but it's getting old.

I'm loving NCAA and Head Coach has been great.. I'm not saying don't post about issues you encounter, but when you haven't even played the game, why copy and paste?

I said this in the NCAA thread...if someone starts an "Alright Boyz, Madden 09 FIRST-HAND Impressions" thread, we'll be all good, because then it will officially be trolling.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

I said this in the NCAA thread...if someone starts an "Alright Boyz, Madden 09 FIRST-HAND Impressions" thread, we'll be all good, because then it will officially be trolling.

I'm sure you're equally appalled at my trolling in the Head Coach thread. My trolling in the CivIV thread must be driving you crazy.

:rollseyes:

[Logan]

You remind me of the pain in the ass at work who keeps forwarding financial articles to the entire office with nothing more than an "FYI" contribution of his own. If I could set up an Outlook rule that sends messages directly into the trash for you like I do for him, that would be great.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

No one is requiring someone to read any of my posts. You're going to draw your own impressions without some of the other opinions on the game. For those that are interested, they're welcome to read other opinions on the game.

Where's the complaints about the many links with positive feedback that I've posted about Head Coach '09? Where's the post saying 'Do we need to post ever blog and OS post about each positive aspect of HC09?'? Both games were out on the same day. Why is it old with Madden but not with HC09?

What's wrong with being positive? I love games... very passionate about gaming in general and your posts are always so negative when you don't even play them in the first place.

I'm sure some folks appreciate your posts pasted from OS and the like, it's just getting a tad annoying. I know you're disappointed in NCAA and Madden, but there is some fun to be had with these games.

Head Coach has issues too, but it's been fun so far.

[Anthony]

I'm gonna pick up madden today. i wasn't going to, but my friend (who doesn't critique sports games like many do here) picked it up so we'd have something else to play online together so i might as well pick it up. i don't think i'll be doing any franchise with it, too bad there isn't online franchises cuz then this would be worth it for me. but to play online with my friend i'll get my $60 out of this. we've already got tons of value out of COD4. worst comes to worst then i'll just trade madden in for something else once we get tired of it, not like i'm handcuffed to the thing forever. and i highly doubt this game isn't worth $60. that's very hard to believe a company that would invest all this money to have an exclusive license would let their flagship game go to crap intentionally. so it's not groundbreaking or even up to the standards of a football text game in terms of stats. who cares? i don't need to play every sports game as if i were a stats geek. sometimes i can put on my casual gamer hat and play games for fun like i did in the mid-90's when i would play madden with sprite-based players and giggle whenever an ambulance would run over an injured player.

[Comey]

Yeah, the fact that you're passing off your own opinions in the form of others (which, if you believe you're doing it or not, is what you're doing), and then using the umbrella of "warning the public" or whatever...that gets old really quick. I've tried to keep an unbiased opinion about this entire thing, but you doing this nonstop, as well as using arguments that honestly hold no water in any defense...it makes these threads unreadable.

Perhaps you should start your own thread, with posts about Madden, NCAA, or whatever other games you discuss but don't play. Then, if people want to see THOSE, they can.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Logan

You remind me of the pain in the ass at work who keeps forwarding financial articles to the entire office with nothing more than an "FYI" contribution of his own. If I could set up an Outlook rule that sends messages directly into the trash for you like I do for him, that would be great.

It's called the "Ignore" list. User CP has a place you can add folks to your Ignore and Buddy lists.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

It's called the "Ignore" list. User CP has a place you can add folks to your Ignore and Buddy lists.

Exactly.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

What's wrong with being positive? I love games... very passionate about gaming in general and your posts are always so negative when you don't even play them in the first place.

I'm sure some folks appreciate your posts pasted from OS and the like, it's just getting a tad annoying. I know you're disappointed in NCAA and Madden, but there is some fun to be had with these games.

Head Coach has issues too, but it's been fun so far.

I've stated on more than one occasion that the head to head games on NCAA and Madden, especially with someone you know, are the bright spots of those two games. That shouldn't be that surprising to most people as EA generally caters to that crowd.

[Comey]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs2

I think we tried that.

The Official "I Loathe EA" Thread - Hosted by Mizzou B-ball fan - Front Office Football Central

I don't see that it's closed.

Also, you're wrong. "We" is Me+Others. In this equation, you are the "Me". Since you've yet to do anything there, you can't say "we" tried that.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

It's called the "Ignore" list. User CP has a place you can add folks to your Ignore and Buddy lists.

Unfortunately that's not effective.

[Maple Leafs]

So I bought this today, the first version I've picked up since 2005 or so.

Over the years I just wound up feeling like I needed a PhD in Maddenology to enjoy the game. I don't mind learning a new game, but when I was still throwing five INTs a game after a few weeks the fun factor died pretty quick (especially when those INTs came from superman-style DBs who had been added just for the 20-hour-a-day fanatics who complain about the game being too easy). Sliders never did anything, of course.

The whole Madden IQ thing was what brought me back. I'm sure that like any new EA Sports feature it won't be half as good as advertised, but anything will be an improvement.

We'll see...

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Logan

Unfortunately that's not effective.

It is if enough folks use it so that the quotes go away...

[Fidatelo]

The thing that amazes me about MBBF is his persistence in the face of overwhelming opposition. Despite constant protests, arguments, and pretty much nothing in the way of support, he consistently spams the forums with his unwanted opinions. You need some seriously thick skin to take the beatings he takes and still keep coming back for more.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

The thing that amazes me about MBBF is his persistence in the face of overwhelming opposition. Despite constant protests, arguments, and pretty much nothing in the way of support, he consistently spams the forums with his unwanted opinions. You need some seriously thick skin to take the beatings he takes and still keep coming back for more.

Certainly, there's a wealth of evidence both in media and community feedback that the game suffers from some major issues, so saying that there's no supporting evidence is obviously not true.

I will say that the FOFC community is much more aware of the problems with the EA franchises, much moreso than the general gaming public. You get the occasional blind loyalty posters like Sun Tzu who will defend bad EA games to the death, but most on this board are pretty practical and fair in their assessments. I'd put posters like EF27 at the top of that list.

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Certainly, there's a wealth of evidence both in media and community feedback that the game suffers from some major issues, so saying that there's no supporting evidence is obviously not true.

I will say that the FOFC community is much more aware of the problems with the EA franchises, much moreso than the general gaming public. You get the occasional blind loyalty posters like Sun Tzu who will defend bad EA games to the death, but most on this board are pretty practical and fair in their assessments. I'd put posters like EF27 at the top of that list.

Is that seriously what you took my post to mean? Go back and read it again please. Slowly.

I think this might explain some things to me, actually.

[Ajaxab]

Anyone else seeing the truth residing somewhere between Mizzourah's inherent optimism and Mizzou B-ball fan's inherent pessimism? Two variations on the 'Show Me' state I suppose.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I think this might explain some things to me, actually.

Look, he was trying to tell all the folks raving about their online NCAA games against each other that there was no way they should have been having nearly as much fun as they were having because the game clearly stunk. What more were you expecting?

[Sun Tzu]

This thread is actually funny with MBBF's posts on ignore.

love

[Big Fo]

I can't compare it to last year's game since the last Madden I've played was 07 on the PS2, but compared to NCAA 09 the graphics are much better and I do like the way ball carriers react when tackled and fight for yards before the defense swarms in. Passes to the running back seem to work great just like in NCAA.

[BigDPW]

Originally Posted by Sun Tzu

How do you put someone on your ignore list anyway?

Click on their profile page (the first option when you click on their name) and then click on "Add to your Ignore List" which is in the upper right hand side of their profile page...

It is a thing of beauty!

[Raiders Army]

After playing about four or five games, it does seem like a different game visually and presentation-wise from Madden 08. The gameplay is actually pretty fun. Maybe it was my level of expectations, but it seemed as if it is better than a lot of people are saying.

Hammond isn't as robotic as what people have said. Collinsworth (while I hate the guy in real life) isn't bad either. Maybe that's because I haven't played with an announcer in a few years. I normally turned the radio announcer off. The camera angles before the snap are great and when someone breaks off a huge run the camera shakes as they run the last few yards into the endzone.

The tackling is better and the additional animations add a lot. Passing seems to be extremely difficult, however, and I don't like the scaling skill level.

They do a lot of things well in this iteration, but I'm not sure it's worth the money to move from 08 to 09. It all depends on what you want. To me, I need a joystick football game and I've spent a total of about $130 for the PS3 version of NCAA, the 360 version of NCAA, and the collector's edition of Madden this year. That's not much money in the long run so it's worth it to me.

[Front Office Midget]

I've played seven games now, and have enjoyed it. I don't have any consoles, so naturally won't be purchasing it, but it will definitely be fun for my free 5 night rental.

I'm disappointed in the game, as I feel like it could/should be better at this point in the series, but that doesn't keep it from being fun.

A few things:
1. DB's don't seem to be superhuman anymore.
2. WR's are awful, and don't even try for the long ball.
3. The long ball is much harder, almost too hard.
4. I was having a hard time running the ball on the PS3, but succeeded on the XBOX 360... I think it's just a coincidence though, and I was just learning how to run.
5. 360 > PS3 on this game. The PS3 version is super-choppy, to the point of which I was surprised it got released. No such problems with the 360.
6. I'm 4-3 vs. Nathan and Steve so far, since you all were wondering.

[Comey]

Originally Posted by Front Office Midget

I've played seven games now, and have enjoyed it. I don't have any consoles, so naturally won't be purchasing it, but it will definitely be fun for my free 5 night rental.

I'm disappointed in the game, as I feel like it could/should be better at this point in the series, but that doesn't keep it from being fun.

A few things:
1. DB's don't seem to be superhuman anymore.
2. WR's are awful, and don't even try for the long ball.
3. The long ball is much harder, almost too hard.
4. I was having a hard time running the ball on the PS3, but succeeded on the XBOX 360... I think it's just a coincidence though, and I was just learning how to run.
5. 360 > PS3 on this game. The PS3 version is super-choppy, to the point of which I was surprised it got released. No such problems with the 360.
6. I'm 4-3 vs. Nathan and Steve so far, since you all were wondering.

I have not had a single issue with the ps3.

[Raiders Army]

One thing that I swear I hear during the commentary is the same phrases said by Collinsworth that were said by Madden a few years ago. Even the snort and sarcastic phrase seem to be the same.

[Balldog]

I'm not seeing any framerate issues on PS3 either.

Anyone playing online for PS3?

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Over the years I just wound up feeling like I needed a PhD in Maddenology to enjoy the game. I don't mind learning a new game, but when I was still throwing five INTs a game after a few weeks the fun factor died pretty quick (especially when those INTs came from superman-style DBs who had been added just for the 20-hour-a-day fanatics who complain about the game being too easy). Sliders never did anything, of course.

Played my first game yesterday after first setting my Madden IQ... and it was pretty much exactly like every game I played back in the 2004/5 days. Seven INTs between the two sides, no running game to speak of, very few passes that weren't caught by somebody. Oh, and twenty versions into the franchise the AI still hasn't figured out how to run out the clock at the end of a game.

Sigh.

Will keep at it for a week or so and see if it gets any better.

[JS19]

sooo did they get rid of the QB vision? I picked up the game today after work but was only able to play a little over the 1st quarter before had to take care of some family mumbo jumbo.

[Sweed]

I have always thought\wondered if a game could test your see\react timing and then determine a skill level or slider setting for you. My intention was to wait awhile before buying Madden 09 but the "My Skill"-"Madden IQ" seemed to me to be going down this road of setting up the game to play at a level equal to my ability and was the determining factor for me to try the game.

IMHO the game plays a fun and fairly realistic version of football. My usual first day to week of playing Madden is trying to figure out what slider settings will give me a game I want to play. With 09 I simply took the Madden test and let the game set the level for me.

The result was I played my entire preseason in one sitting, never touching a slider, getting good games, realistic scores, while having a great time. I can't tell you the last time I reeled off four straight games of Madden. I do know it was never on the first day I bought it unless you count the frustrating hours of find sliders at OS, set sliders, test, don't like results, rinse and repeat.

I'm now two games into my regular season winning two close games using my Rams. I can't say enough about how enjoyable it makes a game when you don't have to touch the sliders. Some are worried the "My Skill" will over
compensate when you beat a good team by making the game too tough
or by making the game too easy if you lose to Miami. I'm not seeing this in my game. I beat Philadelphia in the opener 34-28 and my IQ did increase along with sliders. I next played the Giants in St Louis and won 34-31 with the harder slider setting. If things continue as they have been so far the "My Skill" will be the best new feature I've seen in a sports title in a long while.

Not sure if Front Office Midget has a defective ps3 but Madden on mine plays
as smooth as any sports game I've ever had including Madden 08 last year on my 360. Replays that come up automatically are choppy on the ps3 but that is the only instance I have seen. If you hit the "R3" button on the play-calling screen for a replay they are as smooth as the in-game play. Same for replays done from the pause menu.

Interception and fumble issues are gone. McNabb threw one in my first game and Manning threw none for the Giants. Over the preseason I threw 3 picks in four games and picked off 6 cpu passes. I was a little nervous when I picked off 5 in the first preseason game against the Titans. Perhaps the "Madden IQ" made an adjustment after the first game? Two games into my season I fumbled twice. Once Dante Hall on a KR and S. Jackson laid one on the ground on a simple run. I have yet to force a fumble in the regular season.

I really like the passing game. The protection\rush seems to be right. The good receivers (think Torry Holt) in older Maddens I had to work to get the ball to. In 09 it seems the ball naturally goes to them, ala they are better at getting open and are open more often. The touch passing is much better and I have had some success going deep.

The running has been harder to get a handle on. First game Jackson was around 3 yds per carry most of the game and after getting stuffed a couple of times late ended at 2.8. Second game vs the Giants was up to 4.4. Was it "my skill" adjusting or me getting better? I don't know but it was two realistic games.

The cpu does a good job sustaining drives, think the 15 play 8 minute type. They do a good job of ball control and finish drives well. I have had the "run out of bounds for no reason" happen a couple of times. I haven't had the cpu punt when it should kick a FG, like some have reported (maybe due to the ps3 having it's first patch out?). It even kicked a 50 yarder against me.

I'm aware of some reporting franchise issues so will have to see how that shakes out for me. If progression is broke (I say if because I saw progression in my players over preseason under specific skills as much as +4) it will detract from franchise. Fixed or working and the game will probably be the best Madden I've played.


I did get the "freeze" on the playcalling screen where I had to manually turn off the ps3 using the front button and then restart the machine. The controller would do nothing during the freeze, even holding the ps button had no effect. Maybe I'm lucky but it only happened once in seven games, others are reporting more on both the ps3 and 360.

Overall I'm happy I bought it. It's fun as a joystick game and I don't expect as much from it as I do a text sim stat wise or roster management wise, YMMV.

[SegRat]

Count me in as 1 happy gamer with madden. I am using the My Skill, and I just played the 3 best games of football I have played in years. With the exception of players running out of bounds, this game finally feels right. And with the addition of HC, this was well worth the money.

[Anthony]

i played 2 fun games with my friend online. i was the Buccs vs. his Giants and i intercepted him i think 5-6 times. granted he isn't a very good madden player so i won't hold that against the game. my friend played much better in our 2nd game (i was Chicago and he was the Vikings). less ints for both of us, especially after i benched Grossman for Orton. one little annoying thing is the AI doesn't start your best guys, i guess it bases the starters from last year's ending roster. with the Bucs i had Ernest Graham as my RB rated 80 overall, when Dunn and Cadillac Williams were on my bench rated 82 or higher. Bears trotted out some guy named Forte (an RB) until i realized i had the much better Kevin Jones on my bench which resulted in the following exchange:

Hell Atlantic: all right! i just put in Kevin Jones.
Brett (my friend): Kevin Jones the running back??
Hell Atlantic: no, Kevin Jones the fucking mayor. how many Kevin Jones do you know in the NFL??

the graphics are simply put the most beautiful for any football game i've ever played. presentation is very slick like all madden's are, and the commentary, specifically Chris Collinsworth is outstanding. i completely forgot Collinsworth was prerecorded at one point in a game, and commented to my friend how realistic and awesome the voice acting was. you can really tell Collinsworth took this real serious and put a lot of effort into it, unlike Al Michaels who phoned it in last year (probably literally).

My Skill is completely awesome. i haven't played a game using it, but my Madden IQ score is 569. my running is on All Madden, passing on 3rd highest level, pass defense on pro and pass rush on 3rd highest level. apparently this will get adjusted the more i play. i wasn't able to run with much success. a little frustrating. playbooks seem to be literally ripped from NCAA '09. i wasn't able to pass with much ease. don't know if it was me, Bucs not having good receivers/Bears having horrible QBs and only Hester to pass to, or the game itself. but thank god for defensive td's or i'd have lost both games. normally takes me about a few days to get my Madden timing down pat anyway. i hardly think i'd play this game against a stranger though, i think those days are over as much as it pains me to say. i see my skills declining in this game.

i didn't know online leagues were in this game, its a real pleasant surprise (i didn't follow all the madden hype so i wasn't aware of every little thing that was added in this year's version).

if you're gonna nitpick about the game then i'm sure you can find a lot of stuff, i was playing with someone who doesn't critique games as much as others here do so i was able to enjoy it more on a casual level (which is what i assume how Madden is intended to be enjoyed in the first place). i really didn't want to pick up a 2nd football game (i only have 3 games, this, NCAA '09 and COD4). 2 football games is overkill, but i think i'll be getting more than my money's worth out of this. i'm through letting people tarnish perfectly good games for me just cuz they aren't perfectly perfect.

[Raiders Army]

To be fair, comparing Collinsworth who has a lot more freedom in his lines to Michaels isn't the same. If you were to compare Collinsworth to Madden or Hammond to Michaels that would be more like oranges to oranges.

[Icy]

Grrr to read this thread really frustrates me as i have seen in the DHL courier website that the game is already in my city waiting to be brought to me, but today is holidays in Spain and then we have the weekend, so i won't get the Madden CE until Monday. I'll try to work my ass off this weekend so i have more time to play next week.

[Kodos]

Originally Posted by Anthony

i didn't know online leagues were in this game, its a real pleasant surprise (i didn't follow all the madden hype so i wasn't aware of every little thing that was added in this year's version).

Just so you know, it isn't really what you think it is. It is basically a round-robin tournament, not a season played online.

[Front Office Midget]

Originally Posted by Sweed

Not sure if Front Office Midget has a defective ps3 but Madden on mine plays
as smooth as any sports game I've ever had including Madden 08 last year on my 360. Replays that come up automatically are choppy on the ps3 but that is the only instance I have seen. If you hit the "R3" button on the play-calling screen for a replay they are as smooth as the in-game play. Same for replays done from the pause menu.

My friend HAS been having problems with his PS3, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was his PS3, not Madden, that was the issue.

I had NO IDEA you could use R3 to call the replay. I've complained forever about not being able to access a replay without pushing start. That's great news.

[RainMaker]

Question about the Madden IQ. Does it adjust every game in franchise? Do you have to repeatedly go through the tasks? Or is the settings set from the very beginning. When I play a franchise, I usually always keep making the settings harder as I get more experienced with the game and my team. If I didn't, I'd steamroll every team by year 2.

Any feedback on this is appreciated.

[Kodos]

I read that a lot of people skip the test, and let the Madden IQ adjust to how you play over the course of a season.

After reading some threads over at OS, I am actually moving back towards the buy it column. The problems with franchise mode are the main thing stopping me...

[Sweed]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Question about the Madden IQ. Does it adjust every game in franchise? Do you have to repeatedly go through the tasks? Or is the settings set from the very beginning. When I play a franchise, I usually always keep making the settings harder as I get more experienced with the game and my team. If I didn't, I'd steamroll every team by year 2.

Any feedback on this is appreciated.

Your IQ changes after each game. You get a report after each game, before hitting "end game", that displays your new Madden IQ and let's you watch the "My Skill" sliders being adjusted. The better you play, the better your IQ, the higher your sliders go.

The only problem I see is IF your are a great player and get all of the sliders maxed to "All Madden" level and can still dominate the game. I don't have to worry about that though because I'm not that good

You also have the option to redo the tasks anytime you want, from the main menu, to make a new IQ and My Skill level.

[Sweed]

Originally Posted by Kodos

After reading some threads over at OS, I am actually moving back towards the buy it column. The problems with franchise mode are the main thing stopping me...

I can see this being a killer for a lot of people. Hopefully with their new board presence they will listen to all of the posters on many boards and get this patched.

[Maple Leafs]

I love the idea of Madden IQ, but the implementation is iffy. For example, the offensive running drill is just easy. Hell, you don't even need to press the buttons, just run along behind your blockers and walk into the end zone untouched almost every time. End result: Madden decides you're really great at running and makes the actual in-game rushing impossible. Hello 1.8 ypc.

On the flip side, I was awful at the run defence test since I can't make open field tackles. But what does that have to do with an overall running game? Just because I can't stop a guy one-on-one in the open field, Madden now decides it has to cripple the entire CPU run offense?

Anyways, the fact that it adjusts after each game will be a huge help. I'm sure that after a half dozen games or so the results will be much better.

[sabotai]

Yup...I'm weak. But it's August, damn it, I need some football. No news at all from the text sim guys and Backbreaker is at least a few more months away (if we see it this year).

I'll have this and HC on Monday.

[ColtCrazy]

Has anyone hear bought or played the original Xbox version? I keep going back and forth between it and the Wii version. Some posts on the Madden OS forums made the original Xbox game sound pretty good, but the Call Your Shots mode for the Wii sounds very intriguing.

[sabotai]

I was reading earlier on OS about some of the problems in the game. There's a thread about the fatigue from one of Madden's designers. He said:

The main change was to tie fatigue into more strenuous events like performing hit sticks, getting impact blocked, getting run over, covering a WR on a deep route, etc. We felt that this was a much more realistic representation of how an NFL-caliber athlete “gets fatigued” as well.

But the people on OS seem to be ripping into the Madden devs by bitching about how this ruined sim style gamers.

Seems to me if they changed to this model for fatigue, it's a good change. Seems like a pretty realistic way to model fatigue. A lot of people are complaining that defensive players don't get tired, so maybe there is a bug in the system somewhere, but they seem to be reading too much into the reason they needed to change the fatigue system (online cheese). Online cheese may have been the catalyst for the change, but if fatigue works the way they described it, then that seems like a good change to me.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by sabotai

... but if fatigue works the way they described it, then that seems like a good change to me.

That seems to be the pattern for EA Sports, though. The feature always sounds good in theory, but then its implemented in a strange or just plain dumb way.

[Balldog]

Mud Bowl 2008

Game tied at 10 with 0:23 left and this happens...

EA SPORTS World: Madden 09 Video Highlight

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Sweed

The only problem I see is IF your are a great player and get all of the sliders maxed to "All Madden" level and can still dominate the game. I don't have to worry about that though because I'm not that good

yes, that would be a problem. a sad problem for your social life that you could master such a pathetic feat due to all the hours wasted honing such a useless skill.

if anything i would say if you could thrash the AI so badly then you're a good candidate to solely play your games online against other humans.