Madden 10 Demo Live Tonight, Thoughts Here

[SegRat]

This is the first time in a long time I have been this excited about madden in a long time. I will be playing the demo a ton. Hopefully it lives up to expectations. And hopefully the new pass rush is in the demo.

[rowech]

It's already out from what I understand.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Still can't believe the marketing buffoons at EA decided it was a good idea to give everyone who didn't preorder a demo with 1 minute quarters.

Despite that, I'll still give it a try or see if I can get a demo code.

[DataKing]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Still can't believe the marketing buffoons at EA decided it was a good idea to give everyone who didn't preorder a demo with 1 minute quarters.

Despite that, I'll still give it a try or see if I can get a demo code.

I was at Gamestop not too long ago, and the shmuck behind the desk was trying to use this as a selling point to get me to pre-order.

[DaddyTorgo]

i thought they were releasing madden 10 on pc?

[samifan24]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Still can't believe the marketing buffoons at EA decided it was a good idea to give everyone who didn't preorder a demo with 1 minute quarters.

Despite that, I'll still give it a try or see if I can get a demo code.

Wow that's ridiculous. 1 minute quarters? What's the point, EA?

[stevew]

Welp, FOFC is probably crashing tonight.

[Kodos]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

i thought they were releasing madden 10 on pc?

Nope.

[MizzouRah]

I'm on vacation, so I called Gamestop to see if I could get my code over the phone.. nope.. have to physically walk into the store. I mean, can't you verify my pre-order somehow?

Would like to hear impressions though from the FOFC crowd!

[ColtCrazy]

Well crap...I was in GS today, then come home to read this. Guess the code isn't on your receipt, huh?

[Big Fo]

Originally Posted by stevew

Welp, FOFC is probably crashing tonight.

Maybe, but definitely on the day the full game releases.

[rowech]

I was just reading the thoughts of people on Operation Sports Forums. I'd say it's 9-1 in terms of favorable posts. I had liked what I'd been reading about this game and now I'm really thinking it'll be a purchase. Hopefully, some of you will give your impressions as well.

[dervack]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Still can't believe the marketing buffoons at EA decided it was a good idea to give everyone who didn't preorder a demo with 1 minute quarters.

Despite that, I'll still give it a try or see if I can get a demo code.

I thought it was 2 minute quarters?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by dervack

I thought it was 2 minute quarters?

No, that was early rumor. It's actually even less.

It's just a silly marketing decision. Anyone who preorders the game is going to purchase it regardless of whether they preorder or not. The people who are on the fence are the ones you're targeting with a demo, so to convince them to get the game you give them the ability to barely even try the game out? Just not very smart.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

i thought they were releasing madden 10 on pc?

Originally Posted by Kodos

Nope.

well fuck them very much then

[Balldog]

Just played my first game off the demo, I preordered with $5 down.

I played on All-Pro and it was OK. I wasn't blown away. I'm going to play a few more games before I decide to actually buy it.

[gstelmack]

Just played one game on the free demo (Xbox360). 1 minute quarters weren't quite enough to see everything, but saw a couple of ducks thrown by QBs when they threw as they were hit, one by me, two by the AI. No passes picked off by uber-LBs, and pass accuracy was interesting. The between-plays graphics seem really beefed up. But no time for lasting impressions, going to have to wait for the full game to get here.

[SegRat]

Played 2 games. The presentation is so much better. Things like the chain gain comming onto the field to see if you got a first down, Rb on a bycicle when his team was on defense, fans buying consessions. Just so much better. Played on AA and running the ball was tuff. Passing seems better, as there seems to be a pocket to stand in now. No robo QBs. Lots of duck passes when the QB gets hit trowing the ball. Wr's catching passes seem better. Overall I am impressed after 2 games. Wish I wasnt called into work tonight.

[Balldog]

My 2nd game was a little better, I think part of my problem is the two teams I am playing with. I don't really care for either.

Pro-Tax is interesting, overall it works well but there is plenty of room for improvement. You can't always finish off a tackle, which is odd.

The challenge system is still broken, had a play where Holmes clearly caught the ball with possession and two feet inbounds that was called incomplete. I challenged it, no overrule. Viewed the replay and it was definitely a catch.

QB sneaks seem cool, I just gotta figure out the right way to do it.

Had three fumbles in the game, two by the CPU and one by me. The first one by the CPU was neat. The WR as he was getting brought down by the DB fumbled the ball. They were the only two around, the WR was able to reach out and get the ball before I could get anyone over there. The next was the smash button fumble, which caught me off guard. The third I was more prepared for

Had a cool interception, hit Fitzgerald while he was in mid-air jarring the ball loose. Palumalu(?) was able to dive and pick it off, he returned it all the way to the 5 before getting caught from behind.

Run-blocking has some major flaws. Ran a counter play, the guard that was pulling instead of coming around the corner and blocking the OLB he decided to reroute himself and get the weakside DT which resulted in a 1 yd loss.

Saw some bad pursuit angles, Palumalu had Wells all but tracked down for no gain but at the last minute he decided to take an angle that allowed for a 8 yd gain.

[Balldog]

Went down to my man cave and downloaded the XBOX 360 1-minute version. It seems a lot more polished than the 5-minute version I have on the PS3.

Anyone know if these are from the same build? I am seriously considering switching to the 360.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Balldog

Went down to my man cave and downloaded the XBOX 360 1-minute version. It seems a lot more polished than the 5-minute version I have on the PS3.

Anyone know if these are from the same build? I am seriously considering switching to the 360.

You really wanna make someone's head explode, don't you?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Balldog

Went down to my man cave and downloaded the XBOX 360 1-minute version. It seems a lot more polished than the 5-minute version I have on the PS3.

Anyone know if these are from the same build? I am seriously considering switching to the 360.

I heard the PS3 version is based on the Colecovision engine, so take that for what it's worth.

[Kodos]

Played two games on All-Pro with the 5-min PS3 version last night. Lost both times, but had fun. MUCH better than the crap they foisted on us last year that I returned after just a few games. Lots of presentation stuff, players look good. Constant stat updates in the scorebar.

Definitely a bad idea to throw if someone is on top of you -- threw several badly injured ducks, two of which were intercepted. Also had a fumble with the stupid button-tapping thing. Will have to turn that option off.

I also like the slower gameplay. Gives you just a fraction longer to see things. I had trouble running with Arizona, but had some decent runs when I was Pittsburgh. Blocking looks more realistic. Can definitely see Pro-Trac (or whatever it's called) going on.

Some wonky end of game stuff. When they were up at the end and trying to kill the clock, on the last play, they sent out the field goal unit, even though I was out of time outs and the clock was gonna run out. They didn't actually kick the field goal, but set up for it.

Really looking forward to August 14th.

[gstelmack]

My other comment is that I hate the current Snickers ad campaign ("Patrick Chewing") and it's all over the non-gameplay parts of the demo...

[Kodos]

Yeah, I forgot about that, but it was annoying. "Statisfying" my ass.

[Logan]

You guys would really hate NYC cabs.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

You guys would really hate NYC cabs.

Vegas cabs have the same issue, but I don't hate them. Something about ads for topless bars doesn't seem to bother me, but I can't put my finger on it.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

but I can't put my finger on it.

{ Adam Savage Voice }
There's your problem.
{ /Adam Savage Voice }

[MJ4H]

The Wii version of Madden 10 is the first thing in about 10 years that has made me want to buy a Madden game. I *love* the new direction of the art style on the Wii. FIFA 10 has done a similar thing and it too looks great. I'm very interested in the Wii versions of both games for the first time in a LONG time.

Here is an interview with the Wii version developers of Madden 10 if you are unfamiliar with it. I'm still totally uninterested in the PS3/360 versions of these games, but the Wii version has caught my eye for the first time. The previous Wii versions of FIFA, Madden, and NCAA have done nothing for me.

I could list all of the things they are doing, but they are all at that link and in that video interview if you are interested.

[henry296]

MJ4H - where is the link?

[MJ4H]

Originally Posted by henry296

MJ4H - where is the link?

lol dunno!

Madden 10 Wii | WiiNintendo

[ColtCrazy]

Finished downloading the demo this morning. I got the Cowboys-Giants. Played the Giants and won 7-0 (1 min. quarters) for the first time in a long time, I said "wow" about a football game. Great graphics, smooth game play. I felt Jacobs running style was perfect, a few times I got extra yards tucking in and bowling over a DB. Got a sack on Romo and picked him off on the hail mary at the end. Didn't hurt that the game was in 20 degree weather with 16 mph winds. I missed a FG right before the half that I would normally never miss.

Very, very impressed with the demo despite the number of missing elements.

Only gripe, the fumble thing is a bit of a button masher. I'll lose a lot of fumbles I think (I did on this one, but the replay showed Dallas pretty much had it anyway).

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by ColtCrazy

Only gripe, the fumble thing is a bit of a button masher. I'll lose a lot of fumbles I think (I did on this one, but the replay showed Dallas pretty much had it anyway).

About to play my first game of the demo (5 minute quarters) but I'm sure I'll be turning off the fumble button mashing in the final game.

[MizzouRah]

I finally played the 1 min demo.. I'm not sure I like how the cut scenes play right after a play.. it's neat they discuss if a TD is a TD, but I didn't even get to enjoy the play before WHAP! the cut scene starts.

Can't tell a whole bunch for a demo, seems better than previous years.. but not much in there that wowed me. Almost too much presentation for me while the game is going on..

I'll wait for impressions/reviews before picking up my pre-order and could easily be happy with NCAA10 and NHL10 when it comes out. The good thing for me about pro football is I always have FOF to give me that fix during the season.

[Balldog]

I got a chance to play the 1 minute demo again, I'm still impressed. I watched the replay of every play to try and nitpick, I couldn't find much to complain about.

[gstelmack]

I am liking the WR / DB interaction. I feel like my WRs are actually trying to go for the ball now rather than just letting the DB undercut the route while the WR keeps right on running with no chance.

[Sun Tzu]

I've found that demo's are more often than not very different then the actual final release, so I'll pass on this. I might wind up completely passing on NCAA this year in favor of Madden. We'll see what happens.

[ColtCrazy]

Has anyone played the 1 min. quarters and then got their code later from the preorder? I'll be buy a gamestop (not the one I preordered from, but hopefully that doesn't matter) and I'll see if I can get my code. Would like to play a little longer just to test the running game more.

[Bigsmooth]

Be sure that you download the demo immediately AFTER you "redeem your code". I did it backwards and now I am screwed out of having the 5 minute demo since it won't allow you to use the code twice.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Sun Tzu

I've found that demo's are more often than not very different then the actual final release, so I'll pass on this. I might wind up completely passing on NCAA this year in favor of Madden. We'll see what happens.

I know NCAA plays much differently than the demo.. so I'll wait to see what FOFCers are saying about Madden before I pick it up.

It's weird, but those cut scenes right after a play bother me..

[PurdueBrad]

Originally Posted by Sun Tzu

I've found that demo's are more often than not very different then the actual final release, so I'll pass on this. I might wind up completely passing on NCAA this year in favor of Madden. We'll see what happens.

This is what I should've done. I will likely be trading NCAA in order to get Madden. The demo of Madden (which I haven't bought in five years I believe) plays better than the final NCAA IMO. I highly prefer college football but am very underwhelmed this year.

[samifan24]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

I know NCAA plays much differently than the demo.. so I'll wait to see what FOFCers are saying about Madden before I pick it up.

It's weird, but those cut scenes right after a play bother me..

Is there a way to disable the post-play cut scenes, sort of a "quick game" option?

[PurdueBrad]

The one thing I really like about the new Madden is that fade pass at the goal line actually works like a true fade.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by samifan24

Is there a way to disable the post-play cut scenes, sort of a "quick game" option?

Not sure about that.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

I know NCAA plays much differently than the demo.. so I'll wait to see what FOFCers are saying about Madden before I pick it up.

It's weird, but those cut scenes right after a play bother me..

FWIW.......the cut scenes were an obvious nod to "The Show" and its influence on the developers. I know some haven't played the game since it's only on the PS3, but I'm sure it popped out right away for those who have played the game.

The think that the development team is going to have to work on is the timing and use of the cutscenes in a sport that is time-based (i.e. moving clock and play clock). It'll be a work in progress to get this working smoothly, but it's a good first step judging from the demo.

I know that "The Show" had the option to hit a button to skip any cut scenes. I'm assuming that Madden will have something similar to avoid having to watch all cut scenes.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

FWIW.......the cut scenes were an obvious nod to "The Show" and its influence on the developers. I know some haven't played the game since it's only on the PS3, but I'm sure it popped out right away for those who have played the game.

The think that the development team is going to have to work on is the timing and use of the cutscenes in a sport that is time-based (i.e. moving clock and play clock). It'll be a work in progress to get this working smoothly, but it's a good first step judging from the demo.

I know that "The Show" had the option to hit a button to skip any cut scenes. I'm assuming that Madden will have something similar to avoid having to watch all cut scenes.

I like the cut scenes.. but at least let me savor a TD before going into it. (for a close play TD)

It's only a demo, so maybe they just crammed a bunch of stuff into 1 min quarters...

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

FWIW.......the cut scenes were an obvious nod to "The Show" and its influence on the developers. I know some haven't played the game since it's only on the PS3, but I'm sure it popped out right away for those who have played the game.

The think that the development team is going to have to work on is the timing and use of the cutscenes in a sport that is time-based (i.e. moving clock and play clock). It'll be a work in progress to get this working smoothly, but it's a good first step judging from the demo.

I know that "The Show" had the option to hit a button to skip any cut scenes. I'm assuming that Madden will have something similar to avoid having to watch all cut scenes.

Actually, they have said it was a nod to NFL 2k5. Some of the cutscenes are almost identical to 2k5's.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Actually, they have said it was a nod to NFL 2k5. Some of the cutscenes are almost identical to 2k5's.

Well, some would say that The Show is an direct descendant from that game, but I'm not interested in arguing. They've cited extensively in several articles that the developers were forced to play The Show extensively to make sure a similar experience was presented. I loved 2K5 as well and still have a copy, so I wouldn't be disappointed with either one.

Either way, it's a vast improvement over what they had in previous iterations.

[RainMaker]

Downloaded and played last night on the 360. The 1 minute quarters are an insult to people. I also don't understand why you wouldn't want the commentary and stuff in there to show how the game actually is (I know it's bad but it can't be worse than silence). Anyways..

- The run game looks a lot better. Saw a lot smaller holes and more short yardage gains. It felt in old ones you either had no gain or long gains. I can see grinding out a lot more runs this year for 3-5 yards.

- Pass rush seems better this year but still no real pocket.

- The cutscenes are real nice and they have really upped the ante on presentation. Clearly mimicing what The Show has done and it's real nice. Gives you the feel like you're watching it on TV.

- The passing game seemed improved. I only played on Pro so I didn't look for super human DBs but I liked having to make reads faster and it wasn't as easy to throw deep as in previous games. Will be interesting to see the difference in a Tony Romo and a 3rd string QB as there usually was little to none in previous versions.

- I like the tackling animations a lot more. Much more fluid and realistic. I didn't really see any low tackles though that are used by smaller players.

It looks like a real nice improvement, the first since it's moved to the next gen. Probably going to pick it up if I don't hear about any massive bugs in the first week. The new development team really seems to be focusing on the game which is all I can really ask.

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I'm not interested in arguing.

Actually, the rest of your post seems to imply that you are, in fact, very interested in arguing.