Alright Boyz, here we go! Madden 10 first impressions thread

Sweed · 08-12-2009, 10:22 PM

Got the game, PS3 version, from GoGamer yesterday. Played one "play now" and two franchise preseason games with the Vikings and then simmed ahead and played my first regular season game vs. Cleveland.

The game looks great (I know that's all we care about here at fofc

) Player motion isn't as good as The Show but much improved over previous versions. While the player models, unis, and stadiums are at times stunning.

I am using "My Skill" as I enjoyed never touching a skill level slider last year in the short time I played 09 and from reports at OS it works even better this year.

15 minute Qtrs accelerated clock -15 seonds

AI subs set at 69/70 with QB at default (OS suggestion)

Player Speed Threshold at 40 as suggested by some at OS. 50 is default, the lower the number the more you see a speed difference between players. Think Randy Moss will blow past a slower corner with a lower setting.

Code:

Minn. at Cleveland

Vikings 14-10-3-0 final 27
Browns   7- 7-0-0 final  14

Vikings\Browns
Total offense:222 \ 408
Rushing         114 \ 95
Passing          108 \ 313
1st downs        12  \19
KR yds            138  \ 136
Total yds         464 \ 594
Turnovers          0   \   2 both ints
3rd conversion  5-14 35% \ 7-14 50%
Penalties  3-15 yds (all delay game) \ 4-45yds (clip & 2 holds, one brought back a KR TD)
Possesion  29:45  \ 30:15

Code:

Individual stats

Passing Comp   Att   Yds   TD   Int
Quinn    25    40    323    1    2
Anderson 1       2     2     0    0

Rosenfels 12     24  123    1    0

Rushing  Att    Yds    Avg    TD    Long
Lewis      18     77     4.2    0      25
Harrison   3      13     4.3   0       6
Quinn      2        4     2.0   0       4
Vickers    1        1      1.0  1       1

Peterson  24        97    4.0   0     13
Taylor      6        17     2.8  0       4

120 plays excluding punts and FG. Pretty close to RL.

Leading tacklers for Cleve had 10-10-9 and were ROLB(I ran Peterson left a lot), MLB, and DT Shawn Rogers. Minn. SS and MLB 8 each. Browns were behind and threw a lot so tackles were spread out more across the whole defense.

Pancakes : 3 total for the game. Jb will be pissed, how can his linemen develop without pancakes? At least AI not get more than human!

Fun game with a believable flow. Cleveland did throw deep a few times hitting and hit some passes in the 20 yard range without RAC. Their longest pass, 31 yds. Mine was 22yds.

Quinn injured for a short time and that's why Anderson played. A few other injuries for both clubs but players were able to come back.

I did return a kick and a punt for TD's. Not sure if it's something to worry about yet. Didn't even come close in my previous three games so maybe it was the Brown's coverage.

Cleveland had two TDs brought back due to a hold on a kick return and a clip that let one of their WR get to the endzone. I watched both replays and could easily see the penalties take place. On the KR their man literally tackled my last guy that had a chance to bring down the returner.

The clip happened on a crossing route with their WR getting the ball at the 5 and breaking the corner's tackle for a chance to score. My safety was closing in from the goal line when the other WR took him out from behind.

Hopes are high again and time will tell but it's a much better experience than either 08 or 09 provided. If there's not major franchise issues I may finally settle in for a good dynasty.

Sweed · 08-12-2009, 11:06 PM

Now for some likes ...

Rushing and tackling animations are much better. I knew about the gang tackles, and they are cool, but was happy to see Peterson get about 5 yards and then get stood up by three or four guys that never got him to the ground. The ref blew the whistle for stop of forward motion.

"Slow" is the default speed for the game and I really like it. It doesn't feel slow to me but has a good flow. Keep in mind though I've not played ncaa or madden 09 in a year so I don't have to try to gear down from something faster.

The line play on both pass rush and when defending the run looks and plays more realistically. The shoulder buttons for defensive linemen's special moves are gone. You now use the right stick to try to make your way to the QB or cutoff the RB. Still getting used to it but its much better than my old way of constantly tapping and trying to get my d'lineman to spin. It's still not easy to get to the QB but when I get there I have a better understanding of how and why I made it

and dislikes...

Madden is a game of statistics, why do they have to make it so damn hard to see the whole picture? All of this stuff really pisses me off.

We have widescreen and high def tvs, how about showing more than 4-6 columns of stats? NBA 2K gets almost everything on one screen so you don't have to scroll side to side why can't EA?

Look at team stats at the end of the game, what a joke. If you want to know how many plays you ran you have to go to player stats and add it up.
Nowhere does it give rushing or pass attempts, just yards. Is it too hard to have "25-40-323 yds" for passing or "30-114-3.8" for rushing? Hell they have "5/14 (35%)" for 3rd down conversions!

Looking at individual stats at the end of the game and you get 4 or 5 columns of stats to look at. QB has a ~7 or 8 stat coulmns, defenders have ~9. IIRC the only category that doesn't have to scroll is OL with pancakes and sacks allowed. The sad thing is last year as you highlighted a player you got his "card" at the top of the screen with all of his stats from the game. Not now, hell no! All you get on the player's "card" is his picture, college, experience, etc but no stats from the game. There is no place either during the game or bringing up the boxscore after the game that you can see a players total stats without scrolling. I mean really, in 2009? Hell back in the days or Micro League or Pure Stat baseball on the Commodore 64 you could see all of a players stats without scrolling. Sure they had to use two lines but that was circa 1985 and at least they knew the value of having all of the information visible.

Here's one more that just makes me wonder what the hell? Last year in franchise and the main menu you could bring up a roster screen that showed all of the positions on offense or defense and who was on the depth chart 3 deep. If you don't recall it was something like this..

Code:

QB.. T. Jackson           S.Rosefels    Booty
HB..  A. Peterson         C. Taylor
FB..
TE

It made it very easy to see your depth at a glance on either side of the ball.
Well guess what it's still there on the main menu for "play now" games. Is it in franchise? Ah, no. I've searched franchise everywhere I can think of to try to find it, no dice. I hope someone comes on and says "hey dummy, it's right here open your eyes". I just can't believe this information is accessible on the main menu but not in franchise.

None of this is gamebreaking but, to me, it just doesn't make sense and makes things a lot harder than they have to be.

Shkspr · 08-13-2009, 01:47 AM

They're probably just waiting to add the extra stat columns in as consumable DLC.

Mizzou B-ball fan · 08-13-2009, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shkspr

They're probably just waiting to add the extra stat columns in as consumable DLC.

I hadn't even scrolled down to your post and already knew this was coming.

Sweed · 08-13-2009, 10:07 PM

Yeah the DLC is just stupid stuff. At least it's nothing that takes away from the core game, at least for me the solo franchise player.

Sweed · 08-13-2009, 10:46 PM

dola

Before work today I did get in the second game of my Viking franchise. Played Detroit and whipped them 26-7. Their offensive line was pathetic as I sacked Cullpepper 8 times. Totally dominated as they only scored late in the fourth quarter.

AP went for a 132 yards on 31 carries with a ~45 yard td run. Team rushing 168 yards and Rosenfels passed for 144.

Had an 18 play 56 yard drive that ate up almost 9 minutes of the clock to start the third quarter. Detroit then went three and out and I backed it up with a 12 play 7:30 minute drive that ended in a FG.

Kick returns and punt returns were normal. Never came close to breaking one off. So goes a ways in laying to rest my fears that part of the game may be too easy.

Kicking sliders are on default and that seems to be working well. Not banging kicks out of the back of the endzone. Have made FG's from the 45 yd line in pretty easily but once I get to 50 yards it becomes very tough.

Punting I'm not as sure on. I'm happy with the way it's playing with the AI getting normal results for average. Harder to tell with me as I've been in a lot of coffin-corner situations. I'd guess my punter is averaging around 46 yards but to tell the truth I not sure how good he is IRL.

I love covering kick offs and punts in this game. In previous versions I usually just stayed controlling the kicker or punter so I wouldn't screw up the coverage and get burned. Now I have good control of the coverage team and can switch to another player and get the job done. It just feels good.

The speed threshold slider is a great addition to the game. Speedsters will indeed outrun people they should. I threw an INT to Detroit's safety and he was off to the races down the sideline. My WR on that side of the field ran him down and tackled him at about the 25 yard line even though he startd with a ~5 yard lead. This was not a WR getting an angle and cutting off the safety, he caught him coming from straight behind. Previous versions he would have scored with ease. In this game he was caught and Detroit later missed a FG that would have had them on the board in the first half and down only 10-3.

Only 6 games played but each has been fun and nothing game-breaking occurring (IE too many fumbles, int's, pick sixes, etc from previous versions).

Going to need to find some penalty sliders as they are still too low which isn't usually to hard to come up with. The bigger problem to me has been that Madden has tended to not call some penalties at all. In the games I've played I haven't seen one pass interference, encroachment (usually though with accelerated clock I don't have a lot of time to "hard count"), intentional grounding (FWIW I haven't seen any that I thought should have been called either)or the cpu false start. Most other things have been called at least once.

I shouldn't say it but I'm cautiously optimistic that this may be the year I can finally enjoy a franchise again.

MizzouRah · 08-13-2009, 11:14 PM

Here is one for MBBF...

Per Bill Harris:

Quote:

A reader (who wishes to remain anonymous) sent me a copy of Madden 10 early. I've put in 25+ hours since I got the game, and on Monday, I'll put up sliders that are very close to a final version. There's a day one patch dropping on Friday, so I just want to make sure I don't need to make any additional changes.

With the right sliders, this is the most realistic football game ever made. Period.

I'll explain how and why on Monday.

FBPro · 08-13-2009, 11:24 PM

Wow, pretty strong words....my initial thought has been to pass on this one but may need to reconsider.

Atocep · 08-13-2009, 11:44 PM

Heading out to pick it up 2 hours. My first time buying madden since '02 and I'm actually kind of excited to play it (obviously, since I'm picking it up at midnight).

Epi_862 · 08-14-2009, 01:11 AM

SAVE. YOUR. GAMES.

Played 6 games of franchise with my beloved pack yesterday, and the game crashed. Never saved. SAVE. YOUR. GAMES.

Jeez, cant we have an autosave feature in 2009?

Other than that, the game -really- is that good.

RainMaker · 08-14-2009, 01:33 AM

Crap. I really want this game. I'm really hoping that it plays well. The DLC pisses me off but I can live with it for a great game. My biggest concern now is buying it and finding out that by the 3rd season every quarterback is a 95 or stats are completely messed up. I'll give it another week and if no superbugs pop up, I'll get it.

RainMaker · 08-14-2009, 01:55 AM

And without starting a flame war, is there a difference in the PS3 and 360 versions? I'd prefer 360 but if there if the PS3 looks or plays better, I'll go with that.

Atocep · 08-14-2009, 03:09 AM

Picked it up a bit ago. I'll get some impressions up tomorrow afternoon from the viewpoint of someone who hasn't played Madden in 7 years, but did play NCAA last year and thought it was good but not great.

INDalltheway · 08-14-2009, 04:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RainMaker

And without starting a flame war, is there a difference in the PS3 and 360 versions? I'd prefer 360 but if there if the PS3 looks or plays better, I'll go with that.

I have both systems and like sports games on the 360 for some reason. It just seems like they play smoother and also for Xbox Live.

I've played 5 games online tonight and the game is a lot of fun. Slowing the game down has made it so much better. It's hard to explain, but it just feels more like playing football rather than quickly mashing buttons. I do have two gripes, but this only has to do with online. The "fight for the fumble" is the worst feature in a video game I can remember, and of course it is used for online ranked games.. (Apparently I suck at mashing buttons or something) My other gripe is the auto run off. In solo play when I set the quarters higher it's great, but with 5 minute quarters you can literally only have 1 possession for a half. I wish they had a feature like "chew the clock" on NCAA 10 which you can turn on or off throughout the game. No other complaints though besides being 3-2 with two overtime losses.

Oh, and one last thing to add. Using a wider range of ratings is seriously great. You now have to play to players strengths rather than everyone pretty much being identical.

Balldog · 08-14-2009, 05:38 AM

Anyone playing 15 minute quarters? How long does it take?

Balldog · 08-14-2009, 05:45 AM

This might be the best video I've seen yet.

Madden NFL 10 Video Highlight | EA SPORTS

Kodos · 08-14-2009, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RainMaker

And without starting a flame war, is there a difference in the PS3 and 360 versions? I'd prefer 360 but if there if the PS3 looks or plays better, I'll go with that.

The main differences I know of:

1) Supposedly longer replays on PS3 for some technical reason that I don't recall

2) Create-a-play for PS3 via the PSP.

I'm getting the PS3 version, as I've always liked the Dual Shock better than the Xbox 360 controller. If it matters to you, more folks around FOFC seem to have the 360, so if you're looking for online games, you should probably go that way.

Icy · 08-14-2009, 08:22 AM

For first time in my gaming life, i'm not excited about Madden even reading all those positive early comments. I'm going to buy it, that is for sure, but instead of on release day, i'll have it shipped to me with NHL10 in September to save some import shipping cost. This year i can't justify the extra expenses to have it early like i do every year.

Now NHL10, that is the game really got me salivating this year, even when I barely watch the NHL in real life, unlike the NFL that is my fav sport.

SegRat · 08-14-2009, 01:30 PM

Played 3 games last night, and so far I love it. First game I played against the Vikings with the Packers, Peterson rushed for over 300 yards. I guess I need to mess with the sliders.

gstelmack · 08-14-2009, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Icy

For first time in my gaming life, i'm not excited about Madden even reading all those positive early comments. I'm going to buy it, that is for sure, but instead of on release day, i'll have it shipped to me with NHL10 in September to save some import shipping cost. This year i can't justify the extra expenses to have it early like i do every year.

It helps that I skipped 09 I think.

Big Fo · 08-14-2009, 01:48 PM

I rented the game today and am about to finish my first game, a 23-21 win over the Jets with Miami. It seems pretty good so far. The AI ran the ball better than they normally did in previous versions. I wish I could press start or some other button to skip the chain gang thing, that's ten seconds of boredom I could do without a few times per game.

Philliesfan980 · 08-14-2009, 01:54 PM

Picked it up at Target today (PS3 version). Should have some impressions later.

rowech · 08-14-2009, 01:58 PM

I haven't played Madden in 2 years and I haven't bought a Madden game in three or four. I really like this game. I've played two games and the rust shows as I lost to the Steelers 21-7 and the Browns 24-14. (with the Bengals)

I'm not sure how much of it is me being bad and how much of it is the Bengals being bad, especially on the o and d lines.

samifan24 · 08-14-2009, 02:25 PM

This is the first Madden game I've purchased since about Madden 2002. I'm 0-3 so far in exhibition games with different teams. I checked out the virtual trainer and now I have a better idea of how to juke defenders as a running back and when to time passes for my receivers. If you're a new player like me, I suggest you check out the virtual trainer. It's surprisingly helpful.

JetsIn06 · 08-14-2009, 02:30 PM

I feel so stupid right now, but how do I changed human sliders? I see "Player Skill" where I can change Passing, Rushing, Pass D, and Rush D, but where are the more specific sliders?

Pumpy Tudors · 08-14-2009, 02:46 PM

I went through the "Madden test" to get the MySkill rating set up, and then I started an exhibition game between the Broncos (me) and the Chiefs (CPU). OK, maybe I'm sort of doing something wrong, but I was up 35-7 after 20 minutes of game time. They only scored their 7 points because I hit the wrong button while trying to swat a pass down, and it went over my DB's head. The game seemed way too easy. Orton was completing everything for me. I had to go to bed, so I stopped playing, but I may have to adjust the game to be more challenging. Trust me, I'm no EA Sports football god or anything. I actually thought I was pretty bad at these games, but the Chiefs didn't give me any resistance at all.

I intend to play a ton tonight, so we'll see if it was an aberration.

Eaglesfan27 · 08-14-2009, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JetsIn06

I feel so stupid right now, but how do I changed human sliders? I see "Player Skill" where I can change Passing, Rushing, Pass D, and Rush D, but where are the more specific sliders?

Sliders are different than past years and different than NCAA. There are a few different types of sliders now and you get to them all by hitting "my madden" then "settings." Games options has the player min speed threshold which is an interesting new slider that I haven't messed with at all.

Player Skill has the 4 that you mentioned. If you raise your passing, it will decrease accuracy. Raising the rushing will make it harder to break tackles and run in general. Etc.

CPU skill is the last set that is right below it. It has more of the traditional sliders. It's an interesting design choice and a bit confusing at first.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I went through the "Madden test" to get the MySkill rating set up, and then I started an exhibition game between the Broncos (me) and the Chiefs (CPU). OK, maybe I'm sort of doing something wrong, but I was up 35-7 after 20 minutes of game time. They only scored their 7 points because I hit the wrong button while trying to swat a pass down, and it went over my DB's head. The game seemed way too easy. Orton was completing everything for me. I had to go to bed, so I stopped playing, but I may have to adjust the game to be more challenging. Trust me, I'm no EA Sports football god or anything. I actually thought I was pretty bad at these games, but the Chiefs didn't give me any resistance at all.

I intend to play a ton tonight, so we'll see if it was an aberration.

I did horrible on my Madden test and ended up getting set up at Rookie or Pro in all areas when I play much better than that. I just had a very good game on Default All-pro with only a few things I would tweak:

- Passing accuracy for both QB's was a bit too good. To lower it, I need to raise Passing in my skill set from 10 (which is default for Pro) and also lower QB accuracy in the CPU Skill setting. Again, it is a bit confusing, but not too bad.

- It was a bit too easy for me to break out of tackles. Macklin has a high evasion rating and it makes him able to spin/juke out of tackles a bit too much, I'm not sure if I'll change any sliders for this.

Overall, my first game was very fun and I'm looking forward to trying out a few different teams now. The Eagles have some incredible speed on offense, but their defense is weak and I want to see how much differently a strong defensive team plays.

Eaglesfan27 · 08-14-2009, 03:08 PM

Dola -

The CPU sliders also control your CPU controlled teammates I believe.

Eaglesfan27 · 08-14-2009, 03:21 PM

Double Dola -

One thing that I'm impressed with is that the computer did a very good job on punts of kicking it away from DeSean Jackson. Also, after Macklin returned a kickoff for a TD, they kicked it away from him every time and squibbed it at the end of the half.

Noop · 08-14-2009, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JetsIn06

I feel so stupid right now, but how do I changed human sliders? I see "Player Skill" where I can change Passing, Rushing, Pass D, and Rush D, but where are the more specific sliders?

Press X or A for the 360 I am guess Square and X for the PS3

Eaglesfan27 · 08-14-2009, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noop

Press X or A for the 360 I am guess Square and X for the PS3

Thanks, I had no idea that could be tweaked further. By the way, it is A for the 360.

Very helpful as people are recommending 14 pass rating but that is making the CPU pass rush a bit too difficult. Now, I can individually switch each of the sliders.

Noop · 08-14-2009, 03:44 PM

I have to say I am impressed by Madden so far outside of a few things its a great game. I am still tweaking my sliders so far but once I find one that feels good this game is damn near perfect.

MJ4H · 08-14-2009, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I went through the "Madden test" to get the MySkill rating set up, and then I started an exhibition game between the Broncos (me) and the Chiefs (CPU). OK, maybe I'm sort of doing something wrong, but I was up 35-7 after 20 minutes of game time. They only scored their 7 points because I hit the wrong button while trying to swat a pass down, and it went over my DB's head. The game seemed way too easy. Orton was completing everything for me. I had to go to bed, so I stopped playing, but I may have to adjust the game to be more challenging. Trust me, I'm no EA Sports football god or anything. I actually thought I was pretty bad at these games, but the Chiefs didn't give me any resistance at all.

I intend to play a ton tonight, so we'll see if it was an aberration.

(this post could have been about any other team but NO it had to be the freaking Chiefs)

Mike Lowe · 08-14-2009, 05:22 PM

I'm reading that the sliders are not effecting pancake blocks? Someone was in week 10 and while the league leader had 22, his team leader (Redskins) had like 4.

I guess he did a test game with blocking sliders at 100 and there were only like 3 pancakes total between both teams?

Has anyone given this a try? Will it mess with progression? Is this something that is going to be in the first patch or has that info not been released yet?

Noop · 08-14-2009, 05:40 PM

Here are my impressions so far...

Gameplay
This game feels like football. Nothing about the game feels arcade like to me and everything that should typical work in real life does work. I ran the ball constantly for three quarters and in the fourth quarter I ran a play action that left Ted Gin wide open for the touchdown.

I also wore down their defense with Ronnie Brown and during my last drive to seal the game he ended up breaking for a 40+ yard touchdown. With the right sliders this game is very realistic and has been a joy to play so far.

On the defense front I have to say I don't think I have ever had as much fun playing D-Line and pressuring the QB. It seemed to me as the game worn on my line was beginning to rattle their QB. Early in the game he was deadly accurate and tossed two early touchdowns against my young secondary.

However my defense started to impose its will on the Packers and by the fourth quarter they were dropping passes and giving up sacks. Also Rogdgers began to get very inaccurate with the ball eventually throwing an interception that lead to my final drive.

It was a great game that played the way I expected it to play.

Atocep · 08-14-2009, 06:06 PM

Just finished up my first game and I'm impressed.

Things I like (keep in mind this is my first madden in 7 years so I don't know how much of this stuff is old news):

- DBs tackle like DBs. They tend to bounce off of the stronger players when they try to tackle high and they have success going for the ankles.

- QBs actually throw poor passes and no stupid interceptions. There were 3 interceptions in my game. 1 was because I got hit as I threw the ball and it went right to a linebacker. Another was a great play by my corner breaking on a well thrown ball. The last one was just a terrible throw by Aaron Rodgers right into Urlachers hands over the middle. I still think accuracy could be turned down a notch, but I was happy to see some poorly thrown balls and no unrealistic interceptions.

- The running game feels like it should. Try to break everything outside and you're going to end up with a lot of 2-3 yard losses. Take what's there and you're going to see a lot of 1, 2, 3 yard gains with the occasional longer run.

- 12 minute quarters with 15 second accelerated clock gives the game a realistic flow. It just feels like an actual football game when you see long, time consuming drives.

- Wide receivers feel like wide receivers and even the fastest of linebackers still feels like a linebacker. They've done a great job of making speed feel like speed, but not making it overpowered like it typically is in the NCAA games.

- The slower engine is brilliant. You see plays develop rather than just guessing and mashing buttons.

Sweed · 08-14-2009, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atocep

- QBs actually throw poor passes and no stupid interceptions. There were 3 interceptions in my game. 1 was because I got hit as I threw the ball and it went right to a linebacker. Another was a great play by my corner breaking on a well thrown ball. The last one was just a terrible throw by Aaron Rodgers right into Urlachers hands over the middle. I still think accuracy could be turned down a notch, but I was happy to see some poorly thrown balls and no unrealistic interceptions.

This is all new to the Madden next-gen series and great to finally see.

Eaglesfan27 · 08-14-2009, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweed

This is all new to the Madden next-gen series and great to finally see.

It's very welcome to see this. I've lowered accuracy to 25 for my QB's and I'm seeing a video game version of McNabb that looks a lot like the real life one in that he's been missing all over on short throws. In the game, his best accuracy rating is his deep ball just like real life and that is where I'm connecting particularly as Maclin and Jackson can use their speed to get open deep and adjust to his throws sometimes when they are offline. Passing is very fun right now and feels realistic.

Balldog · 08-14-2009, 08:48 PM

Just finished my first game on default All-Pro (15-min), lost to Houston 24-22 as Detroit. They stopped my 2-point conversion try. I had 362 yards to their 320.

Jughead Spock · 08-14-2009, 09:19 PM

Dammit, this is making me crave this one.

WVUFAN · 08-14-2009, 09:29 PM

I know this has absolutely nothing to do with the game itself, but others have said all I was going to -- this game is the full package. Hell, even EA Trax in the game has some great songs.

So far, just a great, great game.

aran · 08-14-2009, 09:35 PM

I played a couple of games against my brother on All-Pro with no slider tweaks. First game was Cards vs. Titans. Kurt Warner played great and Boldin made a great catch when he was double covered at one point. Second game we played Saints v. 49ers. I played Saints and had trouble throwing the ball while my bro had two big play touchdowns. Bush didn't feel as elusive as I thought he should've. Brees had trouble completing passes because receivers were not holding on. At no point in either game did I throw my hands up and ask what the hell was happening on the field. That's a great sign considering how often that would happen in the past.

rowech · 08-14-2009, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WVUFAN

I know this has absolutely nothing to do with the game itself, but others have said all I was going to -- this game is the full package. Hell, even EA Trax in the game has some great songs.

So far, just a great, great game.

Agreed...I told my brother that it's the best soundtrack to any sports game.

Kodos · 08-14-2009, 10:02 PM

I really enjoyed the two 15-minute quarter games I played tonight. I know it's early on, but right now, I'm thinking this one could be the best ever if it holds up to scrutiny.

Balldog · 08-14-2009, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aran

I played a couple of games against my brother on All-Pro with no slider tweaks. First game was Cards vs. Titans. Kurt Warner played great and Boldin made a great catch when he was double covered at one point. Second game we played Saints v. 49ers. I played Saints and had trouble throwing the ball while my bro had two big play touchdowns. Bush didn't feel as elusive as I thought he should've. Brees had trouble completing passes because receivers were not holding on. At no point in either game did I throw my hands up and ask what the hell was happening on the field. That's a great sign considering how often that would happen in the past.

Just played with the Saints and beat Carolina 16-14. I thought Bush played pretty similar to real life. So did Jake Delhomme, we picked him off 4 times. I had 9 carries for 31 yards and 6 receptions for 96 yards with Bush.

Just for note, I'm getting right around 120 plays not including punts/kicks with 15 minute quarters with accel clock at 25 seconds.

rowech · 08-14-2009, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Balldog

Just played with the Saints and beat Carolina 16-14. I thought Bush played pretty similar to real life. So did Jake Delhomme, we picked him off 4 times. I had 9 carries for 31 yards and 6 receptions for 96 yards with Bush.

Just for note, I'm getting right around 120 plays not including punts/kicks with 15 minute quarters with accel clock at 25 seconds.

How long does it actually take you to play a game with those timing settings?

PurdueBrad · 08-14-2009, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rowech

How long does it actually take you to play a game with those timing settings?

I'm playing with similar settings (biggest difference is I use the 15 second run down) and I think it took a tad bit over an hour. My game went OT, so I'm trying not to factor that in.

PurdueBrad · 08-14-2009, 10:26 PM

I echo a lot of what I've heard above. There are still a couple minor things that bug me: The announcing doesn't match up to the situation a couple times a game and I sometimes feel like the fight for every yard feature is a bit too dominant (i.e.- Rashard Mendenhall was getting bent over backwards behind the line of scrimmage but using the playmaking stick he suddenly threw his arms up and out, bent back to upright and fell forward).

Overall though, this game easily outclasses NCAA this year. I haven't bought Madden in six years I believe and have solely purchased NCAA and this is the best football game I've ever played (which is hard for me to say as I had become quite disenchanted with the Madden series).

It just feels and looks like football, so my minor complains aside, I'm impressed thus far and I've only played two games (and a series so I could use Pat White in the Dolphins' Wildcat although I was disappointed to see that he was never an eligible passer on the available plays).

Big Fo · 08-14-2009, 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PurdueBrad

I echo a lot of what I've heard above. There are still a couple minor things that bug me: The announcing doesn't match up to the situation a couple times a game and I sometimes feel like the fight for every yard feature is a bit too dominant (i.e.- Rashard Mendenhall was getting bent over backwards behind the line of scrimmage but using the playmaking stick he suddenly threw his arms up and out, bent back to upright and fell forward).

Overall though, this game easily outclasses NCAA this year. I haven't bought Madden in six years I believe and have solely purchased NCAA and this is the best football game I've ever played (which is hard for me to say as I had become quite disenchanted with the Madden series).

It just feels and looks like football, so my minor complains aside, I'm impressed thus far and I've only played two games (and a series so I could use Pat White in the Dolphins' Wildcat although I was disappointed to see that he was never an eligible passer on the available plays).

By messing around with the subs and one of the options (forgot which one) in the formation screen you can find a play or two where White passes out of that formation.

RainMaker · 08-14-2009, 11:09 PM

Do QB's fumble when they are hit from behind? Not a floater pass but just fumble. This is the biggest cause for fumbles in the NFL and is never clearly recognized in Madden.

08-12-2009, 11:06 PM	#2
Sweed College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2003	Now for some likes ... Rushing and tackling animations are much better. I knew about the gang tackles, and they are cool, but was happy to see Peterson get about 5 yards and then get stood up by three or four guys that never got him to the ground. The ref blew the whistle for stop of forward motion. "Slow" is the default speed for the game and I really like it. It doesn't feel slow to me but has a good flow. Keep in mind though I've not played ncaa or madden 09 in a year so I don't have to try to gear down from something faster. The line play on both pass rush and when defending the run looks and plays more realistically. The shoulder buttons for defensive linemen's special moves are gone. You now use the right stick to try to make your way to the QB or cutoff the RB. Still getting used to it but its much better than my old way of constantly tapping and trying to get my d'lineman to spin. It's still not easy to get to the QB but when I get there I have a better understanding of how and why I made it and dislikes... Madden is a game of statistics, why do they have to make it so damn hard to see the whole picture? All of this stuff really pisses me off. We have widescreen and high def tvs, how about showing more than 4-6 columns of stats? NBA 2K gets almost everything on one screen so you don't have to scroll side to side why can't EA? Look at team stats at the end of the game, what a joke. If you want to know how many plays you ran you have to go to player stats and add it up. Nowhere does it give rushing or pass attempts, just yards. Is it too hard to have "25-40-323 yds" for passing or "30-114-3.8" for rushing? Hell they have "5/14 (35%)" for 3rd down conversions! Looking at individual stats at the end of the game and you get 4 or 5 columns of stats to look at. QB has a ~7 or 8 stat coulmns, defenders have ~9. IIRC the only category that doesn't have to scroll is OL with pancakes and sacks allowed. The sad thing is last year as you highlighted a player you got his "card" at the top of the screen with all of his stats from the game. Not now, hell no! All you get on the player's "card" is his picture, college, experience, etc but no stats from the game. There is no place either during the game or bringing up the boxscore after the game that you can see a players total stats without scrolling. I mean really, in 2009? Hell back in the days or Micro League or Pure Stat baseball on the Commodore 64 you could see all of a players stats without scrolling. Sure they had to use two lines but that was circa 1985 and at least they knew the value of having all of the information visible. Here's one more that just makes me wonder what the hell? Last year in franchise and the main menu you could bring up a roster screen that showed all of the positions on offense or defense and who was on the depth chart 3 deep. If you don't recall it was something like this.. Code: QB.. T. Jackson S.Rosefels Booty HB.. A. Peterson C. Taylor FB.. TE It made it very easy to see your depth at a glance on either side of the ball. Well guess what it's still there on the main menu for "play now" games. Is it in franchise? Ah, no. I've searched franchise everywhere I can think of to try to find it, no dice. I hope someone comes on and says "hey dummy, it's right here open your eyes". I just can't believe this information is accessible on the main menu but not in franchise. None of this is gamebreaking but, to me, it just doesn't make sense and makes things a lot harder than they have to be.

08-13-2009, 11:24 PM	#8
FBPro College Starter Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: SE	Wow, pretty strong words....my initial thought has been to pass on this one but may need to reconsider. __________________ GM RayCo Raiders-est. 2004-2012 Charter member of the IHOF-RayCo GM GM Tennessee Titans PFL 2011-2014 GM Tennessee Titans FOWL 2020-2025

08-14-2009, 08:22 AM	#18
Icy Pro Starter Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Toledo - Spain	For first time in my gaming life, i'm not excited about Madden even reading all those positive early comments. I'm going to buy it, that is for sure, but instead of on release day, i'll have it shipped to me with NHL10 in September to save some import shipping cost. This year i can't justify the extra expenses to have it early like i do every year. Now NHL10, that is the game really got me salivating this year, even when I barely watch the NHL in real life, unlike the NFL that is my fav sport. __________________

08-14-2009, 01:30 PM	#19
SegRat High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Oshkosh, WI	Played 3 games last night, and so far I love it. First game I played against the Vikings with the Packers, Peterson rushed for over 300 yards. I guess I need to mess with the sliders. __________________ USFL: Charlotte Fightn' Squirrels

08-14-2009, 02:25 PM	#24
samifan24 Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: NC	This is the first Madden game I've purchased since about Madden 2002. I'm 0-3 so far in exhibition games with different teams. I checked out the virtual trainer and now I have a better idea of how to juke defenders as a running back and when to time passes for my receivers. If you're a new player like me, I suggest you check out the virtual trainer. It's surprisingly helpful. __________________ "You spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball...and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time." -Jim Bouton

08-13-2009, 01:47 AM	#3
Shkspr College Benchwarmer Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Amarillo, TX	They're probably just waiting to add the extra stat columns in as consumable DLC.

08-13-2009, 10:07 PM	#5
Sweed College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2003	Yeah the DLC is just stupid stuff. At least it's nothing that takes away from the core game, at least for me the solo franchise player.

08-13-2009, 10:46 PM	#6
Sweed College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2003	dola Before work today I did get in the second game of my Viking franchise. Played Detroit and whipped them 26-7. Their offensive line was pathetic as I sacked Cullpepper 8 times. Totally dominated as they only scored late in the fourth quarter. AP went for a 132 yards on 31 carries with a ~45 yard td run. Team rushing 168 yards and Rosenfels passed for 144. Had an 18 play 56 yard drive that ate up almost 9 minutes of the clock to start the third quarter. Detroit then went three and out and I backed it up with a 12 play 7:30 minute drive that ended in a FG. Kick returns and punt returns were normal. Never came close to breaking one off. So goes a ways in laying to rest my fears that part of the game may be too easy. Kicking sliders are on default and that seems to be working well. Not banging kicks out of the back of the endzone. Have made FG's from the 45 yd line in pretty easily but once I get to 50 yards it becomes very tough. Punting I'm not as sure on. I'm happy with the way it's playing with the AI getting normal results for average. Harder to tell with me as I've been in a lot of coffin-corner situations. I'd guess my punter is averaging around 46 yards but to tell the truth I not sure how good he is IRL. I love covering kick offs and punts in this game. In previous versions I usually just stayed controlling the kicker or punter so I wouldn't screw up the coverage and get burned. Now I have good control of the coverage team and can switch to another player and get the job done. It just feels good. The speed threshold slider is a great addition to the game. Speedsters will indeed outrun people they should. I threw an INT to Detroit's safety and he was off to the races down the sideline. My WR on that side of the field ran him down and tackled him at about the 25 yard line even though he startd with a ~5 yard lead. This was not a WR getting an angle and cutting off the safety, he caught him coming from straight behind. Previous versions he would have scored with ease. In this game he was caught and Detroit later missed a FG that would have had them on the board in the first half and down only 10-3. Only 6 games played but each has been fun and nothing game-breaking occurring (IE too many fumbles, int's, pick sixes, etc from previous versions). Going to need to find some penalty sliders as they are still too low which isn't usually to hard to come up with. The bigger problem to me has been that Madden has tended to not call some penalties at all. In the games I've played I haven't seen one pass interference, encroachment (usually though with accelerated clock I don't have a lot of time to "hard count"), intentional grounding (FWIW I haven't seen any that I thought should have been called either)or the cpu false start. Most other things have been called at least once. I shouldn't say it but I'm cautiously optimistic that this may be the year I can finally enjoy a franchise again.

08-13-2009, 11:44 PM	#9
Atocep Coordinator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Puyallup, WA	Heading out to pick it up 2 hours. My first time buying madden since '02 and I'm actually kind of excited to play it (obviously, since I'm picking it up at midnight).

08-14-2009, 01:11 AM	#10
Epi_862 Mascot Join Date: Mar 2008	SAVE. YOUR. GAMES. Played 6 games of franchise with my beloved pack yesterday, and the game crashed. Never saved. SAVE. YOUR. GAMES. Jeez, cant we have an autosave feature in 2009? Other than that, the game -really- is that good.

08-14-2009, 01:33 AM	#11
RainMaker General Manager Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Chicago, IL	Crap. I really want this game. I'm really hoping that it plays well. The DLC pisses me off but I can live with it for a great game. My biggest concern now is buying it and finding out that by the 3rd season every quarterback is a 95 or stats are completely messed up. I'll give it another week and if no superbugs pop up, I'll get it.

08-14-2009, 01:55 AM	#12
RainMaker General Manager Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Chicago, IL	And without starting a flame war, is there a difference in the PS3 and 360 versions? I'd prefer 360 but if there if the PS3 looks or plays better, I'll go with that.

08-14-2009, 03:09 AM	#13
Atocep Coordinator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Puyallup, WA	Picked it up a bit ago. I'll get some impressions up tomorrow afternoon from the viewpoint of someone who hasn't played Madden in 7 years, but did play NCAA last year and thought it was good but not great.

08-14-2009, 05:38 AM	#15
Balldog Pro Rookie Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Macomb, MI	Anyone playing 15 minute quarters? How long does it take?

08-14-2009, 05:45 AM	#16
Balldog Pro Rookie Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Macomb, MI	This might be the best video I've seen yet. Madden NFL 10 Video Highlight \| EA SPORTS

08-14-2009, 01:48 PM	#21
Big Fo Pro Rookie Join Date: Jan 2005	I rented the game today and am about to finish my first game, a 23-21 win over the Jets with Miami. It seems pretty good so far. The AI ran the ball better than they normally did in previous versions. I wish I could press start or some other button to skip the chain gang thing, that's ten seconds of boredom I could do without a few times per game.

08-14-2009, 01:54 PM	#22
Philliesfan980 Banned Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Exton, PA	Picked it up at Target today (PS3 version). Should have some impressions later.

08-14-2009, 01:58 PM	#23
rowech Pro Starter Join Date: Feb 2006	I haven't played Madden in 2 years and I haven't bought a Madden game in three or four. I really like this game. I've played two games and the rust shows as I lost to the Steelers 21-7 and the Browns 24-14. (with the Bengals) I'm not sure how much of it is me being bad and how much of it is the Bengals being bad, especially on the o and d lines.

08-14-2009, 02:30 PM	#25
JetsIn06 Pro Rookie Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Rahway, NJ	I feel so stupid right now, but how do I changed human sliders? I see "Player Skill" where I can change Passing, Rushing, Pass D, and Rush D, but where are the more specific sliders?

08-14-2009, 02:46 PM	#26
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	I went through the "Madden test" to get the MySkill rating set up, and then I started an exhibition game between the Broncos (me) and the Chiefs (CPU). OK, maybe I'm sort of doing something wrong, but I was up 35-7 after 20 minutes of game time. They only scored their 7 points because I hit the wrong button while trying to swat a pass down, and it went over my DB's head. The game seemed way too easy. Orton was completing everything for me. I had to go to bed, so I stopped playing, but I may have to adjust the game to be more challenging. Trust me, I'm no EA Sports football god or anything. I actually thought I was pretty bad at these games, but the Chiefs didn't give me any resistance at all. I intend to play a ton tonight, so we'll see if it was an aberration. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

08-14-2009, 03:08 PM	#28
Eaglesfan27 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: New Jersey	Dola - The CPU sliders also control your CPU controlled teammates I believe. __________________ Retired GM of the eNFL 2007 Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles (19-0 record.) GM of the WOOF 2006 Doggie Bowl Champion Atlantic City Gamblers. GM of the IHOF 2019 and 2022 IHOF Bowl Champion Asheville Axemen.

08-14-2009, 03:21 PM	#29
Eaglesfan27 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: New Jersey	Double Dola - One thing that I'm impressed with is that the computer did a very good job on punts of kicking it away from DeSean Jackson. Also, after Macklin returned a kickoff for a TD, they kicked it away from him every time and squibbed it at the end of the half. __________________ Retired GM of the eNFL 2007 Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles (19-0 record.) GM of the WOOF 2006 Doggie Bowl Champion Atlantic City Gamblers. GM of the IHOF 2019 and 2022 IHOF Bowl Champion Asheville Axemen. Last edited by Eaglesfan27 : 08-14-2009 at 03:21 PM.

08-14-2009, 03:44 PM	#32
Noop Bonafide Seminole Fan Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Miami	I have to say I am impressed by Madden so far outside of a few things its a great game. I am still tweaking my sliders so far but once I find one that feels good this game is damn near perfect. __________________ Subby's favorite woman hater.

08-14-2009, 05:22 PM	#34
Mike Lowe College Prospect Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: San Diego, CA	I'm reading that the sliders are not effecting pancake blocks? Someone was in week 10 and while the league leader had 22, his team leader (Redskins) had like 4. I guess he did a test game with blocking sliders at 100 and there were only like 3 pancakes total between both teams? Has anyone given this a try? Will it mess with progression? Is this something that is going to be in the first patch or has that info not been released yet? __________________ Be fulfilled. Be grateful. Be good to one another. @MikeLowe47 @SimSportsGamin9 Website \| YouTube \| Discord

08-14-2009, 05:40 PM	#35
Noop Bonafide Seminole Fan Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Miami	Here are my impressions so far... Gameplay This game feels like football. Nothing about the game feels arcade like to me and everything that should typical work in real life does work. I ran the ball constantly for three quarters and in the fourth quarter I ran a play action that left Ted Gin wide open for the touchdown. I also wore down their defense with Ronnie Brown and during my last drive to seal the game he ended up breaking for a 40+ yard touchdown. With the right sliders this game is very realistic and has been a joy to play so far. On the defense front I have to say I don't think I have ever had as much fun playing D-Line and pressuring the QB. It seemed to me as the game worn on my line was beginning to rattle their QB. Early in the game he was deadly accurate and tossed two early touchdowns against my young secondary. However my defense started to impose its will on the Packers and by the fourth quarter they were dropping passes and giving up sacks. Also Rogdgers began to get very inaccurate with the ball eventually throwing an interception that lead to my final drive. It was a great game that played the way I expected it to play. __________________ Subby's favorite woman hater.

08-14-2009, 06:06 PM	#36
Atocep Coordinator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Puyallup, WA	Just finished up my first game and I'm impressed. Things I like (keep in mind this is my first madden in 7 years so I don't know how much of this stuff is old news): - DBs tackle like DBs. They tend to bounce off of the stronger players when they try to tackle high and they have success going for the ankles. - QBs actually throw poor passes and no stupid interceptions. There were 3 interceptions in my game. 1 was because I got hit as I threw the ball and it went right to a linebacker. Another was a great play by my corner breaking on a well thrown ball. The last one was just a terrible throw by Aaron Rodgers right into Urlachers hands over the middle. I still think accuracy could be turned down a notch, but I was happy to see some poorly thrown balls and no unrealistic interceptions. - The running game feels like it should. Try to break everything outside and you're going to end up with a lot of 2-3 yard losses. Take what's there and you're going to see a lot of 1, 2, 3 yard gains with the occasional longer run. - 12 minute quarters with 15 second accelerated clock gives the game a realistic flow. It just feels like an actual football game when you see long, time consuming drives. - Wide receivers feel like wide receivers and even the fastest of linebackers still feels like a linebacker. They've done a great job of making speed feel like speed, but not making it overpowered like it typically is in the NCAA games. - The slower engine is brilliant. You see plays develop rather than just guessing and mashing buttons.

08-14-2009, 08:48 PM	#39
Balldog Pro Rookie Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Macomb, MI	Just finished my first game on default All-Pro (15-min), lost to Houston 24-22 as Detroit. They stopped my 2-point conversion try. I had 362 yards to their 320. Last edited by Balldog : 08-14-2009 at 08:48 PM.

08-14-2009, 09:19 PM	#40
Jughead Spock High School Varsity Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Lowcountry, SC	Dammit, this is making me crave this one.

08-14-2009, 09:29 PM	#41
WVUFAN College Starter Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Huntington, WV	I know this has absolutely nothing to do with the game itself, but others have said all I was going to -- this game is the full package. Hell, even EA Trax in the game has some great songs. So far, just a great, great game. __________________

08-14-2009, 09:35 PM	#42
aran High School Varsity Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New Jersey, USA	I played a couple of games against my brother on All-Pro with no slider tweaks. First game was Cards vs. Titans. Kurt Warner played great and Boldin made a great catch when he was double covered at one point. Second game we played Saints v. 49ers. I played Saints and had trouble throwing the ball while my bro had two big play touchdowns. Bush didn't feel as elusive as I thought he should've. Brees had trouble completing passes because receivers were not holding on. At no point in either game did I throw my hands up and ask what the hell was happening on the field. That's a great sign considering how often that would happen in the past.

08-14-2009, 10:02 PM	#44
Kodos Resident Alien Join Date: Jun 2001	I really enjoyed the two 15-minute quarter games I played tonight. I know it's early on, but right now, I'm thinking this one could be the best ever if it holds up to scrutiny.

08-14-2009, 10:26 PM	#48
PurdueBrad Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: DeKalb, IL	I echo a lot of what I've heard above. There are still a couple minor things that bug me: The announcing doesn't match up to the situation a couple times a game and I sometimes feel like the fight for every yard feature is a bit too dominant (i.e.- Rashard Mendenhall was getting bent over backwards behind the line of scrimmage but using the playmaking stick he suddenly threw his arms up and out, bent back to upright and fell forward). Overall though, this game easily outclasses NCAA this year. I haven't bought Madden in six years I believe and have solely purchased NCAA and this is the best football game I've ever played (which is hard for me to say as I had become quite disenchanted with the Madden series). It just feels and looks like football, so my minor complains aside, I'm impressed thus far and I've only played two games (and a series so I could use Pat White in the Dolphins' Wildcat although I was disappointed to see that he was never an eligible passer on the available plays).

08-14-2009, 11:09 PM	#50
RainMaker General Manager Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Chicago, IL	Do QB's fumble when they are hit from behind? Not a floater pass but just fumble. This is the biggest cause for fumbles in the NFL and is never clearly recognized in Madden.

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