Madden 09 Demo Released, Impressions Here

[Altimus]

Every year people go nuts about the new Madden and every year people complain and analyze a demo beyond belief... a demo. A build which is probably months old.

This is a impressions thread, not a another year of 2K football thread.

Those that troll, will receive infractions. Talking about bugs is one thing, but trolling is another.

[arseniotall]

WOW

First game I thought the game was INCREDIBLE. I will say the graphics are top notch. After about 5 games though it felt so much like the same game. Maybe because i hadn't played 08 in a long time. I can see how the developers are trying to get rid of cheese tactics but they are still possible, just harder. The icons disappearing on drop backs and the long ball throwing animation takes time. Nice touches. I do applaud them for their efforts. But when u really get down to it its the same gameplay. Eli Manning is way too fast also..LOL

[boondock18]

I'm not happy with the demo itself, but I understand the reason that EA went this route. I would have rather had just a practice mode with 1 team instead of the 1 minute of gameplay that is offered.

The graphics look fantastic and it certainly feels more polished than the failure of NCAA 2009. Pass rush felt realistic although it still seems a little too easy to complete passes, might be because of the difficulty the demo is set at.

I really don't like the way to select plays. I prefer what NCAA has this year where the plays are represented by multiple buttons, it makes it easier to disguise your play calling. Other than that there really isn't a lot of content to grade on this demo, which worries me a bit. I'll wait a little while after release to decide after I bit the bait on the broken NCAA 2009 game.

[sportsdude]

EA=fail.

Manningham was on the Giants last year? That's news to everybody outside the EA offices, apparently.

Also, one drive. Not even a full quarter so I can't play defense? What a crappy demo. Yeah, let's put gamers in a Madden Moment from last year's Super Bowl, where they have to run a two-minute offense with no timeouts in a game they've never played before. Please.

[SeventhWard]

Hey there fellas. Long time, first time...and it's a long one. So I anxiously awaited the release of the Madden 09 Demo today on PS3 - only to see it was available on XBOX Live first. I guess those MS guys didn't want Sony to beat 'em to the punch afterall, eh?

I'm a film guy so I'm into the minutiae of animation and the graphic presentation - that's what makes my Madden fun. After a few moments with the demo, I can say I'm visually satisfied this year. It's significant enough of a change to leave 08 behind forever, and an encouraging step into what the game could eventually evolve into.

I said "Wow" out loud once the Giants vs. Patriots moment loaded. This really is a serious jump in visual fidelity. I've been seeing the game for weeks now in all of these online videos (closet fanboy), but nothing really compares to seeing it in your gaming spot with a controller in your hand. The Madden team is getting closer to giving the game a more consistent cinematic look, something I'm excited about. 2008's game was ultra squeaky clean, so sanitized that it's lack of texture and atmosphere took away from the immersion. Madden 09 is a pretty good step in the direction of reversing that.

If Madden were a film, for years I'd wished they'd hire a new Cinematographer - someone to use their mastery of light and color to give the game an emotional feel, therefore making it more epic and fun for us. Looks like they did a little of that this time. This is only one stadium, but the effort the designers put into lighting the field and models shows this year. It ain't perfect yet, (no refs) but it's starting to feel like an hyper-realistic Sunday experience.

I'm not one to care if the graphics in my games aren't photo-realistic - as long as the game has a consistent and immersive Art Direction, I'm happy. There's a 'look' that certain games can achieve that raises them above their peers. Example: Saints Row looks like a video game -- Grand Theft Auto IV looks like an interactive movie. That distinction is achieved by constantly evolving lighting and color, environmental DETAILS (litter, wildlife, ambient sound) and other cinematic techniques. If Madden intends to compete with games like GTA4 and MGS4, this year is a great step. They're not 100% there yet, but I can see it coming and this is good work from our guys in Orlando. There's cinematic room for improvement - like us playing the game through an actual camera lens, along with lens flaring, cinematic depth of field and debris on the lens (like water droplets or chunks of grass, mud and snow sticking to the lens when I bring the camera into the trenches), ambient noise from the stadium (drunken fans, hot cheerleaders, beer guys, peanuts), and more cinematic lighting (the direction and COLOR of sunlight changes throughout the game).

The game has really streamlined the way you get into one of my favorite features in Madden - Instant Replay. In slow-motion you can really appreciate the game. The first thing that jumped out to me is the improved QB and ball animation. In previous years, far too often the football looked like it was just blasted out of a cannon once your QB's arm animation was done. Not this time - the throw looked smooth, the ball coming from Manning's hand realistically. Nice. I admit, I haven't explored deeply into the facial animations this year but they were there in 08 - hopefully they're not gone. Again, when we're talking immersion, they're something really cool about knowing my guy's face reacted to a hit even if I'm not seeing it.

There are guys who can really pick apart the fine details of the gameplay, but again I'm more of a graphics geek. Aside from the fumbles, I thought 08 played great. That feeling has evolved in Madden 09 to something more refined and natural feeling. The tackles are improved, the game feels really good. Sure, I got slightly frustrated when I threw a pass to my TE near the pylon and he stepped out prematurely - But Mr. Frazier and Mr. Cummings have made clear in other posts, there's a few tweaks to be made to the retail version. No sweat. It's a video game, not life or death.

For being a guy really into the visuals, Madden 09 looks great. You've got my $60 again. To leave my visual wish list for 2010, ahem Ian and Phil, you're doing GREAT work with Madden. Keep the series evolving in the direction you're heading - and placing priority on cinematically immersing us into the game just as well as a BioShock or GTA4 or MGS4. I can't animate worth a damn, but if you ever open a little development meeting at the EA studio in Los Angeles, give me a shout. I'll come in with my ideas freelance for a day. ;-) Now back to playing the demo. Can't wait for the launch.

[trobinson97]

Quote: Originally Posted by Dynamite

And I've found a bug already...if your O-Line gets a false start, the player that did it (it's been the RG now all three times) will walk away from the line of scrimmage (with no penalty being called) and just keep walking towards the opposite end zone.

Yep, happened to me earlier.

Quote:

Enter the Madden moment, first play of the game I call a few fake snaps while sending a guy in motion. One of my linemen jumps, but no penalty is called. The lineman stands up like "Yeah it was me ref" then slowly inches his off the line and down the field while time continues to run off the clock. I'm sitting there feeling like even more of a ****** as I watch inch his fat butt all the way down field. Everyone else (both offense and defense) stay at the line of scrimmage at their positions as if the ball will be snapped at any moment. With about 15 seconds or so I just start pressing buttons, happen to call an audible that signals to the wayward offensive linemen that we'd like to run a play. He runs back down to set up, but time runs out. So my first impression is, wtf?

[gbx34]

Hold down the left trigger and then you can select your plays via buttons.

Why does it seem that everyone gets really high hopes for games? What did you guys really expect? Did you really expect to be wow'd?

[trobinson97]

Quote: Originally Posted by gbx34

Hold down the left trigger and then you can select your plays via buttons. Why does it seem that everyone gets really high hopes for games? What did you guys really expect? Did you really expect to be wow'd?

Considering the recent track record in this generation of football gaming, "expect" is a little strong. Nothing wrong with hope though is there? I definitely hoped to be wowed.