Please Don't Scrap Superstar Mode... Just Make It Better!!!

[Madden's Jowels]

First off, I gotta say what up. This is my first time posting. I've read the site for a while and finally decided to register. A lot of you will be indifferent to this post, but I felt this stuff really needed to be said. I know 90% of you care exclusively about franchise mode, but I feel like somebody needs to come to the defense of Superstar mode before all hope is lost.


In my opinion superstar mode, while obviously very flawed, has the potential to be every bit as engaging and rewarding as franchise. All it needs is some attention and TLC from the developers.


Before I go into why this mode has potential, let me first go over some of the crippling problems:


- there is absolutely no depth. You get the same e-mails all the time, and everything besides the actual game play is incredibly repetitive and lame. You are kept in the dark as to who is in the running for league awards, in fact your player knows hardly nothing about the state of the NFL except for standings and stats.

-There are no incentives for performing well in your players games. You could bust off a 300 yard rushing performance and nothing will be made of it. You won't even get an e-mail from your mentor saying "WOW, you broke the NFL single game rushing record kid. Great job." The most that will happen is you might get an e-mail saying you were player of the week. And there are also no consequences for performing terribly. You can throw 6 interceptions and you won't get benched. The coach will probably send you an e-mail saying "hey kid, tough loss. Come into practice early next week, we have a lot to work on".

- You don't have to earn your starting position, and you can pretty much have 100% on the hall of fame meter after 3-4 years, even if your only performing at an above average level.




Now I know i'm just scratching the surface with those, but you get the idea. Superstar mode is an empty, vapid and lifeless mode.


And let me tell you something else: I have 6 superstar's saved on my hard drive right now. And I play several of them quite frequently.



Why is this? Because the actual game play is FUN as hell. Do you know how rewarding it is to play as a free safety and jump a route, pick the pass off and take it to the house? Or to come up with a big drive-killing sack on 3rd down rushing off the edge? To look at your players end of the year stat-line and know that you earned and accumulated every one of those yards, tackles, or touchdowns?


If the developers could fix the issues that come with this mode, as well as tweak the gameplay a little (and either abandon or vastly improve the whole "influence" system) it could be a VERY worthy alternative to franchise mode.


The Superstar mode I envision has your player going through his pre-draft workouts, and NFL combine just like they do currently. Only instead of 3 drills (40, bench and a positional drill) I want to see them doing 5-6 drills, including multiple positional drills. I want to see the player given a truly customized rating based on his performance in the drill, instead of a cookie-cutter rating made to fit in with the player type I chose (why is my safety putting up 23 reps on the bench and getting a 55 strength rating? Just because I put him as a "coverage DB?").

I want to see mock drafts and big boards. I want to see the early buzz on which teams are interested in drafting my player. The player is then sent to the NFL draft, where he gets to hear his name called and walk on the stage and recieve his team logo hat. Maybe he is involved in a draft-day trade, who knows?


I want the training camp & practices to actually mean something. The influence points are stupid, I think the training camps & practices should affect your players actual rating and standing on the team. Maybe your wide reciever comes into camp 4th on the depth chart and during training camp he outperforms several players and earns his way up to 2nd.


I want to see my players performance actually mean something. If I perform incredibly, I want to know about it. Send me an e-mail from my agent or my mentor with excerpts on what the league buzz is saying about my player. Maybe show me some newspaper coverage. And if my player performs badly, I want to hear about it too. If I come out and throw 5 interceptions in my rookie debut, and I've got a wily veteran backing me up just waiting in the wing to take over, I want the coach to let me know that I'm on the hotseat and my performance better improve or i"ll be sitting on the bench.


I want there to be more interactions between player and coach. What coach sends his players emails all the damn time? I want my coach to actually COACH me. Tell me what I need to improve on, and what I'm doing right


I want there to be rewards and incentives for performance and reaching certain statistical milestones. 1500 rushing yards, 4,000 passing yards, 100+ tackles, etc. You get the idea. If I'm rushing for 1800 yards SOMETHING should happen. There should be a trophy case that keeps track of pro-bowl appearances (maybe represented in the form of a framed jersey?), all-pro years, MVP's, offensive/defensive player of the year awards, positional awards (best WR, best DL, etc.) and also should keep track of all your (a) career highs and (b) best performances. Maybe there should be saved highlight reels from your career games (the game you rushed for 192 yards and 2 TD's in the AFC championship game, the game you set your career passing record, etc.) You could have the option after a game to designate the game as a "career" game. Maybe reserve space for 10 highlight reels of your best games. If you fill up your 10 games and then have another career game, pick one to be replaced in your "pantheon"



I want their to be actual contract negotiations when your contract expires. Instead of your agent saying "hey, your contract is up, do you wanna stay here or test the free agent market?" You should actually get a contract offer from your current team. Maybe they offer you an extension with 2 years still left on your deal, who says they have to wait until your contract expires? And if your deal does expire, and they make you an offer, you can look at the terms and negotiate them (I'll take less money if you give me more years, etc.) decide wether to accept, or test the free agent market.Then you could have the option to negotiate with any interested teams (not just 5 teams. If I'm a 96 OVR QB hitting the free agent market, there is gonna be 15 teams knocking down my door). And if you check out the free agent market and you don't like any of your options, you could still choose to sign the deal your current team offered you.



There should be more difference between the 1st year of your career, and your 10th. You should have some sort of idea what your standing is amongst the league. If everyone in the NFL considers you a top-3 QB, you should know it. If your a respected veteran in your 8th season, maybe your younger teammates will e-mail you and ask for your advice. Maybe you become another players "mentor." If your career has been dissapointing and most consider you a bust, you should know it. And you should have the ability to revive that career by winning and performing better.




As it stands, I dont even know if the developers have said wether or not they will include superstar mode in Madden 10. Maybe they already confirmed its been cancelled, I have no idea. And I know they are supposedly revamping franchise mode for this year, so thats probably going to be the focus for this iteration, and thats GREAT, because franchise mode is the heart and soul of Madden. But I think that they should really keep Superstar mode in mind and try and revamp it next year. Because 2 great game modes are better than 1, and the mode could be something great if given the depth it deserves.

[nuckles2k2]

DAMN that was quite a read. But I agree though, I already made a thread in the Madden wishlist forum completely dedicated to Superstar but it went pretty much unnoticed.

http://www.operationsports.com/forum...star-mode.html

By the way have you ever lit up a receiver who just caught a pass over the middle with a safety in Superstar? Well is wasn't actually SS mode in Madden but CL in NCAA. I had a free safety on Penn State in one of my CL's and Brian Hartline came across the middle and caught a pass and I abruptly caught him. Hitstick. It was beautiful.

[illwill10]

i agree. I play superstar more than franchise. If they improve on it and don't do a halfass job on it, it would be great.
Plus if i am importing a player from Ncaa who is a 99. I dont want him to be in the high 90's. I want him to be in the mid to low 80's.

[Bump101]

Yeah, superstar would be kinda cool, if they was to fix it up a little bit. Does anyone know if superstar/hall of fame mode is going to be in madden 10?

[salbowski]

GREAT thread jowels...

can't say i disagree with any of what you wrote... infact i wholeheartedly agree with the majority of the post.
I 've played a number of "superstar" (or similar types) modes on other sporting games and have to say maddens version thus far has been pathetic... do i think it has a future??? ABSOLUTELY... will in be a major part of M10??? i don't think so!

i've got the feeling that they will focus on "franchise" mode in M10 and then focus on "superstar" for M11... i think it needs that much work to become a worthwhile mode with all your ideas (and more) integrated into it.

[Bump101]

Quote: Originally Posted by Madden's Jowels

First off, I gotta say what up. This is my first time posting. I've read the site for a while and finally decided to register. A lot of you will be indifferent to this post, but I felt this stuff really needed to be said. I know 90% of you care exclusively about franchise mode, but I feel like somebody needs to come to the defense of Superstar mode before all hope is lost. In my opinion superstar mode, while obviously very flawed, has the potential to be every bit as engaging and rewarding as franchise. All it needs is some attention and TLC from the developers. Before I go into why this mode has potential, let me first go over some of the crippling problems: - there is absolutely no depth. You get the same e-mails all the time, and everything besides the actual game play is incredibly repetitive and lame. You are kept in the dark as to who is in the running for league awards, in fact your player knows hardly nothing about the state of the NFL except for standings and stats. -There are no incentives for performing well in your players games. You could bust off a 300 yard rushing performance and nothing will be made of it. You won't even get an e-mail from your mentor saying "WOW, you broke the NFL single game rushing record kid. Great job." The most that will happen is you might get an e-mail saying you were player of the week. And there are also no consequences for performing terribly. You can throw 6 interceptions and you won't get benched. The coach will probably send you an e-mail saying "hey kid, tough loss. Come into practice early next week, we have a lot to work on". - You don't have to earn your starting position, and you can pretty much have 100% on the hall of fame meter after 3-4 years, even if your only performing at an above average level. Now I know i'm just scratching the surface with those, but you get the idea. Superstar mode is an empty, vapid and lifeless mode. And let me tell you something else: I have 6 superstar's saved on my hard drive right now. And I play several of them quite frequently. Why is this? Because the actual game play is FUN as hell. Do you know how rewarding it is to play as a free safety and jump a route, pick the pass off and take it to the house? Or to come up with a big drive-killing sack on 3rd down rushing off the edge? To look at your players end of the year stat-line and know that you earned and accumulated every one of those yards, tackles, or touchdowns? If the developers could fix the issues that come with this mode, as well as tweak the gameplay a little (and either abandon or vastly improve the whole "influence" system) it could be a VERY worthy alternative to franchise mode. The Superstar mode I envision has your player going through his pre-draft workouts, and NFL combine just like they do currently. Only instead of 3 drills (40, bench and a positional drill) I want to see them doing 5-6 drills, including multiple positional drills. I want to see the player given a truly customized rating based on his performance in the drill, instead of a cookie-cutter rating made to fit in with the player type I chose (why is my safety putting up 23 reps on the bench and getting a 55 strength rating? Just because I put him as a "coverage DB?"). I want to see mock drafts and big boards. I want to see the early buzz on which teams are interested in drafting my player. The player is then sent to the NFL draft, where he gets to hear his name called and walk on the stage and recieve his team logo hat. Maybe he is involved in a draft-day trade, who knows? I want the training camp & practices to actually mean something. The influence points are stupid, I think the training camps & practices should affect your players actual rating and standing on the team. Maybe your wide reciever comes into camp 4th on the depth chart and during training camp he outperforms several players and earns his way up to 2nd. I want to see my players performance actually mean something. If I perform incredibly, I want to know about it. Send me an e-mail from my agent or my mentor with excerpts on what the league buzz is saying about my player. Maybe show me some newspaper coverage. And if my player performs badly, I want to hear about it too. If I come out and throw 5 interceptions in my rookie debut, and I've got a wily veteran backing me up just waiting in the wing to take over, I want the coach to let me know that I'm on the hotseat and my performance better improve or i"ll be sitting on the bench. I want there to be more interactions between player and coach. What coach sends his players emails all the damn time? I want my coach to actually COACH me. Tell me what I need to improve on, and what I'm doing right I want there to be rewards and incentives for performance and reaching certain statistical milestones. 1500 rushing yards, 4,000 passing yards, 100+ tackles, etc. You get the idea. If I'm rushing for 1800 yards SOMETHING should happen. There should be a trophy case that keeps track of pro-bowl appearances (maybe represented in the form of a framed jersey?), all-pro years, MVP's, offensive/defensive player of the year awards, positional awards (best WR, best DL, etc.) and also should keep track of all your (a) career highs and (b) best performances. Maybe there should be saved highlight reels from your career games (the game you rushed for 192 yards and 2 TD's in the AFC championship game, the game you set your career passing record, etc.) You could have the option after a game to designate the game as a "career" game. Maybe reserve space for 10 highlight reels of your best games. If you fill up your 10 games and then have another career game, pick one to be replaced in your "pantheon" I want their to be actual contract negotiations when your contract expires. Instead of your agent saying "hey, your contract is up, do you wanna stay here or test the free agent market?" You should actually get a contract offer from your current team. Maybe they offer you an extension with 2 years still left on your deal, who says they have to wait until your contract expires? And if your deal does expire, and they make you an offer, you can look at the terms and negotiate them (I'll take less money if you give me more years, etc.) decide wether to accept, or test the free agent market.Then you could have the option to negotiate with any interested teams (not just 5 teams. If I'm a 96 OVR QB hitting the free agent market, there is gonna be 15 teams knocking down my door). And if you check out the free agent market and you don't like any of your options, you could still choose to sign the deal your current team offered you. There should be more difference between the 1st year of your career, and your 10th. You should have some sort of idea what your standing is amongst the league. If everyone in the NFL considers you a top-3 QB, you should know it. If your a respected veteran in your 8th season, maybe your younger teammates will e-mail you and ask for your advice. Maybe you become another players "mentor." If your career has been dissapointing and most consider you a bust, you should know it. And you should have the ability to revive that career by winning and performing better. As it stands, I dont even know if the developers have said wether or not they will include superstar mode in Madden 10. Maybe they already confirmed its been cancelled, I have no idea. And I know they are supposedly revamping franchise mode for this year, so thats probably going to be the focus for this iteration, and thats GREAT, because franchise mode is the heart and soul of Madden. But I think that they should really keep Superstar mode in mind and try and revamp it next year. Because 2 great game modes are better than 1, and the mode could be something great if given the depth it deserves.

I think superstar mode is the mode where EA should bring back the newspaper like in the last gen franchise mode had. That way the user can know what's going on around the league and the mode will finally have some depth to it.

[Madden's Jowels]

Quote: Originally Posted by nuckles2k2

DAMN that was quite a read. But I agree though, I already made a thread in the Madden wishlist forum completely dedicated to Superstar but it went pretty much unnoticed. http://www.operationsports.com/forum...star-mode.html By the way have you ever lit up a receiver who just caught a pass over the middle with a safety in Superstar? Well is wasn't actually SS mode in Madden but CL in NCAA. I had a free safety on Penn State in one of my CL's and Brian Hartline came across the middle and caught a pass and I abruptly caught him. Hitstick. It was beautiful.

I agree with a lot of the stuff you wrote too. You were a bit more concise with your statements haha, I tended to ramble.

But honestly, I don't see why superstar couldn't be just as good as franchise.


And yes, clocking a reciever coming over the middle is amazing. I'm also pretty proud of the punt I blocked a few days ago. I keep trying to repeat that feat but I keep getting thisclose and whiffing. My goal is to block a punt and then recover it and run it in for 6.


My current superstar is a free safety for the 9'ers. He won the rookie of the year award his 1st season with 82 tackles, 5 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles, and a defensive TD. Right now I'm wrapping up his sophomore campaign, his INT's are down but he's getting sacks this year, more tackles, more forced fumbles, and had another Pick-6. I'm trying to lock up that DPOY award.

[vols bravesfan]

You never get chosen to be on the madden cover in superstar mode either