Madden NFL 11 Interview: Real-Time Physics and More with Ian Cummings (GoMadden)

[DaveDQ]

I have to laugh at some interpreting Ian's body language as if to say he's tired and not satisfied with Madden. From what I understand the guy started out as a tester and got to where he is now. I'm sure he gets frustrated at work like the rest of us, but I'm also sure he loves his job.

Maybe his attitude you are picking up on is the frustration with extending himself to the community only to be continually beat up by it. That's not to say he shouldn't be held accountable. I feel the game is boring and stale, but if anyone has extended himself to try and reach out to the NFL football gaming fan, it's Ian.

[capa]

Quote: Originally Posted by DaveDQ

I have to laugh at some interpreting Ian's body language as if to say he's tired and not satisfied with Madden. From what I understand the guy started out as a tester and got to where he is now. I'm sure he gets frustrated at work like the rest of us, but I'm also sure he loves his job. Maybe his attitude you are picking up on is the frustration with extending himself to the community only to be continually beat up by it. That's not to say he shouldn't be held accountable. I feel the game is boring and stale, but if anyone has extended himself to try and reach out to the NFL football gaming fan, it's Ian.

Yeah, that must be it..

C

[7stringking]

TOAL: BS!!!!....I don't see the NHL team 'slowing down' the progress of BAP mode...they didn't improve it much thi syear, but then again, it is already GREAT!...Superstar mode in MAdden is lagging behind, and now I guess it will not be improved...You just cost yourself a purchase with that news EA.The standard gameplay is too digitized in Madden to enjoy as much as I'd like.Superstar gave me a little more bang for my buck(along with COACH mode)...I guess coach mode won't be improved either.EVen if the regualr gameplay is improved, I still expect development to continue on other modes..I mean, C'MON!!!

[BezO]

Quote: Originally Posted by spankdatazz22

"Other" games will always be a part of the discussion as long as Tiburon continues the approach they take. There are countless times Tiburon says or insinuates something can't be done, only to see another game [essentially] do it with far less resources and development time. Which makes people wonder what would occur if the odds were even.

LOL. I remember when EA said last gen systems couldn't handle gang tackling AFTER 2K had already done it.

[N@X_WiZaRD]

Quote: Originally Posted by DaveDQ

I'm sure he gets frustrated at work like the rest of us, but I'm also sure he loves his job.

Nobody said he wasn't satisfied with his job. He probably loves being a lead designer. The claim was that he wasn't satisfied with the overall progress of M11. It seems like Ian is no longer gushing about the features of Madden like he was during M07-M10, which may indicate that he's not exactly enthusiastic about the overall game. Because after all, M11's feature-set is pretty stale - Locomotion and Gameflow. Not to mention the exclusion of Franchise upgrades.

Of course, we're just guessing, but it's not completely unlikely.

[RedZoneD25]

Quote: Originally Posted by N@X_WiZaRD

Nobody said he wasn't satisfied with his job. He probably loves being a lead designer. The claim was that he wasn't satisfied with the overall progress of M11. It seems like Ian is no longer gushing about the features of Madden like he was during M07-M10 (with endless blogs coupled with an upbeat tone) which may indicate that he's not exactly enthusiastic about the overall game. Because after all, M11's feature-set is pretty stale - Locomotion and Gameflow. Not to mention the exclusion of Franchise upgrades. Of course, we're just guessing, but it's not completely unlikely.

I tend to agree with this post. He definitely seems more "whatever" this year. Possibly it's that he wanted to do so much more, to prove that he truly had a vision to take Madden to greatness...Then when he realized exactly how much had to be done, they made the call to take baby steps and focus on one thing this cycle, and felt like he had failed his OWN goals...I won't comment on how I or the people here feel about the game, but I do believe perhaps he wanted to be further along now than we are.

[DaveDQ]

Quote: Originally Posted by N@X_WiZaRD

Nobody said he wasn't satisfied with his job. He probably loves being a lead designer. The claim was that he wasn't satisfied with the overall progress of M11. It seems like Ian is no longer gushing about the features of Madden like he was during M07-M10, which may indicate that he's not exactly enthusiastic about the overall game. Because after all, M11's feature-set is pretty stale - Locomotion and Gameflow. Not to mention the exclusion of Franchise upgrades. Of course, we're just guessing, but it's not completely unlikely.

True. Maybe he is frustrated with what he'd like to see happen and what has happened. I know I am. I played Madden into June of this year, anticipating what M11 would do to improve things. I think though that the whole community thing last year was a no no. Even for me, I was following Madden devs on twitter for the sole purpose of seeing what was going on. It became entirely too personal. Ian would even tweet about his frustration with some here after he would release information and it would get swallowed up.

Personally, I wish all developers would stop with the community hype and "safe" interviews. This interview could have gone much deeper. Ask Ian his thoughts on Backbreaker and what it does with physics. Ian obviously is referring to that game when he says it's not all about physics. Things can be respectfully confrontational. Ask Ian why a game like NHL can continue to focus on its properties and yet Madden seems to keep inventing things.

If these interviews are to be of substance, both the interviewer and the interviewee need to be more thoughtful in the questioning and transparent in answering. And that goes for title beyond Madden.

[Only1LT]

Quote: Originally Posted by DaveDQ

True. Maybe he is frustrated with what he'd like to see happen and what has happened. I know I am. I played Madden into June of this year, anticipating what M11 would do to improve things. I think though that the whole community thing last year was a no no. Even for me, I was following Madden devs on twitter for the sole purpose of seeing what was going on. It became entirely too personal. Ian would even tweet about his frustration with some here after he would release information and it would get swallowed up. Personally, I wish all developers would stop with the community hype and "safe" interviews. This interview could have gone much deeper. Ask Ian his thoughts on Backbreaker and what it does with physics. Ian obviously is referring to that game when he says it's not all about physics. Things can be respectfully confrontational. Ask Ian why a game like NHL can continue to focus on its properties and yet Madden seems to keep inventing things. If these interviews are to be of substance, both the interviewer and the interviewee need to be more thoughtful in the questioning and transparent in answering. And that goes for title beyond Madden.

Rarely happens. People are afraid to ruffle feathers when the consequences of such actions can lead to less accessibility to the person/ organization that is the subject of the interview.

There is a reason why Jim Gray was asking the questions during LeBron's ESPN farce and not Jim Rome lol.