Madden NFL 11 Demo Available Now, Please Post Impressions Here

[Critical Kills]

Yeah, people who play serious usually do, the problem is a lot of more casual players don't do those things. So in effect the strategy pad is handicapping knowledgeable players and thus making the playing field more even. But now that I think about it, maybe that is the actual INTENT of EA by introducing the strategy pad.

OH and 100% agree about that nonsense of "activating" it. It's ridiculous and my fingers are trembling in anger as I type this just thinking about the entire thing.

[DaCarver13]

I have to say I would give this demo a 9 out of 10.
I know a lot of people are upset and do not appreciate the game but I see the game much improved.

I was really upset to not see the Online Franchise not get any upgrades as that is the only mode I play. I was also thinking that the gameply was going to be almost the same as last year from seeing all the videos... Boy was I wrong!

Some people either did not play Madden last year or are just blind to see the improvements that make this game really good.

I played all my demo games on All-Madden and All-Pro

Imrovements:
1. Much improved blocking. My running backs actually pick up the blitz. Pass blocking linemen actually do better in pass blocking than run blocking. Their attributes show. When I played with the Jets, pass blocking was not so good as Mathis and Freeney were getting in consistently, but as I ran the ball the Jets O-line shined. Opposite with the Colts, I barely got sacked with Peyton Manning and had way more time to throw.

2. No more HIT STICK from 5 feet away and cause a fumble. I noticed that the hit stick is far more realistic. You actually have to be in the right position and is not as easy as past years.

3. The days were 50+ yard field goals were automatic are over. Although the kicking is not super hard, I do see guys missing a lot more.

4. No more last second throwing incompletions. I remember last year when you barely got the ball off without a full throwing motion it was called an incomplete pass... not this year, if that arm is not in a full throwing motion its a fumble.

5. Sideline catching is on point. Curl routes actually work. Now when you run a curl and the receiver catches the ball he turns and goes upfield instead of losing yards!

6. Defense finesse moves on block shed are not automatic anymore. I had a guy last year in my Online Franchise that would use the same Finesse move with Michael Johnson every time and get in the backfield with ease! He had 26 sacks in one season! Those days are over...

7. Locomotion is sick! I had guys in Online Franchise that could cover almost the entire field with their free safety. Now swticthing directions takes away speed, momentum, agility, acceleration, etc. Every player feels different. You can really feel the difference.

8. Cornerbacks hit the ball out of your receivers hands when they catch it.

9. QB throwing motions are sick! I also noticed when you pump fake sometimes the defender on that side gets faked out and sometimes he doesn't. Play action is no longer as effective as last year. I remember last year you didn't even have to establish a run and you were able to play action with ease and the defense ALWAYS bit. Heck guys would even play action on 3rd and 20 and get a first down.

10. Way more animations! No more same ol' jump in the air and get flipped animation. I have seen several different animations.

11. Realism, man I feel like I am actually playing with the Colts or Jets. The player faces are ridiculously sick. The crowd is much improved.

12. Gus Johnson is an uprade from Hammond. Game feels more exciting.



Dislikes:
1. Althought I do like Gus, I think they should add commentary about the current season. I heard NCCA does this. This would be great for online franchise.

2. Fight for the fumble. Hate it.

3. Tackling is still horrible.

4. Although not all the time, CB's tend to know the route your WR is running and make their cuts sometimes before your WR does.

5. Presentation is a bit weak. Could be way better. Halftime show, between quarters, and player of the game.

6. Strategy pad. Not a fan but I am not throwing a fit about it like most people are. I adjust easily.

[Ronnie brown23]

Quote: Originally Posted by ThisIsReality

What difficulty are you playing? All-Madden is a difficulty where the CPU does NOT play to their ratings at all. I've heard All-Pro isn't either and Pro is the way to go with some adjusted sliders.

all-pro but i like to play online

[ryan36]

Quote: Originally Posted by ODogg

Yeah, people who play serious usually do, the problem is a lot of more casual players don't do those things. So in effect the strategy pad is handicapping knowledgeable players and thus making the playing field more even. But now that I think about it, maybe that is the actual INTENT of EA by introducing the strategy pad. OH and 100% agree about that nonsense of "activating" it. It's ridiculous and my fingers are trembling in anger as I type this just thinking about the entire thing.

Now ODogg, you are usually a very reasonable guy...and I get people will not like the game for other reasons...but as focused as EA is with online play, etc....I have to imagine they determined this would not break it for "sim" gamers. After last year, (and since I'm not looking for perfection)...I have faith that most decisions they make are the right one

[AUChase]

Would I be a bastard if I said I was just flat out un-impressed ?

I'll go into detail when I can get some time to type it out.

[Mbalmer]

I played 4 games last night and have a few things to say about this years Madden Demo. Keep in mind that I only played about 15 games of Madden last year and I didn't play NCAA 10 at all so I am anxious to play an HD NFL game. I have NCAA 11 and like it. I am a HUGE fan of the 2k series.

I am playing on a ps3 so yesterday while killing time at work I read alot of impressions on here and was pretty worried about the game. When I first started to play I thought "What is wrong with these people, this game plays great."

The graphics look good, I like the duel stick moves, passing is fun and can be a challenge, and wide receivers go up for the ball now instead of letting the cb knock it down. I had one catch where the wr dove (left to right on screen) and made the catch. It looked awesome. In short, I have never come away from playing a demo and been so impressed with a game. I can' t wait until Aug. 11 (taking family on vacation and won't be back until 11th) to sit down and play this game. Also, if you choose to spectate a game you can see the broadcast camera angle at work. This is going to be huge for me and a big reason why I play this more then NCAA. (1 camera angle? Really?)

Sure there are things wrong with the game, but I have come to terms with the fact that EA just doesn't know how to fix consecutive hits. I don't know why it is so hard or why 2k does this so well, but Ian and the gang just don't know how to do it or don't want to fix it. Also, I had trouble getting to the qb, but I had the same trouble with NCAA demo, but with sliders in the retail version it is not a problem at all. I am blindly going to tell myself that the same will happen here.

Real quick:

Gameflow is a horrible idea in my opinion, but I can turn it off so I really don't care either way about it.

Strategy pad seems to be getting alot of negative comments, but after 2 games I was making adjustments without even looking at which way to push the button. This is a non issue to me. It may take some people awhile to adjust, but it is not a game killer and anyone who doesn't buy this game because of it is crazy. It is EASY to use.

Kick meter is fine. I wish they would go to a "cross" kind of meter (like old ps1 live free throw.) + Get away from the arrow all together and make the up/down be the power and the left/right be accuracy. That would put a fun challenge into field goals.

Commentary is going to be okay in the long run. Gus is so excited sometimes that he can't even stand it. Really, I don't care that much about commentary and this, in general, is good. What I care more about is stat overlays and I saw a bunch pop up while playing. (something NCAA lacks, but hopefully will be fixed)

This is going to be the best year of football gaming for this gen, and I am on board and looking forward to it.

[navygoat1998]

Taste like chicken and plays like Madden. Another year of a good football, great no, good yes!


Mike

[GiantBlue76]

Quote: Originally Posted by adembroski

I understand where people are coming from on this locomotion thing. I feel it more tightly in NCAA as well, but I wonder how much that has to do with there being a lot more open field running in NCAA. The NFL is effectively played on a "smaller field" due to the speed of the game, so there isn't as much cutting to be done. I don't like the strat pad much either, I didn't like it at CD, though I'm growing accustom now. Still, I have a hard time seeing the benefit. Virtually every 2-button adjustment I made before is now a 3-button adjustment. Admittedly, there's one big benefit: It doesn't take up the entire damn screen anymore. Ian is insisting once people get used to it, they'll like it (and evidence thus far is proving him right... on twitter I constantly see converts who are liking it now after complaining a few hours ago.) For the record, I heard from someone, and I think it was Ian, say that the QB doesn't quick snap so much in the retail game. That'll make a huge difference. Everyone's raving about the sideline catches. Everyone I've seen has been executed 2 yards out of bounds, so I'm not seeing good things so far. I would assume this is actually a good sign, as the receivers don't automatically keep their feet in on every sideline catch. If I were going off of only what I've seen, however, I'd have an issue with it. I concur with most people on the catch animations. I've seen some really good ones, especially on bad passes over the middle. Drops/incompletions always seem really realistic, and I've seen some great catches that didn't defy logic. The blocking seems... inconsistent? Too many DLinemen getting off blocks too quickly for my taste. Anyways, this is only 3 games, all on All-Pro... 1 as the Jets, 2 as the Colts. I'm 1-2, 1 close win, 1 close loss, and a blowout loss.

I know the strat pad seems to be the biggest issue to most, but it wasn't for me. Yeah, I didn't really like it, but once again, it's the gameplay itself. Nothing feels alive at all. The players didn't look very good, the camera is too far away, the animations (albeit some additionals) start repeating again. Player movement does not look very real. When the play ends, everyone just stands up in a synchronized motion and does an about face still. The inability to come in and deliver the wood when there is a gang tackle is an absolute killer I also think the ball moves too fast when you pass it. A bullet pass looks like it was shot out of a cannon, even if I am throwing on the run. It's damn near impossible to sack the QB as he gets rid of it just as you get there no matter how effective your blitz was. The sideline catches were pretty good.

I just have a hard time believing that a year of work went into the gameplay, and in the case of locomotion, nearly 2 years. Really? My expectations were much higher after playing the NCAA demo, but IMHO, the gameplay doesn't measure up at all.