Madden Sales Down 18% Y-o-Y in October

[michigan21]

Quote: Originally Posted by pietasterp

I think you are partially right, but then how do you explain how NBA2K is doing this year? I think the market and dollars are there for GOOD games, and people are simply voting with their wallets. Madden is just too bland at this point...if someone took the names off the guys, I'm not sure I could tell if I were playing this year's game or last year's game. There's no "wow" factor or pizzazz to the game. I'm personally waiting for another football epiphany like I had the first time I saw the original NFL2K in a mall game store 10 years ago. My jaw dropped and for the only time in my life, I walked into the store and bought a Dreamcast on the spot just to get that game. Maybe I'm expecting too much to think that will ever happen again, but I can't help but wonder, given the way NBA2k basically ran Live/Elite out of the market, how much better an NFL game could be out there right now if 2k were still in the game. Would Madden 11 have been canned in the face of an overwhelmingly superior NFL2k11? I guess we'll never know...

That is verbatim what happen to me when I went to the mall in 99. Babbage's had a display on with Carolina playing Tampa Bay and it was in the rain. Every step the players took made puddles. I stood there forever and was in awe of that game. Needless to say I bought a Dreamcast and the game. Still waiting for that feeling from Madden.

[pietasterp]

Quote: Originally Posted by michigan21

That is verbatim what happen to me when I went to the mall in 99. Babbage's had a display on with Carolina playing Tampa Bay and it was in the rain. Every step the players took made puddles. I stood there forever and was in awe of that game. Needless to say I bought a Dreamcast and the game. Still waiting for that feeling from Madden.

Word. I can tell you which mall it was to this day, too - that's how memorable it was. It was an Electronics Boutique for me, but props for bringing back the memories of Babbages (which they had one in Briarwood Mall at the time, near your school colors' campus)! I remember I went and asked the pimply-faced clerk at the desk (who was amazingly similar to the pimply-faced kid that works every minimum wage job in "The Simpsons") about the demo of NFL2K that was running in the store if that was actually a game you could play, since I honestly at first wasn't sure it was even a game...and he told me "yeah it's for Dreamcast". I was like "What the heck is Dreamcast?"...10 minutes later, I was the proud owner of a Sega Dreamcast and NFL2K. Nothing I've seen since then compares to the stunning first impression I had of that game. Maybe the first time I saw NBA2k on 360 with the sweat on the faces and jersey ripples....but that's still probably a 2nd place finisher to that glorious first look at NFL2k.

I'm waiting for that feeling again. I'm losing hope it's ever going to happen...at least not on this generation of game consoles. And not on EA's watch...

[michigan21]

Quote: Originally Posted by pietasterp

Word. I can tell you which mall it was to this day, too - that's how memorable it was. It was an Electronics Boutique for me, but props for bringing back the memories of Babbages (which they had one in Briarwood Mall at the time, near your school colors' campus)! I remember I went and asked the pimply-faced clerk at the desk (who was amazingly similar to the pimply-faced kid that works every minimum wage job in "The Simpsons") about the demo of NFL2K that was running in the store if that was actually a game you could play, since I honestly at first wasn't sure it was even a game...and he told me "yeah it's for Dreamcast". I was like "What the heck is Dreamcast?"...10 minutes later, I was the proud owner of a Sega Dreamcast and NFL2K. Nothing I've seen since then compares to the stunning first impression I had of that game. Maybe the first time I saw NBA2k on 360 with the sweat on the faces and jersey ripples....but that's still probably a 2nd place finisher to that glorious first look at NFL2k. I'm waiting for that feeling again. I'm losing hope it's ever going to happen...at least not on this generation of game consoles. And not on EA's watch...

Yea I bought my Dreamcast and Nfl2k from Babbage's in Jackson right down the road from AA. I played the hell out ot that game and Shenmue.

[Gordy748]

Well I think somebody at EA is aware of the problem with NFL, as much as it's a problem with a lot of their games. Hence the sudden shake-up.

Yesterday at an airport in Europe I was flicking through Game, a glossy mag this side of the pond. Their concluding review of a recent EA sports game was 7/10, concluding that the uninvolving career mode, extremely unfinished commentary and awkward gameplay were compromising factors that left the game as a major disappointment, and limited what it could have been.

You could be excused for thinking the review was for Madden, but it was actually MMA.

[tril]

sales are down simply because of a number of other high profile releases, and a struggling economy.
IMO year over year stats are misleading, because the marketplace was different a year ago.
People are buying less. and most peopel will buy the newer releases first.
A dip like this happens across the board. very few games hold steady.

[bears5122]

Quote: Originally Posted by tril

sales are down simply because of a number of other high profile releases, and a struggling economy. IMO year over year stats are misleading, because the marketplace was different a year ago. People are buying less. and most peopel will buy the newer releases first. A dip like this happens across the board. very few games hold steady.

Not really. NBA 2K11 is on pace to double last year's sales. FIFA has seen an increase in their sales this year as well.

The economy can play a role, but not by this much. Especially when other sports are seeing increases in their sales. Fact is that if you make a good game people will buy it. Madden is just not a good game.

The company desperately needs to do to this series what it did to their NHL series.

[buckeyesfan27]

even though the sales are down since august. i still think NCAA 11 and Madden are too great Football Games. Madden Just needs some fixes. Like NCAA Game Plain would help it. because of all the unrealistic Fumbles. that happen every play. but they will keep getting better. hope EA Get the NFL once again.

[ac-greasy]

This is poetic justice. Madden has sucked since it landed on "next gen"...I for one have went from a passionate/religious annual buyer of Madden to being completely apathetic. The reality is the game sucks, it's boring and it's a glitch filled mess. I bought Madden for the PS2 this year in anticipation of it being the last playable version they will ever release and will just play that until they make the next gen version interesting and fun. Even with that version EA has found a way to ruin the experience by stripping out the online features. Way to go EA! You really do suck. I'm officially done with you until you give me a reason to get back on board.