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

[JAYMO76]

I didn't buy Madden 11, though I was given a free copy of the game. I would NOT have purchased it had I not been given a copy. The reality is that I did greatly enjoy Madden 10 but Madden 11 to me just seemed to be a colossal letdown. Though I appreciate the intent of gameplanning, I am just amazed how there was ZERO focus played to franchise mode. I only play franchise mode offline 100% of the time. It was a slap in the face to me as a consumer that franchise mode was untouched. I want to buy 12 but at this point I really don't know if I am finished with madden altogether or not. I want to get lost in my football gaming experience but currently Madden doesn't (can't?) offer me that.

[OrangeCrush]

Madden needs competition, period. Until 2K or any other company can make NFL games, I won't expect much from Madden. I love NBA 2K11 to death but I would NEVER want 2K to buy the exclusive NBA license. Exclusive sports licenses are terrible. I'll be back in to football games if the NFL ends exclusivity in their video games.

[Vikes1]

I haven't bought Madden in two years...breaking a long streak of passed purchases. I borrowed my sons copies of M10/11 long enough to realize they just weren't for me.

As many others have mentioned, Madden is just simply boring...and very much lacks the polish and depth of other sports games of this gen. And imo, the overall game play just fails to provide a rewarding gaming experience.

I'd gotten to the point were I couldn't force myself to play even through one franchise season....due to a complete feeling of disconnect and boredom. I'm pretty much in agreement with those that have said a complete tear down and rebuilt is about the only thing that'll bring me back.

[mWolfe]

I have seen all the excuses EA is making why sales are down and dismiss all of them, reason why, cause when they came out sand flat out said that franchise mode was not being touched this year you told your loyal fan base that they are not the prime concern but getting new people in is. Just by not doing any thing to the franchise mode was enough to turn away 10-30% of their buisness, because hardcore fans will not pay $65 for a roster update and some new bells and whistles.

EA needs to do what 2k has done this year and target its hardcore gamers if they want to increase sales. I believe the reason why they targeted casual gamers is because last year it wasnt Madden that brought in the revenue but Fifa 10 which out sold Madden. Fifa beat out its competition PES, which won over some of their fans. That being said without any competition pushing Madden to stride to be a better football game than its competitor I feel a couple more years of small leaps to come until someone comes knocking their door saying sorry but i think we are taking your hardcore fans now, to finally get some real action out of Madden.

[kiddlex]

Quote: Originally Posted by Vikes1

I haven't bought Madden in two years...breaking a long streak of passed purchases. I borrowed my sons copies of M10/11 long enough to realize they just weren't for me. As many others have mentioned, Madden is just simply boring...and very much lacks the polish and depth of other sports games of this gen. And imo, the overall game play just fails to provide a rewarding gaming experience. I'd gotten to the point were I couldn't force myself to play even through one franchise season....due to a complete feeling of disconnect and boredom. I'm pretty much in agreement with those that have said a complete tear down and rebuilt is about the only thing that'll bring me back.

Well said!! My sentiment exactly. I used to play thru multiple seasons and I too have reached this stage the last 5 years. Simply dissapointing.

[MaddenFranchise10]

Quote: Originally Posted by kiddlex

Well said!! My sentiment exactly. I used to play thru multiple seasons and I too have reached this stage the last 5 years. Simply dissapointing.

I as well. I played one and a half season in Madden 2010's franchise mode before I lost interest. When I saw that '11 wasn't updating franchise, I decided then and there to not purchase this years' game. Simple as that.

And if '12 is the same, I won't hesitate to forgo another purchase.


As a die hard NFL/Madden fan I'm actually surprised in how serious I am. A few years ago I would "say" I'm not going to get the next Madden, but I'd end up caving and buying it to play with friends. But now, I can honestly say I'm done until Madden receives a overhaul - complete with a new physics engine, and fully fleshed out Franchise and Superstar modes, as well as much improved AI play calling and assignment execution/blocking.

Short of that, I will never again buy another Madden game. And I'm not alone in my sentiment. Not one person on my friends list owns Madden '11 anymore. Those that did get suckered into a purchase sold their copy within a month. When I went to Gamestop to pick up Black Ops, they had an entire shelf of used Madden '11 games for the 360. It's funny, because at about this same time last year, I bought Madden '10 used from Gamestop (after finally caving in), and they only had a couple copies. This year there's just too many good games to justify a $65 roster update with no additional incentives or improvements.

I think in an effort to conserve resources and bolster the bottom line, EA Sports has run the serious risk of jading its fan base and tarnishing their franchise's reputation. If it wasn't for the NFL exclusivity, Madden would have gone the way of NBA Live/Elite and been overshadowed by 2k.

It's a weird psychological shift I've experienced. I used to love EA Sports, and would root for them to do well and succeed. But now, I find that more and more, I want EA Sports to fail miserably. I feel that the Madden franchise represents all that is wrong with the video game industry. A glaring example of a behemoth corporation throwing money at a project in all the wrong ways (exclusivity, marketing, ads, gimmicks, etc.) instead of improving the game play/mechanics.

[UMhester04]

"It's a weird psychological shift I've experienced. I used to love EA Sports, and would root for them to do well and succeed. But now, I find that more and more, I want EA Sports to fail miserably. I feel that the Madden franchise represents all that is wrong with the video game industry. A glaring example of a behemoth corporation throwing money at a project in all the wrong ways (exclusivity, marketing, ads, gimmicks, etc.) instead of improving the game play/mechanics"

I 100%agree with this. I just really hope that someone from 2K is reading this so they can show the NFL this thread and the backlash on Madden.

[tril]

Quote: Originally Posted by ac-greasy

"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." Then how do you explain COD:Black Ops? 5.6 million copies sold on the first day. The truth of the matter is if you make a good game, it will sale. You can argue that COD is the same old first person shooter much like Madden is the same old football every year...but COd is fun, innovative and that franchise is not mired down in trying to fix the same old problems every year (or in EA's case, not fixing the same old problems).

that's my point exactly. This years seems to have more high profile releases than last year.