Online Communities Took Precedence Over Online Franchise in Madden NFL 12

[GiantBlue76]

Quote: Originally Posted by CRMosier_LM

Guys.... This post is 1,000,000% spot on! And it has nothing to do with me being a Game Changer. Excellent post and that is why LM was created...to get more people involved so the mode will be upgraded and we can focus on other things!!!

I'm absolutely stunned at the thought process of folks at times. Stunned...

[mirrored32]

i dont' play online games because the servers are lame. like some of the features of NCAA football but i don't like waiting for servers to work.

madden. . . not even close.

I think the push to online is ok for those PVP's out there, but i am an offline multiplayer kind of guy. so much fun having a group over every week to play it out in the same room. just feels so, crappy to be playing online. I don't mind if they work on my online stuff, just please don't' forget about offline.

[CRMosier_LM]

Quote: Originally Posted by tazdevil20

I'm absolutely stunned at the thought process of folks at times. Stunned...

Just being honest man, the true is what it is... It's not a conspiracy. The most played game.modes always get work, on EVERY GAME.

[Still2REal]

Quote: Originally Posted by CRMosier_LM

Just being honest man, the true is what it is... It's not a conspiracy. The most played game.modes always get work, on EVERY GAME.

OK then please tell me why people on this site always say Offline Franchise is the most played part of the game, yet it took 4+ years for them to touch the mode.

They improve what they want to improve and hold off on the features that gamers demand for as long as possible so they can add it at the last moment and say "NEW" feature. There is NO DOUBT in my mind they staged a 2 part Online Franchise implementation for this very reason.

[CRMosier_LM]

Quote: Originally Posted by Still2REal

OK then please tell me why people on this site always say Offline Franchise is the most played part of the game, yet it took 4+ years for them to touch the mode. They improve what they want to improve and hold off on the features that gamers demand for as long as possible so they can add it at the last moment and say "NEW" feature. There is NO DOUBT in my mind they staged a 2 part Online Franchise implementation for this very reason.

Because what people assume and what is actually real are 2 completely different things. And I'm sorry that you feel that way but your last sentence is not correct. Online franchise will be torn down and rebuilt from scratch, you can almost bet on that

[GiantBlue76]

Quote: Originally Posted by CRMosier_LM

Because what people assume and what is actually real are 2 completely different things. And I'm sorry that you feel that way but your last sentence is not correct. Online franchise will be torn down and rebuilt from scratch, you can almost bet on that

Casey, I know that it will actually. That's probably more the reason they didn't put effort into it this year. They are thinking of it as throw away code when they could simply start the work on the re-write, which in actuality is the right thing to do. However, they should have done it right the first time. That falls on poor development, which is the frightening part. I'll be thrilled if they get it right next year. Full web integration and everything. Online franchise coupled with more gameplay improvements will bring me back to the Madden fan I once was about 10 years ago.

[kbmnm247]

Quote: Originally Posted by TNT713

Does anyone else see the same cycle of logic that I'm seeing? EA says people aren't playing Online Franchise as their reason it wasn't updated. Upset consumers are saying they aren't playing because the mode isn't updated. Someone stated they may delay their purchase until December to get Madden for a lower price. The problem with this logic is, not buying Madden keeps Online Franchise metric numbers low and starting to play in December to get a bargain may be well after the creative decisions get made. Meanwhile, guys like myself that get the game at midnight on release day can give meaningful feedback about what we'd like changed immediately through our feedback and gaming habits.

And you think it is right for EA to make decisions based on the first week(s) of gameplay? I understand they have a quick development cycle... so save the big changes for last. Work on getting all of your art, commentary, animation stuff together early and then refine the modes afterwords? Is that so hard? To make decisions based off of reviews a week after the game is out is something EA constantly does, and imo it is not very intelligent. Even when it comes to patches, but I digress...

Quote:

I'm curious to know how many of the people who are complaining about what isn't updated in Madden 12 didn't pay $60 for new copies of Madden 10 & 11. The way I see it, EA improved the online landscape and game play enough for several things to happen: 1) Gameplay: Longtime PS2 holdouts may finally move to PS3/360 because the coverage shading they have been using since Madden '05 has finally made it to NG. 2) Gameplay: Longtime critics of suction will play Madden more now that tackles occur on contact. 3) Franchise: Although they don't make this mode for me, I remember the list of improvements being substantial. Franchise players who make up a large part of the community will be pleased for a few months. 4) Online Communities: People have been craving something like Communities for years. Slider folks will be happy. SIM folks will be happy. Cut-throat players will be happy.

Don't get me wrong, but I do not see the allure for these online communities. I don't see how it is any different than me having a friends list, except that OC will keep stats. Whoop-de-do

Quote:

These are things that people who PLAY MADDEN have asked been asking for. It's reasonable that the improvements to other modes may cause the metrics for Online Franchise to dip even lower. With many of the 'fans' refusing to play based on principle and the rest of us not caring at all, the effect is the decision NOT to update the mode. A better course of action would be to address the real issue that plagues online franchises and leagues alike - NOT ENOUGH GOOD OWNERS and COMMISSIONERS. If you like the idea of Online Franchise and want to improve it, don't just complain, boycott, rile, and rally. Instead PLAY IT - OFTEN. Add to the fabric of the small Online Franchise community. Get Madden 12 at midnight and play Online Franchise all year long. Make some new friends and mirror the dignity you expect from others. Obviously, fans of Online Franchise who play religiously in spite of the shortcomings need help getting the numbers up. Later

TNT, no offense, but you obviously have never played Online Franchise. It ISNT an online franchise. You say to play it, often. The reason people don't play it is because would you rather play a buddy with a random team immediately, or would you rather go through all of the scheduling to play a buddy with the same exact teams. There is nothing franchise about Online Franchise in Madden. It would be like me telling you to play Online Ranked games OFTEN even though they didn't keep score in the games, you'd be telling me I was crazy for suggesting that could get it improved.

EA is lazy, pure and simple. It can not possibly be that hard to add a salary cap to OF over a 2 year period especially when you claim you can control/update/add to it at any time because it's all online.

[kbmnm247]

Quote: Originally Posted by TNT713

BLAME THYSELF. Later

Your business analogies do not hold water. There are glaring holes all over the place.

This is not 4 separate stores, yet it is one big store. They sell 4 products at the said store. They are also basically "forced" to keep the 4 products in stock, no matter how many sales they make of each, because it keeps the consumers happy and returning. Now, if you had a product that was 3% of your sales, but 25% of your prior resources/development/research, wouldn't you at least look into why it wasn't being purchased? Is it because all of your inventory is expired? Is it because all of that current inventory is miles behind competitors with the same inventory? Is it because your product really is just a cheap China knockoff? Because THAT is why it is 3%, the OF mode is stale, behind the times, and the only place that mode is an Online Franchise is on the in-game menus that EA displays. It is FAR from an actual FRANCHISE mode. FAR from it.

You are saying that they should just pour more money into the 97% sales because the 3% sales don't matter. So they are just going to have "rotting inventory" on the shelves while the 97% # can pretty much only go down over time? Why wouldn't they pour more R&D into why the 3% isn't selling since you already obviously have a huge market share with the other 97%?