Madden NFL 25 Demo Available Now, Post Your Impressions (360, PS3)

[Gerg04]

Quote: Originally Posted by GiantBlue76

Come on now... Let's not base things off of one particular occurrence that was more of an anomaly. Just because it happened once in real life, that doesn't mean it should happen consistently in the game. That's been a problem with Madden for a long time. Consistency is the key - realistic representation of the game the MAJORITY of the time.

Not for nothing Madden has never been a Sim football game. Whether it's 13 sacks or putting up 50+ on the scoreboard, we always have and always will see these types of results in Madden.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 4

[jpdavis82]

Quote: Originally Posted by Gerg04

Not for nothing Madden has never been a Sim football game. Whether it's 13 sacks or putting up 50+ on the scoreboard, we always have and always will see these types of results in Madden. Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 4

Until next gen anyway. Madden is heading the direction of sim, it's going to take another year maybe even two but people will see it. The problem right now is that the game hasn't been balanced out on the defensive side of the ball. We finally have realistic run blocking and on next gen M25, realistic pass blocking, but the defense is at a major disadvantage now. Once they address the pass rush and fully addressing WR/DB interactions(everything I've heard points to this and defense in general, being a big focus of Madden 15) we should start to see a much more sim style game.

[simsdog]

^ its the same thing every year thou, they fix one thing, ie the running game and foot planting which kills the defense which they ignore, next year they will fix the defense and the running game will suffer for it. Maybe one year they will hit a balance but there desperately needs to be an end of exclusive licenses because competition from another game would only improve the urgency and overall madden product. It is a complete WASTE of time to play defense this year on all-madden; you have no control over what happens, your players get pancaked into a black hole.

[ghettogeeksta]

The more I play this game the more I dislike it. Mainly because of momentum and weight don't matter. To many instances where the backs are trucking over linebackers and defensive linemen without even getting a full head of steam, like as soon as the qb hands the ball off to the running back he trucks over a d-linemen goes flying in the air, they need to get rid of that animation! Plus the hit stick is super unrealistic because it does not take momentum, angle, or leverage into count, it sucks/warps ball carriers into it. Also the tackling is horrid, I think IE has gotten worst during gameplay I loved the first version of it mad gang tackling, now the defenders don't even wrap up, it's like they start to wrap up then just break off mid way through the tackle it just don't look right, not smooth at all.
Not sold on this game, Ill do like I did with Ncaa football 14, get the season pass for early access then rent it on release day to see if any of this is tuned.

[Armor and Sword]

Quote: Originally Posted by rudyjuly2

I finally got to play a couple games from the demo and I’m really happy with it. If you hated Madden last year I doubt you will change your mind with this game. It’s an evolutionary step in the right direction. Since I enjoyed M13 I’m sure I will enjoy M25. Time will tell if the retail is exposed for bugs or problems but I had a lot of fun in two games. PRESENTATION I liked the new intros with the logos stamping on to each other. I’ve read people call the game lifeless and boring but I disagree. I thought the crowd sounded decent and I like the commentary. I thought Simms and Nantz were a fantastic addition last year and they will be good again next year. My biggest problem from last year was some comments were incorrect and there wasn’t enough specific commentary for certain type of plays like screen plays and the read option. Those aren’t just basic pass and run plays – they deserve extra attention to detail. After TDs the commentary would sometimes go silent and that could use a boost. The sideline reporter seemed good. I chose not to send Ray Rice in after an injury as he was high risk and she said that the team has held him out but he could return. Of course there is no commentary during the half time show but at least we get real replays. The replays themselves are a lot better but I wish they would show more angles and some of those need to be press box zoomed out angles more. I did see stat overlays during the game which are good. Overall I like the presentation but some things are goofy. There are a lot of Gatorade cut scenes but no water comes out of the bottle in to the players’ mouths. While I like the starting lineups being shown in full, the 3-4 teams should not have a 4 man line announced. Only a 3 man line should be shown. The camera pre-snap is much too far away. I didn’t really understand these complaints until I saw it myself. During gameplay it’s fine but there is no reason to show that much field pre-snap. I can not only see all the WRs but I can also see the sidelines and the fan in the first row picking his nose. Simply too far. The frame rate was a little choppy at times (PS3) but overall I think the game looks great other than the disappearing players I saw at the end of one game. GAMEPLAY EA has made Madden easier over the years and this year is no exception. All-Madden plays a very balanced and good game for me. The two big slider adjustments necessary are to drop QB accuracy and pass block (15 to 20 imo) but other than that it was good. The running game and read option seemed about right. I saw nothing goofy. The coverage was a bit loose at times but it also tightened up and made plays as well. I really enjoyed the two games I played which I lost 20-14 (I was Seahawks) and 20-16 (I was Ravens). Both times I had the ball on the final drive and threw an INT to end it (my fault on both). This is with acc clock turned off. Player momentum felt good. I play on Slow speed so the game is smoother and had no issues. The DL play is better. There is more movement on blocks. I was Chris Canty on one play and strung out a run and made the tackle. It felt great not being stationary all the time or seeing the loser always end up on the ground. Guys keep battling. Even when stonewalled I felt I could still move or eventually get loose without the traditional obvious winner/loser outcome of the past. I did struggle rushing the passer but I think it will be more balanced between the r-stick moves and the basic turbo move (just turbo, engage and sack). I think the one area that always bears scrutiny in an EA football game is the passing game. I thought it was pretty good. I saw a few deep balls hit by the cpu (Aaron Rodgers toasted me a couple times) and I hit a couple. I’m not a great passer so I can’t expose the cpu coverage like some. Every year I hear people complain about the lack of sacks or pressure for the user. I think some of this may be fair but people also need to realize that the great pass rushers get one sack per game and an additional 2-3 hurries in 30-40 rush attempts. Average players might sniff the QB 1-2 times a game (combined sacks and hurries). If teams average 3 sacks a game that is considered good. Also, we are not in the pocket like a real QB so we can’t sense pressure to help us know when to release the ball. One of the biggest problems in an EA football game this gen has been the cpu QB AI. They make too many bad decisions and throw too many INTs. This is REALLY bad if you get significant pressure. People need to accept the fact that both the user and cpu QB get more time to throw than the real NFL but it’s necessary for the video game experience. I can’t come close to hitting a real 95 mph fastball but I certainly can in a video game because it’s easier and not super realistic. Same goes for time in the pocket. A realistic amount would frustrate the vast majority of gamers. I do think the pass rush is too weak at default but I think slider adjustments alleviate this as I still got sacks every game. The other long standing problem with passing in an EA football game is that balls rarely hit the ground in the passing game. It always hits someone whether it’s completed, dropped or picked off which is disappointing and I saw that in the demo. The QBs in the demo are excellent so it’s hard to know how bad this really is but I think QB accuracy has to be dropped a lot to fix this. I need to play around with this more. I did return one kick for a TD with Jacoby Jones and broke a couple other nice ones too. OVERALL The videos prior to the demo bored me. This demo made me happy. I really enjoyed the two games I played and am definitely looking forward to the release.

Great write up Rudy. And I despised M13 but love the demo. This is what I thought M13 was supposed to be.

[jpdavis82]

For anyone who wants to see some retail build footage, I made a thread titled MUT introduction and Gameplay, it's a Youtube video by QJB. He's a EA Game Changer.

[DJ]

Quote: Originally Posted by Armor & Sword

Alright. The M25 demo is finally here. Before I even give my impressions of the demo understand where my opinions are coming from. I have been a Madden player since the games inception. I have seen and played it all when it comes to football and baseball games and you can throw in a good portion of basketball, hockey and boxing. Heck even tennis and soccer. I am a console sports gamer to the bone. Madden has never been a true simulation of the game of football. Ever. What it has been even at it's very best is a insanely fun game to play against your buddies locally ( in the early 90's we had countless sleepless nights of playing madden 93 tournaments), it replaced tecmo bowl for us as it had a real play book, window passing, and of course John Madden on the cover. It was a revolutionary title. It evolved to the PS1 and by 1999 became again a ground breaking football game with franchise mode. Fast forward to 2004 and Madden 2005 comes out....and it was and is considered the very best of this storied series to date. It also had a great game up against it and back then there we many different NFL titles to choose from. But I always played Madden more than any other series. Why? Because Madden has and continues to be a game that you can pick up and play and enjoy and have fun with. It can be as complex as you want to make it with all the defensive line shifts, individual assignments, line protection shifts, WR shading, secondary shifts, audibles, hot routes....or you can just pick your play and have at it. That hybrid approach to this game is why you have millions of people buying this title each and every year. We at OS are a unique group. We demand more. We want sim. We live for sim. But at the same time........sim in a mass market target audience does not sell and EA is not after a niche buyer. So what can they do right in our eyes? Well sometimes they really get it right (Madden 99, M05, M10/12) and sometimes they really get it wrong (Madden 96, M08, M11). What I have done is learned how to make the game more sim by customizing sliders, having a few simple house rules and just play Madden and have fun. The formula works.......when the game works. So lets talk about the one thing that has never worked this gen....and again does not and therefore something I have learned to live with. Penalties. Yeah it is a major wart......but it is,what it is. Something is not working that can't seem to be fixed this gen. Oh I get penalties. But they are the same ones we all know. Holding, false start, clipping, roughing the passer. We do not get enough PI or any others. So now that's out of the way lets get to the demo. Madden.......it's so nice to have you back....and I mean wow...your really back...finally......this gen. I played 3 games once as Baltimore, Green Bay and San Fran. On slow, All-Pro. The things I was keying on we're OL/DL interactions, the running game, the IE 2.0, replays, stat swipes, presentation in general, player weight and momentum, the modifier controls, hit stick, AI, player models, sidelines....just taking in the game. I am very pleased. Actually I am so pumped to get this game. I found all 3 games to be tremendous. I had a blast. Pros 1. The running game is amazing. Momentum, planting, the modifier system, the blocking, the IE 2.0, it all works like butter. Running with Ray Rice was a totally different experience than running with Bernard Pierce. Lacy and Franklin felt like thunder and lightning. Hands down this is the best the running game has ever played. Ice skating running playing on slow is a thing of the past. It feels like a real running game. I was able to bounce a run with Ray Rice for 72 yards and here is how it went. I called a simple off tackle run from the I formation. I hit the hole and got through and was able to use the modifier to juke the OLB out of his cleats I then hit my speed burst and went down the sideline for 72 yards and got ankle tackled at the 3 yard line. I jumped out of my easy chair and was hooting it up. It felt and looked......real. 2. Passing game - fantastic. I have command of my QB. I can lead my WR's. I made some insane grabs....I do not user catch. So I saw so w amazing animations...and playing on slow brings out the IE and catch animations...heck all the animations in all their glory. 3. Defense felt good. I was able to get some pressure...not too much and not too little. OL blocking and pass rush were the only sliders I tinkered with tonight. I play with a no switch rule and my DBs and LBs did a very nice job in coverage when I called the right defenses. I was able to make pre snap adjustments. Seemed like I had time to make at least 2 sometimes 3 if needed. Love the option keys that were added. 4. Graphically this game is truly gorgeous. Better than M12. The colors are rich and the game just shines. 5. IE 2.0- wow....this is a huge area of improvement. The hits crunch, the game feels awesome when you blow up a WR running across the middle. I absolutely jacked up Boldin. On one slant....it was sick. The tackles feel smooth. The ability to lower your pads as a RB and knock back a CB on his ***.....wow. Or when you get,hit...lose your balance then stagger....the game looks and feels amazing IMO. M13 was a hot mess.....M25 we have physics!!!!! 6. Replays. Ok...I am really loving some of these close ups....just pure eye candy!!! Stadium Fly overs look great, I do miss the pre snap walk-ups of M12...and really wanted those back. But post game replays are vastly Improved from the garbage that was M13. 7. Play by Play and Color is vastly improved from M12 and I like the sideline reporter as it is a very nice touch. Are there things I would like? Of course. The PA announcer should have all the names not calling numbers. And that goes for Simms and Nantz as well. Cons Same legacy issues of penalties. Not a true TV broadcast presentation yet So I am really happy. As long as the connected franchise is working properly for offline players like myself, custom rosters will be shared and of of course classic rosters are going to be amazing. This is shaping up to be the very best Madden this gen.......and dare I even say....ever. I already have plans on developing an All-Pro slider set with house rules in place to give a truly sim like experience. Those who know me and the way I approach my sports games will like them. I will no doubt look at the legacy camera and zoomed camera. I will also experiment with the broadcast camera as well. I can't stress enough how good the run modifier controls feel and respond. I also can't say enough of how refined the game looks. It is a graphical tour de force. And I'm an tell you on the zoom camera it will be very nice. Slow speed is the way to go....with custom sliders, classic rosters, full editing control as well as owner mode and fantasy draft...this,is shaping up to be the best Madden package we have ever had. Fun factor - 9 Controls - 9.5 Graphics - 10 Sound - 9 Overall 9.5 demo score Madden is truly back people.

Well, this and RudyJuly2's posts are very encouraging. A&S, I know you disliked M13 as much as I did, so I'm really looking forward to downloading the demo tonight after work and checking it out over the weekend.

I'm enjoying NCAA 14, so if Madden 25 is on the level, it'll be real nice to have a playable NCAA and Madden within the same year.

[jpdavis82]

Quote: Originally Posted by DJ

Well, this and RudyJuly2's posts are very encouraging. A&S, I know you disliked M13 as much as I did, so I'm really looking forward to downloading the demo tonight after work and checking it out over the weekend. I'm enjoying NCAA 14, so if Madden 25 is on the level, it'll be real nice to have a playable NCAA and Madden within the same year.

Madden 25 is better than NCAA 14 because the defense is better( Have not had one game where a team scored over 20 pts yet, 20-17,14-7, 16-10 in OT, 17-14) and the running game is even better on Madden, so you should enjoy it. I play sim style and don't try to exploit the game, if you do that, then you should have an awesome experience playing Madden 25.