Madden NFL 25 Impressions (PS4)

[NothingfaceZERO]

Are the sliders completely jacked in this game? I have them so much in favor of the cpu but I'm getting a stupid amount of sacks. LIke where i'm not even happy when I get one anymore.

The LE is too dominant n o matter who is p[laying the position. THis was a problem in NCAA 14.

[Boilerbuzz]

I know no one cares, but I've decided. Not keeping the game. I think the decision is as much emotional as it is technical. In short, when I get frustrated with the game, it's the same issues that reminds me of how much I loathe the current gen game.

Pros:

1. I'm pretty happy with the pass blocking decision making. The right guys are blocking the proper man. Big win in my opinion.

2. They have replaced the absolutely hideous run animations. Now they are just Ok. At worse, ugly, but passable.

3. Defenders do play zones better. Still WRONG in some cases. But a noticeable improvement.

These are the positives that stand out. The game has improved. No doubt. But there are still issues:

Cons:

1. I still can't get the right pass when I want it. If I want to float the ball over the outside shoulder on a 9 or 7 route, and I can't get the ball to AT LEAST get over the hook to curl defenders, I want to ****ing rage. Ball flight physics are still fake.

2. Pass and run blocking animation resolution still kill me. On defense, I can't play the game of leverage. I can't play ANY game. There is no do one move to setup the next. There are no tells to cue me to what move will work and when. I can't get my shoulder into the blocker and keep him there. There is no dance. I can't push my blocker and collapse the pocket or close a particular gap. This has always been a shortcoming of this game and it remains. Dope defensive linemen don't always have to make sacks. They control the lanes. They disrupt the run game AND the pass game. They make the tackle while a blocker is still engaged. I want this! One the opposite side, if my OL is going to lose, I should be able to tell why. Instead, a dude just "lets go" of the defender.

3. Presentation. This is next gen. Why in the hell are you still using the same presentation set? Pointless cuts to the head coach doing nothing with the exact same animations. You know, Marc Trestman walking like a bouncer. Guys taking air flavored Gatorade. Inactive players with full gear on. Same, stale, stilted commentary. Btw, there is NO excuse for the broadcast team to look as bad as they do. Which brings me to...

4. Graphics. **** is shinier. OK. That's pretty much it. The skin looks awful. God awful. And just because guys have helmets on, doesn't give you a pass on player likenesses! Especially if you're going to have the gall to pan to their faces! Field looks great. Crowd looks good from a distance. Up close? Ugh! Same tech! You guys can do glasses. I know you can. Yet, there are none. Or they are missing from many dudes that wear them. I normally dismiss trolls using hyperbole, but I'm dead serious when I say: I actually did feel like I was looking at a current gen game. Nice looking overall, but still current gen. That just means that the jump to next gen is not big enough. EDIT: PLAYER MODELS - same models. Same skeleton. Coaches still look like, again, bouncers. What's with those traps?! Ugh!?

5. It still feels, for lack of a better word, empty. Why didn't Beastmode feel like Beastmode? Why did he go down HARD to a solo tackle to a scrub corner that would never DARE try to tackle him head on. Why was AP tripped up on ONE foot? Why didn't I have that pinpoint precision with Drew Brees? Where is the fight for the ball that Marshall is GOING win? Plays still have no rhythm or timing. Still.


As you guys can tell, I'm a little crazy when it comes to football. I don't expect perfection. I do expect progress and I'm talking about industry wide. I Game A does it, I expect all of them to do it within 3 years. Since EA and the NFL have seen fit to make Madden the end all, be all, they need to match the quality of everything that has been done before it. It's been long enough. I'll take it on the chin for this term, but to all the idiots still giving EA a pass because it's good are the main problem. It's a good game. But for what it is and what it has some, it needs to be BETTER! It needs to be a football game. Not just a video game. A FOOTBALL game.

Again, my reactions may be amplified due to emotion. I won't sugarcoat it. The fact remains that after 9 years and 2 generations of hardware since the deal with the Devil, I should have been tempted to actually pay for a copy of the game. I figured this was the year. I bought it. Didn't open. Played a friends copy for a few days. Thought about it. Played another friends copy. Thought about it some more...

Just can't do it.

[Introvese]

I own the Ps3 version of Madden. With no upgrade program for PS4. I had to keep current Madden. So i use a free month of Gamefly just to try it out. Pop the game in. Went to practice while installing. Turned up to all-madden. Zones are better. True step feels very clumsy. WR ball awareness is awful still. Its exactly the same as current gen. But i figured that would be the case. The one new gameplay mechanic i had high hopes for was the alleged climbing the pocket. I like what i heard from EA with that. Get the game. Still dont have to climb the pocket at all. U can drop back 20 yards still. Only difference i see is that when dropping back is if u pass while doing it the game will stop your drop back and u will throw the ball. Overall its feels to be better than current gen, but not by much. If u skip current gen. U may love it. But if u have the ps3 version. Keep it because i cant see myself spending more just to play this madden. Now Xbots i can see why to get it with that 10 upgrade.

[TeeDogg]

Im liking the game for the most part. one thing im missing from last gen is I can not find slider settings that open up the animations like I did on the 360. I had the 360 playing like an EA trailer. the multiplayer interaction were varied and organic, I was seeing different catch animations all the time (on the sidelines and back of endzone anyway) I was always having wow moments while seeing things during gameplay.

fast forward to the PS4, while I like the game im just not seeing these animations and the organic gameplay, im etting repetitive tackles, popping and snapping especially when 3 players are involved. the sliders feel much more stable (they don't throw the game completely out of whack like before) but I cant find any settings enhance the player interactions and animations like before.

oh and im not seeing the DE lower his shoulder and try to drive around the OLman,i loved that animation but its so rare now and I can not do it anymore. that should be the main move that establishes the pocket............

[JMD]

After playing a dozen or so games against the CPU in play now and MUT I think this is the best football game I've played since 2k5. Certainly the best Madden game. I'm seeing things I've not seen before in a football video game. I'm still working on my slider set but I'm very close and have had some real battles. I always play using the Chiefs and my games are going pretty much how the have in real life.

The presentation is still lacking. Why there is no halftime show is nuts. I haven't started my career mode yet but I'm guessing there is no half time, post game or weekly wrap up show there either, there should be by now.

All in all the game on the field I think is very solid. I'll be playing this one for quite some time.

[secondsolution]

I've played two games since getting my PS4 last night. The main thing I have noticed is that this game is HARD on all-madden. Its been a long time since I have felt challenged so it is very welcomed. I think they are making steps in the right direction

[Jarodd21]

Quote: Originally Posted by secondsolution

I've played two games since getting my PS4 last night. The main thing I have noticed is that this game is HARD on all-madden. Its been a long time since I have felt challenged so it is very welcomed. I think they are making steps in the right direction

I can't wait to play it man.. This right here has me cranked up to play the game. Madden 13-25 was kind of a disappointment on the challenge side in certain areas. Love what I'm hearing so far about the gameplay from the AI on the new gen..

[m1ke_nyc]

Played my nephew last night, hes one of the guys that play the wrong way. Dropping back 20 yards to throw, going for it on 4th and 10 etc. Made him quit in the 3rd quarter. That cheese BS just couldnt work for him. Had him 21-0 should have been atleast 28-0 besides a few turnovers from me. Sacked him bout 5 times, picked him off 4 times and he kept throwing into double/triple coverage all game. In past Maddens the stuff he was doing would have worked.