Have Sports Games Lost Their Accessibility?

[shotgun styles]

This article neatly sums up everything that is wrong with Madden today.

Football is a VERY complex game. And most of the things wrong with Madden have to do with people like this author who demand the game be dumbed down for the masses. Pick Up and Play is slowly killing the Madden franchise.

Simplicity is not sim. Period. I really think you need two games (now the NCAA is dead). The regular Arcade Madden, dumbed down for the author and his kids. And a Sim Madden, for those of us who know our stuff.

[scottyp180]

Quote: Originally Posted by RipCityAndy

I'm not a big fan of voice command in video games, but I think the implementation of voice controlled substitutions, play calling, etc. would be a great way to reduce the barrier to entry of sports games. Consider in Live and 2k how many buttons you have to press in order to call a specified play or substitute a player... way too many. Too difficult to explain to a newbie. The only real answer to the problem is for all sports games to have very deep training/tutorial modes. They are a MUST HAVE.

Completely agree with both points. I'm not a fan of voice control but it could definitely help especially in the areas you mentioned. I don't call too many plays while playing 2k because it a) takes me to long to pick a play and by the time the play runs shot clock is running low and b) I need to take my eyes off the action to pick a play leaving me suceptable to steals and turnovers.

A deep tutorial is a must. My main sports game is 2k and the game is notorious for changing and tweaking controls year to year. The tutorial is the only way I am able to learn all the moves and even then I will still forget how to do certain things or forget that I am able to do certain moves. Not to mention that it would be impossible for me to learn everything by simply reading the in game manual. For those who don't know the tutorial is setup so that the cpu will perform the move, while an on screen controller demonstrates what you need to do and then its your turn to perform said move. Imo its a fairly easy way to learn how to do some of the more advanced and complicated moves in the game with out having to figure it out on your own or ask yourself "am I doing this right?" More games should adapt a similar tutorial if they don't already have one

[birthday_massacre]

the NHL series handles it perfectly. Just give us different control types. Ill use madden as the baseline.

You could have the old school controls like Tecmo used, where you just use the four face buttons, then have the advanced controls where is the ones we get now,then have a hybrid where is a little of both but nothing too crazy like leading the pass or stuff like that.

[PamTIde]

My last pay check was $9561 working 12 hours a week online. My sisters friend has been averaging 15k for months now and she works about 20 hours a week. I can't believe how easy it was once I tried it out. This is what I do... Buzz19.cℴm

[lynkraid]

It usually comes down to practice making perfect. The more you play a game the easier it gets. Its just like a new tv remote with a million buttons, in which you have to keep looking down to see what button your pushing, but after a month or so your flipping though channels and running the dvr without even looking at the remote. The same goes for all video games. Give a PS4 controller to someone who has never played a video game before and they have no clue what to do. But if they play the game enough, they catch on. But at the end of the day its not about the controls so much, its about the gameplay, if the gameplay is great people will learn to play it and learn all the controls. But of course the controls need to be good and fluid to start with.

FPS gamers have it easy remembering buttons on a controller, run, aim, shoot, jump, action, crouch. Try a Madden game where the buttons are all different per the offense and defense, preplay, post play, during the play ect.. Same button that throws to receiver square is also the tackle button on defense, or the audible button on preplay, and it also acts as selecting a play, so just 1 button has 4 different actions to remember, same can be said for all other buttons on the control, very complex. To imagine gamers who can go from playing Madden to NBA2k14, to WWE2k14, to GTA5, all of which have some complex controls, amazing stuff to think about, but easy for most of us gamers lol.

I do though wish all games had a super simple controls though like shown above with NHL94 controls. No not for me, but for those who cant possible get into gaming because of the complex controls.

[moose616]

I think a lot (not all) of you "hardcore sim" gamers have forgotten where you've came from. If you're anything like me, your gaming knowledge and style has grown with each generation of systems.

My first Madden was Madden 93 on Sega Genesis. It was simple, fun, and didn't take a lot of football IQ to play. As I progressed to PS and NFL Gameday (As a side note...in case you didn't know, 989 Studios became SCE San Diego, who makes the loved-by-all MLB The Show games) then back to Madden with PS2/PS3, my gaming abilities evolved, as did my knowledge of the game of football.

Gamers are often clamoring for customization, down to being able to choose the color of your created player's shoelaces. Controls, one could easily argue are as, if not more, vital of an option to customize. Many of us that have grown from a d-pad with 2/3 buttons to what we have now (d-pad, two joysticks, 8 buttons) are now having children who will someday (if not already) join us in our sports gaming enjoyment.

The next generation (for the most part) has a hard enough time paying attention to multiplication, let alone trying to decipher the difference between zone or man coverage. Along with that topic, I wouldn't hurt some of these sports games to add in more training. Madden could add in to to read a defense, The Show could add in when to put on a hit & run, etc. Most fans (gaming and real life) would get much more enjoyment out of a sport if they knew more of the "strategery" behind it.

The End
Game on...

[BDawg35]

YES! ... YES! ... YES! ... It's about time somebody wrote about this subject. I know that this forum mainly attracts serious gamers who can master the myriad of controls in today's video games, but I have always been digitally challenged (no stick skillz). Many of today's games require so much stick skill that I'm scared away from purchasing them. I don't buy MLB The Show anymore for that reason. The baserunning is too complicated (for me) compared to the old MVP series. It's a game I really wish I could get into, but it's been too frustrating. Same with many other games. I love playing NCAA Football. While it helps to be a stick jockey, I can still enjoy it with my limited ability at the sticks.

[Armor and Sword]

Sports games need to be made for both. I am hardcore, love my complex controls and am a longtime gaming veteran.

But for our kids.....it can be cumbersome....and they want to play sports games with their daddy.


NHL is a perfect example. I can play with my default controls while my son has a blast playing against me with the NHL 94 classic controls.


Customization is key.


We are able to play NCAA with him using one button control.


So that is the real point.