Lack soul....
That is exactly what it is about. It is the reason why I still will fire up 2k football, just to be in the environment of the game. 2k game has faults and is graphically dated, but the soul of the game still beats a lot of things out today.
It is the reason why I play NBA 2k often even though I'm not the biggest fan of the NBA anymore. It has so much soul and personality to the game, it just makes it fun to play and turn on.
I've linked EA's games, specifically Madden, to say KFC. It's good chicken. Not bad. But it's nothing like "Grandmama's Chicken."
Grandma's chicken is made with love and is the best thing ever! While KFC is good when you eat it and it fills you up and satisfies you when you hungry, but it doesn't hit you in the face like Grandmamma chicken.