What's the best version of Madden (any era) if I want lots of progression in-season?

[rookiebatman]

I didn't have consoles growing up, so other than one old Madden game on PC, I didn't have much exposure to these games when I was young. I started working my way through the old PS2 versions recently, and what I've found so far (I'm just on 2003 right now) is that things tend to stay pretty static within a season. You can do trades to switch things up, but after 2002, the trade algorithm seems to be changed so that the human team can't really get good deals unless you throw in draft picks. The younger players' stats only increase between seasons, only a few points at a time.



I guess I've gotten used to some other types of sports games that have a bit more of an RPG sensibility to player progression. Players gain a little experience after each game they play in, and when they get enough experience, they level up and their skills increase. You can't turn a total scrub into a superstar in one season, but there's always a sense of forward motion and players getting a little better every day.


What version of Madden (or NCAA, etc.) would I like best if that's the kind of progression I'm looking for? Any era, doesn't have to be PS2.

[Madden08PCgmr]

05-08 PC, you could set progression points using the editors. 0 to as many as 5 I believe, through the Super Bowl. 1-3 points per progression period though, so it could get out of hand in a big hurry.

Probably works for the PS2 emulator also?

10-12 seemed solid, but I never got deep into franchise. Just didn't love the gameplay.

I despise the points system they ended up going with. Other users would have to chime in on that.

[rookiebatman]

Quote: Originally Posted by Madden08PCgmr

05-08 PC, you could set progression points using the editors. 0 to as many as 5 I believe, through the Super Bowl. 1-3 points per progression period though, so it could get out of hand in a big hurry. Probably works for the PS2 emulator also? 10-12 seemed solid, but I never got deep into franchise. Just didn't love the gameplay. I despise the points system they ended up going with. Other users would have to chime in on that.

Ooh, that's an interesting idea. I do have the 2008 PC version installed, because I wanted a historical teams mod I found somewhere around here, but I haven't actually played it yet. I think I've gravitated more toward the console versions because I don't trust older PC games to work the way they're supposed to on a newer PC (and I'm a lot more comfortable with an emulator than like a VM or virtual OS or whatever). Do the PC versions of that era have controller support? How long is a progression period?

[Madden08PCgmr]

06-08 worked with the X360 controller and usb dongle

I can't recall 2005 if I used the Logitech controller or 360.. pre-2004 was definitely Logitech, I believe the button scheme was the issue? X button was inverted or something?

08 PC with the mods is amazing. The playbook editor is pure gold. Great rosters and draft classes available.

The gameplay is a little dated. Not the best if you're looking to play this era, but fantastic for retro seasons.

[Hooe]

If you don’t want to use external utilities and want to play a Madden with more contemporary X’s and O’s, Madden 20 might be your best bet for maximizing player progression. Breakout scenarios were not particularly balanced and Mid Blitz was extremely effective against the CPU so progressing a raw low-OVR edge rusher to X-Factor was somewhat trivial.

Separately, the most recent Madden games offer sliders for XP gain per-position in franchise mode, so if you want to jack up progression in the most recent offering, you are quite able to do that.

[rookiebatman]

Quote: Originally Posted by Hooe

If you don’t want to use external utilities and want to play a Madden with more contemporary X’s and O’s, Madden 20 might be your best bet for maximizing player progression. Breakout scenarios were not particularly balanced and Mid Blitz was extremely effective against the CPU so progressing a raw low-OVR edge rusher to X-Factor was somewhat trivial. Separately, the most recent Madden games offer sliders for XP gain per-position in franchise mode, so if you want to jack up progression in the most recent offering, you are quite able to do that.

Oh, that's good to know. I certainly wouldn't mind the more modern graphics, and the compatibility with a modern machine if I play it on PC. My biggest concern with modern versions is how they added online-only features like MUT that disappear forever once the servers are shutdown. I assume single-player franchises would still be available. Is there anything related to that (like creating players) that would be affected by the offline-only status?

[rookiebatman]

Quote: Originally Posted by Madden08PCgmr

06-08 worked with the X360 controller and usb dongle I can't recall 2005 if I used the Logitech controller or 360.. pre-2004 was definitely Logitech, I believe the button scheme was the issue? X button was inverted or something? 08 PC with the mods is amazing. The playbook editor is pure gold. Great rosters and draft classes available. The gameplay is a little dated. Not the best if you're looking to play this era, but fantastic for retro seasons.

I haven't had much luck getting it to run smoothly on my computer. I spent way too much time trying to get it to run in windowed mode (because it messes with the size of my other windows if not). I modified the INI and deleted Keyblo.exe, nothing changed. I finally got it to kinda work using an external program (Dxwnd), but the cursor is offset in the menus. You have to move the mouse an inch or two above a button to press it. Still, I figured that wouldn't affect the actual gameplay very much, so I tried to fire up a franchise to see how that looked, and the game immediately crashed.

Not sure if I have the patience to do all the troubleshooting it might require. My computer might just not be up to the task.