Madden 2010 News Post

Madden NFL 10 Blog: Playbooks and CPU Playcalling Improvements

04:21 PM - July 6, 2009 by Smoke316

Check out the new Madden NFL 10 blog, which features playbooks and CPU playcalling improvements.

Quote:


	"Over the years we have continued to add more and more team-specific plays, formations, audibles, and the like, but one of the biggest things that we hadn't nailed was that the CPU teams didn�t play the same way that they do in real life. For example, when you were playing against the Vikings they wouldn�t utilize RB Adrian Peterson enough and would quickly abandon the run for the pass. Knowing that well over half of our audience plays offline games exclusively (mostly in Franchise mode), this year we made it a point to concentrate on getting teams to call plays that focus on their best players (while still differentiating team playbooks with unique team specific formations and plays). For some teams like the Vikings and the Falcons, that may be through the running game, while others like the Patriots and Saints, you obviously expect them to air it out a lot more. To accomplish this, we used our Play Designer tool to totally re-vamp the "AI Groups" to change the way the CPU calls their plays. An "AI Group" is basically the same exact concept of a bucket of plays a team takes into the game geared around game situations. These situations include all the normal football situations like 1st and 10, 2nd Short/Medium/Long, 3rd and Short/Medium/Long, 4th and Short/Medium/Long, Goal Line, and many others. The AI Groups also cover all the �Special� situations like Special Teams plays, QB Kneel Downs, Conserve time (No-Huddle plays), Waste Time (when CPU is ahead and tries to run the clock out), and Hail Mary calls. In previous years, you'd see a much more generic smattering of plays in an AI Group - many of them would be balanced right down the middle between run and pass across all plays. The Head Coach 09 team did some great work and added some deeper support to tag exact plays and the percentages they should be run per situation. We zeroed out all of our previous situational numbers and started from scratch - making sure the CPU picked from a more team-specific subset of plays (no reason to have all those generic HB Dive plays in there if teams don't run them often)."

Game: Madden NFL 10Reader Score: 7.5/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / Wii / Xbox 360Votes for game: 76 - View All

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Member Comments

# 21 Perfect Zero @ 07/06/09 04:56 PM

Glad to see that VIP has been put in, abit in a smaller form.

# 22 doctorhay53 @ 07/06/09 04:57 PM

First off, really cool blog. Improved AI to me meant alot more than just situational playcalling....it means some semblance of gameplanning, which in this case is achieved by better utilizing the team stars.

I do have a question though.....how does this work for a first-time head coach that has no 'real' data? Are they assigned some sort of generic statistics package for playcalling? It would be a shame if this update to the AI was only effective and noticeable for the first year of franchise.

I'm also worried that at some point in a franchise, NE will hire for instance Brad Childress, and Brad will bring his Vikings playbook to NE and it just won't make any sense. I'm pretty sure Madden coach hiring will only work on overall coach rating and not style of play? So how does this system make sure that playcalling always makes sense after coaching changes and such?

# 23 Finsfan46 @ 07/06/09 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kehlis


	What do you guys think? (I'm not sure what I think which is why I am asking)

Well, initially it sounds like they kinda went off what they knew from last year in the NFL...for each team....not really the coaches. So some may be off with what is going to happen in the upcoming NFL season, yes.....
But the cool thing is about future seasons in franchise, how the AI is gonna kinda feed to the players on your teams strengths, and develope gameplans towards the CPU teams strengths..thats awesome !

# 24 Bgamer90 @ 07/06/09 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doctorhay53


	I do have a question though.....how does this work for a first-time head coach that has no 'real' data? Are they assigned some sort of generic statistics package for playcalling? It would be a shame if this update to the AI was only effective and noticeable for the first year of franchise.

Good question...

# 25 AC IS ART @ 07/06/09 05:02 PM

Now that was a good blog. *Waits for a blog on the improvements to the 3-4*

# 26 kehlis @ 07/06/09 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bgamer90


	Good question...

I thought so! I know you weren't responding to me but I thought I would bump my question for those that missed it

Quote:

Originally Posted by kehlis


	Great Info! I will ask the masses a question: How do you think playbooks and tendencies will be handles with teams with new coaches such as McDaniels in Denver? Will it be an assumption based on what the team has? Or will it be tendencies based on his previous gig? I am glad they mentioned the Patriots who tend to pass quite a bit. Logic would say that since McDaniels was their coordinator last year, his offense and tendencies would carry over to the Broncos. However, with the drafting of Moreno, it is highly speculated the Broncos will try and pass off of the run. What do you guys think? (I'm not sure what I think which is why I am asking)

# 27 soxnut1018 @ 07/06/09 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stmark


	i hope those percentages he mentioned are not set in stone because then u can basically set you defense to stop the plays if you know what is coming based on percentages down and distance. i hope there will be alo variety

But in real life defense play percentages too. If you are playing the Vikings you know they like to run, but that does not mean you can stop it.

# 28 CarryTheWeight @ 07/06/09 05:11 PM

It would be excellent to see team tendencies like the upcoming Bills no-huddle attack in-game...

...but not the patented Dick Jauron "run first two downs, pass third down" "attack" that will probably make the Bills the most predictable and easiest team to play against in the game...

# 29 Bgamer90 @ 07/06/09 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CarryTheWeight


	It would be excellent to see team tendencies like the upcoming Bills no-huddle attack in-game... ...but not the patented Dick Jauron "run first two downs, pass third down" "attack" that will probably make the Bills the most predictable and easiest team to play against in the game...

lol...

I really have a feeling that it's going to be easy to play against the Bills in madden 10.

That pass rush vid also backs my prediction.

# 30 kehlis @ 07/06/09 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CarryTheWeight


	It would be excellent to see team tendencies like the upcoming Bills no-huddle attack in-game... ...but not the patented Dick Jauron "run first two downs, pass third down" "attack" that will probably make the Bills the most predictable and easiest team to play against in the game...

How about the "pass on third down when game is in your hands tactic"

# 31 mrprice33 @ 07/06/09 05:13 PM

well no coach/coordinator has "no data," right? i guess ea will guestimate based on whatever the team guy x coached last year ran, in addition to looking at personnel. it won't be as exact as the coaches with history, but it might be close enough.

# 32 roadman @ 07/06/09 05:13 PM

Looks like the playbooks received a huge upgrade for this year.

35 new formation, 1,000 new plays.

Sounds like we will see new plays with different teams, not the same plays all the time.

# 33 Bgamer90 @ 07/06/09 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kehlis


	How about the "pass on third down when game is in your hands tactic"

shut up!!! lol

# 34 steelernation28 @ 07/06/09 05:15 PM

Thank you.

# 35 mrprice33 @ 07/06/09 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by roadman


	Looks like the playbooks received a huge upgrade for this year. 35 new formation, 1,000 new plays. Sounds like we will see new plays with different teams, not the same plays all the time.

but wait, apex told me they haven't changed the playbooks at all except for the wildcat!

# 36 Droopy03 @ 07/06/09 05:17 PM

THIS IS GREAT NEWS

# 37 ViciousFoLife @ 07/06/09 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrprice33


	but wait, apex told me they haven't changed the playbooks at all except for the wildcat!

Perhaps he couldn't catch that bit of truff

# 38 Blkcanes @ 07/06/09 05:23 PM

Nice Blog, I don't expect much in franchise mode this year, but if this works as said it should then I believe that this is just another big step in the right direction for "11".

Now I would also like to know do teams study your teams tendency say I have been running the ball for 5-6 weeks and I'm running it well. Do teams start the game off ready for the run, sense I have been running it in other games or do they just adapt during the game? Basically I guess I'm trying to say does the AI try to adapt and make it seem like it was studying are team for that week? or is that to advance at the moment?

# 39 Deegeezy @ 07/06/09 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stmark


	i hope those percentages he mentioned are not set in stone because then u can basically set you defense to stop the plays if you know what is coming based on percentages down and distance. i hope there will be alo variety

You mean pretty much do exactly what NFL teams do prior to every single game?

Teams literally type in plays into a computer and gameplan around the percentages they come up with in addition to the personnel. That's real life my friend.

# 40 Deegeezy @ 07/06/09 05:27 PM

Like many, my main question is how are coaching changes going to be handled in relation to play percentages.

I'd also like to know more about what was done to improve the 3-4. By improve, do they actually mean it is run the way it is designed to in real life? In the past, using a 3-4 in Madden was just like using a 4-3 but only with 3 lineman and an extra backer. That's not how it is supposed to be.

Lineman have VERY different responsibilites in both the 3-4 and 4-3 and this has never been depicted correctly in any game.

My last question...will us "junior game-planners" have access to these percentages prior to our games like real coaches do?

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