Madden 09 Hands-on

Motion · May 22, 2008

IGN Says: "The most additions we've seen to the franchise in years."

May 21, 2008 - It's been said that people should learn to appreciate the little things in life. The same is also true for Madden football. Madden 09 does not redefine videogame football. It doesn't take the classic Madden formula and turn it upside down. What it does do is it takes so many of the little things from last year's game and improves on them exponentially. They aren't details that can be seen by watching a short gameplay clip or looking at screenshots. They're the things that you don't realize about the game until you pick it up and play it for yourself, something that I was lucky enough to do recently at EA Sports' Tiburon studio. I played several games with a bunch of different teams on a handful of fields and can say with confidence that Madden 09 improves on last year's impressive effort.

The first thing you'll see when you boot up Madden 09 is the man himself, John Madden. He's been removed more and more from the Madden football presentation and gameplay over the past few years, but now he's back delivering introductions to the new Virtual Trainer feature that players can use to acclimate themselves to the flow of this year's gameplay. There are four challenges that you have the option of completing that will set the mark for your Madden IQ and thus your custom difficulty level (click here to read more about Madden IQ and the Virtual Trainer). There's rushing defense, rushing offense, passing defense and passing offense.
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http://ps3.ign.com/articles/875/875852p1.html

Dolphin1184 · May 22, 2008

Great read.

SICK · May 22, 2008

great read....im crossing my fingers hoping its good!

Regan21286 · May 22, 2008

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I prefer Madden's commentary over that generic radio announcer's.

Firesole · May 22, 2008

still not buying this game..................

brandon27 · May 22, 2008

it looks pretty impressive. Actual commentators again... its about time. Hopefully we can change players' positions this year when editing them.

mor911 · May 22, 2008

Nothing against motion, but here's why this means crap to me...

From IGN's Madden 08 Review:

Madden NFL 08 is a great game. It's certainly the best Madden since the 2005 edition and a worthy offering for the new generation of gaming. The new animation system is outstanding and the game itself plays wonderfully. Madden succeeds where it matters most: The gameplay. Now Tiburon just needs to bolster the surrounding aspects and it could have a true classic on its hands in the near future. The presentation needs a serious kick in the ***. Let this be the last year with a radio broadcast play-by-play. It's embarrassing to listen to this homer calling (and miscalling) plays. Madden 08 is not the best football game ever made, but it is one of the better iterations in the franchise. It's certainly the best Xbox 360 football game to date.
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From IGN's Madden 07 Review:

The more I played Madden last year, the less I liked it. I've had the complete opposite feeling for Madden 07. Sure, there are still some flaws, but even if you just played Superstar mode, Madden is worth the money. This is the year EA Sports finally shows 360 owners what the series is all about, the trash talking, the head-to-head competition, the ability to create yourself and become a bigger star than the Seahawk on the box. Forget the curse, I'm headed to the Hall, one block, one IQ test, and two athletic parents at a time. This is the Madden gamers have come to know and love. Welcome back. Only next time, remember to bring Owner mode.
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From IGN's Madden 06 Review:

There's no doubt that this is a next-generation version of Madden from a graphics standpoint. I could wax on and on for hours about textures, pixels, and how blown away I am by the various animations that happen on the field. The lighting, the stadiums, the expressions in the eyes of the QB -- these are all reasons to acknowledge how far technology in gaming has come in the last few years. But once the impact of the graphic presentation settles in, I have to look at the entire package offered here.

If you want Madden 06 with all the bells and whistles (owner mode and mini-camp drills), then stick with the regular version of the game that you have for your consoles at home. But for the casual Madden players, the football fans playing Madden in barbershops across the country, the guys that just want to play the game and talk trash to one another, Madden NFL 06 for the Xbox 360 is a must-have game.
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Every year's Madden iteration is the next big thing that will be the bomb... For another 12 months till they make you shell out another $60.

Motion · May 22, 2008

mor911 said:

Nothing against motion, but here's why this means crap to me...

From IGN's Madden 08 Review:

From IGN's Madden 07 Review:

From IGN's Madden 06 Review:

Every year's Madden iteration is the next big thing that will be the bomb... For another 12 months till they make you shell out another $60.
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No offense taken.

It does seem like we hear the same stuff every year.

Still praying they don't get their hands on Take Two.

Regan21286 · May 22, 2008

Motion said:

No offense taken.

It does seem like we hear the same stuff every year.

Still praying they don't get their hands on Take Two.
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Or if they get their hands on Take Two, they let the 2K team work on Madden.

mor911 · May 22, 2008

Regan21286 said:

Or if they get their hands on Take Two, they let the 2K team work on Madden.
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best case scenario... Peter Moore is behind EA games now. I don't think he's an idiot. But he doesn't have a lot to work with.

Regan21286 · May 22, 2008

mor911 said:

best case scenario... Peter Moore is behind EA games now. I don't think he's an idiot. But he doesn't have a lot to work with.
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Agreed.

Marino · May 26, 2008

Great stuff, thanks for the link. I use to play Madden all the time, but haven't got it the past two seasons. Have got NCAA though. But i think it might be time to give it a go again. See if i can build those Dolphins back up to winners.

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