Madden NFL '06 will be released tomorrow, and the New York Times asks a great question
about it. Why should anybody be excited about the 18th iteration of this console mainstay? More broadly, the Times asks
whether the industry behemoths like EA have developed a creativity-killing dependency on sequels.
"There's a feeling of franchise fatigue," the Times quotes Denver-based equity analyst Mike Hickey as saying. He's got a sell rating on EA's stock. Though the article never specifies why this analyst is bearish on EA's prospects, it implies that Electronic Arts may lack the creativity that will allow them to grow in the future as they have grown in the past. EA, of course, disputes that vision of the future.
Somehow, we think Madden '06 is going to do just fine. The hype for this game is huge, and sports fans are probably just a little sick of baseball's doping scandals at this point.
