Madden keeping EA rich in '06

by James Ransom-Wiley { Dec 26th 2006 at 2:45PM }

EA's Madden NFL 07 is the year's top money-maker, accounting for more than five millions units sold across ten platforms since its release in August. The cult of Madden would not let poor Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 showings disgrace its beloved franchise, blindly shelling out for the lackluster efforts, which failed to best the deeper (and cheaper) PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions.

But Madden's success does not depend on rapidly evolving gameplay. Seventeen years in the football sim business has taught EA that to follow success's formula one must simply eliminate competition (i.e., own exclusive NFL gaming rights) and update rosters.

Tags: EA, Electronic Arts, ElectronicArts, Football, John Madden, JohnMadden, Madden, Madden NFL 07, MaddenNfl07, NFL

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Unimental @ Dec 26th 2006 2:53PM

As unimpressive as the last two rounds of Madden have been, it's surprising how much effort they put into the Wii version. For those of you who haven't tried it out, there's some great fun to be had.

Be that as it may, I'd still like to see some competition within the NFL games rather than an EA monopoly.

Nice choice of the retro menu graphic, BTW.

royalboyle @ Dec 26th 2006 3:00PM

How much effort they put into the Wii version? They did a pretty good job with offensive controls, but they totally nerfed defense. You pretty much can't play a realistic game of football, which Madden should be, on the Wii. The ps2/xbox versions were by far the best of the bunch since 360/PS3 versions were total crap. Madden is a great game for football fans and I sincerely hope they fix the 360/PS3/Wii versions for next year so I don't have to buy the last-gen version again.

Gusseveb @ Dec 26th 2006 3:27PM

I think this is stupid, how could be the same game with slight differences sell over and over again? It's the same as the Fifa and the most of the frachises of EA Sports, people still buying it because now it has the current roster, will be better if they update the rosters online, as far as stupid consumers still buying the Game, EA will be releasing the same game with minimal differences.

KR @ Dec 26th 2006 3:36PM

Here's a reality check for people all overwhelmed by Nintendo love: the Wii version is a piece of shit. The offense is gimmicky fun for a brief period, then you'll be wanting the regular controls again. The defense is horrid.

I would say "better luck next year," but it's not like EA needs any luck, their yearly roster upgrads already get far more success than deserved.

Tyler @ Dec 26th 2006 4:08PM

I've been a sucker for the Madden franchise for years now, and mostly it IS just for the roster updates. It's nice when we get some good features too, but hey, it's football. While it sucks that EA got exclusivity, I hate it when people think it was EA's idea. The NFL -wanted- someone to take the license exclusively, and EA wasn't about to let go of their biggest money-maker.

royalboyle @ Dec 26th 2006 4:19PM

I did notice that in the rumor section of EGM, they said the NFL may not renew their agreement with EA when it runs out (not sure when, 07..08?). I never thought much of the 2K football games. I always thought they were subpar to Madden and pretty glitchy, but I'm happy if there was some sort of competition for EA so they can't just rest on their laurels.

kpeezy @ Dec 26th 2006 4:25PM

Did John Madden take a growler in your guys' stockings yesterday, or what? I know it's cool to hate EA, and hardcore gamers usually feel the need to hate sports games, but come on. Football is America's #1 spectator sport, and football translates well to a video game. Sometimes people want a nice casual game of football that plays decently. Stick with your anime RPGs or machine gun-with-chain-saw-attachment gore fest if that's what you like. Some of us don't want to slay dragons and orcs. I don't understand all the hating on Madden every year.

I buy a football game every two or three seasons, and decided to "blindly" (as Joystiq describes it) purchase the 360 version this year. It's a good game. Not the Best Game Ever Made, certainly, but still enjoyable and as worth the price as any other $60 game.

And for those of you who hate Madden and the "cult" (again, Joystiq's words) who support it, you're probably the same people who buy upgrades of the already ridiculously over-priced and feature-thin iPod, or any other myraid of popular consumer products. I prefer 2K's games too, and realize that the deal with the NFL is bad for consumers. Doesn't mean the game isn't good though.

Dirtyboy @ Dec 26th 2006 4:37PM

Let's hope that the 2K Sports making a return to pro football (historical players) rumor is true.

I was one of the fool's that bought the 360 version of Madden, thinking that the first 360 version was just suffering from "launchitis". Numerous issues with gameplay and many bugs found have turned game into a coaster.

pelon @ Dec 26th 2006 4:47PM

Im not a hater of any sport franchise, But I felt dissapoined with 360 version. I feel that no matter what, next gen game should always be better than the current and last year version. I kind of want EA to Make me say wow ( you know... crap you pants). Year after year its no longer wow; but what the new features. Graphic wise I felt 06 version was better than 07 grahic.

until we see the gears of war graphics in every single game, more realistic game play. I always will feel like a dumb ass for wasting money.

Vidikron @ Dec 26th 2006 5:14PM

@ #3

This is one area where I don't think EA is entirely to blame. You really should blame consumers for buying the same game over and over. Let me ask you this, what do you think would happen if they didn't release new version every year? IMO, after a year people would start complaing about having to buy a football game with inaccurate rosters. So I can't really blame EA for releasing new versions that are pretty much the same game with updated rosters.

BUT I do think they should make roster updates available as downloadable updates. Especially since all the consoles are now capable of going online. This way you give the consumer an option: They can either download the yearly roster update or go out and buy the new version.

greg @ Dec 26th 2006 5:41PM

I hope take two (2k series) has been working on some super footbalpl game.....At this point id take an updated 2k5 with just player numbers and fake stadiums.....with the presentation and gameplay 2k has id take that anyday over this shitty last 2 maddens

Packwolf @ Dec 26th 2006 6:41PM

take two (2k series) will be making a football game for 2007 to compete with Madden 08. 2K's game will revolve around NFL Legend players.

Probot @ Dec 26th 2006 7:24PM

No one should be surprised that Madden doesn't change every year. There are two basic reasons. For one, it's a lot cheaper to make minor changes to the game. But most importantly, the fans don't want it to change.

People prefer the familiar. Originality doesn't sell. Franchises make money. That's why there are seven Harry Potter books or twenty-one James Bond movies. This is why genres and formulaic movies exist.

And some people seem to forget that this is based on a real sport. EA can't just make up new ways to play the game.

The mainstream buyer expects little change because they have gotten used to playing a certain way. The graphics are all they really notice so that's what EA focuses on. And since Madden is still a long ways from photo-realistic animation, they have lots of room for improvement.

typo @ Dec 26th 2006 11:42PM

I've had mixed feelings on Madden for a few years now. I don't like the direction it's taking -- it seems like Madden's turning more and more into a football simulation, whereas I really want a football GAME.

Why can't I get a great-looking, new-gen football game that's actually as fun to play and easy to pick up as Super Play Action Football on the SNES or, heck, the old NES Superbowl?

Allen Sorensen @ Dec 27th 2006 6:20AM

I remember how scared *poop*less they were when they saw 989 Sports NFL video game on the PS1. It looked so amazing compared to that year's Madden title. They realized they had serious competition and put real work into the franchise. I really wish they'd get more innovative and start putting more work into the franchise, but there's no one with which to compete and that means they can be as lazy as they wanna be.

nicole @ Dec 27th 2006 6:22AM

Madden NFL 07 is the must-have game for players to realize the full power of the new systems like the Wii, PLAYSTATION3 and Xbox 360.

FSK405K @ Dec 27th 2006 9:18AM

They need to keep selling new ones each year so that the crazy tournament psychos don't know how to cheese everyone year by year. Each edition introduces new bug fixes and new cheese tactics.

Colby @ Dec 27th 2006 10:20AM

2K football games ... how I miss thee.

To me, the Madden series fell behind once Sega Sports brought NFL2K to the Dreamcast (hint: long before the $20 versions were being produced). And it had always been that way until EA bought their way out of the competition. Perhaps there will be a day when 2K will return to pro football.

(Side note: Since picking up the 360, EA has convinced me that their NBA and NCAA hoops products are head and shoulders above 2K's roundball franchises -- which I had been completely loyal to on the previous gen consoles ... oh, the irony.)

obo @ Dec 27th 2006 1:16PM

Just a bit of an observation:

ESPN 2's running their second season of Madden Nation, where a bunch of gamers play each other in Madden to be champion and win $100,000 and so on. Every match the gamers play against each other is played with the 360 version.

Each gamer represents an NFL player, and each has a little short segment where they go to the NFL player's house and play them in Madden.

I haven't seen every episode, but the four NFL players I saw all played ... the PS2 version.

Trevor Longino @ Dec 27th 2006 1:42PM

For all that people like to knock EA for making crappy games and being a corporate giant that exists to convert steaming manure into money, I really have to argue that their position as a yearly games manufacturer mandates that they produce games of a sub-par quality just to be sure that it comes out on time. I actually feel bad for them.
EA has to make yearly titles because stock holders require it. Anyone who hears the numbers (like this year) that EA sold 5 million copies of Madden alone, at fifty bucks a pop, knows that EA is meeting all of its operating expenses. Heck, they could skip a year or two to bring you a knock-your-socks-off version of Madden and still break even. But a publicly traded company doesn't get the option of making less money than it can possibly make. Shareholders won't let it.
I worked for EA for two years and I know that every single person in the company (every single one, trust me. I talked to a lot of people over two years) knows how EA SPORTS's titles are received by the gaming literati. They are roundly damned. "No new features, bad graphics, blah blah blah."
I also know that everyone at EA wants to make a great game that goes somewhere incredible every year. Time constraints force things to work otherwise. Some of the really awesome features that had to get cut in late alpha because they weren't shaping up are enough to make you cry. I sat in on a meeting where a producer actually offered his car to anyone who could figure out how to keep a feature in one of the games that just wasn't going to make it.
So the next time you slam EA because of a bug, or a missing gameplay feature, or a player rating that you feel is just awful, consider that it's not wholly their fault. Their successes have bred an environment where they cannot afford to take the time to, as some companies do, ship it, "when it's done."
And frankly, even though I don't like sports games, I think that EA makes a pretty good product. You can focus on the bad parts of it, sure, but five million people clearly got their enjoyment out of it, which is all anyone can ask from a video game.

Darkness @ Dec 28th 2006 10:33AM

I was a huge Madden fan back in the Genesis and Saturn days. I'll admit, I picked up Madden '98 for the Saturn when it came out all those years ago. It was the last Madden game I actually enjoyed. Over the years, I've tried out Madden every year, and just could not come to grips with it. Not sure whether I've grown out of football games (though, I still watch college and NFL football). The last football game I purchased was NFL 2k1 on the Dreamcast. I had a lot of fun with it and was even part of an online league.

With the loss of the 2k football games, Madden has dried up even more for me. My recent attempt at getting back into Madden had me trying out the 360 version. For some reason, that game just doesn't do anything for me and is basically the same game I played on the Xbox last year.

I'll admit that there isn't much else that can go on with football, but maybe the engine needs to be updated every couple of years and the rosters can be updated in the years when the engine hasn't been tweeked. There's no reason to update the game every year and pay full price for it.

However, that's me. At least I've heard they've done a good job with the Wii version. Though, I haven't tried it yet.

clay @ Dec 28th 2006 1:23PM

i just took the biggest shit earlier and i looked down and in the toilet i saw a copy of madden.

Randy @ Dec 28th 2006 2:53PM

Madden for the Wii is a VERY fun game. Far from being ****. I've played it since it's release and am STILL playing it. So no I don't want the old controls back but rather enhanced/ improved upon.
Wii Madden is a very fun game. Now as for the 360 version: We wouldn't have these subpar games if 2K or another developer were in the mix. Can make a better game so they just buy the exclusive rights.
Pathetic.