"Simpler, Quicker, Deeper." That's the tag line for Madden 11, as EA appears to be angling for the attention of the unsophisticated, no-time-to-waste "casual" demographic without dissuading its hardcore player base. The new Madden will be made both "simpler" and "quicker" through GameFlow, the buzzword for an optional auto–play calling mode, which puts players in the role of a quarterback that receives his plays from an AI coach. "Not everyone has an hour to dedicate," says senior producer Phil Frazier, alluding to the average length of a typical Maddden match. GameFlow is said to shave down match times to 30 minutes.
But fear not, bro, Madden also goes "deeper" this year with the option to create custom game plans before each match. Plus, there's another buzzword to memorize: Locomotion. That's the name for the game's "all new" animation system. While still short of the highs achieved by the Euphoria-powered animations of Backbreaker, there is a gameplay component to Madden's Locomotion system: Players can now lean and dodge during runs with the analog sticks.
According to the trailer, Madden 11 "will make every football game before it obsolete." (At least, GameStop's trade-in value will certainly reflect this sentiment.) Check out the dev diaries after the break, if you're not yet sufficiently pumped up for game day: August 10.
but they would probably still make more then enough money to be able to make the next one years down the road. the reason i don't by sports game is for that fact. They could also charge like $10-$15 for a roster update each year. that way they could still make extra money yet the costumers would save money to buy perhaps another EA game.
People love to say this, but it would be horrible. Madden '09 was awful, one of the worst ever. Madden '10 was amazing, one of the best ever. It would suck if we missed out on '10 and all the vast improvements they made and stuck us with '09 for 5 years.
Even if they picked out a "good" one, so much changes over 5 years that there would be so much we're missing out on.
As much as people that don't really put any time into the game love to make jokes about how Madden is just a roster update every year, it's really not.
I don't see how that is different from any other series of games that don't release yearly. To use your own argument, what if 11 sucks? And I see no reason tweaks to gameplay couldn't also be done with DLC/patches along with the roster updates. Face it, sports games are yearly simply because so little changes with the actual game their mimicking that they can get away with roster updates and gameplay tweaks. They don't have to create entire new campaigns like almost every other game. And they know their fans will buy them because they want to latest rosters.
I will say though that I think 3-4 years is likely too much. I think a 2 year cycle would be good... with DLC content and roster updates occurring in the off year.
I've been playing Madden for 20+ years, and it looks like this will be the end. Not letting me call my own plays? That must be a joke. DEAL BREAKER. (or should I say Backbreaker?)
This is definitely an encouraging thing to see, IMO. I love sports. I love games. But over time sports games all got lost in simulating every nuance, that the fun got lost. I LOVE Tecmo Super Bowl, RBI baseball, Baseball Stars, etc. I can play a complete game in 15 minutes or less, and the controls are simple enough anybody can pick it up right away. I tried the demo of MLB 2k10, had to relearn the controls (because they futz with it every year) and finally gave up after the first inning went 20 minutes. I don't have time for that.
Forget Madden. I'm far more interested in Tecmo Bowl coming out tomorrow.
After all the talk they did last year, about 10% of it actually ended up in the game. The running animations in all their vids last year were so good yet they decided to stick with the same shit robot run. I hope backbreaker is fun to play because the guys at Tiburon haven't a fucking clue how to develop and improve on a game.
As a longtime Madden fan I am tired of the same old thing year in and year out. I'm putting all my eggs in the backbreaker basket and hoping it does to madden what only 2k5 has accomplished
*facepalms* alright guys, don't look to much into this video. I wish it had a more focused message because it certainly doesn't seem to help our cause in promoting Madden 11. Gameflow is actually quite cool and it does cut down game length tremendously, which is really important for any multiplayer games haha. But yeah this is an early build as Ian Cummings has said in a recent interview. There is quite a bit new in Madden 11, more than any other sequel in the franchise in a long time. Don't let the surface fool you. Again I really wish they would have approached this marketing campaign a bit differently, because people are tearing it apart eh.
Because it's one of the most blatantly rehashed franchise there is. Besides you told me not to judge it until I've tried it. Why don't you take your own advice and not form any opinion on the game until it is in your hands?
This sounds so boring - "makes all other football games obsolete?" Yeah, okay.
Last madden I bought was 2006, and its going to stay that way until there is a change in how the system works. A game released every 3-5 years with $20-25 yearly roster/patch updates would be awesome. Give them more time to actually improve the product with each release, and allow non hardcore fans to purchase each new version too.
Wow, they make it better by mentioning "power" words? Just saying the words online-innovation doesn't make it so. Yet another Madden to fill the hopes of so many people just to let them down. Back Breaker will be filling this for me. Madden can go sit by itself in it's monopolised corner.
This is actually the first Madden game I would consider buying, purely because of the GameFlow feature. As someone who enjoys watching football but doesn't quite understand all the strategic aspects of it, having to pick my own plays all the time was completely intimidating. I mean, it's only recently I figured out what a shotgun formation is, and what an I formation is. I still don't know what things like screens are, or how to read a defense. The GameFlow feature will actually help me learn these things instead of assuming I already know it all.
Honestly, watching Sportscenter during the football season will teach you everything you need to know. They meticulously dissect a number of plays showing the strengths and weaknesses.
I suppose, but that doesn't help much when I'm staring at a play-call screen with 300+ plays that basically look like a bunch of squiggly lines to my eyes, and I have to pick one in 30 seconds.
With Game Planning, I can watch them dissect a play on Sportscenter, study it and figure out how to work with it in the game, and put it in the right situational playbook. Then, GameFlow will pick it for me when the time is right. And I actually learn something in the process.
Its called the practice go there and go nuts and learn your playbook in and out...spend the man hours figuring it out so you wont have to guess and choose when your in the game...problem solved.
I know that there are many different target markets that play Madden every year, but EA trying to satisfy everybody is jusut making them disappoint everybody. I mean, it's marketing 101 to have a focus.
Focus on the casual or the hardcore first, not both. More than likely if they actually included what the hardcore have been asking for(for years), then more casual fans would pick it up as well bcuz of word of mouth from us hardcore. The product will "spill" over into other target markets.
But alas, I don't know everything that's included in this year's version. Maybe they fixed those crappy halftime and post game shows(not to mention franchise mode). I do know from Game Informer that at least now you can skip the referee cutscenes!
*yawn*. Every year EA promises us that the new edition will change the way football games are played forever. Then we play it and it's basically the same experience with the only sweeping changes limited to the interface.
There is only so much you can do with a football game. I understand that from a marketing standpoint you have to spin it like it's something we've never seen or played before, but after awhile videos like this are hollow to me. Just make sure the game runs smoothly and call it a day. People will buy it regardless because it is Madden.
watching the last video got me excited... players at times looked funny when running but the change in direction looks alot better, alot less of players trying to stutter step, which will help the recievers and stuff. I using both sticks to run and move instead is going to make special teams alot more fun :]. Also GAMEPLANNING IS GOING TO BE AWESOME :D. Go on ea's website and also watch the ncaa gameplay and it looks like they removed defenders with eyes behind their head and players sideline catching looks great
For anyone who isn't a sports fan, they have to watch this clip of Gus Johnson, the narrator of the video. He gets so excited at the end of sporting events. You don't have to enjoy sports to appreciate it.
"According to the trailer, Madden 11 "will make every football game before it obsolete." (At least, GameStop's trade-in value will certainly reflect this sentiment.)"
