Gaming News: Madden 12 preview
My first encounter with a pro football game was a text based MS-DOS game called Super Sunday. I remember sitting down and spending hours calling plays and watching the action play out in all of its VGA pixilated glory! Since it was a coaching simulation, I learned quite a bit about varying playcalling, the different positions of the game, as well as the general strategy of formation use. Ever since then I’ve valued the stat tracking and strategy elements of football video games, and for the longest, Madden seemed to neglect that for the sake of the on field action.
For years I would watch friends obsess over roster update after roster update of Madden iterations while I would scour the internet or gaming stores for the next football coaching sim. It was rare that there was a football game that housed the difficulty of the strategy of football coupled with the controls that had sufficient and not burdensome controls. Don't get me wrong though, I loved football enough to play Madden from time to time.
For me the barrier that pushed me towards not bothering anymore came when people online would have 'emergency plays' that on fourth and long they could depend upon to ALWAYS get a completion. Thanks to the ridiculous lobs that QB’s of all skill levels would toss downfield, for some reason defensive AI would not adjust to or be able to account for those flat and go routes making them nearly impossible to defend for the average player like me. After a time, I gave in and classified Madden as one of those ‘hardcore only’ games that I’d monitor from a distance.
Yearly update after yearly update would go by and I’d begin to hear the Madden faithful complain about lack of franchise features, poor post and preseason modes, clunky menu screens, horrendous online matchmaking, aggravating tackling, and game changing canned animations. The highly dedicated players would even have certain plays that they could use in given situations that ALWAYS led to high yardage plays regardless of what rival team was used. To say the least, a football game void of strategy and stacked with FPS or fighting game style learning curves completely turn me off.
So… for many years I would dip my football toe into the pool hoping for just the right entry temperature so that my strategic mind could compensate for my casual approach to playing the game. As it turns out, this just might be my year to renew my Madden status.
As with every version of Madden the buildup is lengthy and well covered. Hardcore Madden sites provide developer interviews, game play videos, player rating reveals, and Q & A features that completely pick apart the developers focus for this year. While most casual fans simply want a roster update and good controls to wail upon their friends online, hardcore fans (Maddenites) seek additional franchise mode options and more realistic team and player based AI.
Well in Madden 12, the buzz may be worth it. Madden 11 seemed to be a return to better controls for improved gameplay yet it lacked the bells and whistles in modes like the Franchise and Superstar Modes that is almost standard in sport sims in this generation. With a visible dedication to beef up the Franchise mode, Madden fans may have finally been heard.
Franchise Mode Features:
- preseason roster cuts (weekly)
- Player editing
- Free agent bidding system
- new rookie scouting system
- Dynamic Player Performance (hot and cold streaks that affect performance)
- Player Roles (over 20 different roles)
What I gather from this and a number of other tuning changes is that EA is FINALLY trying to incorporate aspects that football coaching sims. The beauty of these changes is that it makes each time you play the franchise mode different from the last. Between the hot and cold streaks, the player roles, actually having who is the coach affect the players, and the preseason tweaks, this stands to be a banner year for the Franchise mode.
Gameplay Features
- new collision system (animation triggers at contact…not before)
- Momentum has more of an effect on tackling
- Coverage AI improvements (WR flat routes were typically exploited in past)
- two button press audibles (easier)
- Custom playbook creation
- GameFLow: Gameplan style playcalling that allows for those intimidated by playcalling to quickly strategize without being overwhelmed with a playbook. Hardcore players can appreciate as well.
The takeaway from this is that the play isn't over until the player/ball hits the ground. No longer (supposedly) will you see one animation for tackling start that is unaffected by other tacklers joining the fray. If you get a sack and another player hits the QB a bit later, the tackle changes. Tackling is a big part of the NFL and improving it will cause the offense to be a bit more inventive.
Changing the landscape that will provide more depth and randomness will give the full range of players more of a winning chance. It's that old Any Given Sunday thought pattern where anything can happen and any team has a chance to win each week. In the past, many casual fans didn't feel that way and felt intimidated by the online competition or bored wih the offline competition. Hopefully, these changes live up to their bullet points. I guess we'll all see soon!
Video Game critic and guru, music afficionado, and published poet, BJ is a fan of all things artistic. Believing that art in its various forms is an important part of the path to enlightenment, he seeks to share his perspective on life and art with any Heeder with a open mind.