Madden NFL 13 Reviews
Madden NFL 13
Madden NFL 13 X360Madden NFL 13 is the 2012 release in Electronic Arts’ celebrated American football video game release. Developed around the powerful, all-new Infinity game engine, Madden NFL 13 delivers a more engrossing, complete and realistic gridiron experience than any game before it. Key game features include: presentation reminiscent of national television broadcasts, gameplay improvements such as a new pass-ready system, improved play action, and the all-new read and react defensive AI system, optional Kinect sensor support,* Madden social/play functionality, multiplayer support online and offline, and the ability to build the ultimate franchise as a coach, an NFL superstar, or yourself. Madden NFL 13 is the 2012 release in Electro
List Price: $ 59.99
Price: $ 39.99
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Innovation or Devolution? The Great Hype Machine Is Back…,
Since Madden 13 is oh so very proud of their fictional Twitter feed I have decided to do my review as a fictional Twitter feed between EA and gamers:
EAsports: New Madden is out and it is the best thing in history! What do you think? #BetterTheDayYourChildWasBorn
AGamer: Hey I’m having trouble finding Franchise Mode. Where is it?
EASports: Gone Bro!
AGamer: What do you mean gone? It was the only thing that didn’t suck.
EASports: We have innovated and replaced it with Connected Careers! Like a boss! #ConnectedCareersBetterThanSex
AGamer: WTH is Connected Careers?
EASports: It is like Superstar and Franchise mode combined! Now you can be either player or a coach! Like a boss! #JesusWouldDoConnectedCareers
AGamer: Couldn’t we always do that?
EASports: Yeah but not like on Connected Careers now you can go online and compete with friends! Like a boss! #INeedACigaretteAfterConnectedCareers
AGamer: You mean like the online play we’ve had the last 4 years? What evs I’ll check it out.
AGamer: Dude, I’m doing the Coach in Connected Careers and can’t change schemes or customize my playbook. What gives?
EASports: Did you see the fictional Twitter feed! Skip Bayless in the house!
AGamer: Yeah thats cool and all but we’ve been able to customize schemes and plays in Madden since the late 90s. WTH?
EASports: Check out the physics on the Infinity Engine. Gang tackles like a boss! #ILoveMaddenMoreThanMyFamily
AGamer: Infinity Engine? Is that why my players keep flying through the air like a grenade went off?
AGamer: And staggering around like their drunk and tripping over people?
AGamer: Dude, why does my running back keep running into the back of people and falling over? Did he just get off the Gravitron at a state fair?
EASports: Physics! Like a boss! #IWillStabYouForACopyOfMadden
AGamer: It isn’t remotely realistic! People are tripping over each other after plays and flying all over the place like someone hit them with a car!
EASports: Feel the realism! #WhoNeedsFriendsWhenYouHaveMadden
AGamer: What is up with the announcing? Are they in the same game? I’m up 28 – 3 and every time I get a first down they say it is my first one of the game.
EASports: Phil Sims in the house!Like a boss!
AGamer: Why do you keep saying ‘like a boss’ #Toolbag
EASports: Cause I’m sooooo excited about all the innovation in Madden!!! #WeDeserveANobelPrize
AGamer: Excited about the innovation? You took away a lot of our control and customization in Franchise Mode and renamed it Connected Careers.
AGamer: You gave us a physics engine that makes the players flop around like Muppet’s inside of a dryer.
AGamer: The announcing is no better than it was 8 years and a whole generation of systems ago.
AGamer: Superstar mode has also been replaced by Connected Careers and while the gameplay is solid there is nothing personal to connect you with your player.
AGamer: I want to see my player get interviewed and see him get accolades. I want to see him get endorsements.
AGamer: I want to see celebrations at his accomplishments like what you saw in the NBA 2k series.
AGamer: I get none of that in Madden 13. You have just given me a game with player lock and nothing else.
EASports: Did you see the Twitter feed? #SkipBaylessOwnsTwitter
AGamer: Yeah I saw the Twitter feed but nothing else.
AGamer: This is what you call innovation?
EASports: Like a boss!!
AGamer: Whatever EA. Whatever.
2KSports: Ashamed there is no competition out there isn’t it.
NFL: @2KSports – Shhhhh. We’re trying to count our money.
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|1 Step Forward, 2 Steps Back,
As a longtime Madden player (have played/owned every iteration since 99), this year’s version of Madden is perhaps the most over-hyped one since the move to the current gen of consoles. After years of gamers complaining about the lack of innovation between the yearly releases of Madden, EA finally took a swing at things for the better. Unfortunately, even with the new Infinity Engine and Connected Careers Mode the exclusion of a full fledged Franchise Mode from years past is sadly game breaking for this gamer.
Pros:
1. The Infinity Engine is a solid step forward for the franchise, and should only get better as the series evolves in this direction. This is the best part of Madden 13, and can only be truly appreciated once you play it. Comparing the gameplay engines from Madden 12 or even NCAA 13 is almost a night and day difference.
2. The gameplay itself is probably the best its been since Madden’s been on the current consoles. Multi-player matches (co-op and online) in particular should be the best its been in this generation. Past annoyances like Psychic DBs, eternal pockets for QBs, or impossible across the body off balance throws are out or at least toned down.
3. For as much as I dislike it, Combined Careers did well in including the different ratings for players depending on scheme. The Twitter/Social dashboard is at least interesting, if a bit clunky.
4. Trade logic within CCM seems to be harder, a positive in my book since it takes out trading a FA you just signed for a first round pick.
Cons:
1. Well, as the rest of my Amazon reviewers have noted Franchise mode as we have come to know and love got the boot. The new mode, Combined Careers, is a combination of past year’s Superstar and Franchise modes. Unfortunately, Coach mode (which is supposed to be the evolved Franchise mode) is sadly lacking.
2. Lack of editing players/rosters: no longer can you edit player numbers, ratings, or really even have that much control of your roster. For example, in my current CCM I have 3 players with the number 82 in the wide receiver position, a minor annoyance that the user cannot address since editing is completely gone. The inability to change ratings makes a bit of sense(so no one can just turn anyone into a 99 overall rating) if Progression actually worked. Unfortunately, I had a rookie LB win both Rookie of the Year and Defensive MVP…and lost rating (78 to 77). Finally, you no longer edit player positions and thus are stuck with whatever EA classifies the player as. Want to turn Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis back to DE’s for the return of your new 4-3 Colts defense (in 13 they are 3-4 mirroring the real life switch)? Good luck, you can’t.
3. Lack of a Fantasy draft – not a big one for me, but I know at least two of my friends refuse to buy this simply because of this being left out of 13.
4. Lack of a co-op Franchise – unless you and your friends are willing to shell out $60 per person (plus XBOXs/Live subscriptions) you can no longer have your friend play within your franchise. As it is, I can play/compete with my friends/roommates on one console in Madden 12 or NCAA 13 but not in Madden 13.
5. Inability to import NCAA13 draft classes – not a surprise to anyone following the Madden hype train, but disappointing none the less.
6. Being forced to go online -at the moment of writing this review all the benefits of the CCM are found by choosing the online (always connected to EA servers) option. Online gamers will get tuning updates days to even weeks before offline gamers. Perhaps the biggest hindrance to this would be anyone who has actually had to connect to EA’s servers before, they are notoriously buggy and finicky. In my NCAA 13 dynasty I constantly lose connection to the EA servers, a minor annoyance in that game, a game breaking feature in this one. Because of the way online CCM is set up, any time you lose connection to the EA server you lose all progress in whatever you were doing…4th quarter up by 3 as the underdog in the Super Bowl? Tough luck, you are going to have to play that entire game over again.
Conclusion: While the loss of Franchise Mode (and the inability of Coach mode in CCM to replace it) is a serious one in my book, there is some appeal in this game. As it is, people who play Madden for the multiplayer quick games will enjoy this game. People who get Madden for the Franchise play will find it sorely lacking until/if they ever patch it.
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|Offline Co-Op…Gone? Seriously?,
Every year my brother and I look forward to the newest version of Madden (usually with the hopes that whatever bugged us from the previous version would finally be gone). Every year we start a franchise, usually picking one on the lower end of the totem pole (being Rams fans, this made picking a team pretty easy year in and year out). And then we’d play for several years, drafting our own little custom team, taking them from the gutter to the Super Bowl, usually on the back of a sturdy RB because our passing game is terrible. This in mind, Madden 13 looked promising. The presentation was far sleeker, determined to mimic the actual games, using the licensed music, etc. We were particularly excited about all the improvements to the franchise mode (now re-skinned and renamed as coach career). The physics engine in particular felt far more realistic and enjoyable, and for once, when we played the demo, we were able to throw passes without the magical defenders instantaneously knowing (our guess is radar, or eyes growing out of their shoulder pads).
So we bought the game, loaded it up, downloaded the most current tuning data, and then started the illustrious career of Mr. Mad Genius. Mr. Genius was a strategic coach taking over for the Rams, with high hopes of grinding out yet another Super Bowl with a bruising running game. We’re ready to go, team picked, coach created, and cuts made to the rosters for the preseason deadline. To our delight, there’s a bunch of scenarios you can practice. You can only play one from a large list, with the higher difficulties (or more time consuming ones) giving more exp. Sweet! We’re rpg addicts. We like exp. So we start one up…and notice it’s just my brother playing.
Is it because it’s just practice? We tell ourselves it is just because it’s practice. Surely EA couldn’t be this dumb. They just couldn’t be. Could they?
Yes. Yes they can. We loaded up a preseason game, and my second player controller is missing. We checked online to confirm, still thinking we missed something. But no. You cannot co-op a Franchise in any way, shape, or form, not even in offline mode. The entire reason we have bought a Madden game years on end is now *gone*. I have no desire to play now, and neither does my brother. We’re both so stunned. I’m going to hold out for a month or so that maybe EA will patch it in, but if not, I’ll be selling my copy.
*edit*
Offline-coop was finally added in a patch, though by the time we got back together, the NFL season had been going for awhile, and our excitement just wasn’t the same. Plus, we did play it a bit more, and it felt like a lot of the annoyances we had, things originally thought to be fixed, we right back to the forefront (Hi magical interceptions!) Still disappointed, but will bump the star rating up to 2-star for at least addressing this blatantly obvious failure.
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