Madden 12 hittin' Shelves

[KenFan4life]

(insert list of new madden features)

Idk 'bout any one else, but I think these 'new' features are lookin' 'ight ....

tbh, tried that demo, lovin' the new tacklin' engine/thing they got goin'.

from what I hear the commentary kinda sucks, but the rest is alright this year.

so, idk... someone that's a pro at this game just kick back and list what's really hood and what's really white 'bout this madden game... and tell us if we should buy this.
ya' heaRd?

 

[PeepShow]

Fucking QB scramble is like Madden 04 all over again. Not happy about that. Not sure if I'm getting it.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

The new coverage system and tackling engine is by far the greatest addition to Madden, ever. Not quite sure what knocks it has against it now but I know there's shit I'd still like to see them add (nothing major though). It's a definite buy for me, as is every year... but I'm more sold on this one than any of the others.

 

[He who knows more than Nation]

Meh. Madden needs competition. 2K5 was so vastly superior to Madden in every shape, form and fashion. And just as EA basically gets slaughtered by 2k in every imaginable sports genre, I'd love to know where they'd be right now in the football front.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

The only thing 2K5 could have offered over Madden would be actual gameplay. The career mode on an NFL 2K game would be absolutely horrendous because of how much they would have to cover in terms of engine on just the graphics alone. It's one thing to compare basketball games with 5 active players and a bench of 7, coaches, and considerably, and I MEAN CONSIDERABLY smaller arenas to worry about... you throw in weather function and environment graphics on 2K's programming and there's bound to be major glitches. The biggest knock on EA's football games in recent years is the sideline and crowd graphics... which REALLY don't matter. The only other real audience concern is the lack of crowd environment and the horrible noise (but that's even a problem on wrestling games, 2K sports games, etc.).

 

[He who knows more than Nation]

It's not just basketball, they make superior hockey and baseball games. And have you seen the level of detail in NBA 2k11? NOTHING in the sports genre has ever come close. I have no doubt they could make a superior game. No doubts whatsoever. EA hasn't made a good sports game since Madden 02. Madden seems great based on no competition and the last time there was competition, they got choked out. Gameplay, graphically, interface and so forth. 2k is sports gaming, too bad the NFL is stingy with their licensing.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

Once again, hockey and baseball are much easier on the engine graphics-wise because there is so little to worry about in terms of the overall product. I mean, you can go look at FIFA and see how fucking unbelievable they were the past two years overall... EA kicked fucking ass with FIFA. The reason they don't focus on the sideline graphics on Madden is because they're too fucking concerned with the on-field look, which has really been top-notch recently. 2K kicked EA's ass on the PS2... the PS3 is an entirely different case. I love 2K games, don't get me wrong, but I honestly wasn't a fan of 2K football (especially the wacky, combo controls). Madden's gameplay has generally been all you could ask for, people's problems with it were always the addition of one stupid thing or the subtraction of something amazing (in particular, how the physics engine and play in NCAA was always seemingly better than Madden).

So far, the Madden DEMO for me is easily more enjoyable than any 2K games I've played. I'll take horrible sideline graphics and crowds for my football gaming if it means my game modes are as deep and feature-filled as Madden.

I mean, look at how NBA 2K11 NEGLECTED the coach system and player value/contracts. If you got 10 years into your association, EVERY SINGLE PLAYER wants at least $10M, you can't afford anyone over an 85 rating, and you can't have a coach with anything more than an F rating because your organization is broke. That's with 12 players to every team... now imagine them using the NFL's depth... their career modes would be fucked.

I'm just not confident at all that 2K could handle working the NFL to be completely honest... and while EA may have been dicks with the contract, it's been a blessing for 2K to force them to focus on other sports which they could handle fairly well with game modes, and not suffer for it with graphics which have been awesome.

 

[He who knows more than Nation]

How can you defend Madden 11 as "all you could want"?!?! That was just awful and ten steps back from Madden 10. I couldn't care for graphics. Details. Details. Details. But apples to oranges I guess.

 

[PeepShow]

I agree that NFL 2k5 was the greatest football game ever, but to say they make better all around games is a stretch. NBA was better this year, but their baseball games blow. The Show rapes them in pretty much every category.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

Madden 11 wasn't awful at all, but I never said it was all I could want. I said the gameplay on Madden in recent years has been all you could ask for.

11 was a vast improvement in every direction compared to recent years though. The hit stick removal was necessary (though it's really still there). The CPU's blocking took away a lot of the easy sacks. The running motion and animation was a huge improvement, and by far the cleanest I've seen on any sports game ever. The removal of CPU defenders just running away from the receiver made the game a lot more enjoyable. The big-run sweep on 4th & 1 vs. goal line defense was pretty much eliminated. The throwing was a lot cleaner, the kicking was far improved. Madden 11's weakpoints were what they've been since PS3... horrible zone coverage, no help-coverage, weak second-level blocking. Well... this year, they've fixed all of that. You throw in the new tackling system and the elimination of warp animation blocks and tackling, and you've got yourself a badass football game which really won't get much better other than fine-tuning anything that isn't crisp and adjusting for physics if they ever do decide to go that route (which I've heard they won't on this generation of consoles even though BluRay was intended to help that).

 

[He who knows more than Nation]

I'm sorry, you can't convince me 11 was any form of good. It took two steps back. I know they tried to make it user friendly, but I ended upside down on that game, selling it for 35 bucks when I bought it brand new three weeks before.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

Okay, the demo was clearly on some bullshit, because the graphics from the fucking grass and creases in the jersey all the way to the fucking environment OUTSIDE of the arenas is spot, fucking, on. The camera angles rule, ESPECIALLY the fucking blimp-style view. Still using the patchy crowd shit... but that's just fine because each section looks realistic enough anyways.

ENVIRONMENT >>>>! Dude, homefield advantage is homefield advantage. The away team will false-start more often. The crowd actually has some volume to it, ESPECIALLY DURING BIG PLAYS. The fucking arenas shake when the home-team scores on a long play or in a clutch situation.

The always-changes ratings and traits is fucking awesome. Makes a hot streak IN a game realistic, and a guy who gets embarrassed gets embarrassed a little more if he's not clutch or confident, and the confidence trait really helps make it realistic so a guy doesn't just get beat 40 times in a row.

Defense is fucking amazing. If the corner gets beat on the jam, the receiver is making the play to the outside (if it's headed that way). QB awareness is awesome... it's difficult to just run in and get a sure sack. The blocking is better, and they will hold if they're getting beat... and the hold doesn't always get called. The new brace-for-contact system makes it even more realistic as there are very few guys stupid enough to take a shot from Ray Lewis clean... they'll avoid it at all costs. The zone-coverage and responsibility-passing is top notch. If your corner HAS to break to the flat for a TE/HB, he'll signal to the safety to take over the receiver over the top. The defender's reaction time is fucking amazing as well. Passing is a lot more realistic as well, as the CPU won't complete every possible pass or hit every open receiver... they'll lock on and force some throws. You can't sink every deep ball in the receiver's lap anymore... they fight for it... more balls get knocked out by defenders making contact as soon as it arrives and players bracing for hits. The QB-dodging system is a lot more efficient and realistic... especially if the guy has speed like Vick... speed dictates the way he moves in the pocket, as well as awareness, elusiveness, and the sense pressure trait.

The best thing about all of it is, none of the traits overpower another... they all play into making each player as individually realistic as possible, while still making the team as realistic as possible. You have to counter a teammates weakness with a strength or you lose out on a game. There seems to be a huge focus on momentum as well... if you fall flat early, it gets harder to fight back if you dont have clutch players. If you go up early and have a lot of confidence, your guys will keep fighting to hold the lead and put the game away.

Madden 12 is the best sports game I've ever played. I haven't been able to relax and play once... I've been on the edge of my seat focusing. Don't get patient or content for one play... you'll lose it. This shit rules.

There are some glitches though... but they will be fixed with the first patch and it won't be a problem. Fuck EA haters!

 

[PeepShow]

Okay, the demo was clearly on some bullshit, because the graphics from the fucking grass and creases in the jersey all the way to the fucking environment OUTSIDE of the arenas is spot, fucking, on.

Kind of like the scratches and marks on the helmets of EVERY SINGLE PLAYER ON THE FIELD IN THE EXACT SAME SPOT ON EVERY HELMET? Shits ridiculous. I like the concept, but to have it on every player on the field in all of the exact same spots on the helmets is really fucking stupid.

The actual game hasn't changed anything from the demo except there's now commentary, which isn't a plus. This is probably the worst commentary team of all time. Thank god they don't actually call real games together.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

The scratches is a glitch that they'll fix.

Commentary isn't that bad... there arent any teams out there that are any good anyways (minus Jaws & Gruden when Gruden stops drooling over every QB and starts talking shit about how stupid Jaws is)... it's an improvement from years past with some of the depth of convo, especially the background on quite a few players. There's also rumored to be some fixes to commentary on the patch that adds more content they recorded and didn't add to the disc.

 

[PeepShow]

You have conformation it will be fixed? Link?

Also, there are a lot of better both. IDK why they didn't renew Tom Hammond. Dude is way better than either Collinsworth or Johnson. Bring back Madden or Michaels to go along side Hammond. Fuck this shit. And depth of convo? rofl. I'm in my fifth game of my Chargers franchise, and at the start of EVERY game when they introduce the starters, they mention how Shaun Phillips was a "late bloomer" and is now a stud. Every game. He was injured in week two and hasn't played since.