Madden 2011 Review

The national holiday known as Madden Day is upon us and football fans can let out an impatient sigh of relief and collectively rejoice. This year EA took more of a focus on the casual football gamer with features geared towards making gameplay much more user friendly. This year’s version also has the Ultimate Team mode fully integrated into the game (last year it was a download later in the season).

The Good: I seem to say this every year, but the graphics really do look much better than the previous years, just start up a game and enjoy the realism of the field. This year they turn the turbo button off by default (can be turned back on in the settings) and it still takes some getting used to but I really like the idea because it allows you to focus more on hitting holes and following your blockers. Finally the presentation blows me away. From the QB waling off the bus before the game to the coaches talking to the QB on the sideline (did I mention real players on the sidelines!). Also, new to the booth is Gus Johnson, he is a very welcome addition.

Love seeing the 'Hawks stick it to the Cardinals

 The Bad: Franchise, franchise, franchise!!! Why not give a big focus to franchise, leaving it the same was a huge mistake. I’m not saying it needs to be completely redone, but improving tweaks need to be there yearly. I will chalk the new GameFlow feature under bad because I am smart enough to pick my own plays and something tells me the development of this took away from the ever important FRANCHISE mode.

Overall: The day that I am not impressed with a new Madden game will be a sad day, and frankly I don’t see it happening. Despite its lack of franchise mode improvements the gameplay, graphics and presentation more than make up for it. I give Madden 2011 an 8 out of 10.

Madden 2011 is available now for just about every platform under the sun