Madden 09 tackling blog and video

besides graphics, whats different between ps2 and xbox360

Why isn't fair-play in the game? Why does EA insist on taking away features that no one in the forum complains about?

"Since EA’s relationship with ESPN and the NFL allows them to provide streamed audio and video directly from ESPN and the NFL, there will be ESPN and NFL content like NFL Total Access, SportsCenter highlights, PTI Segments, etc."

Pardon the Interuption, Total Access, and SportsCenter highlights? It starting to look like there will be a pre-game, half-time and post-game show including Berman and possibly Madden. [i got this info from:]

http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madden_NFL_09

Dear EASports Football Development Teams,

I have watched all of the videos of the upcoming game Madden 09, as well as looked at all the photos that that are available. I have noticed a common theme. The player models have not been improved for the past 3 years of next-generation Madden games. QBs, Halfbacks, Defensive-backs, Wide Receivers are all either the same size or larger than the defensive-linemen that are in these games. I watch football religiously. I have also played football on a college level and this is just one of the many things that bother me about Madden and NCAA Football Video games. EA claim is that “IF IT”S IN THE GAME, its IN THE GAME.” This is a bunch of bull. Wide receivers, Defensive Backs, etc should not be as big are bigger than Defensive Linemen. Get rid of the “Shaking Pursuit Camera” and spend more time on player models and game play problems. Who’s ever idea it was to change the play selection screen to a one play selection needs to be fired. If the average person did something that idiotic, they would be searching for work in another country. Not at EA. That is enough of my ranting for now. The people that this is for will probably never see this, or read it anyway. Please EASports, fix these problems.

[quote comment="21311"]The video looks good and it does look like they are making improvements - but to be honest Madden 08 looks good as well. The [/quote]

MJ,

I couldn't disagree more strongly. Madden '08's graphics were a disgrace to the generation and a disrespect to consumers. There is no way in hell that one could look at the enormously beautiful detail found in Madden '07 and then say Madden '08 was even on the same planet. Madden '08 was perhaps the worst looking game in this generation since the XBOX 360's first software gen. The graphical detail and lighting in '08 was absolutely pathetic, and even Phil Frazier--Madden Lead producer--himself admitted that '08's graphics were weak right on the EA Boards (You should check out his threads there, he was very candid). EA got reamed by fans over that, and there was a pride check situation. That's why the graphics have been such a focus this season; because they know they eff'd up with '08. It was like they didn't even try.

But EA gets away with weak graphics like '08 had because the Madden community is largely unable to recognize quality differences. Hence the inability of some to see how far down the toilet lighting, shading, and detail went in '08--which are all measurable facts proven by a simple side-by-side comparison to '07. I wish I could be oblivious to these things like many are, but I can tell these difference immediately and anything less than top quality is unacceptable to me. That's why I kicked '08 to the curb very quickly. That and the fact that it had a glitch list longer than the list of George Bush's presidential failures...

Hey Pasta, Ian Cummings is answering a lot of questions over at the official forums in response to this video and a lot of things beyond that. He talks about a lot of things they've worked on and lot of things that we could see in the future.

http://forums.ea.com/mboards/thread.jspa?thread...

[quote comment="21364"]Hey it looks great and all but what madden really needs is a new look these same player models moving in a new way isnt all that exciting hey if you squint your eyes madden looks real but it looks like last year but a lil smoother an example of how much it improved is like you playn ps2 version of madden then go to your friends house and play the xbox version you notice how polished it looks thats all this seem like to me i think to bring the spark back is to redo the models. I know im the millionth person to say this but ea really has to add the espn presentation cause the sprint halftime show is garbage you have to randomly look through the highlights i feel like they changed that but i doubt it and what up with ea being so secretive with the information i mean they carry the nfl license so its not like they have competition all pro and back breaker combined wont beat out madden sales lets just be real so they really need to drop that blockbuster feature on us and stop with the crap new camera angle thingy as a feature you wait on for an entire week i was so disappointed when i saw that say something like there will be a nfl draft show with mel kiper jr not junk like return field goals and weather and a wider camera angle that is freakn weak ea used to be the truth and people use to not complain that much with features like owner mode and hit stick and playmaker on the run fan creator training camp during franchise now we have DRUM ROLL PLEASE A GREAT SNOW STORM OH AND CLEAR VISORS!!!![/quote]

You probably make a point in that large dump of words somewhere, but without basic grammar I can't understand a thing you write.

Hey it looks great and all but what madden really needs is a new look these same player models moving in a new way isnt all that exciting hey if you squint your eyes madden looks real but it looks like last year but a lil smoother an example of how much it improved is like you playn ps2 version of madden then go to your friends house and play the xbox version you notice how polished it looks thats all this seem like to me i think to bring the spark back is to redo the models. I know im the millionth person to say this but ea really has to add the espn presentation cause the sprint halftime show is garbage you have to randomly look through the highlights i feel like they changed that but i doubt it and what up with ea being so secretive with the information i mean they carry the nfl license so its not like they have competition all pro and back breaker combined wont beat out madden sales lets just be real so they really need to drop that blockbuster feature on us and stop with the crap new camera angle thingy as a feature you wait on for an entire week i was so disappointed when i saw that say something like there will be a nfl draft show with mel kiper jr not junk like return field goals and weather and a wider camera angle that is freakn weak ea used to be the truth and people use to not complain that much with features like owner mode and hit stick and playmaker on the run fan creator training camp during franchise now we have DRUM ROLL PLEASE A GREAT SNOW STORM OH AND CLEAR VISORS!!!!

[quote comment="21330"][quote comment="21328"][quote comment="21327"]Wow a lot of whiny babies here today and a Super Spammer{5$ Dollar Foot Long}[/quote]

hey i'm just tellin it like it is...and its the truth..funny how mlb 2k8 got slaughtered on here and no one stopped and gave that game a chance and said its just a game but yet when madden 09 shows glitz and glammer here and there everyone jumps on you and the community tries to burn you at the stake.. I want a valuable reason why Madden 09 will be good and when i see something slacking it gets at me..because even though its a game..there is still room for improvment..whether or not the masses settle for less..[/quote]

Because you always throw that Madden Sheep analogy around for every post you type. People will buy what they want to buy no matter how crappy another person tells them the game is because it's their choice. But I like MLB2K8 over the other game though but like I said it's just my preference like all the other people here.[/quote]

when i hear a bahh i have to point to see one..now when i talk about them i mention them. apparently if your the type that prefer a certain type of thing and attack others for pointing out whats wrong is entirely different from those who just wish to get something because they are consumers. two different stories now if your doing what you do good for you..but if those who point out people who like quality then those who do the action should be called out..its only fair

[quote comment="21328"][quote comment="21327"]Wow a lot of whiny babies here today and a Super Spammer{5$ Dollar Foot Long}[/quote]

hey i'm just tellin it like it is...and its the truth..funny how mlb 2k8 got slaughtered on here and no one stopped and gave that game a chance and said its just a game but yet when madden 09 shows glitz and glammer here and there everyone jumps on you and the community tries to burn you at the stake.. I want a valuable reason why Madden 09 will be good and when i see something slacking it gets at me..because even though its a game..there is still room for improvment..whether or not the masses settle for less..[/quote]

Because you always throw that Madden Sheep analogy around for every post you type. People will buy what they want to buy no matter how crappy another person tells them the game is because it's their choice. But I like MLB2K8 over the other game though but like I said it's just my preference like all the other people here.

[quote comment="21327"]Wow a lot of whiny babies here today and a Super Spammer{5$ Dollar Foot Long}[/quote]

hey i'm just tellin it like it is...and its the truth..funny how mlb 2k8 got slaughtered on here and no one stopped and gave that game a chance and said its just a game but yet when madden 09 shows glitz and glammer here and there everyone jumps on you and the community tries to burn you at the stake.. I want a valuable reason why Madden 09 will be good and when i see something slacking it gets at me..because even though its a game..there is still room for improvment..whether or not the masses settle for less..

Wow a lot of whiny babies here today and a Super Spammer{5$ Dollar Foot Long}

Damn, i can't watch it. I don't have flash player 9.

The player models, the stadium grass and the movements look sweet. Also, the canned animations appear to be non-existent.....

hey pasta which improvement would you like to see the most in madden 09?

Why EA? Why? The 49ers played every single game last year with black shoes and they will continue with them, why can you add Dancing With the Stars mode after you score a TD but cant get my Niners uniforms right? Please oh please explain.

Pasta if you could please let some representive at EA know that the Niners wear black shoes, thanks!

Hey Pasta,

EA still hasn't got the uniforms right. After watching the video the redskins uniforms were incorrect. I was under the impression that they wore burgundy/gold striped socks for the majority of last season and I still haven't seen this combination in the next-gen yet. Please advise if possible. Thanks

[quote comment="21302"]I just don't understand this love of the NFL so much that you even NOTICE if a team's socks are too short. Holy hell. I'd be perfectly fine with a totally generic game based on 2k8 with total customization. Heck... that been a dream of mine for almost 30 years back when I used to create my own teams in Statis-Pro football. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, this site should explain it for you: http://www.bombersgolf.com/StatisPro/FootBall/h... )

That said.. and I haven't seen this video, it does look like they are putting more effort into this game. It's the first time I've even been interested in what was going on Madden-wise (I haven't bought a new copy of Madden since... hell, 2001 for the PC).

Anyway.. for those of you so interested in socks and shoes... you obviously don't have as much love of the GAME of football as you do paper dolls and fashion.

There... I said it.[/quote]

Darkheath ive said it on 2k and ill say it here infact ive said it everywhere.. IT's ALL ABOUT QUALITY. some like it? others settle for less..its called you either do it all right or do it none at all..now if some people like a half assed game sent out by people who went to college and are money smart? then i want the game that way..say what you will but people who love to settle for less eeks me..frankly because it should not BE that way...

not a sermon just a thought.

Pasta -

Can you ask EA if these things have been fixed/included?

1. Stupid amount of fumbles.
2. Scouting actually working in franchise mode
3. Franchise being broken because of a lack of Free Agents
4. CPU INTs counting as double in simmed franchise games.
5. In-season progression included.
6. O-lineman still not getting pancakes in non-simmed games.
7. D-lineman still not getting sacks in non-simmed games.

Thanks a lot!!

[quote comment="21307"]I love it when people see some minute little detail about socks or shoes not being 100% accurate, and then saying that they're not gonna buy the game! -LOL ...I'll still see you at EB @ midnight on the 11th awgot!!![/quote]

well sheep let the mass feed you and show you into medocrity like your use to..because im not..actually im not buying it before i see what it brings to the table.i want quality..now people like you and the rest of the bahh here who already payed almost 100 bucks on two of the same games issued every single year see no issue with that but. after i sent pictures and personally talked to EA myself.they still mess up the little stuff really makes me question the quality or educational level of comprehension to just do something right. go back to sleep its all ok...spend your money everyone.. heres a new feature forget that the browns have BROWN PANTS forget the fact that 49ers shoes are white when they are supposed to be black. WHaT? no nets for field goal post forget that its about gameplay..go back to sleep sheep...its all ok..go back to sleep sheep its all ok... quality does not matter we dont like people who point out what is supposed to be done.

The video looks good and it does look like they are making improvements - but to be honest Madden 08 looks good as well. The graphics/animations were never an issue.

The biggest problem I have with the Madden series (not sure if it is fixed for this edition) is that there are no trades between non-CPU controlled teams.

Any word on that feature pasta?

Thanks,

[quote comment="21307"]I love it when people see some minute little detail about socks or shoes not being 100% accurate, and then saying that they're not gonna buy the game! -LOL ...I'll still see you at EB @ midnight on the 11th awgot!!![/quote]

People complain about uniforms being inaccurate because the NFL gives EA a style guide to follow for every single team in the NFL. It lists every combination of uniforms and every detail of the uniforms.

EA brags that the exclusive deal with the NFL allows them access to stuff that they have never had before and a chance to bring an unprecented level of realisim.

Then EA releases a game with inaccurate uniforms, in some cases with the same mistakes that have been there for years, showing their lack of effort. The laziness associated with that is what makes people mad.

Is it dumb to not by Madden because some socks are wrong? To me yes, but to others I guess not. The point is that people have been asking EA to fix something that is simple and that they have the BEST reference for and they don't do it.

It is just another in the numerous examples of the community and customers being ignored by EA in relation to Madden.

[quote comment="21290"][quote comment="21261"]You are almost there EA, not quite but you are at the cusp of having something great. I hope that EA can just keep moving forward and don't keep adding and subtracting features and then say they are groundbreaking new features implimented in the game. That being said I still think the tackling needs more work, the running style is aslo a little stiff and like some of the other people stated where are all the gang tackling EA has been promising us unless they are refering to the two people who latch onto the ball carrier and take him down.[/quote]

exactly maden is only getting better as long as they dont step backwards people complain and complain i know we want a perfect game right now but were getting good if you want great thats hard there are no sport games that are perfect just give ea 2-3 years and then see what the game is like[/quote]

This is now year 4 on the 360 and yeah 3 on the PS3. If I give EA 2-3 more years, they will be on the PS4/Xbox 720 by then. At that point, Madden will have regressed, as per usual on a new platform, to bare bones features all over again.

I think it is more than reasonable at this point for Madden to at bare minimum offer the same features that can be found on the last-gen (PS2) version of the game.

I love it when people see some minute little detail about socks or shoes not being 100% accurate, and then saying that they're not gonna buy the game! -LOL ...I'll still see you at EB @ midnight on the 11th awgot!!!

That video had, at best, 5 new animations and those animations were used over and over again. All EA did was add a tiny bit of polish and people think they did something thats worth mentioning.

[quote comment="21301"]I know it is early still, so hopefully this will get worked out.[/quote]

I wouldn't say it's early by any means. The producer said they're multiple weeks away from completion. That's a bit of time, but certainly not early.

I just don't understand this love of the NFL so much that you even NOTICE if a team's socks are too short. Holy hell. I'd be perfectly fine with a totally generic game based on 2k8 with total customization. Heck... that been a dream of mine for almost 30 years back when I used to create my own teams in Statis-Pro football. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, this site should explain it for you: http://www.bombersgolf.com/StatisPro/FootBall/h... )

That said.. and I haven't seen this video, it does look like they are putting more effort into this game. It's the first time I've even been interested in what was going on Madden-wise (I haven't bought a new copy of Madden since... hell, 2001 for the PC).

Anyway.. for those of you so interested in socks and shoes... you obviously don't have as much love of the GAME of football as you do paper dolls and fashion.

There... I said it.

At first I thought the video looked great. Watch it again. No gang tackling. No 2 on 1 tackling. It looks like once the ball carrier is engaged with a defender the AI stands still or bounces off of the 2 players that have collided. One of the shots even shows something very similar to the explosion effect. If real time physics have been added I would hope to see this with multiple collisions on one tackle. Unfortunately I don't see it. I know it is early still, so hopefully this will get worked out.

Late-

I’m sure it will be an obvious improvement, as long as digging for extra yards doesn’t spike the chances for a fumble too much.


ya i wouldnt want it to be like real life or anything
hey losers dont buy the game and go away

[quote comment="21274"]It is the same game we have been playing for 8 years now, with the same bugs and less features than we had 4 years ago. It just looks nicer, which I think hurts the game to a degree, as it shows of some of the flaws easier.

Anyone else feel this way?[/quote]

Yes and no.

I've only really been playing Madden for four years since 2K lost the license. Once upon a time, NFL 2K5 ruled the universe, and Madden might as well not have existed. I doubt I would have EVER returned to the franchise if other companies still had the NFL license.

But here I am.

I expected a lot when Madden 06 hit the 360, hyped by the incredible and misleading commercial, but that title turned out to be a bare bones letdown. It seemed rushed, though, so surely Madden 07 would correct all the issues and offer the most amazing football game ever. Except that didn't happen. Then I bought into the 08 hype that EA was focused on gameplay, only to watch each game result in 25 turnovers.

But here I am again.

It's the only NFL game, so we have to keep the community alive with suggestions and feedback, even if it means begging EA to add simple features that should have been in the game years ago.

I would rather see passing fixed than deal with "weapons." I would rather see details added on the field and not to the exterior of the stadium. But I understand that EA has to please everyone, and that is apparently impossible.

Once upon a time, there was a simple choice to avoid Madden altogether. That choice no longer exists due to a very poor decision by the NFL. It's a shame.

That said, Madden 09 looks like EA is actually trying to offer a better product, not just features like bench-pressing. It would've been nice if they tried sooner, but oh well. Let's make the best of it and keep offering feedback so we can play a great NFL game.

It's funny that ever since Euphoria has been introduced, all of a sudden people are taking issues with "canned" animations. 2K5 had canned animations but it still felt fresh b/c of the variety of animations. If EA brings in variety for once, I'll be satisfied.

But I'm not going to go off on a "canned" animation tangent just b/c I know that Euphoria is out there.

[quote comment="21223"][quote comment="21221"]i dont mean to nitpick here. and i have confidence this game will be good but.... i only saw maybe 5 new tackle animations in the video. and saw in the video alone alot of the same tackles repeated many many times. also i didnt notice any gang tackling.. maybe i just missed them. i dont know.. it was an alright video but i think it left more questions then answers as to what they were trying to do.[/quote]

I know what you're saying. I saw some of the tackles and thought back to how they were already common in the game. In a way I thought the video was too flashy to really be able to focus on what was being talked about in the blog, unlike last year where the blog videos were just the raw footage. Graphics look great, player interaction much better, and player control as you can see some of those RB moves that felt really good in NCAA 09.[/quote]

I think both you guys need your head examined. LOL

Remember: Its a video game. What do you guys want? This is fantastic and we all should truly appreciate the effort that is going into this anniversary edition. Ya know, no one complained about Madden in the PS1 days. Now that technology has vastly improved player expectations are unrealistic. No matter how much you nitpick or complain, or act disappointed a video game will never truly emulate real life. What I saw in that video was about as close as you can get to a real looking football game and I am totally pleased.

[quote comment="21261"]You are almost there EA, not quite but you are at the cusp of having something great. I hope that EA can just keep moving forward and don't keep adding and subtracting features and then say they are groundbreaking new features implimented in the game. That being said I still think the tackling needs more work, the running style is aslo a little stiff and like some of the other people stated where are all the gang tackling EA has been promising us unless they are refering to the two people who latch onto the ball carrier and take him down.[/quote]

exactly maden is only getting better as long as they dont step backwards people complain and complain i know we want a perfect game right now but were getting good if you want great thats hard there are no sport games that are perfect just give ea 2-3 years and then see what the game is like

"$5 foot long said: lol and the redskins socks are still the same crapy away all red? no purchase here…goodbye"

Do you mean the all-red socks the Skins actually wore last season?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/themosleyvault/215...

Your act is growing really tiresome. If you're going to troll, will you at least check your facts first?

[quote comment="21280"]
I actually enjoy madden. Things like fg nets and ref really don't matter to me. I've been playing madden forever and I definatley think it has evolved since then. I will say tho that I did think 07 next gen and 08 were pretty much the same game. But I think for 09 there are alot of great changes being made. Moreso then past few years. I really don't complain much because I love madden and really I don't expect a totally different game every year like some guys. They do need to add every feaure ps2 madden had and build on it. Well except that stupid flashlight. Hopefully that experiment is done for 09.[/quote]

I must respectfully disagree....2007 to 2008 was a huge change in the mechanics of the game.

Just look at what happened in 2007 with the Truck Stick and players getting stuck in non-interruptible animations. You could easily truck a CPU controlled defender and then the manually controlled player behind him would morph through the tackle because of the persistant animations. In 2008, with rudimentary gang tackling and interruptible animations, that was actually fixed.

I agree to the extent that the core gameplay of Madden has largely remained unchanged since 2002 (passing is STILL handled almost identically with only the failed attempt to bring in the vision cone as an attempt to change the core mechanic of passing in the last 8 years and even THAT was largely removed when it was made optional) - it has been consistently refined in an evolutionary way, but it has certainly lacked that revolutionary change we all expected for the PS3/360 era.

it better be better than madden 08 & different because all the madden games are the same

Will all the people who can't stand refs not on the field, just not buy the game, shut up, and give up on this year, instead of posting everywhere about how much i bothers them.

It's NOT HAPPENING and GO AWAY!

[quote comment="21273"][quote comment="21271"]I want to see more players get hurt and for them to get carted off of the field instead of limping off even if its a very bad injury. Everybody say it with me now, "WE WANT REALISM, BRING ON THE INJURies". And all the other things that makes the game into a real Sim game.[/quote]

here are the two problems with injuries...
-whenever you play online and your opponent loses a top player, they quit the game or blame their loss on their injured players...
-whenever people play their franchise, they reset the game everytime a top player gets injured...

i for one believe that injuries are MUCH more common in the new madden's than in the past versions...i know everyone remembers going entire season without a single player on the injury list, meanwhile other teams are averaging 4-5 players...

if people don't reset their games...they will find that injuries can be pretty common in their games...though i would like to see more injuries on the offensive line...because that is one of the most brutal positions to play and i would argue one of the most commonly injured positions along with RB...

i think their should be more players playing with minor injuries that wouldn't cost them any plays or games, but would decrease their abilities until they are 100%...i also think that players as a whole should be more banged up and fatigued near the season's end than they are at the beginning...which not only means in game fatigue and injuries, but also progressive fatigue and injury throughout the season...

the game should remember previous injuries to various body parts which would increase the likelyhood of reinjury to that particular area and the player would also be limited physically depending on the injury...for example...a few years ago Kurt Warner either broke his hand or tore some ligaments in it, and he has had a mad case of fumblitis ever since...[/quote]
I've never done that when one of my players got hurt. I always had to adapt to the situation and hope that he isn't out for too long. It needs to be a way to prevent players from reseting when their top player gets hurt and have them play the game out.

[quote comment="21274"]I like how the guy that was writing the blog makes it seem like he just cut the video while working at his desk. That is so clearly a typical EA produced hype trailer.

I still see the EXACT same tackles and EXACT same animations that I've seen in Madden for the last 8 years since Madden 2001 on PS2. Same tackles. Same CANNED (regardless of what he blabbers about) tackle/missed tackle/juke animations.

No gang tackles in the video and I HATE how as soon as a guy is wrapped up, the rest of the CPU players immediately stopped and just stood there. You can tell right away, if you are going to break the tackle or not based on if the CPU stops playing or not.

EA writes this same thing every year. Go look at the blog on tackling for last year. It reads the same. They can talk about physics all they want, but everything in Madden is based off motion capture. In fact, most of it is based off the same motion captures from Madden 2001. They are all animation routines that are run and programmed to either execute a tackle or break tackle. There isn't anything truly dynamic about it.

I thought about it last night and that is the real problem with Madden now. It is the same game as Madden 2001 was for the most part. Madden made a big change when it went to PS2/Xbox from PS1. Madden didn't change from PS2 to 360/PS3.

All we got were prettier graphics but less gameplay and features. The fact that Madden still plays basically the same but has less to it is waht makes people so angry. It just feels like the made it look nice, but took away most of the features we had on the PS2.

I think that is why you see people constantly complaining about refs and FG nets. The game feels so similar to what we had on the PS2 no one understands why we are lacking the simple things we had on the PS2 version, when nothing major has really changed with the gameplay for 8 years.

There is a definite feeling of a lack of innovation in Madden, which is why I think people are so disappointed. It is the same game we have been playing for 8 years now, with the same bugs and less features than we had 4 years ago. It just looks nicer, which I think hurts the game to a degree, as it shows of some of the flaws easier.

Anyone else feel this way?[/quote]


I actually enjoy madden. Things like fg nets and ref really don't matter to me. I've been playing madden forever and I definatley think it has evolved since then. I will say tho that I did think 07 next gen and 08 were pretty much the same game. But I think for 09 there are alot of great changes being made. Moreso then past few years. I really don't complain much because I love madden and really I don't expect a totally different game every year like some guys. They do need to add every feaure ps2 madden had and build on it. Well except that stupid flashlight. Hopefully that experiment is done for 09.

some jukes looked like they were performed way too late to work, yet they magically made the diving tacklers missed.

The rest looked very good...but once you zoom out to that traditional madden camera is where things look very dull.
I hope the new camera option changes the gameplay experience, and that it's showcased in the demo...because I'm beyond even bothering to rent this game anymore since for me it stinks until proven otherwise.