Madden 10 Blog on Ratings Philosophy

by pastapadre
Posted February 9th, 2009 at 3:47 pm

madden090209

The new EA Sports community blog has provided another interesting entry this time from Madden 10 Designer Donny Moore. In it he goes over some significant changes to how player ratings are going to be structured next year. You can read the entire blog posting here.

Every position and every rating has been re-scaled to expand the range of numbers we are dealing with. The Overall Rating for your average NFL player has dropped. Your Joe Average linebacker who was 80 OVR is now dropped down to 70. The players who were before right on the cusp of 90 in a rating category are now down around 85-88…Meaning, there are fewer superstar players out there.

This is pretty big news and a very welcome change from the stagnant way ratings shaped game performance before. We saw the beginning of this in the final roster update of the year. Something that has plagued Madden for years has been the lack of separation between great, good, average, and poor players. You could get by with low rated players in general, especially if they had high speed ratings. It now appears other categories will carry more importance which should produce results more true to life.

I’m not sure if this is a way to make the importance of “team” come across more rather than a collection of individuals though. That is really the next step, to come up with a way that the Cowboys aren’t the best team in Madden just because they have big name talent at skill positions.

Tags:

J-Claw

Awesome they needed to do this for a long time. It was frustrating to have so many in that 78-85 range that all played the same way.
J-Claw

Awesome they needed to do this for a long time. It was frustrating to have so many in that 78-85 range that all played the same way.
http://intensedebate.com/people/Anthony_S1 Anthony_S1

If a team like the Cowboys with big names starts underperforming in real life because they're not a team, they could just lower their ratings in the game, so you'd still have the big names, but lower ratings.

http://intensedebate.com/people/pastapadre pastapadre

Well that's one way but I'm not sure you should penalize the individual players because their team is bad either. Its a dilemma, maybe it isn't a ratings issue but instead they need some sort of team unity type feature that allows for those units to outplay their base ratings or underperform to their ratings.

KRIS

that sounds good pasta but we kno EA will never put that much work into a game
t. daley

Pasta: One of my biggest pet peeves with the Madden ratings has always been the speed rating. They never seem to incorporate a players speed with his stamina rating which resulted in exploits like Julius peppers being able to cover wide receivers on fly routes because his speed rating was so high.

They have to take into account that speed needs to be factored in with a players size, weight, position, and stamina level. Julius peppers is a fast guy but he plays DE for a reason and not CB or DB.
James

Is the rating system going to be linear or exponential?
Kevin

Pasta, in the OS topic, Donny Moore stated that almost every Cowboy went down and they will defenitly not be the best team in Madden 10.

http://intensedebate.com/people/Anthony_S1 Anthony_S1

If a team like the Cowboys with big names starts underperforming in real life because they're not a team, they could just lower their ratings in the game, so you'd still have the big names, but lower ratings.

http://intensedebate.com/people/pastapadre pastapadre

Well that's one way but I'm not sure you should penalize the individual players because their team is bad either. Its a dilemma, maybe it isn't a ratings issue but instead they need some sort of team unity type feature that allows for those units to outplay their base ratings or underperform to their ratings.

KRIS

that sounds good pasta but we kno EA will never put that much work into a game
t. daley

Pasta: One of my biggest pet peeves with the Madden ratings has always been the speed rating. They never seem to incorporate a players speed with his stamina rating which resulted in exploits like Julius peppers being able to cover wide receivers on fly routes because his speed rating was so high.

They have to take into account that speed needs to be factored in with a players size, weight, position, and stamina level. Julius peppers is a fast guy but he plays DE for a reason and not CB or DB.
James

Is the rating system going to be linear or exponential?
Kevin

Pasta, in the OS topic, Donny Moore stated that almost every Cowboy went down and they will defenitly not be the best team in Madden 10.

aaron

ok now im excited about Madden
aaron

ok now im excited about Madden
Badluck

as long as the CPU is able to recognize speed mismatches and able to correct them it will be good
Badluck

as long as the CPU is able to recognize speed mismatches and able to correct them it will be good
Reed

I am impressed with how EA is responding to community requests. We asked for ratings changes and we got them. This is great information to get being 7 months until the game even releases.
Reed

I am impressed with how EA is responding to community requests. We asked for ratings changes and we got them. This is great information to get being 7 months until the game even releases.
Brian

I wonder what made Madden finally open their eyes and make all these big changes. You would think they would whip out all the stops for their anniversary edition right? I'm still loving 09, but looking forward to 10 even more now with their increased emphasis on SIM play.
Brian

I wonder what made Madden finally open their eyes and make all these big changes. You would think they would whip out all the stops for their anniversary edition right? I'm still loving 09, but looking forward to 10 even more now with their increased emphasis on SIM play.
NELL86

Yes this is what im talking about make madden for the hardcore
NELL86

Yes this is what im talking about make madden for the hardcore
Jonas Blane

I like hearing that these changes are coming! I always disagreed with there being so many high 90's guys. A 99 rating should really only be reserved for those who are absolutely dominant. Such as Jerry Rice in his prime, Barry in his prime, Terrell Davis after his 2000 yard season, Brady, Marino and Manning after their record breaking seasons. There being so many 99 guys just diminishes a true 99 kind of guy like those I mentioned.
Jonas Blane

I like hearing that these changes are coming! I always disagreed with there being so many high 90's guys. A 99 rating should really only be reserved for those who are absolutely dominant. Such as Jerry Rice in his prime, Barry in his prime, Terrell Davis after his 2000 yard season, Brady, Marino and Manning after their record breaking seasons. There being so many 99 guys just diminishes a true 99 kind of guy like those I mentioned.
Jasn

Yeah i really like the sound of this.
Be interesting to see if it really does affect the speed issue thats there now though.
Doesn't really sound like it will, but you never know how they'll combat that

Hopefully it does make the game more challenging.. I think they need to just add an extra rating to the game..
ie, you are scrolling through the teams menu and you see Cowboys have a skill rating of say 97 (most skill in the game) but a team rating of only 84..
im sure it would be quite tricky to think of a way to do this, but perhaps it would be best done in a way that reflects the awareness of each player on their own team.. not the opposing team.. not sure.
Jasn

Yeah i really like the sound of this.
Be interesting to see if it really does affect the speed issue thats there now though.
Doesn't really sound like it will, but you never know how they'll combat that

Hopefully it does make the game more challenging.. I think they need to just add an extra rating to the game..
ie, you are scrolling through the teams menu and you see Cowboys have a skill rating of say 97 (most skill in the game) but a team rating of only 84..
im sure it would be quite tricky to think of a way to do this, but perhaps it would be best done in a way that reflects the awareness of each player on their own team.. not the opposing team.. not sure.
Jose C.

I'm not a big fan of fifa, however i like they're idea of a team chemistry rating and they should have that on madden. Thus making a team like dallas still being a 97 but performing at about a 90 and vice versa
Jose C.

I'm not a big fan of fifa, however i like they're idea of a team chemistry rating and they should have that on madden. Thus making a team like dallas still being a 97 but performing at about a 90 and vice versa
GT= kc10785

Why people hate on the cowboys people act like them dudes can't be beat or something.It shouldn't be no team concept it should be based on the players rating it self.We are controlling the teams we put the players in the right spot to make the plays. Not my fault that my play calling on madden is way better then jason garrett or wade Philips in real life.It's all about schemes and using ur players advantages at best in the game.People be killing me on line Top 100 players quit all the time and back out when they see the other player pick the cowboys. REAL PLAYERS PLAY ANY TEAM AND WIN OR TAKE THERE L LIKE A MAN!!!

KRIS

na we r just pissed that the highest rated teams in the video game didnt even make the playoffs

Mr. EA Sports

Kris the Cowboys are rated the best because they have unequivocally without a shadow of a doubt the best pure talent in the NFL. Kris you need to get over this fact and move on, there is just too much film on the sheer physical dominance of the Dallas Cowboys

KRIS

i never saw a physically dominant team allow the 08 rams to drop like 30+ on then

Fox

Solid. I never saw a physically dominant team give up two-straight runs of more than seventy yards to an injury-hampered tailback and a fullback.

I've also never seen the heaviest o-line in the NFL (they have either the heaviest or the second-heaviest, them and the eagles are first and second, but I'm not sure in which order) get smashed-on like they did. On SI's most disappointing players, they had Flozell Adams and they just smashed on dude. lol. (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/don…

GT= kc10785

Why people hate on the cowboys people act like them dudes can't be beat or something.It shouldn't be no team concept it should be based on the players rating it self.We are controlling the teams we put the players in the right spot to make the plays. Not my fault that my play calling on madden is way better then jason garrett or wade Philips in real life.It's all about schemes and using ur players advantages at best in the game.People be killing me on line Top 100 players quit all the time and back out when they see the other player pick the cowboys. REAL PLAYERS PLAY ANY TEAM AND WIN OR TAKE THERE L LIKE A MAN!!!

KRIS

na we r just pissed that the highest rated teams in the video game didnt even make the playoffs

Mr. EA Sports

Kris the Cowboys are rated the best because they have unequivocally without a shadow of a doubt the best pure talent in the NFL. Kris you need to get over this fact and move on, there is just too much film on the sheer physical dominance of the Dallas Cowboys

KRIS

i never saw a physically dominant team allow the 08 rams to drop like 30+ on then

Fox

Solid. I never saw a physically dominant team give up two-straight runs of more than seventy yards to an injury-hampered tailback and a fullback.

I've also never seen the heaviest o-line in the NFL (they have either the heaviest or the second-heaviest, them and the eagles are first and second, but I'm not sure in which order) get smashed-on like they did. On SI's most disappointing players, they had Flozell Adams and they just smashed on dude. lol. (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/don…

http://www.onustees.blogspot.com/ dre' of onustees.com

just hope it works… somewhat decent the 1st go round…

btw congrats Pasta on the Complex Media ring…

I had no idea until i was reading the new edition today…
http://www.onustees.blogspot.com dre' of onustees.com

just hope it works… somewhat decent the 1st go round…

btw congrats Pasta on the Complex Media ring…

I had no idea until i was reading the new edition today…
http://intensedebate.com/people/Sidewinder Sidewinder

This is bad news for the Lions. I wonder if they are going to have to add negative ratings.
http://intensedebate.com/people/Sidewinder Sidewinder

This is bad news for the Lions. I wonder if they are going to have to add negative ratings.
0-16

NOOOOOOOOOO….so this mean my Lions will all be in the 50's with the exception of Calvin Johnson….

KRIS

o shit that sounds right!!!!!! damn enjoy…..lol

0-16

NOOOOOOOOOO….so this mean my Lions will all be in the 50's with the exception of Calvin Johnson….

KRIS

o shit that sounds right!!!!!! damn enjoy…..lol

0-16

oh and Jason Hanson….
0-16

oh and Jason Hanson….
http://www.bettorfan.com/ BettorFan

The Lions clause does not allow Madden to go below 0.
http://www.bettorfan.com BettorFan

The Lions clause does not allow Madden to go below 0.
Leo

So your now referring it as Madden 10 after stating in the other blog that you would ignore it with the rest of us?
Leo

So your now referring it as Madden 10 after stating in the other blog that you would ignore it with the rest of us?
Acreyman

It makes sense and its about time. A guy with a 30 rating is still good enough to make it into the NFL but he just isnt good enough to stay on a team. The seperation is a good thing and I cant wait to see how it works out. Now if they can figure out how to put in 1st round draft picks that are a bust and 7th round (and rare) jewels in there and we got a winner.
Acreyman

It makes sense and its about time. A guy with a 30 rating is still good enough to make it into the NFL but he just isnt good enough to stay on a team. The seperation is a good thing and I cant wait to see how it works out. Now if they can figure out how to put in 1st round draft picks that are a bust and 7th round (and rare) jewels in there and we got a winner.
Guru

Nice, I like how it SEEMS like these guys are actually doing some things to improve the product
Guru

Nice, I like how it SEEMS like these guys are actually doing some things to improve the product
http://intensedebate.com/people/pastapadre pastapadre

I've gotten the impression they are sticking with this now unfortunately. I was holding out hope but they've been squared on the 10 thing lately despite evidence of it being lame.
http://intensedebate.com/people/pastapadre pastapadre

I've gotten the impression they are sticking with this now unfortunately. I was holding out hope but they've been squared on the 10 thing lately despite evidence of it being lame.
KRIS

im not liking the ratings to performance thing. it sounds good on paper but when we put the game in its gonna be shitty. ok im an eagles fan so what they r sayin is that my best reciever(desean) is gonna be like a 77 w/ 94 spd 70 route running and 79-80 catchin goin up against an overhyped overrated db like newman. by their scale newmans spd will be like 93 w/ 88mcv. so can they tell me how the hell hes goin to get open??????? or how about larry fitz on idk say nate clements or antione winfield who actually stopped him? that would just be unfair. maybe im thinkin too much but i dont wanna c dumb stuff just constantly take place on a game that im looking so forward to

Dabbo

Obviously they will have to recale the defensive players that you mentioned

KRIS

im not liking the ratings to performance thing. it sounds good on paper but when we put the game in its gonna be shitty. ok im an eagles fan so what they r sayin is that my best reciever(desean) is gonna be like a 77 w/ 94 spd 70 route running and 79-80 catchin goin up against an overhyped overrated db like newman. by their scale newmans spd will be like 93 w/ 88mcv. so can they tell me how the hell hes goin to get open??????? or how about larry fitz on idk say nate clements or antione winfield who actually stopped him? that would just be unfair. maybe im thinkin too much but i dont wanna c dumb stuff just constantly take place on a game that im looking so forward to

Dabbo

Obviously they will have to recale the defensive players that you mentioned

Daxflame

EA must have sent out a memo to their payroll, so naturally Pasta has gotten the Memo and will refer to the game as Madden #10 here on out
Daxflame

EA must have sent out a memo to their payroll, so naturally Pasta has gotten the Memo and will refer to the game as Madden #10 here on out
Dan O

This is much bigger and important news then the big superbowl announcement was.
Dan O

This is much bigger and important news then the big superbowl announcement was.
Mr. EA Sports

I think that they should hide the ratings. That way people will not feel inclined to just take the highest rated player and instead look at the people who actually perform on a consistent basis. I think this would be fantastic for franchise and online.

KRIS

wow u actually sound rational on a subject
t.daley

Mr EA sports: I couldn't disagree with you more. The number of stats attributes has always been a selling point in madden to demonstrate how much effort goes into separating the individual players from each other. To hide them would just upset the general masses and at this point would lead to speculation that they just don't want to program all those attributes any more. Also if you hid all the stats, then it makes substitutions a bit harder for your non starters since you wont know who can do what.

Mr. EA Sports

I think that they should hide the ratings. That way people will not feel inclined to just take the highest rated player and instead look at the people who actually perform on a consistent basis. I think this would be fantastic for franchise and online.

KRIS

wow u actually sound rational on a subject
t.daley

Mr EA sports: I couldn't disagree with you more. The number of stats attributes has always been a selling point in madden to demonstrate how much effort goes into separating the individual players from each other. To hide them would just upset the general masses and at this point would lead to speculation that they just don't want to program all those attributes any more. Also if you hid all the stats, then it makes substitutions a bit harder for your non starters since you wont know who can do what.

Mr. EA Sports

Kris, you can not compare a average receiver like DeSean to a elite shutdown corner like Newman. The game should represent what actually what would happen if they matched up against each other while healthy. It's pretty clear on the tape what a healthy Newman would do to a healthy DeSean. Also Kris before you get all irate just realize that DeSean has only one effective route, the go route. When he gets inside the redzone he becomes ineffective which makes him the epitome of a "One Trick Pony". There is just so much tape on how ineffective he is outside of his go route. Newman is a top 3 corner in the NFL, DeSean is a top 3 WR on his own team with a below average receiving corps.

KRIS

U MADE MY POINT U DUMBASS!!!! hes overrated by little bitch ass cowboys fans like urself. im not gonna get into the eagles cowboys debate w/ u because its unneccessay. but to get back on the subject….teams w/ recieving corps similiar to the eagles would have absolutely no success even tho they do in real life. like the eagles secondary would just be too much for teams to overcome…lol jk but u guys get the jist of it. MR. EA can u be a little more mature tho y does everything u say have to be a debate??????? we r tryna talk about madden 10 and ur stuck on how much better the cowboys r than the eagles (on the tape) lol u need a new angle

orangeandblue

kris i have to agree with on the d jackson case everytime i see him do something big in yards its the go route and i live in the phili area

KRIS

ok whats the only route u see t.o getting big plays off of????????????? and look at some desean jackson eagles highlights. he runs a curl extremely effective as well.and o yea….HES A FUCKIN ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!! when t.o. runs anything beside a 9 route its piced off(think back to all romos pics)

blondeviking64

Tons of DeSean love her. Dont confuse a man crush with playmaking ability. Yes Jackson made some big plays as a rookie. No its doesnt mean that he is great or desitned to be great. No he doesnt read coverages well or run great route yet. He may get better and may not. Dont go all crazy becuase he is on your fav team and had a decent year. I hope he developes into a steve smith type player and clams down on the fumble at the one yardline antics. LOL. take a deep breath.

t. daley

KRIS, how bout you tone it down fanboy. This is a place for civil and intelligent debate. There is no place for your juvenile antics here on the forum. If you cant make your points without the need to belittle someone then take your act somewhere else. We don't need you around here.

Mr. EA Sports

Kris, you can not compare a average receiver like DeSean to a elite shutdown corner like Newman. The game should represent what actually what would happen if they matched up against each other while healthy. It's pretty clear on the tape what a healthy Newman would do to a healthy DeSean. Also Kris before you get all irate just realize that DeSean has only one effective route, the go route. When he gets inside the redzone he becomes ineffective which makes him the epitome of a "One Trick Pony". There is just so much tape on how ineffective he is outside of his go route. Newman is a top 3 corner in the NFL, DeSean is a top 3 WR on his own team with a below average receiving corps.

KRIS

U MADE MY POINT U DUMBASS!!!! hes overrated by little bitch ass cowboys fans like urself. im not gonna get into the eagles cowboys debate w/ u because its unneccessay. but to get back on the subject….teams w/ recieving corps similiar to the eagles would have absolutely no success even tho they do in real life. like the eagles secondary would just be too much for teams to overcome…lol jk but u guys get the jist of it. MR. EA can u be a little more mature tho y does everything u say have to be a debate??????? we r tryna talk about madden 10 and ur stuck on how much better the cowboys r than the eagles (on the tape) lol u need a new angle

orangeandblue

kris i have to agree with on the d jackson case everytime i see him do something big in yards its the go route and i live in the phili area

KRIS

ok whats the only route u see t.o getting big plays off of????????????? and look at some desean jackson eagles highlights. he runs a curl extremely effective as well.and o yea….HES A FUCKIN ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!! when t.o. runs anything beside a 9 route its piced off(think back to all romos pics)

blondeviking64

Tons of DeSean love her. Dont confuse a man crush with playmaking ability. Yes Jackson made some big plays as a rookie. No its doesnt mean that he is great or desitned to be great. No he doesnt read coverages well or run great route yet. He may get better and may not. Dont go all crazy becuase he is on your fav team and had a decent year. I hope he developes into a steve smith type player and clams down on the fumble at the one yardline antics. LOL. take a deep breath.

t. daley

KRIS, how bout you tone it down fanboy. This is a place for civil and intelligent debate. There is no place for your juvenile antics here on the forum. If you cant make your points without the need to belittle someone then take your act somewhere else. We don't need you around here.