Madden 11 Online Issues Remain Unaddressed

by pastapadre
Posted August 18th, 2010 at 4:45 pm

Eight days have passed since the release of Madden 11 and there has still been no official statements regarding the online play related troubles gamers have encountered. As covered in my online impressions the big ones include first half quits in ranked games not penalizing quitters with a loss or those quit on with a win/ability to play CPU out, quits at any point in Madden Ultimate Team ending as though they never happened with no coins being awarded, the ability to play friends or those challenged from lobby rooms to ranked games, and lag that makes its presence known by affecting the consistency with the kick meter.

Though various tweets from EA Sports reps have acknowledged the issues at hand with the situation currently being evaluated as to how to proceed, every day that goes by results in more and more gamers getting frustrated. Last year EA cited data on how many gamers played a single online game and never returned. The numbers this year will show an astonishing rise in quitting and users giving up on ranked games already…and possibly for good. There is no guarantee that they will return even after the fixes are implemented which is why the lack of foresight that went into the changes regarding quitting especially will have lasting repercussions.

Tags: latest news

JZZZZ

I know Im not playing online until they get this stuff fixed.
NoFro904

good thing all i do is franchise
Slamfan4life

lag is really bs
Craig

yeah you couldve just stuck with Madden 10 then lol
Anonymous

even if they DO make it to where people stop quitting…playing a game online in Madden is pure garbage anyway…ridiculous lag aside (seriously, out of bounds kickoffs and missed XPs every game…and don’t even think about kicking a FG)…if i have to play one more game with guys going on it every fourth down from their OWN 20 and if they somehow manage to score on me (which tends to happen as offense is ridiculously superpowered this year, and with 4 downs to make a first instead of 3, that potential rises)…there is a 50% chance or great that they will recover the onside kick when they attempt it…just stupid…had a guy kick 6 onside kicks against me the other day and he recovered 4…and i always use gameplan on kickoffs which puts me in my onside recovery formation…bleh…
http://www.facebook.com/untamedyouth Jason Steele

it sounds like you’re terrible at the game man, im not experiencing any of those issues. neither is anyone i know. keep your head up, there’s always next year……
Anonymous

the man speaks the truth…
http://twitter.com/dspohn55 David Spohn

Thank God for you pasta padre. You’re the voice of the people. I understand in principle why EA changed the way they handle online quitters. It just isn’t fair to punish thousands of honest online players because there are dozens of online boosters. You basically have to come out and play soft, vanilla football enticing your opponent to not quit.
http://pastapadre.com/ pastapadre

We had someone open a game in OTP with an onside kick and they recovered it. Havent seen if that is a common thing yet though.
Anonymous

brilliant comment, dumbass…so because other people play like idiots that makes ME bad? i didn’t say i couldn’t stop a guy on 4th down…but is it too much for someone to ACTUALLY want to play FOOTBALL in a FOOTBALL game…then when you stop them a couple of drives, they quit…

even the developers of the game tweet about playing games where guys misses XPs do to lag…games run smooth, then suddenly on a kick the meter bounces around like a Mexican jumping bean…its an issue…so get over yourself…

and just like NCAA this year…onside kicks were a VERY high percentage play for the kicking team…and NCAA had to tune that down a bit to make the kicks more random…so due to the fact that the games are using the same engine, it would make sense that it would be an issue in Madden as well…

so get off your damn soap box…i play Madden because i’ve played it for years and i’m damn good at the game…but when the game is dumbed down and turned into an arcade game, it rubs a man the wrong way…

THE–TRIBE49

i flagged yo ass man play bettr D. and switch yo walmart connection
THE–TRIBE49

i flagged yo ass man play bettr D. and switch yo walmart connection

Ksganga

pasta what about a patch for A.I. while playing a gamae against A.I. team in francise mode! Also the kick /punting game is horrible. Know matter the rating of the player, your kicker will always out kick their kicker.In FG and Punts
Jz

Worst Madden Ever! Worst Ai ever in a Madden game in the last 10 years
Vegastwan

what i do is go to the online head to head and then push x to go the advance match settings and i set the dnf percentage to 0 to 5 %… since i do this all the time not 1 person i played has quit because there true players who play by the rules… on top of that there actualy pretty damn good.. i have a question? has anyone else notice really bad qb accuracy sometimes? i only play with the eagles and even though kolb isnt the most accurate qb in the league sometimes he misses wide wide open recivers by a mile with no body near him either… is this a defect in the game or not? i also see it happen to my opponets sometimes too….
Anonymous

we had that happen in the only OTP game i played as well…but they didn’t do it the rest of the game…i’m not against onside kicks…but when its clearly in the kicking team’s advantage it can be frustrating…6 times in a game though is a bit extreme…to put it lightly…
Rsganga

franchise is no better
ninnyjams

Every game for the last year has had online issues. Yay.
Anonymous

In all honesty EA is in a position to do absolutely nothing. Online play is free and when something is free you can’t expect a whole lot. The only reason I see for EA even addressing this issue is if they think they will lose considerable amounts of money on the ultimate team thing.

Anonymous

my theory has always been that its MOSTLY people who ruin the game not necessarily EA…but EA can do something to combat this: Bring Back Fair Play Rules for Ranked Matches…

Anonymous

i miss wide open receivers as well…to be honest i stopped throwing mid-deep to deep…it was just a roll of the dice at times…i use Matt Cassel by the way…not exactly an NFL-caliber starting QB…i dont mind missing a receiver…but sometimes you miss him TOO badly…meaning at times i have thrown to my receiver in the right slot down the seam and the ball goes to my receiver streaking down the left sideline…sorry, but NO QB is so bad that they can’t even throw the ball on the correct side of the field of their intended receiver…doesn’t happen often, but it definitely DOES happen…
http://pastapadre.com/ pastapadre

The patch they announced for pre-snap controls (out around the start of the NFL regular season) will incorporate gameplay improvements and fixes. Just don’t know specifically what will be in the patch yet.
Tippy

pasta plz do me dis favor can u tweet Ian n tell him 2 at least think about reset’n the ranks wen the new patch comes out or make it a every month thing were they would b reset.And about the quit’n they can bring back how it was last yr. there was nothing wrong wit it, if ur opp. quit u cont. against the cpu. But what about add’n supersim so u wont have 2 take that much longer 2 finish a game. O YEAH 1MO THING PLZ PLZ BRING BACK FRIENDS RANKED GAMES!!!!!!!! DUECES
Redskins77

Hey Jazz, i agree with u 100% . Over this past weekend me and my Boyz were all hyped up and ready to get things crackin online with some head to head action all to have the rug pulled out from underneath us. I myself played five games ( all back to back) and had three of them disconnect and the other to were absolute horror shows. It was so bad that after scoring a touchdown i couldn’t even make an extra point. It was nearly impossible( due to this horrific lag ) to get the proper timing down ( as in playing an offline game) with the kick meter. And im not even going to get into the passing game and how pressing the buttons meant that you had to deal with a legit two to three seconds delay before the QB threw the ball! Year in and year out we go thru the same online crap when the game drops. How can EA continue to ignore these online issues? We continue to give them chances by showing our loyalty by spending our hard earned money and purchasing the game and yet they continue to ” Drop The Ball” by showing no foresight whatsoever in anticipation of these issues.They know that there are going to be more playa’s online in hopes that these issues have been addressed, but i guess thats just wishful thinking. Either they dont really care or it’s just flat out arogance that their not gettin it done.They are the only game in town since they had the contract handed to them by EA and it seems as though they have just gotten worse every year. This is absolutely Pathetic as well as inexcusable for a company to continue to disappoint its loyal customer base in such an arogant manner. What we all need to do is just buckle down on their asses and not buy the game until they get their shit together and get with the program, Nuff said im out !
http://www.woodsidemediagroup.com/ Amani

I appreciate the post but I will bring up a point I made after a previous pasta article. Who do they have as testers (from outside of EA) for this game? Any regular online player or even a tourney player could explain to EA these Online issues after playing one or two online games. I will admit that foreseeing the amount of quits could have thrown them off guard, but they should have planned this better. Why don’t they have a release week patch in effect (a la MLB the Show) to help minimize early issues while researching continued issues? Instead we get Madden for iPhone, Facebook, iPad and every other system , but lack of attention to details still detracts from M11. And why do we still have lag issues in 2010? MLB the Show showed small improvement. Why can’t Madden? And don’t get me talking about severly limited playbooks. Oy ve …
http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/J6SD2KR4VWPT6U2SELUIUUWTZU Robert

I can’t even play online because I can’t log into the EA server. It’s redonk…
Forest

does EA get any money from us joining xbox live gold? i know PS3 is free. If they don’t get money for online then why put any effort or money into online play? they can just save time and work on console only gaming. they must have a reason for having online gaming.
Gmitch23

When will they release details of the first patch?? Anyone else notice that playing the cpu on all madden that the cpu isnt really better scheme wise, they just break most tackles??
WRIZ954

I KNOW THIS IS THIS IS OFF SUBJECT BUT IM ABOUT TO FUCKING THROW MY MADDEN 11 OUT THE WINDOW IM SO SICK OF THE POLITICS RULING THE OUTCOME OF EVERYTHING THAT HAS TO DO WITH THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE HOW DOES SOMEBODY THROW LESS THAN 15 TD AND 20 INTERCEPTIONS AND HE GETS RATED BETTER THAN HALF THE QBS IN THE LEAGUE… STOP BUYING INTO THE REX RYAN NY HYPE… RATINGS GURU MY ASS!!!! YES IM TALKING ABOUT SANCHEZ
WRIZ954

BY BETTER CHECK OUT THE ACCURACY RATINGS COMPARED
NELL86

They better get this right before NHL11 and im not even a hockey fan but I will be one soon

Anonymous

Hahahahaha!!!!!

http://pastapadre.com/ pastapadre

Online Play is free? Tell that to the “Online Pass”. EA has stated they see online play as a “value add-on”.
Anonymous

I’m so pissed cause I tried to play 2 online franchise games yesterday and I got booted off at half-time. I was winning the first game when I got booted. The second game I was tied and then I got booted again. This has never happened to me when I was playing Madden 10. I’ve also noticed that sometimes I can’t even send game invites or I can’t connect to the EA Servers. Is this why I paid $65 to play this game? I didn’t pay top dollar just to get booted out of my online games or kept out of the server everytime I try to play.
Anonymous

Actually online play isn’t free. That’s exactly why you have to put that stupid code in now everytime you buy the game new. If you buy it used then you have to “pay” for the Online Pass which is $10. They want you to pay top dollar but they can’t uphold there end of the bargain.
Anonymous

You are not the only one bro! I’m in an Online Franchise and I didn’t even play the first 2 weeks because I couldn’t connect with EA’s servers. Then when I played my Week 3 game I was booted at half-time twice.
Carlcarlsonn

i love the game, but the online experience (which is at least half the reason i purchase it) has been terrible. i should be able to play friends in a ranked game first of all. enough said. but, i’ve been really disappointed in the lag and choppiness so far… especially with the kick meter. i’ve shanked punts and missed easy field goals do to the lag. it’s ridiculous. both these issues need to be address or they will lose two long time buyers in the future. i trust ea will do something.
Legendoflegends

I wouldn’t say it’s the “worst madden’, because that Madden 06, the first Madden on XBox 360, was absolutely horrible. But the problem with Madden 11 is the fact that their is so many idiotic development decisions that I don’t see how a guy like Ian Cummings can justify keeping his job. Madden 11 has just to many dumb decisions IMO. Auto turbo, game flo, strategy pad, online rank games not counting, etc.. People need to wake up and stop running out and buying this garbage every year….rent it!! Just don’t make a purchase.
Legendoflegends

This is a dumb statement. Online is not free. I pay M$ a annual feel, and I also play EA $65 anytime I buy their product, so no, it’s not free dude.
hoodiii

It is these kind of articles that end up getting you blocked on twitter Pasta. Keep it up. lol
Anonymous

absolutely. People will always be the definitive reason for online sucking. That is why I rarely play strangers online and when I do, if the gameplay experience was great, then they go on my friends list.

If people showed more discretion who they gamed with instead of just carelessly accepting anyones challenge then their online experience would be alot greater.
Anonymous

well…hard to use discretion when the only way to play a ‘ranked’ match is to have it be random…and your only info on your opponent is DNF% and record…which really tell nothing…

it is what it is…people being dumbasses will happen an every game…as much as people love Modern Warfare 2, there are ridiculous number of boosters and idiots there as well…i guess i’m just pissed with Madden because they seemed to focus on gameplay and online play this year (due to the fact that NO OTHER MAJOR FEATURE WAS ADDED…gameplan/gameflow? please…)…it is what it is…
Arod_111

typical ea dont care as long as they get their money
Mfartachelli

honestly i dont think that EA gives a shit about what we say only because no matter whats wrong witht eh game, and the fact that we still know that the next madden is gna be shit, we still by the game and their still making a crap load of money. Maybe if a lot of people dont by the game, they will make it really good lmao
Redskins77

Amen my Brutha, Lmao !
Redskins77

MMMM Amen Amani , I couldn’t have said that any better!
Kushmir

I think ALOT of people feel this way. i just put an article up on my blog after interviewing several members of the community and scouring forums to get people’s take on Madden’s current state.

check it out here: http://kushmir.blogspot.com/2010/08/madden-community-backlash.html
Leo

Im pretty sure the main thing they focused on was gameflow then a little on gameplay but a lot of it was done together with the ncaa team. I like the game but this year is disappointing I would be happy if they fix the online issues though.
anti-Allmaddenking

I am soooooooooooooooo glad i did not buy this game… And God knows i wanted too. I dedicated my gamertag to the game so i love the game. but this game sounds like its terrible. Someone quits and they dont get a loss and you do not get a win sounds like some old bull **** to me. If this doesn’t prove that ea does not care then idk what does. The Allmaddenking approves this message. post scriptum Pasta your doing a great job keep it up
Joe

06 had the tony bruno show… it was the best franchise ever in maddden..
iudshiuh

online play sucks. period. the skill needed to be good online has nothing to do with football, but more about taking the fastest team and just press coverage and blitzing, play after play. Every year its the same problem and they can never get it fixed. Honestly, if the Raiders press covered the Patriots every play they would get burned every time, but in the game defenders get right thru the line and the receivers get jammed every time. I literally just lost with Pats vs. Raiders with the kid using the same defensive play. I thought awareness actually made a difference in the game but i guess not.
philly

I wouldn’t say they don’t listen. It’s just with the Madden Devs, they have to listen to what the big boys (like Peter Moore) want/think is good for the game with more weight than we do. Moore has been quoted that he wanted a more streamlined experience and more DLC for games, and especially with Madden, that’s what he got. If they don’t take at least some of his ideas they get axed (possibly). They know that Madden isn’t just any old game. It’s truly become part of culture, and though less are buying the game than on the last gen consoles, it’s still one of the bigger titles every year because of tradition and just it being what it is; and NFL Licensed football game. The consumer SHOULD and hopefully does get some thoughts listened to and agreed upon by the devs, but I don’t know if we have as much pull as the higher-up guys in house of EA Sports.
philly

I don’t want to sound like I’m defending them. Don’t get me started on some of the ideas I’ve had and seen from others that should be addressed or thought about. But it is what it is, and until a large enough group (company, consumers, etc) do something about it, it’ll more than likely continue.
philly

It’s always been that way, plus random fumbles going their way, players coming out of nowhere for picks, etc…