Madden 21

[MacReady]

Just now, Wyld Stallyns said:

The only artists I recognize I’m not interested in, can’t tell if any of this is rock/metal music but I’m Not holding my breathe. 

That's another reason to hate Madden. 

The Golden Age of Madden had multiple genres of music. 

https://gamicus.gamepedia.com/Madden_NFL_2004/Soundtrack

04, 05, 06, 07... All had diverse soundtracks. 

Now the only type of music on their soundtracks are hip hop/rap.  I hate that music.  Wouldn't listen to it.  Couldn't listen to it.  Even if I could listen to it, there are 18 songs.  Only 18 songs. 

Compare that to 39 songs from Madden 07. 

Every single bit of Madden has gotten worse.

And the worst thing about it is that this is the perfect storm for EA Sports.  If there's no season, sales will skyrocket I'd imagine. 

Then instead of seeing a massive decrease in sales, they'd see a massive increase and be like, "Well, it literally sucked.  Lol.  Let's not change **** for 2021." 

[biggio7]

 

[Wyld Stallyns]

Class action lawsuit filed in California against EA stating it’s sales of Ultimate Team packs violate gambling laws. Plaintiff is demanding a jury trial and damages of $5 million 

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.videogameschronicle.com/news/ea-faces-a-class-action-lawsuit-over-ultimate-team-loot-boxes/amp/

 

“EA’s Ultimate Team Packs are Loot Boxes. Buying the Packs are nothing more than a gambling bet,” the case claims. “Purchased using real money, the Ultimate Team Packs are simply wagers on completely randomized chances within the game to win valuable professional players and other items for the EA gamer’s virtual sports team.”

 

Word on the street is that in screen shots for “The Yard” that players would be able to buy gear with in game currency or actual cash taking out the randomness of such purchases. Some people take this as a potential fall back for Ultimate team if/when they lose this case. EA has lost similar cases in other countries but this is the first for a state of the union. 

[biggio7]

He spent 5 million dollars on buying packs of MUT? I know, I'm just making a joke at his damages claim.

I don't see how that would ever win. It's like buying a pack of baseball cards and then suing because you spent money and it was a gamble. Maybe you shouldn't spend real money on packs? Just a thought. 😄

[RuskieTitan]

2 hours ago, biggio7 said:

He spent 5 million dollars on buying packs of MUT? I know, I'm just making a joke at his damages claim.

I don't see how that would ever win. It's like buying a pack of baseball cards and then suing because you spent money and it was a gamble. Maybe you shouldn't spend real money on packs? Just a thought. 😄

Welcome to America, land of the lawyers and home of the lawsuits.

[43M]

I mean, companies like EA and 2K should be required to make games with their gambling mechanics T for teen and be Gambling should be listed on the ESRB listings since it often targets little kids, but if you are an adult and willingly spending your OWN money on it...thats on you.     

[MacReady]

I am rooting for this idiot moron who has nobody to blame but himself to win.

The man is a moron who helped contribute to MUT, which contributed to EA putting no attention whatsoever into franchise mode, but anything that hurts EA I am rooting for.

Microtransactions need to die the way online poker died. 

[Nex_Gen]

On 8/7/2020 at 12:11 PM, TwoUpTwoDown said:

Bought Madden 20 for $11 dollars because I wanted to see where it's at after not buying a Madden at launch since either Madden 16 or Madden 25. I cant remember.

This game is TRASH. I legitimately was debating buying Madden 21 because in my opinion there's not gonna be an NFL season this year. There is no shot I'm buying it now LOL.

 

After playing the HELL out of NBA 2K20, which I got for free on PS4 because of Playstation Plus, I was sooooooo underwhelmed by the features and settings in Madden 20. It's honestly unbelievable to me they charge the same price for both of these games. This was the first 2K I have played since probably 2015 as well so I'm not just some biased 2K fan.

 

Abhorrent lack of shame from EA.

I also, unfortunately wasted my money on this game over this Summer. Needed to burn some time to get through this quarantine and thought I'd give Madden another try since I haven't played since the late '00s. Where do I even begin with this mess? Off the top of my head:

 

-Player progression stinks. I played through one whole season of Franchise and probably improved only 1-3 players by probably 1-2 overall.

-Random, irrelevant, and completely off base commentary by Gaudin/Davis;

-every time the Patriots lose, they're referenced as the SB champs, even when you're 10 years into Franchise. 

-Luke Willson was programmed to have 200 career catches - and they make the same comment on him every single time he catches a ball. In real life, he barely has 108 career catches RIGHT NOW.

-The Franchise menu/interface constantly freezes and glitches

-Depth Chart/Formation Subs constantly glitch out and doesn't apply how you did so in the settings

-Did they really not care to implement trying to down the ball on punt coverage? There is ONE animation for downing the punt, and it downs it on the spot, even if you roll into the endzone, which would be a TB in real life. Not to mention the punt bounces are ridiculously unrealistic as they always almost land where the punts drop. Punts are so OP I can guarantee an Inside 20 job on any punt as long as I'm past my own 20.

-Generated rookie players are still completely unbalanced and inferior compared to real life players of the same caliber.

-The play review/challenges seem to generate random results; I had two instances where a call was overturned into a TD, when my TE was completely two yards out of bounds and never game close to making the catch. Another one was where the CPU literally had the ball bounce off his hands and onto the ground in the back of the endzone. That play was overturned into a TD.

-Every single CPU team in Franchise mode is in cap hell two years into my simulation. I can't even make trade offers to accumulate draft picks because of this.

-Flawed game mechanics/game engine. One time, My QB's throw actually made a full circle/loop in the air before going incomplete. That throw turned AJ Green into Slender-man trying to make the catch.

-One of my players were injured and placed on IR, then was on the field and IN the pre-game presentation in the next game.

-The sacks/fumbles/INTs in this game is ridiculous as a user and on All-Pro or higher for CPU. You can tell this game was catered to the brainless football crowd who wants to get pick sixes and run 60 yard go routes on every play. It's no longer a simulation with realism scoped in.

-Bugs

-More bugs

 

This game is a giant $60 bug. I actually worry about my PS4's health having to process/render it. And I really want the $30 I paid back...

Edited August 17, 2020 by Nex_Gen

[iknowcool]

8 hours ago, biggio7 said:

He spent 5 million dollars on buying packs of MUT? I know, I'm just making a joke at his damages claim.

I don't see how that would ever win. It's like buying a pack of baseball cards and then suing because you spent money and it was a gamble. Maybe you shouldn't spend real money on packs? Just a thought. 😄

There's like 100 more people involved, he's just the one bringing the case forward.  In the article it says he thinks he's spent somewhere north of $600 on micro-transactions since 2011, which compared to most people who get into that kind of stuff, isn't that much.  

This situation is always weird because while it's definitely gambling and shouldn't be in games, it is hard to pity anyone who contributes to it.  I mean, what else could they have thought it was lol?  

NCAA 14 is the only sports game where I ever spent money on packs.  

[Tetsujin]

They need to have a play creator, with a formation creator.

[MKnight82]

3 hours ago, Nex_Gen said:

-Player progression stinks. I played through one whole season of Franchise and probably improved only 1-3 players by probably 1-2 overall.

Not sure what you were seeing, but the players progress more than that.  Here's proof:

 

One thing of note, are you skipping practices?  You need to get a gold level on a practice first, then you can sim at a gold level of that drill.  If you don't ever get gold in it you are getting significantly less progression in your players from practice. 

3 hours ago, Nex_Gen said:

-The Franchise menu/interface constantly freezes and glitches

I don't think I've ever had the game freeze.  Are you on Xbox or PS?

3 hours ago, Nex_Gen said:

-Generated rookie players are still completely unbalanced and inferior compared to real life players of the same caliber.

There are good draft classes and bad ones for sure.  I actually think they did a pretty good job with the draft classes this year.  

3 hours ago, Nex_Gen said:

Every single CPU team in Franchise mode is in cap hell two years into my simulation. I can't even make trade offers to accumulate draft picks because of this.

This is true.  I got around it by making trades right at the start of Free Agency.  This is when teams have the most money. 

 

All in all I really enjoyed madden franchise mode this year.  It certainly isn't perfect but it was better than year's past imo.

[MKnight82]

On 8/10/2020 at 4:39 PM, TwoUpTwoDown said:

I am mainly pointing at small features 2k has such as "Force Trade" and "Trade Finder" to (name a few among many) that make the experience way better in terms of long term replayability.

I do wish Madden had "trade finder"

On 8/10/2020 at 4:39 PM, TwoUpTwoDown said:

Another aspect that I really appreciated in 2k was the depth of some of the commonalities such as salary cap and player/coach contracts. 2k is on a level Madden hasn't sniffed in over a decade there and it's not debatable. Unless you just turn the cap off in Madden it's usually impossible to make any sort of trade which is super annoying and to me automatically makes it unplayable

I actually have had the opposite experience.  2k had some major bugs salary cap wise the past 2 years.  The game doesn't let you resign your rookie draft picks one their rookie contracts expire, you're forced to let them hit free agency and have to bid against other teams.  The best time to make trades in Madden is at the start of Free Agency.  Plenty of teams have cap space then.  

On 8/10/2020 at 4:39 PM, TwoUpTwoDown said:

So I agree GM mode was awful because of the horrrrrrible cut scenes that you are forced to watch in order to keep everyone happy. Terrible concept with a terrible and repetitive execution.

But GM mode was so much better before they screwed it up.  In MyLeague, you get like 1/3 of the scouting trips so you only know like 20-25 players in the draft class max.  That is sooooo annoying.  Also you can only send 2 players to offseason workouts in Myleague, and in My GM you could get up to like 10.  

[showtime]

I haven't been following ANYTHING regarding this game.  I'm kind of interested in buying this since I didn't ever buy Madden 20.  Maybe I'll try the trail that comes EA Access.

[theJ]

14 hours ago, iknowcool said:

There's like 100 more people involved, he's just the one bringing the case forward.  In the article it says he thinks he's spent somewhere north of $600 on micro-transactions since 2011, which compared to most people who get into that kind of stuff, isn't that much.  

This situation is always weird because while it's definitely gambling and shouldn't be in games, it is hard to pity anyone who contributes to it.  I mean, what else could they have thought it was lol?  

NCAA 14 is the only sports game where I ever spent money on packs.  

Couldn't have said it better.

I definitely don't feel bad for the dude, but these loot boxes are gambling that do victimize people in the same way lottery tickets do.

Micro is going to stay, but they have to get rid of the loot boxes and instead just let people the exact things they want.  Sales will go down, but cry me a river.  Maybe i'd feel bad if they released a good game every once in a while.

[43M]

16 hours ago, MKnight82 said:

Not sure what you were seeing, but the players progress more than that.  Here's proof:

 

One thing of note, are you skipping practices?  You need to get a gold level on a practice first, then you can sim at a gold level of that drill.  If you don't ever get gold in it you are getting significantly less progression in your players from practice. 

I don't think I've ever had the game freeze.  Are you on Xbox or PS?

There are good draft classes and bad ones for sure.  I actually think they did a pretty good job with the draft classes this year.  

This is true.  I got around it by making trades right at the start of Free Agency.  This is when teams have the most money. 

 

All in all I really enjoyed madden franchise mode this year.  It certainly isn't perfect but it was better than year's past imo.

Not knocking you for enjoying it...but Im not entirely sure how you enjoy this games franchise mode MORE than years past when nothing has really changed aside from the addition of customizable draft classes and a few other forgettable changes.

Thats the entire reason #FixFranchiseMode was trending....because hardly anything has changed since the implementation of Connected Careers all the way back in M13.