This conversation came up the other day on Facebook. I posted the Madden 15 plays of the year video and the comments turned into everything that was wrong with Madden. Then it sort of evolved into what can Madden do to return to its glory days?
For many of you, you may be thinking "Return to glory? Madden is dominating!" To some degree you would be right. Madden is the lone console football game (for now) and has reigned as the undisputed king since ESPN NFL 2k5 went away in 2004. However, Madden has lost considerable market share over the past 10 years, even without significant direct competition.
The year after ESPN NFL 2k5 disbanded due to Madden's exclusive rights deal with the NFL, Madden NFL 06 set a franchise high with 7.68 million copies sold across all platforms. That was a 12% increase over the 6.85 million copies sold in 2004 while competing against NFL 2k.
So where is Madden at now?
Madden NFL 15 has sold 5.03 million copies since being released nearly 10 months ago. Those numbers may go up a little, but with Madden 16 right around the corner, they won't increase much. Even if we throw out the 540,000 copies sold in 2005 for the Xbox 360 (the first for that system) as duplicate buys for those who had bought the PlayStation 2 or Xbox version, Madden has still lost nearly 28% of its consumer base. But why? Why has a game without any meaningful direct competition lost over 1/4 of all its users?
The reasons given in our Facebook conversation were varied.
One of the reasons given for having quit playing Madden was because it has become too complicated. As technology progresses, the newer systems add more buttons to their controllers and game manufactures utilize those buttons by adding new features to the game. That makes the game far too complicated for some.
Another person said that they quit playing Madden because it just wasn't realistic enough. The AI (artificial intelligence) isn't deep enough and the animations are still too carton like. Football dominates the sports world nowadays. Between college and the NFL, you can watch a football game every night of the week most weeks during the fall. Users know the game better and want to see a more accurate representation of it in their games.
So what is the solution?
One solution given was to re-introduce the one-button play that Electronic Arts debuted with NCAA Football 11. This feature allowed the game to decide what move (juke, truck, spin, stiff arm, etc) to utilize when the user pushed a specific button. For those that find the new control scheme difficult to master, this could be a reasonable solution for re-introducing past users to the game. Madden has started to go in this direction by adding Game Flow in 2012 to make play calling easier. Taking that a step further by adding a one-button control could be a huge win for the series.
Another solution was to increase the game modes that Madden offers. Many (myself included) are hailing MLB 15 The Show as the best sports game of the year. One of the things that makes MLB 15 so great is the depth of play options that they offer. MLB 15 The Show offers traditional options like Play Now and Franchise as well as a vastly improved Diamond Dynasty mode similar to Madden's Ultimate Team.
However, MLB also offers Road To The Show which focuses on building and playing as an individual player versus a whole team. Madden used to have a Superstar mode which was similar, but it never had the appeal of RTTS and it was folded into Connected Franchise in 2014 making it an even less enjoyable option for many users. MLB 15 also has a Home Run derby mode, Challenges of the Week, user created community challenges and the ability to replay real life games throughout the season using real rosters, lineups and starting pitchers. How can that be integrated into Madden?
One thought was a return to a true single player only mode. NCAA's Road to Glory mode was very popular until EA started ignoring it much like they did with Madden. That's a huge selling point for a game like The Show and Madden needs to figure out how to re-introduce a mode like that while giving it the proper attention it deserves.
Another idea was to add a combine only mode. This option is generally suggested only for Connected Franchise (which has been integrated in a way this year), but many users might find it enjoyable to create a character or use an existing rookie or NFL superstar and put them through the vast assortment of drills at the combine. There could be a leaderboard to see which players typically do the best in each event and users could gain XP and trophies by completing the different events.
Adding a skills competition was another similar but compelling idea. How fun would it be to compete in the 100-yard dash as one of the fastest players in the league old Track and Field style? Or how about going through the QB skills competition as one of your favorite QB's against the other top quarterbacks? There are so many different skills that could be added that would not only add more enjoyment to the game but also help users improve on certain game specific skills.
Lastly, gameplay has to be refined and improved. No matter how many different modes you have, if the gameplay is underwhelming, the game as a whole will be. MLB 15 gets this right in so many ways. Madden has made improvements, but when your Top Plays of the Year video is mocked for showing off the inherent flaws in your game engine rather than celebrating the feats performed, you have a serious issue.
What do you think? Aside from small improvements like equipment and player appearance, what can Madden add or change to make it the king of all sports games again?
For many of you, you may be thinking "Return to glory? Madden is dominating!" To some degree you would be right. Madden is the lone console football game (for now) and has reigned as the undisputed king since ESPN NFL 2k5 went away in 2004. However, Madden has lost considerable market share over the past 10 years, even without significant direct competition.
The year after ESPN NFL 2k5 disbanded due to Madden's exclusive rights deal with the NFL, Madden NFL 06 set a franchise high with 7.68 million copies sold across all platforms. That was a 12% increase over the 6.85 million copies sold in 2004 while competing against NFL 2k.
So where is Madden at now?
Madden NFL 15 has sold 5.03 million copies since being released nearly 10 months ago. Those numbers may go up a little, but with Madden 16 right around the corner, they won't increase much. Even if we throw out the 540,000 copies sold in 2005 for the Xbox 360 (the first for that system) as duplicate buys for those who had bought the PlayStation 2 or Xbox version, Madden has still lost nearly 28% of its consumer base. But why? Why has a game without any meaningful direct competition lost over 1/4 of all its users?
The reasons given in our Facebook conversation were varied.
One of the reasons given for having quit playing Madden was because it has become too complicated. As technology progresses, the newer systems add more buttons to their controllers and game manufactures utilize those buttons by adding new features to the game. That makes the game far too complicated for some.
Another person said that they quit playing Madden because it just wasn't realistic enough. The AI (artificial intelligence) isn't deep enough and the animations are still too carton like. Football dominates the sports world nowadays. Between college and the NFL, you can watch a football game every night of the week most weeks during the fall. Users know the game better and want to see a more accurate representation of it in their games.
So what is the solution?
One solution given was to re-introduce the one-button play that Electronic Arts debuted with NCAA Football 11. This feature allowed the game to decide what move (juke, truck, spin, stiff arm, etc) to utilize when the user pushed a specific button. For those that find the new control scheme difficult to master, this could be a reasonable solution for re-introducing past users to the game. Madden has started to go in this direction by adding Game Flow in 2012 to make play calling easier. Taking that a step further by adding a one-button control could be a huge win for the series.
Another solution was to increase the game modes that Madden offers. Many (myself included) are hailing MLB 15 The Show as the best sports game of the year. One of the things that makes MLB 15 so great is the depth of play options that they offer. MLB 15 The Show offers traditional options like Play Now and Franchise as well as a vastly improved Diamond Dynasty mode similar to Madden's Ultimate Team.
However, MLB also offers Road To The Show which focuses on building and playing as an individual player versus a whole team. Madden used to have a Superstar mode which was similar, but it never had the appeal of RTTS and it was folded into Connected Franchise in 2014 making it an even less enjoyable option for many users. MLB 15 also has a Home Run derby mode, Challenges of the Week, user created community challenges and the ability to replay real life games throughout the season using real rosters, lineups and starting pitchers. How can that be integrated into Madden?
One thought was a return to a true single player only mode. NCAA's Road to Glory mode was very popular until EA started ignoring it much like they did with Madden. That's a huge selling point for a game like The Show and Madden needs to figure out how to re-introduce a mode like that while giving it the proper attention it deserves.
Another idea was to add a combine only mode. This option is generally suggested only for Connected Franchise (which has been integrated in a way this year), but many users might find it enjoyable to create a character or use an existing rookie or NFL superstar and put them through the vast assortment of drills at the combine. There could be a leaderboard to see which players typically do the best in each event and users could gain XP and trophies by completing the different events.
Adding a skills competition was another similar but compelling idea. How fun would it be to compete in the 100-yard dash as one of the fastest players in the league old Track and Field style? Or how about going through the QB skills competition as one of your favorite QB's against the other top quarterbacks? There are so many different skills that could be added that would not only add more enjoyment to the game but also help users improve on certain game specific skills.
Lastly, gameplay has to be refined and improved. No matter how many different modes you have, if the gameplay is underwhelming, the game as a whole will be. MLB 15 gets this right in so many ways. Madden has made improvements, but when your Top Plays of the Year video is mocked for showing off the inherent flaws in your game engine rather than celebrating the feats performed, you have a serious issue.
What do you think? Aside from small improvements like equipment and player appearance, what can Madden add or change to make it the king of all sports games again?
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