I really enjoy playing EA sports titles and I generally think they’re good fun. Until recently I had gone a few years without a gaming console. As a kid I followed Nintendo to Super Nintendo and for a brief period N64 and then nothing. One of the biggest reasons I got a PS3 in the recent past was because of the release of Fight Night Champion. I’m a sucker for boxing games and when I saw that Fight Night Champion was coming out I came out of the dark ages and got my hands on a console.I was really looking forward to a lot of things coming from the PS3 and I couldn’t wait to see the changes in all kinds of games. I think EA Sports has done a pretty good job for the most part and I loved Fight Night Champion when I got it. I played for a few months non stop. Perhaps the biggest disappointment in today's sports games comes from the Madden Franchise. I own an EA Sports NHL, MLB, NBA, Fight Night, Madden and FIFA title for the PS3. After not having played many games since the Super Nintendo and N64 days I’ve been wowed by the developments in all of the sports franchises with the exception of the Madden Series. They’re still fun to play and I do look forward to the titles that come out every year but I find them a lot weaker than the other sports games. While the other sports games deliver at least a generally good experience, the Madden series can't seem to score a touchdown! The announcers are great on the other titles but I find the Madden announcers a bit weak and boring.
Madden also made a mess of a good idea when they ruined their Superstar mode. When I first found out about superstar mode I loved it! I played it at a friend’s house on a PS2 version. I forget exactly which Madden it is that I played but you had a little map of the city where you could go to the gym, your agent’s office and even the barbershop to get a haircut. You also had an apartment that would get better as your superstar became better and earned more money. This was probably what I was looking forward to the most for Madden on the PS3 and then I bought Madden 09, played the superstar mode and asked myself how they could have gone wrong. There is no barbershop, there is no gym, and there is no apartment. All there is to do is go to tedious practice sessions, do mini games at the performance institute and play the NFL games which are ok but can also be pretty boring depending on which position you choose. So far I’ve been having fun creating running backs but all of the customization features that I thought were going in the right direction are gone.
Here’s some advice for EA Sports, a lot of Madden fans love superstar mode! I know playing a franchise is more popular on Madden titles but the other games with a career mode have done a pretty good job. When I play the NHL 09 career mode I feel like I get the NHL experience, when I play Fight Night’s career and story mode I feel like I get the boxer’s experience; Madden however, doesn’t seem to hold up. I think people would love to feel the NFL experience and step into the player’s shoes; it’s up to the team to get creative and give us a good superstar mode. Maybe the EA Madden team should take page out of the Fight Night and NHL book and look for some fresh ideas.
