I’ll admit even as an avid sports fan I haven’t played a football game on consoles in years and the last time I played Madden was Madden NFL 08 for the Nintendo DS. I bought that game on a whim when visiting my local EB Games with the title discounted.
Prior to that I hadn’t touched a football game since NES Play Action Football way back for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It’s available on the Nintendo WII Virtual Console if you’ve played that and are feeling nostalgic.
So to say that I was rusty playing football games is an understatement. Luckily Madden NFL 13 is quite intuitive for even rookies to pick up and play the game.
The greatest feature for any one coming in to play Madden for the first time is the Gameflow feature. This allows the player to keep the flow of the game going. In most football games that I have played previously the game is stopped after every play while dozens of different playbook options are displayed. This can be confusing for a new player, but Madden does include this as well. The gamer can opt to choose Madden’s recommended next play to keep the game going, or open up the playbook an handselect a play.
Another great attribute of the game is that, when you select your next play, the actual playbook diagrams are displayed on the field in real time brifely to show you not only where the player you are controlling should be going (if you choose a running play) but also highlights your receiver, their intended path and what button you should select to toss them the ball.
It is all very intuitive.
The game is displayed beautifully as well. As a sports fan that loves the way broadcasters televise the game, I am pleased that Electronics Arts have made their presentation of the game an even truer broadcast experience. The play by play and colour commentary are insightful and flow fluidly and the professional voices of CBS Sports’ Jim Nantz and Phil Simms bring professionalism and realism to the game. Instant replays are handled well and showcase the current look of using HD super slow motion in replays on television today.
Everything from the fans in the stadium, the team on the sidelines and the television cameras and crew along side the action bring a higher sense of realism to the game.
If you’re a fan of the Madden series, or the NFL in general, I definitely you give this game a try. You can download a demo of the game from the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network right now.
I’m proud to say that I won my first two games (albeit on rookie mode). Not bad since I haven’t touched a Madden game in years.
My only wish now is that EA will follow the same path they did in their NHL series of games and include other leagues, specifically the CFL. EA Sports’ NHL games have included the American Hockey Leauge and it’s teams for a few years now and I love the ability to play as my hometown Hamilton Bulldogs. I rarely play as the NHL anymore when I play as I find it far more gratifying to play my hometown team.
While there may not be as massive a market for the Candadian Football League to warrant a stand alone game, having the league from the north as an added bonus would be great. I’m certain that incorporating the slightly different rule sets and field size into the game wouldn’t pose that much of a challenge and would be welcome from the millions of fans of the CFL.
