The GameStop on Forest and Preston probably was pretty busy from 4:00-5:00 pm on August 25th, dealing with customers, including some of Jesuit’s finest, in search of their very own copy of the new Madden 16. The Madden franchise, which has a reputation of just being a roster update each year, looked to improve by overhauling one of the biggest pieces of gameplay. EA set out to accomplish this with the electric sophomore to be Odell Beckham Jr. on the cover. Other changes include improved player likeness and pre-play mannerisms and interactions and most of all smarter AI. In addition to a whole new game mode, advancements in the running game, and an upgraded passing game to let you “Be the playmaker.” In fact the new Madden has looked promising since its first trailer.
With a slight stagnation in upgrades with offensive gameplay, the developers had a great idea: make different types of catches receivers can perform. With the new aggressive, run after the catch (RAC), and possession catches the new installment has definitely improved. Aggressive catches make spectacular catch a relevant stat allowing receivers with the aggressive catch trait to leap up into the air and beat their defenders with jaw-dropping catches. These catches are quite overpowered on lower difficulties but on All-Madden the game feels brand new. Also RAC and Possession allow wide outs, tight ends, and running backs alike to make tough catches and hold on to the ball despite hard hits they may take after the catch, and to be able to quickly turn up the field, thus eliminating the painful animation of your player strolling out of bounds without a defender in sight. If you don’t choose one of these the AI determines what type of catch they have in their arsenal is the best for the situation, factoring in defenders around them and their location on the field. Don’t worry; if you’re a fan of pounding the rock down the field on the ground there are multiple upgrades too. When handed the ball running backs no longer run into linemen and the walk like they are stuck in jello, instead backs will “get skinny” and turn their bodies sideways to squeeze between two of your behemoths up front. Players in the backfield can also perform graceful juke moves or spin moves to get out behind your front 5.
All of the passing and rushing improvements seem overwhelming in the sense that this game will be all offense, but they upgraded the defenders too. In the air you have the ability to switch to a defender and decide to try and turn the tables with an interception or just make the simple tackle and try and break up a reception. Taking control of a defender that is not a defensive lineman is better than ever with new camera angles to adjust to playing as a linebacker or a defensive back. There are also so improved mental features on defense. I don’t know if its just me but running quarterbacks as annoying as it gets while defending and now defenders close to the line of scrimmage make better decisions to try and eliminate quarterbacks for scampering for big gains, although it is still possible to run with the quarter back it just isn’t as easy.
The new game mode is the interesting Draft Champions, which incorporates the beloved fantasy football into Madden 16. Draft Champions can be played offline vs. the CPU or online against other players. When you hop into this new game mode you get 15 rounds to draft a team. You start out with a base team, which is a starting lineup of mediocre players that you build upon. In each round you have three players to select from, normally one player that is the highest rated but at a less important position, a player rated between the other two who at a decently important position, and the lowest rated player at the most important position. There is never more than a three-point difference in overall between the best and worst player. An example of how a round would go is the top player is a center at 83 overall, a middle linebacker at an 82 overall and a quarterback at an 81 overall. The trick is if you pass on a player at a certain position you may never see another player at that position again leaving you with a 70 overall starter. Different strategies of drafting are going for offense or defense, and with that depth or starters spread out among the different positions. Now that you have drafted a team you are thrust into a single elimination tournament, which you can complete at any time, and if you lose you draft again but if you win 4 straight you get to go to the championship game. If you win any games you get a pack with random items for the popular Madden Ultimate Team game mode.
All in all this Madden has made major strides, and as long as you play on a tougher difficulty the gameplay is very realistic. This game impressed me with its upgrades more than most sports games in a while. Despite its flaws (which from my time playing are few and far between) and “glitch plays” like in all sports games, this new Madden is definitely worth the $60.
VERDICT 7.7/10
