Your Opinion On Madden 12's Gameplay

[IgnoranceIsBliss]

My question to you is does Madden's gameplay need an overhaul? And or what do you think needs fixing?

[rudyjuly2]

I'm really enjoying Madden this year. It has a lot of personality. The running game is really good imo. The passing game is nice as well as I can get the ball to my outside WRs as well. The cpu passing game (and offence in general) needs a lot of boosts but I'm having competitive games now and it's a lot of fun. Madden exceeded my expectations this year.

I didn't vote far superior because I'm crusty old guy and some things like man align are poor. The DTs get a little too much push as well as the true pass rushers don't stand out enough compared to the run stuffers. But overall I see no game killers at all in offline gameplay and I look forward to playing the game. First time in years.

[IgnoranceIsBliss]

True the offensive side of the ball is improved. But in my viewing the defensive side is full of mistakes. First off the corners at times run in front of receivers and make non-since bat downs or interception when not looking. Second off safeties are only suppose to turn their back on the QB to break towards the ball or if someone runs past them. Thirdly the linebackers are given too much jumping ability and reaction time in the pass. Finally there is really no distinction between star players and throwaway's. And to mask bad defensive coverage they had to ramp up the pass rush and player Predator Awareness. In my view it's far better than prior Madden's but it's not close what you see on Sunday.

[mjhyankees]

All the problems with LB's and DB's are well noted. That said, this has been a really good playing experience. I'm having awesome games and really enjoying it. If anything I don't like the DPP streakiness. I was Phil Rivers last night vs Vikes. i couldn't complete a pass to save my life for the first 3-4 possessions. Then in the second half I couldn't miss. It was annoying because it's too predictable.

[Lisa_Bonami]

I chose Lacking.

Without getting into other reasons already mentioned , Here's why....Just for actual on the field gameplay:

- Motion Capp is getting old and feeling very limited. Once you see the handful of new animations each year, it gets repetitive and starts feeling dull. More than any other sports game, this game NEEDS a true physics based engine to breath new life into this game...period


-Sound Effects either over the top or lacking. From missing sounds on certain hits, to crunchy over the top collision tackles, to improperly placed sound fx like goal post thumps on clean field goals, to a lack of oommphs and grunts, to missing soothing ball sound fx hitting a recievers hands, to ankle tackles that result in those mentioned over the top shoulder pad crunches....this game needs to take a page from other football games to get a good feel of how to better immerse the player in the trenches, realistically and not over the top.

-AI and/or shallow engine algorithms that result in very scripted lanes of repetitive game play occurrences.....ie; The sideline tip toe catch. The QB spinorama flung-to-the-ground sack by the untouched lineman. The play action that always results in the same linemen busting thru with extreme pressure. The MLB that is always leaping to break up the pass over the middle. The over the shoulder Lynn Swan no look Interceptions. The mishmash deep route clusterf%$k with the wr, db and safeties always converging and stopping to engage in a leap frog at the landing zone of the pass. Bottom line, Too many exact motion captured sequences seem to occur during plays as if the entire AI was preprogrammed to run these scripts if the situation presented itself. Lacks completely organic gameplay

-AI QB is still quick snapping within seconds leaving you absolutely no time to drill down into the endless layers of presnap counter adjustments on your control pad and sticks. How many years has this gone unaddressed now?

-over exaggerated ping pong ricocheting tackles result in some odd results and ruin the fluidity of play in many situations

-No CAM Customization and odd choices for those that are included such as a WIDE CAM that is a bit too wide out and far. A ZOOMED CAM that is ZOOMED TOO CLOSE. And another useless year of the Broadcast CAM that just isnt playable in its current position because the squished perspective restricts the player to easily view running lanes and the positioning prevents the QB to make any reads other than 5 yard crossing patters and screens. Anything else is off the screen! Here's my suggestion for a BETTER more IMPROVED Broadcast CAM that EA already has in FIFA:



-The trend each year to try and out graphically perform the game's previous year's player models, stadiums, extra miscellaneous garbage, is starting to take its toll on the overall system performance and fluidity of motion in the action. For an example, pop in Madden 08 or better yet 09 and see how fluid and seamless everything felt. From hits, to real player on player locational contact, and extra little follow thru motions that visually made sense.

Now you see sloppy ball to hand warps, tackler to runner force field tackles that arent really completely engaged. Players warping a bit in front of another to complete a scripted catch or interception, Stiff and cumbersome fall downs etc.


Overall, these are just a few of the things that are simply ruining the experience for me. For some of you, you might not notice or even care about them. I can respect that as well.


Thoughts?

[BezO]

I'm the lone "not even close" vote? OK. Here's why:

Madden is still missing some of the most basic football elements.

My 3 biggest issues are the lack of tiered defensive play calling, the lack of engaged player mobility & the lack of proper footwork. The 1st doesn't give the gamer the tools to play defense realistically & effectively. The 2nd & 3rd kill the spacing & timing of the game.

Other problems with basics... no gap/contain assignments, no speed rush, wandering d-linemen on stunts, defensive misalignment, unrealistic man coverage, limited animation library, non-football AI, poor controls, poor special teams representation, bad QB drop / WR route timing...

[buzzguy]

I chose "Just Above". I didn't really have that much fun with Madden 10, enjoyed Madden 11, but am having a lot of fun playing 12! The gameplay is fun and fast, the stadiums look really good, and the online is pretty smooth. Definetly an "up" year to me, and I look forward to seeing how they improve on this for next season.

[kjcheezhead]

Quote: Originally Posted by BezO

I'm the lone "not even close" vote? OK. Here's why: Madden is still missing some of the most basic football elements. My 3 biggest issues are the lack of tiered defensive play calling, the lack of engaged player mobility & the lack of proper footwork. The 1st doesn't give the gamer the tools to play defense realistically & effectively. The 2nd & 3rd kill the spacing & timing of the game. Other problems with basics... no gap/contain assignments, no speed rush, wandering d-linemen on stunts, defensive misalignment, unrealistic man coverage, limited animation library, non-football AI, poor controls, poor special teams representation, bad QB drop / WR route timing...

I agree with you completely, but I voted "lacking" because I think the game has a fair amount of balance to it. It's not even close to being an NFL simulation, but balanced gameplay can still deliver an entertaining game in some ways. I see Madden 12 as a more strategic version of tecmo bowl.