This is going to be a rather quick review today so hold on to your hats (it’s going to be a bumpy ride). I like football games. Football is one of those sports that I can play but given my body size probably shouldn’t without the proper equipment, and so I turn to my gaming console to fill that void in my heart. That void would rather have a game based on the CFL but that’ll never happen, so I usually settle for a Madden game or in the past the NFL Street franchise. Does Madden 13 convert for the extra point? Read on to find out!
I haven’t actually touched a Madden game in years; while I do enjoy a football game I can never bring myself to spend sixty bucks on one of these games, so I was really excited to finally get my hands on a newer version of the game. EA has again redone the entire in game engine making the physics that much more “real” and make the game play like “real” football. The result in my opinion is a much clunkier game that looks even more fake. Players react in rather silly ways when they collide with each other, EA calls it dynamic but it looks like a physical comedy skit gone wrong.
But what does that have to do with gameplay? Well tackles look supremely weird and in my opinion harder to pull off. I played this game well past where I wanted to just to see if it took some extra practise and it really didn’t, it was just that awkward. Playing offence I found the controls to be a little better. Players would still trip over each other resulting in failed plays and the computer seemed to be really good at intercepting and forcing fumbles on “normal” difficulty. If you’re playing on Xbox you have Kinect support and can call plays and audibles and other shifts that you want to make to the line which does make you feel more into the game, but again that’s an Xbox only thing. Running the ball was also somewhat of an awkward affair but I blame that again on the physics engine that causes people to trip over themselves and people within their general radius. The new and improved engine really takes a lot out of this game.
The game has a bunch of different ways to play the game if you can find them on the convoluted menu. The main one that people are going to aim for is the career mode where you can play as either a coach or single player. Being a coach offeres a wide variety of options, from trading players and building lines to controlling every player on the field and actually being able to play the game of football. Choosing to play as a single player is the dumbest thing I’ve seen in a sports game in a long while. It works in the NHL franchise because all the players are equal in their efforts and you’re almost constantly in the action. In Madden you can play as the quarterback for instance; if you do a running play you press the button to hike the ball and hand of the the running back and your job is done. Throws are a little more exciting because after the hike you get to press another button to throw the ball. Same goes if you’re a wide receiver, you run to get into position and hope the computer passes to you. And if you don’t perform well? You sit for the entire game.
Like I said, I enjoy football and have enjoyed the video games in the past but there are just way too many problems with this game to even say it’s worth trying. I’m going to give it another go on the WiiU to see how the new controls might change the game, but that’s only because I’m hoping they’ll have fixed the other aspects of the game. But as it stands this game is a complete loss and I have to say avoid it.
