APF Players' Response to Madden 10 News

[bigsmallwood]

I like the fact that ESPN 2K5 is somehow still light years ahead of Madden 10's presentational aspect....and EA ought to be ashamed of that....but they are not! lol And they are going to keep being a "Next-Year" type of game.

[Pappy Knuckles]

I think a lot of us should have the demo Thursday. I plan on putting a lot of time into it and seeing what this game is all about.

[NC State-31 UNC-27]

I hope Madden is a great game and all but lets be serious....EA's football engine just really doesn't come close to touching 2k's. They can make all the small improvements they want but the passing game is just atrocious in EA games, no touch at all, poor animations, sticky DBs....

You can't even throw a proper out route in NCAA this year

[elgreazy1]

I have to agree with you here. As much as I've been swaying back and forth on getting Madden this year, playing NCAA 10 really reminded me why I haven't picked up an EA-based football game since the 07 editions. The engine is downright p!$$ poor. Players stop with full momentum on a dime, there is no sense of real passing mechanics (forget timed-based routes), and the running game seems all you need is just to hold the Turbo button & run straight. I don't get a sense of fighting for yards, picking proper lanes (rushing on O & blitzing on D), or gameplanning. Seems all a team/player needs is speed to be effective. Strength, awareness, breaking tackles, tackling, catching, etc none of that seemed like it made any difference no matter how high the rating was so long as the player had high speed ratings.

[sanders]

I was a huge fan of 2K5 - bought the dreamcast for it alone.

Since then I have bought Madden 07,08,09. Madden 07 I though was okay, 08 was god aweful, and 09 is better than 08 but still sucks.

Played Madden 09 but I got pissed off that you could never run outside, could never ever complete a corner route. The pass speed and lead of the receiver is waaay off compared to how the players move.

For some reason I never picked up APF 2K8. I think I read a review that said it sucked or something and just never bothered. Well I finally picked it up yesterday for $5!!!!

All I can say is WOW. I'm not going to talk about anything other than how the game plays on the field. Doing a sweep and watching my oline actually get out in front and block down field!!! Throwing an out route just before the WR breaks and having the ball zip in there in just the right location. Two things I noticed right away that I haven't seen in years.

That being said, I will buy Madden 10 and give it a fair shake. It is going to have to be the same kind of leap that NHL08 was over previous NHL titles though for me to keep playing it I think. Now that I have 2K8 I won't be able to forgive EA for not having the GAMEPLAY that I now have already for my system.

Does 2K8 have its problems? Sure it does, but the experience to me feel a lot more like football is supposed to.

Sorry for the ramble but I was really hoping Madden 10 was going to give me the football I have been waiting for so long but I think I might have just picked that up yesterday for $5

[stead21]

Quote: Originally Posted by sanders

I was a huge fan of 2K5 - bought the dreamcast for it alone. Since then I have bought Madden 07,08,09. Madden 07 I though was okay, 08 was god aweful, and 09 is better than 08 but still sucks. Played Madden 09 but I got pissed off that you could never run outside, could never ever complete a corner route. The pass speed and lead of the receiver is waaay off compared to how the players move. For some reason I never picked up APF 2K8. I think I read a review that said it sucked or something and just never bothered. Well I finally picked it up yesterday for $5!!!! All I can say is WOW. I'm not going to talk about anything other than how the game plays on the field. Doing a sweep and watching my oline actually get out in front and block down field!!! Throwing an out route just before the WR breaks and having the ball zip in there in just the right location. Two things I noticed right away that I haven't seen in years. That being said, I will buy Madden 10 and give it a fair shake. It is going to have to be the same kind of leap that NHL08 was over previous NHL titles though for me to keep playing it I think. Now that I have 2K8 I won't be able to forgive EA for not having the GAMEPLAY that I now have already for my system. Does 2K8 have its problems? Sure it does, but the experience to me feel a lot more like football is supposed to. Sorry for the ramble but I was really hoping Madden 10 was going to give me the football I have been waiting for so long but I think I might have just picked that up yesterday for $5

Rent Madden first, don't buy it! I'm going to give it a go though.

[idriveabucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by sanders

I was a huge fan of 2K5 - bought the dreamcast for it alone.

NFL 2K5 wasn't on the Dreamcast.

[sportyguyfl31]

I cant go back to APF, now that I'm playing a game where I dont have to worry about some dang focus bug ruining my defense through no fault of my own.

[Pappy Knuckles]

I put the demo on All Madden and ran a few games this morning.

- The computer hikes the ball too quickly. It almost feels like they're running a 2 minute drill. I'm hoping that's due to the accelerated clock and it's not the norm in this game. It's tough trying to get acquainted with all of the defensive controls when you don't have any time to read the menus and make adjustments. On offense I find myself scanning the field, deciding I want to change a route, and then all of a sudden it's a delay of game. Whoever decided to put an accelerated clock on this demo was a fool. There's no control guide, so I still have to figure some things out that aren't listed.

- Speaking of defense, I love the way that the computer reacts to the ball. They seem to stick to their man or zone like they should. I believe that superior playcalling will benefit you more in Madden 10 than it did in APF. I haven't had any issues making tackles so far, and the big hits in this game look like they hurt. I just have to stop hitting right bumper to try for a pick lol.

- The running controls don't feel very fluid to me. It's playable, but in All Pro I always felt in complete control when I ran the ball. I prefer tapping the button to gain separation, but that's not really a big deal to me. Holding down the trigger to accelerate is fine. I'm sure I'll get better as I play the game more, but I definitely give APF the nod in the running department overall. It's really not even close to me.

- I like the passing game a lot. The way the ball hangs in the air, the way its delivered, and how the receivers run their routes feels right. Completing passes in Madden feels more rewarding to me than it did in APF. You really have to scan the field and make good decisions because the AI on All Madden seems pretty tough to me so far.

- The playbooks in APF feel like Fisher Price compared to Madden 10. There are a lot more route combos and looks on both sides of the ball. When I get the retail version of the game I think I'll probably just stick with the Colts for a good while and try to learn the ins and outs of that team.

- I didn't play Madden last year so I have no idea what the game speed was like. Madden 10 seems a touch slow, but it's not too bad.

- I threw a deep post to Boldin and he got demolished. A screen popped up and said if I put him back in the game their was a medium risk of reinjury. I decided to take my chances, but I thought that option was really cool. During the late stretch of the season that could be a critical decision. I also liked the situation that comes up where you have to fight for the ball in the pile by tapping A.

- The game itself looks pretty good. The Steeler fans look like losers as you would expect. The menus seem a bit clunky to me though.

- I'm a little concerned about something that happened to me on one play. Check out this clip. I would've probably been out of the play regardless, but there should have been a collision there. He ran right through Hines Ward to block me lol.

[Nintari]

The biggest difference to me is how you're now punished for not staying in the pocket and passing with your feet set. In that respect, Madden's pretty much exactly like APF and that's always been my biggest complaint gameplay wise.