Seann Graddy, executive producer of Madden NFL 21, announced last month, the team heard the franchise community loud and clear, and the team would take steps to try and improve franchise mode going forward.
Today, EA provided their latest information on the upcoming franchise mode updates and commitments coming to not only Madden NFL 21, but also looking ahead to Madden NFL 22, with a higher percentage of the team investing their time in core franchise mode features.
MADDEN NFL 21 – Post Launch Support –Â Based on community feedback (subject to change)
The following list might shift with each update as plans for Madden NFL 21 and Madden NFL 22 come into focus (2 or 3 title updates are planned)
- TUNING – Improved progression and regression of players. Improve core player progression into the future such that X-Factors and other abilities for older players work well with incoming rookie classes.
- COMMISSIONER TOOLS – See a more detailed summary below.
- AI PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT – The AI will make better team management decisions in the draft, free agency and trades.
- PLAYOFF and SUPER BOWL PRESENTATION – Improve and refresh.
- X-FACTOR / SUPERSTAR ABILITY CUSTOMIZATION – Introduce the ability to customize X-Factor and Abilities on all players, allowing you to customize your roster as you see fit.
- CAREERS STATS UI – Improved UI showing historical player performances. More immersion and depth on how players have progressed in your Franchise.
- TRADE LOGIC – More fidelity, depth, and authenticity.
- RETIREMENT UI – Better insight into retirements each season to allow players to react/manage.
- PLAYOFFS UPDATE – Add an authentic playoff bracket screen to see who’s in, who’s won and who’s up next.
Commissioner tools are a large bucket of items with a lot of opportunities and a lot of work. The team sees this as something they will continue to work on, to give you more control over your Franchise in the year(s) ahead. For Madden NFL 21 and 22, they are looking at the following tools:
Commissioner Tools Priority Ranking
- Ability to undo transactions, reducing friction and control over player movement contracts and trades.
- Ability to approve trades.
- Ability to reset a game in case of a disconnect.
MADDEN NFL 22
The team is at the very early stages of planning and pre-production for Madden NFL 22, but they have been actively discussing some areas of focus, based off of feedback and player engagement.
Here are few of the areas, while not fully committed yet, the team is exploring:
- Coaching and staff management
- Scouting improvements
- New scenario engine enhancements
- New team chemistry system
- Commissioner Tools improvements
- MORE CONTENT – Examples: Relocation/Branding Assets for Franchise – New uniforms, names, and logos to relocation options for more variety and depth in deeper careers.
More key additions will be revealed as they get deeper into the development season for Madden NFL 22.
Make sure to read the entire blog, at the official website. On paper, it should make franchise players breathe a little easier, but the team really needs to get these items done. While it is a high-level plan, the last thing they want to hear are the complaints on bullet points that never arrived, because no matter how high-level this list might be, franchise mode fans will always remember.
