Game Review: Madden 25
Summer’s almost gone, but what better to help ease the sting of shorter days and colder nights than football? For many gamers, besides the obvious excitement over the NFL kicking off again, the impending season means one thing and one thing only: Madden. For the past twenty-five years, the longest running sports series has given fans the opportunity to pick up the sticks and go at it as their favorite team or player. A lot of hard work and clever advertising has gone into convincing fans that the silver anniversary of Madden will be an unforgettable experience; but does it live up to the hype?
Visually, Madden 25 is stunning. Every aspect of the game is intricately detailed from stadium to field, and the broadcast style delivery creates the atmosphere of a Sunday in autumn. Madden 25 features an updated version of last year’s innovative infinity engine, which creates an endless combination of player movements and animations to make the game look and feel as real as ever. Unfortunately the commentary is very redundant and gets old quick, which has been a reoccurring problem for the series as a whole.
The most notable difference in gameplay from last year’s Madden is the revamped offensive line play. Improved artificial intelligence and advanced blocking schemes make finding holes to run through easier, while also creating better passing lanes and pocket protection. In addition to improved O-line dynamics, new running controls let users lower the shoulder pads in order to plow over defenders, or deliver punishing stiff arms. The new run free moves also allow players to change directions on a dime by planting a foot, and you can even hurdle completely over defenders a la Lagarrette Blount.
Overall, this year’s installment of Madden provides fans with quality NFL football simulation as it always has. What it fails to do, however, is take any major steps forward as a franchise as the core gameplay has changed very little from last year. One would think the developers would have made more significant improvements for such a milestone release. It’s worth buying if you’re a fan of the franchise, but if you’re looking for any major enhancements over last year’s title, you might want to wait until the next generation systems (PS4 & Xbox One) come out later this year.
