It’s been 25 years since we were first introduced to the game that would effect the time we spend with spouses, friends, and family. For the past 25 years we were able to live our gridiron dreams, make the decisions and control your favorite team and most of all claim football supremacy upon any and all that tested you.
With Madden 25 they changed simple things like the loading menu, the naming style and even the cover process; but other than that it the same Madden we’ve grown to love. This is good and bad. Good because there aren’t any new motions or controls to adapt to while trying to play the game, and bad because, I feel they should have done something special for the 25th anniversary.
One thing I must salute is the introduction of the Infinity Engine that allows for sharper graphics, great multiplayer function and most of all an effective and multi-tiered running game. The good people at EA claim that this is the best football game on the market. That’s a true statement, but being the only game on the market can make such boast easily possible as well as create an atmosphere were there isn’t motivation to push harder.
There are moments when Madden NFL 25 is out of this world. This is thanks to long-needed improvements in key areas –– the result is every type of football philosophy can be successful this season. Want to pound the ball up the middle? No problem. Feel like being a mad bomber? Fire away. By taking the time to learn Madden’s intricacies, you can run like Lombardi or throw like Coryell all the way to the Super Bowl. There are also moments, unfortunately, when Madden is incredibly aggravating. Occasional technical glitches, quirky AI, and bizarre physics behavior give players a sense that it’s close to coming apart at the seams. Madden 25 is the best effort yet for this console generation, however, no sports franchise feels as desperate for the promise of the next one.
The best, and most-needed, improvement this year is the interior running attack. Run blocking has been upgraded to allow backs to better see developing holes and exploit them, without as much potential of getting twisted around their own teammates. Because you can consistently generate positive yardage pounding the ball inside, the entire game management process is now more realistic. By forcing the defense to key on interior running, more options become available down the field. Basic Football 101 has finally come to Madden.
There is a thin line between gaming and on field simulation, and so, to some purists, this might serve as a let down. However, this is a good game as a whole. The reality is Madden 25, despite any negatives, is promised to give you hours of action-packed gaming and your daily dose of football.
