With sports games carrying over so much from year to year, it can serve to make the areas where things do change even more apparent. When looking back at the changes the Madden series has gone through in recent years, there are both encouraging areas where developers have found a new level and other areas that feel more like a regression.
How Madden Has Gotten Better In Recent Years
The hope with any series of games is that developers can learn from each iteration to make improvements year after year, so that each new edition is the best way to play the series yet. Even gamers frustrated with a new release can usually find something in the latest year’s version that feels like a positive step forward. These are some of the modern features of Madden 26 we appreciate:
- The Visuals: As a child of the 90s, I’ll always remember booting up NFL 2K on the Sega Dreamcast I’d studiously saved for and my dad commenting that it was basically like watching a real game. While the graphics were undoubtedly game-changing at the time, I can only wonder what he must think of what’s going on in Madden 26. As gaming machines have become more powerful, the ability to render more lifelike visuals has skyrocketed. While it’s not the greatest endorsement of how things are going that “it looks better now that the consoles and PCs it’s on are better” is the first positive to come to mind, it’s hard to deny that the fidelity of modern Madden is off the charts
- Wear and Tear: This is a potentially contentious inclusion on this list as it has had mixed reviews with fans, with some arguing it’s too harsh and others hearing those criticisms and gesturing vaguely toward the nearest injury report of a real NFL team. It lands on the positives ultimately because even criticisms have tended to be issues of magnitude and severity, not their inclusion at all. In a sports gaming landscape where innovations feel so rare, the team on Madden deserves credit for a new element that adds a very real NFL concern to your virtual management. Many a gamer has likely had to begrudgingly acknowledge that maybe the coach of their top fantasy RB isn’t a total clown for not handing it off to their guy 35 times a game after trying to manage wear & tear in their own sim.
- Responsive Player Movement: Player controls are a tough balance to find as a sports game developer. The reality is, there is a disconnect between making a game that actually replicates a real-world sport and a game that feels like the sport in question. In EA FC, the game included two different modes to try to better cater to the unique needs of players. In the latest Madden, controls have been well received with players noting that a move a bit more toward the controls in the reborn College Football gives a better feel of being a professional football superstar without veering so far into arcadey movement as to no longer feel like a sports sim first.
- Presentation: Another visual boost the game has seen this time around was an improvement to the visuals. Football is the most popular sport in America, and big TV presentations are the norm, so Madden developers have leaned in this year. The latest edition does a better job of feeling like a real NFL game is about to kick off for a more immersive and fun experience.
How Madden Has Gotten Worse In Recent Years
Complaints about annual sports games are bad enough when the fans are only left to complain about progress being too slow, but sometimes it gets even worse than that, as there are some areas where the Madden games are flat-out worse than they used to be. From gameplay to game options, here are some of the ways that Madden games fall short of the precedent set by earlier editions:
- The Continued Shift To MUT: One of the biggest downsides to modern Madden games is one it shares with most modern sports franchises, and that is the dramatic shift of resources and attention to online card-based modes. While certainly fun in their own right, it’s a widely criticized format for serving primarily as a way to keep siphoning up more money year-round, with pay-to-win creating both an unfair system and a route to make severe financial mistakes. Development resources focused on Ultimate Team are also resources not assigned to other projects like franchise modes or the gameplay engine and artificial intelligence.
- Reduced Historic Options: Speaking of offline content that is no longer available, the franchise has a big hole in its game mode offerings left behind by a lack of historical content. Playing as historically great teams was fun, as it allowed gamers to try out matchups that can only happen in a video game, like pitting Montana’s Niners against the Steel Curtain. Even more regrettably absent are the Madden Moments, a beloved gamemode that is no longer available. The ability to replay key plays and drives from history offered a unique scenario-style mode and also let you learn about NFL history by experiencing it.
- A Lack Of Polish: If one thing typified complaints about the latest Madden, it was how often it seemed like the finer details were an oversight. The game arrived buggy and full of glitches, which could sometimes undermine even its strengths, like improperly loading a texture in those high-definition graphics. Fans also have complained about persistent frustrations with the game’s player artificial intelligence, leading to frustrating moments where big plays arrive not off any skilled play but because a computer-controlled player decided to space out for a play. All of it points to a game that saw time spent refining what was there, as time that could be better spent on preparing for the next bit of online content.
