It is 2013 and people are waiting in line for their annual Drive crazy Release. Unfortunately for fansin 2013, the annual American football title Madden NFL 25 was named to celebrate the 25thth The franchise’s 100th birthday. Back then, I always wondered what would happen when the “real” Madden 25 came out, but here we are, and they’ve removed the NFL title to Madden25 on screens everywhere.
Madden25 restores the timely tradition of releasing football games annually to coincide with the start of a new season, with a fresh coat of paint, more modes, far better menus, and the hard-hitting action NFL fans crave when the climax of the season rolls around. It’s in the game.
Madden25 builds on the previous entry by incorporating some of the elements of lightning in a bottle EA College Football 25. It’s hard to explain, but the general gameplay feels better. When receivers on offense run routes, the animations are smoother and the AI responsible for directing them in the right direction feels good. However, there is almost certain to be general crowding when routes cross on pass plays (which looks like an NFL player salad at midfield). This seems like an ugly montage of offensive/defensive pass interference, and this will happen on most plays when the focus of the field is to run toward each other.
“Madden 25’s greatest triumph is its consistency. The gameplay makes the player feel like the mistakes are with the player, not the development.”
Now that my main problem with last year’s Madden24 was identified as “still a thing”, Madden25 feels better overall. EA has brought back the Frostbite Engine and in year three (fourth game, including the college entry) it looks better than ever. The athletes resemble their real-life counterparts so closely that even the most attentive fans can see the attention to detail in every playable athlete. Introduced by EA College Football 25 is the superstar mode.
With the lifelike representations of the players in the game, the real development of football can follow player-created athletes to the professional level, from EA College Football 25 Campus. This cross-progression is super cool, but it means fans have to play the Road to Glory mode in the previous game. This mode is not glorious.
FieldSENSE is back and better than ever. Apart from the receiver salad mentioned above, Madden25 has the best physics of any football game, period. Slamming into a ball carrier with a hit stick has never felt better, and covering a receiver with New York Jets phenom Sauce Gardner under pressure feels like that pressure is being applied, rather than the usual “mossed” despite having perfect timing. Madden 25’s greatest triumph is its consistency. The overall gameplay makes the player feel like mistakes are on the player’s end, not the development’s. That being said, not much has changed in terms of the general formula, and that’s a good thing.
FieldSENSE goes one step further and Madden25. The 49ers’ elite running back Christian McCaffrey runs like a real guy and he operates differently than any other running back in Madden 25. Although this is only the case with the elite players, it’s a bland way to simulate NFL Sunday when you see a run-of-the-mill model running similarly, differing only in the jersey colors.
Justin Jefferson of the Vikings has different mannerisms and behavior than Tyreek Hill, and both players seem like their real-life counterparts. EA Orlando has added a touch of magic this time around, and the receivers can even purposefully make spectacular dives and one-handed catches. Think Odell Beckham Jr., but without the skirmish with a punter’s kick net.
The training mini-games I loved EA College Football 25 are back and better than they were a month ago. EA Sports has brought a nearly identical set of training aids to the table in Madden’s latest entry that double as fun arcade mini-games, and I love it. This feels just like when Nintendo’s Mario sports titles added extra modes that surreptitiously teach you how to perform advanced features (like a dropshot in Mario Power Tennis) without you actually having to “learn” it – a really great addition to the gameplay.
“Madden 25 is a fantastic NFL football title that gives you the opportunity to play the role of football athletes throughout their careers in a truly unique way.”
Madden25 has sadly ditched the voice of legendary NFL coach John Madden (RIP) in favor of three separate duos commentating on real NFL games to increase the game’s immersion. Greg Olsen and Mike Tirico sound like it’s football Sunday, adding another level of “being in the thick of it,” as EA’s outdated slogan goes. Speaking of sound, this is the best-sounding football game in years. A revamped soundtrack lets those tired of practice sit through menu screens without the tiresome music playing over and over again. Madden25 adds Eminem’s “Houdini” paired with Green Day’s “American Idiot,” and Logic’s “Mission Control” can be heard in the menus, which is another boon for EA Sports.
Madden25 has brought back the usual modes. Franchise mode is by far the strongest aspect of the gameplay, where NFL fans can lead their team to glory in a fictional fantasy setting. It’s been over 10 years, but the NY Giants are going for gold this season. While the menus have been dramatically improved in every way, the franchise has taken a step forward in terms of novelty while taking a half step back.
There are storylines that come up in franchise mode that are cool the first two times, but then they happen every week and become a chore. Now I understand why Marshawn Lynch said, “I’m only here so I don’t get penalized,” press conferences are no fun.
The franchise is strengthened by everything else the title adds, so a single flaw isn’t game-breaking. What is game-breaking, however, are the constant ads that distract your attention every time you leave a menu screen. EA Sports really wants you to play Madden Ultimate Team, and lets you know at every opportunity that it’s a game mode. I maintain that this mode used to be really fun, with an RPG soccer aspect, but now it feels like more microtransactions tied to a premium purchase.
Worse still, this issue states that it is the first season. Drive crazy is released annually and fans who are involved with Ultimate Team have to start over every year, so it’s just outrageous that there are also seasonal releases for the title. Drive crazy Each season already feels like a season pass (albeit an expensive one), so having to buy even more stuff doesn’t feel right. Many Madden fans may suggest, “Just don’t play this mode,” but with the constant menu interruptions, it’s almost impossible not to access it at least once.
Madden25 is a fantastic NFL football title. If you want to play as a football player for your entire career, you have the chance to do so in a truly unique way. FieldSENSE delivers more pain than ever before and the graphics have been improved to the highest level. Madden has never looked, sounded or felt better in years.
Questionable decisions like adding seasons to MUT, constant in-game suggestions telling you to play Ultimate Team, and unskippable cutscenes added to the franchise aren’t game-breaking, but they’re annoying enough to make the player let out a throaty sigh. Madden 25 is the best entry in the franchise in years (with EA College Football 25 They have the edge gameplay-wise) and hopefully EA continues this pattern of improving their game, unlike the NY Giants.
