Madden 17 Gameplay Improvements: New Special Teams, Catch and Ball Physics

EA Sports continued their series of Madden 17 gameplay breakdowns on their blog today. This time the focus is on Special Teams improvements, Catch Outcomes and ball physics.

Kicks

There are a number of changes, but the two that caught our eye the most is the new kick meter. Check it out below.

It’s a bit goofy looking, but a number of new options were added to it including the option to squib quick or add backspin. We’re interested in seeing how it feels once we get our hands on the game.

The other big special teams change is the increased likelihood of blocking kicks without using exploits.

A ‘kick blocker’ is designated at the start of the play and players use the jump the snap mechanic to determine whether or not the player breaks through the line. Once through users then have to steer the blocker to the appropriate place to block the kick.

Catches

The Madden team is reducing the efficacy of the aggressive catch. It appears they’re actually making ball in air receivers like OBJ, Julio Jones, and Dez Bryant more likely to aggressive catch while running backs and slot receivers will trigger a catch more suited to their style.

The big catching change is on the defensive side of the ball with the SWAT Mechanic. Similar to the three catch options for offense, defenders will now have three catch options: Play Ball, Play Receiver or Swat.

Swat acts as a way to counteract aggressive catch.

Ball Physics

There are a bunch of new ball physics features to note but we’ll highlight two here.

The big one is that the ability to aim onside kicks has been restored to the game. This should hopefully make it easier to place the ball where you need it to go.

The other feature of note is loose ball recovery. The Madden team introduced what they’re calling ball physics and organic behaviors to the ball itself. With that in mind, loose ball situations have players reacting faster with a number of new animations in both in air and on ground scenarios.

You can get a much more in-depth look over at the Madden website, where they go through each and every change made to the game in order to bring it closer to real life. Check it out if you’re curious as to how these changes will affect the game.

Are you excited about these new improvements? Let us know in the comments and on social media, and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for the latest Madden 17 news.

Madden 17 Gameplay Improvements: New Special Teams, Catch and Ball Physics