Equipment Gets an Upgrade in Madden 17

EA has posted another blog post detailing the presentation improvements with Madden 17, and this time they’re talking about how equipment is being updated. Not only is there a lot of new gear, but lots of equipment will be seeing updates as well.

You can check out a list of the equipment changes coming to Madden 17 below.

New Helmets:

• Riddell Speed Flex


• Schutt Vengeance


• Rawlings Tachyon

Updated Helmets:

• Air XP


• Rawlings NRG


• Riddell RevoSpeed


• Xenith

FACEMASKS

New Facemasks:

• Speed Flex 2 Bar


• Speed Flex Robot


• Speed Flex Robot RB


• Speed Flex 3 Bar RB


• Speed Flex 3 Bar LB


• Speed Flex Fullcage


• Vengeance 2 Bar


• Vengeance Robot


• Vengeance Robot RB


• Vengeance 3 Bar RB


• Vengeance Fullcage


• Revospeed Cage


• Revospeed Grid


• Riddell 360 Robot


• Riddell 360 Robot 2


• Riddell 360 3 Bar LB


• Riddell 360 Fullcage


• Standard Halfcage 2

Updated Facemasks:

• Standard 3 Bar RB


• Standard 3 Bar RB Single


• Standard 3 Bar RB Jagged


• Standard Bull RB


• Standard Fullcage


• Standard Fullcage 2


• Revo 3 Bar


• Revo 3 Bar RB


• Revo Robot


• Revo Robot 2


• Revo Fullcage


• Revo Fullcage 2


• Revospeed Fullcage 2


• Xenith 2 Bar


• Xenith Robot


• Xenith Robot RB


• Xenith 3 Bar RB


• Xenith Fullcage

GLOVES

New Gloves:

• Nike HyperBeast


• Nike Vapor Jet


• Nike Vapor Jet Knit


• Nike SuperBad


• Under Armour Swarm


• Under Armour F5


• Adidas 5 Star 5.0

CLEATS

New Cleats:

• Nike Vapor Untouchable


• Nike Vapor Untouchable 2


• Nike Lunar Beast


• Nike Zoom Code Elite


• Nike Alpha Pro 2 ¾ TD


• Nike Vapor Carbon Elite TD


• Under Armour Spotlight


• Under Armour Brawler


• Under Armour Highlight


• Under Armour Player Exclusive


• Player Exclusive Retro


• Adidas Freak X Kevlar


• Adidas AdiZero 5 Star

In addition to new helmets, facemasks, gloves and cleats, there are also some new accessories to help separate players and make them look more like the real thing.

• One-Arm Sleeves – These will be set on each player that wears this style via the default roster so the players in Madden will match their real-world counterparts; these sleeves can also be customized when editing and creating players.


• Updated Wrist-Tape Options – Black, Team Primary Color and Team Secondary Colored Wrist-Tape


• Updated the Ankle-Tape options and re-named them to ‘Half-Spat’ and ‘Full-Spat’


• All the new sleeves, gloves and shoes are set-up for color-swapping to match each team’s primary and secondary colors, as well as black and white.

But it’s not just player gear that’s getting an update, with the improved focus on coaches this year, Madden 17 will also add a number of new pieces of gear for your coaches.

• Nike Drifit Touch Fleece Full-Zip


• Nike Elite Coach HZ Sweatshirt


• Nike Elite Coach Polo


• Nike Elite Coach HZ Full-Zip Hoodie


• Nike Elite Hybrid Jacket


• Nike Lockdown Jacket


• Nike NFL ‘Property Of’ Circuit Crew


• Nike NFL ‘Property Of’ Circuit Pant


• Nike Performance Practice Hoodie


• Nike Modern Crew


• Nike Hooded Sweatshirt


• Nike Free Trainer 5V6 Shoe

What do you think about the new equipment? Let us know in the comments below or on social media, and as always, stay tuned to SGO for more Madden 17 news.

Equipment Gets an Upgrade in Madden 17

Madden 17 Creative Director Rex Dickson Talks Balance, CFM, Aggressive Catch

During E3 this year, EA held their own event called EA Play, where they showcased a number of their own titles including sports games and core games. Madden 17 had a huge presence, and we were able to grab an interview with Madden 17 Creative Director Rex Dickson.

The interview was broken down into a total of 3 videos, each with a different topic. To start, we asked about some of the challenges the team faced when redesigning some of the mechanics going from Madden 16 to Madden 17. That led to a discussion on balance, where Dickson spoke about how they’re improving the game this year to allow for more realistic and fair gameplay.

“We’ve known we wanted to get to gaps, zones, and special teams for quite some time. The implementation is a bit of a different story … What took the most time was getting the feel right and balancing it. As you know from last year, even one feature like the aggressive catch can become slightly unbalanced and become the narrative of the whole year, so we want to avoid that.”

Speaking on the aggressive catch, Dickson admits that the aggressive catch was not balanced as well as it could have been. This year, he says that there will be a lot more focus on making sure everything is balanced.

“I’ll own my own mistakes when I make them, and I think the way that was tuned was a bit too offensive, and you saw the impact of that. So this year, a lot more focus [is] on making sure that everything is balanced and one thing isn’t overtuned or too powerful.”

For the second part of the interview which you can see below, we asked Dickson about CFM and the new commentary, an aspect which he says is his favorite improvement in Madden 17.

When asked what additions to CFM fans of the franchise will be happy to see in Madden 17, Dickson says a lot has changed, and that’s something fans will be excited about.

“It feels like when you go in there, almost everything [has been] touched … for me, not one big thing jumps out as being changed, everywhere you go in [CFM] things are easier, they flow better, it’s easier to manage, it’s not [as much of a grind], there’s a lot of new content.”

Interestingly, the new commentary will also be noticeable in CFM. Dickson explains, “We have this concept called presentation that focuses on you, so if you’re playing as a coach or a player you’re going to hear more lines that are referenced, decisions you made, stories about your character and the stats you have.” CFM will also receive commentary updates post-launch.

Lastly, for the final piece of the interview, we asked Dickson about the impact on eSports now that Madden has become a big player in that scene.

“I’d love it if next year we saw that people couldn’t run the same concepts over and over. That people couldn’t rely on the aggressive catch mechanic to win in desperation situations. That stuff isn’t on the competitors, they’re playing for $50,000, they’ll use whatever tools are available to them. Those outcomes are kind of on the dev team.”

That clearly plays into the idea of balance, and it’s part of the reason why the team wanted to focus on balance with Madden 17. Madden is never perfect, but the developers behind the franchise are always working to ensure that it’s as good as it can be.

Of course, this article doesn’t include all of the talking points in the videos. If you want to check out the full interview, I recommend watching the videos above. It’s definitely worth it if you want to know more about Madden 17. For more Madden videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for more Madden news.

Madden 17 Creative Director Rex Dickson Talks Balance, CFM, Aggressive Catch

Madden 17 Hands-On Gameplay Impressions

Welcome back Sports Gamers, it’s The Natural! With a ton of Madden 17 live gameplay out today, I wanted to give you my first hand impression of the game from EA Play! Not really going to touch on things that I’ve already addressed in previous videos, so check out the Madden 17 playlist for those.

OFFENSE

• The Pressure is coming! The defensive ends really get up the field this year and force your QB to step up into the pocket. On all madden with the rams I had a several sacks in the game. Aaron donald is a BEAST!


• Speedy WRs are still dangerous as ever. I caught a few deep balls on PA shot plays to fast WRs like Tavon Austin and Jeremy Maclin vs slower Corners.


• When scrambling pocket passing QBs seem SUPER slow. I really like this as I’ve seen immoblie guys break of 20yds runs in the past


• The pass lead is better. I felt like I was able to lead the ball on bullet passes into spots I wasn’t able to previously. But QB makes a difference as I wasn’t able to lead the ball as effectively with Jared Goff as I was with Alex Smith.


• The quality of WR matters even more, as many of the passes by lesser WRs were dropped in tight or double coverage or when hit right after the reception.

You have to relearn how to run with the new ball carrier moves and LAY OFF the turbo. So many running plays I messed up on by smashing the turbo as soon as I got the ball. The ball carrier moves are nice, but you really need to master them because “the window” you have to do each one varies, so you have to know which is the best move to use in that situation.

Blocking is improved, but it depends on matchups, top DE’s and DTs wreck havoc in the running game. Open field blocking is really good as pulling guards and WR’s downfield find their men and make really great blocks. Although the oline blocking was nice, the blitzes really work well this year, I ran a few zone and man blitzes the blitzes came in how they were supposed to. I can definitely see myself being more aggressive with blitzing this year as the major threat of the aggressive catch is gone.

Playaction is more realistic and looks just like a running play. The camera zooms in on the backfield, so it’s much easier to fake the defensive out especially if you are using a secondary player.

DEFENSE

Aggressive catch is still in the game for top WRs, if the defender does not click on and swat a good WR can still go up over him, also remember for guys who click on the defender on defense get a user bonus that plays in your favor.

• QB sneak is no longer a gimme! Had a big stop of QB dive on 4th and 1 from the 1 yard line to win the game.


• Pass rushers really get up the field and Force QB’s to step up. But top DTs like Aaron Donald push the pocket and break through the line as well.


• Feels like there is More momentum when controlling linebackers and seconddary players. It was tougher to dart around when controller the Middle linebacker but it felt more realistic.


• Ton of fumbles on sacks. With the new ball physics you need to get rid of the ball because if you get hit and your arm isn’t coming forward it will be a fumble.


• New ball physics are great and look realistic, you can never tell exactly where the ball is going or who is going to pick it up on a fumble recovery. There were a coulple of times I was sure my guy would pick it up but the ball squirted out and someone else recovered.


• As you have probably seen already you can now skip all cutscenes which is cool as it gives people the options to watch the replays or cutscenes or quickly get on to the next play.

SPECIAL TEAMS

There are various different blocks you can go for on special teams. You can block left or right. The kick meter stays there the entire time, but you have to hold the direction you want it to go and there is vibration feedback to this.

I missed a few extra points as I got used to the new meter. Normal kick, high kick or backspin kick which all have different effects on the ball. With the new kicking meter, blocks and fakes special teams play in madden should have much bigger impact on the game.

What do you think of Madden 17 now that you’ve seen and heard about the gameplay? Let us know in the comments, and as always, stay tuned to SGO for the latest Madden 17 news.

Madden 17 Hands-On Gameplay Impressions

Madden 17 Connected Franchise Features Breakdown: Decisions, GamePlanning and More..

Madden 17 Connected Franchise Features Breakdown: Decisions, GamePlanning and More..

Madden 17 CFM 1st New Features Released!

EA Sports finally released the first info for Connected Franchise Mode detailing improvements for Madden NFL 17. This year’s edition offers even more depth, while still managing to streamline the experience and make both the on-field and off-field experience even more seamless and fun. Today also marked the debut of a brand-new Madden NFL 17 trailer at EA PLAY to get fans excited for the upcoming football season.

This year, Franchise introduces Play the Moments, the fastest way to play Madden NFL. Play the Moments allows fans to experience the important milestones in each game while simulating the rest of the matchup. Players will be invited to jump in at critical moments such as red zone drives, vital third downs, game-winning drives and more, offering the chance to prove your mettle in clutch situations. The shortened games allow Franchise players to take their team all the way from opening day to the Super Bowl in just a weekend, maximizing the fun along the way. Of course, those who want to experience the game from kickoff to final whistle can turn off Play the Moments, or opt to jump in and out of moments as they wish throughout the game.

Off the field, players will be able to utilize new Franchise Game Planning to tailor their strategy to amplify their team’s strengths and attack their opponent’s weaknesses, complete with in-game boosts. New Big Decisions also surface important personnel decisions such as bringing players back from injury, signing free agents, negotiating new contracts and more. In addition to all this, Madden NFL 17 on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 also features top community requests like practice squads, full player editing and a dynamic score ticker.

The Madden NFL 17 Franchise news comes on the heels of details about the franchise’s most balanced gameplay to date, as well as the addition of the brand-new commentary team of Brandon Gaudin and Charles Davis.

Madden 17 CFM 1st New Features Released!

Madden 17 Increases Accessibility, Offers Color Blind Support

In a new blog post, EA has detailed how they’re improving the accessibility with Madden 17 to better allow for more players to better experience the game. Perhaps one of the most important additions is the addition of colorblind support, which will be done through the use of filters.

There are a number of other important improves to increase accessibility also, like the option to enlarge on-field graphics. That option will make the icons appearing on the field about twice as large, according to the blog. This one should be a great addition for those who have problems with vision. The blog post notes that enlarged graphics make the game easier to play from the couch.

For the colorblind support, the team behind Madden 17 estimates that half a million players are colorblind, which creates a problem with menus and some of the art in the game. Naturally, they decided to fix that, and they did so by using filters. Red, green, blue weak colorblindness have all been tested, with “great results”.

Finally, they’re also improving their options when it comes to brightness and contrast controls. Madden 17 will offer 5 levels of brightness, which you can see in the screenshot from the blog post up top. Contrast will also have 5 levels.

In a world where accessibility is becoming more important, it’s great to see Madden 17 making improvements in that area. What do you think of these improvements? Let us know in the comments or on social media, and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for Madden news and tips.

Madden 17 Increases Accessibility, Offers Color Blind Support

E3 2016: What Sports Games Will We See at E3?

We’re just under a week away from E3, and we figured now would be better than ever to discuss what we’d like to see going into the trade show. Last year we talked about the sports games we expected to see at E3, and this year we’re going to do the same.

So, what games will we see at E3? Do keep in mind that, as far as we can tell, some of these may not be officially confirmed for the show this year! This list should be considered speculative as a result.

Madden 

Madden is a sports gaming staple, and one of the big pillars for EA Sports. Since EA has already started talking about some of the new features we’ll see in the game, and since EA is showing the game off at EA Play, it’s safe to say that we’ll hear more about it during their press conference this year.

As to what news we’ll get on the franchise? Only time will tell. Hopefully we’ll hear something about new game modes, but until then, you can check out our article addressing your top 10 questions on Madden 17 to get up to speed on what we know so far about the game.

We’ll be checking out the game at EA play, so we’ll have more coverage on the game for you next week!

FIFA 

Like Madden, FIFA is often considered to be one of the big EA Sports titles, with a major presence at E3 every year. The game has been confirmed for EA Play, so it’s safe to say we’ll hear more about it in Los Angeles next week.

With PES getting the jump on the franchise by talking about their game earlier, I’d expect to see EA make a big FIFA reveal during their press conference. Will that include the cover athlete for the game? I’d hope so.

Game Informer also reports that the game will be using the Frostbite engine, as the first of many EA Sports franchises to use the engine moving forward. If this is true, we’ll probably get confirmation at E3.

NHL 

Unfortunately, the cover reveal for NHL 17 has already been spoken for. Rather than reveal the cover during E3, the winner of the NHL 17 cover vote will be announced during at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas on June 22.

There’s still a lot to talk about, but now that we know the first trailer for the game will also be featured at that event, it’s hard to see a lot of new information being presented. The game will be at EA Play, though, so you can expect to see more of the game then.

PGA Tour 

Last year marked the first time that Rory McIlroy took over as the namesake athlete for EA’s long running PGA Tour franchise. It’s a bit odd that we haven’t seen any information on another installment, since the franchise has typically seen a release window between March and July.

With June underway and E3 coming up, and with no word on a new PGA Tour, it seems like the franchise could be another no-show in 2016. If we don’t hear about the game at E3, I’m not sure we’ll get a release this year. Unfortunately, all signs point to this one being shelved again, at least for 2016.

NBA LIVE 

We already know that NBA LIVE is getting pushed back into 2017, making it unlikely that we’ll see the game at E3, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see EA talk about the delay and what they hope to achieve by delivering the game later than usual.

With the fierce competition of the much-favored NBA 2K, I think most people would agree that NBA LIVE could use a break. Still, it’d be great to hear just what EA has planned to make the game more competitive next year.

NBA 2K

We’ve seen that Kobe Bryant will be getting his own special version of the game called “Legend Edition”, but we haven’t seen much of the game itself. Based on last year, NBA 2K likely won’t be making much of an appearance at E3 if it makes one at all.

We already got a number of big reveals at the Road to the Finals, where we learned that Paul George would be the cover athlete, along with the news of a September 20 release date and a return of the Early Tip-Off Weekend.

With 2K16 featuring a number of issues, prompting the community to band together to see them fixed, hopefully 2K can deliver a much more solid product for the 2017 season.

PES 

PES 2017 is well on the way, and as our favorite soccer game in 2015, you can bet we’re excited to get our hands on the latest iteration of the franchise. Thankfully, the game is confirmed for E3, so we’ll be seeing a lot of it next week.

We’ve got plans to check out the game, you can expect to see more coverage on it soon!

We’ll be returning to E3 again next week to bring you coverage straight from the show. Are there any sports games you’d like to see this year? Let us know in the comments or on social media, and as always, stay tuned to SGO for the latest news on your favorite sports games!

E3 2016: What Sports Games Will We See at E3?

Madden 17 Presentation Improvements Include Venue Upgrades, New Cameras

In a blog post on the Madden website, the team has detailed how presentation will be improved in the latest iteration of the franchise. Broadcast Presentation is a big focus in Madden 17, and a few changes have been made to that end.

Stadiums and their jumbotrons will be getting an update to make the game more immersive, giving you a feel closer to that which you’d see on television. With a new lineup introduction, EA says that they’re able to do “things that push the limits of what broadcast wishes it could do.”

Madden 17 will also introduce pylon cameras to the game, to give you a better look at some of the incredible plays you make in the endzone. This addition should bring a higher level of intensity to plays, bringing more depth to the game.

New cameras besides the pylon cameras will also be added in addition to speed ramping, to give you a better look at a great catch. Broadcast graphics will also now appear in replays. Multi-cam will bring more angles into the game so that you can feel closer to the broadcast.

Coaches are also receiving a big upgrade, becoming more dynamic and aware of the action happening on the field. Head coaches will have more of a visual impact in replays as a result, making the game feel much more lifelike.

I’d recommend giving the blog post at the Madden website a read if you want the full details on how presentation is changing this year, but overall, it sounds like there are some interesting changes.

Are you excited for these changes? Let us know in the comments or on social media, and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for more Madden news and tips.

Madden 17 Presentation Improvements Include Venue Upgrades, New Cameras

Madden 17 to Feature Brandon Gaudin & Charles Davis as Commentators

EA has uploaded a brand new video to their YouTube detailing the process of creating the sounds and commentary that you’ll see in Madden 17. The biggest takeaway for those that aren’t interested in sound design? Brandon Gaudin and Charles Davis will be serving as commentator this year.

The video comes as part of a blog post released on the Madden 17 website, detailing not only sound design as a whole, but what changes are coming to the commentary specifically beyond this new duo. Going into the game this year, they wanted to change up the commentary in a meaningful way, so they started from scratch.

The new commentary team would be centered around four pillars; team availability, team chemistry, teaching football, and updating content post-launch. Of course, the blog details how the commentators this year got the job, breaking it down pillar by pillar.

The team has spent multiple days a week recording, and serve as active members of the development team, working with designers, engineers, and writers to find ways to improve the game.

That has allowed for the Madden team to record what would typically be a year’s worth of content in a few weeks. The result should be more depth to the commentary experience, which will ultimately make a better game.

Perhaps the most interesting thing, however, is the addition of new commentary throughout the seasons. Now if a player or a team is having an exceptional week, you should hear that reflected in the game afterwards. The new duo of commentators will be in the studio throughout the season recording these lines, bringing further parity to the game you play on consoles, and the game you watch on TV.

Both the video and the blog post are worth checking out if you’re interested in sound design and how commentary will be changing with Madden 17. As to how impressive the changes are, well, we’ll have to wait until we get our hands on the game at E3 next week.

Are you excited to see how the commentary has improved with the latest iteration of Madden? Let us know in the comments or on social media, and as always, stay tuned to SGO for more Madden news and tips.

Madden 17 to Feature Brandon Gaudin & Charles Davis as Commentators

Madden 17 Top 10 Questions Answered: Team Play, Formation Subs and More!

With info slowly trickling out about Madden 17, I wanted to make this video answer the most asked questions that I’ve seen on social and online. All info is straight from the developers and my own experience with the game. Let me know in the comments below if there are any questions about the game you have that weren’t included!

Will the defense still fall for playaction on long obviously passing situations?

No. In Madden 17, the adaptive AI has been adjusted to account for playaction in obvious passing situation and will play for pass regardless of the fake.

Will FB Dive and HB toss be as overly effective?

With how the force defenders plays the outside run and linebackers fill the gaps you will have the tools to stop fullback dive and toss. In my time with the game defenders now play the run more realistically and aggressively you will need to read your blocks and utilize the new ball carrier moves to be successful in the running game.

Can quarters defense still stop the run?

Not effectively with the new defensive gap and runfit system there will be gaps that are not accounted for when a quarters defense matches up with a pro or big offensive set.

Will team play be in Madden 17?

No, team play will not be in Madden 17. I know people are disappointed, but this is a GOOD thing. The devs do not want to half ass team play and just put it back in the way it is. They want to improve it, add features, and make it better than ever. So I personally believe team play will be back eventually just not this year.

Will formation subs be in Madden 17?

No, formation subs will not be in at launch. Not sure if it will be something that can be added later in a patch, or update during the year, so stay tuned.

How do the new FG and Punt blocks work?

Both place kicks and punts can be blocked. It’s being tuned, so I’m not sure how easy or difficult it will be in the final game but I was able to get at least 1 of each in my time with the game. Ratings have an impact on success rate and how much you’re penalized for not executing the new mechanic perfectly as it’s easier with elite players than it is with lower-rated guys.

Is 10 man coverage still effective in the game?

No, dropping 10 into coverage will not be an effective strategy in Madden 17.

Does the offensive line form a realistic pocket in Madden 17?

The pass rushers have been tuned so the top rushers are more impactful like they are in real life. Time in the pocket and the qB scramble response has been tuned this year. Can’t speak more on the exact offensive line formation until more info is released.

Can you snap the ball with WRs behind the line of scrimmage or while in motion. 

You can no longer unrealistically hike while the WR is behind the line of scrimmage or manually motion hike him. Many people would create unrealistic separation by motion hiking the WR before he was set. The auto motion plays will still work.

Will WR/DB assignment be in Madden 17?

Unfortunately even though the developers have been working hard to put this feature back into the game they were not able to for Madden 17 as it does break some of systems so it will take a little while longer to implement.

When will more Madden 17 info be released?

New developer gameplay blogs will be out this week, but there will be a ton of info and a full demo at EA Play. We will be on-hand to give you our detailed impressions on Madden 17 and every sports game each day at E3 Expo, so subscribe to our YouTube and make sure to check the website daily!

Madden 17 Top 10 Questions Answered: Team Play, Formation Subs and More!

Madden 17 Aggressive Catch & Ball Physics Breakdown

The #1 thing on the mind on many MADDEN BALLERS for Madden NFL 17…the aggressive catch. Is it still in the game? Is it still effective? After patches and tuners were released to address it in Madden 16, people STILL didn’t feel the developers got it right!

So to answer your main question, is aggressive catch still in the game? Yes. It’s still in the game, along with all of the catch types introduced into the game last year, possession and RAC Catch. But it has been GREATLY toned down and only the top WRs with high jump, spectacular catch, and catch in traffic ratings like OBJ, Julio, Hopkins and Dez would be able to go up and make those spectacular catches consistently. So, no more cases Darren Sproles going up in a crowd and snatching the ball down like a rebound. Going up for an aggressive catch now has some risk to it because if you go up in coverage and get rocked you can get your receiver injured.

There are people who believe EA has taken some skill out of the game with the one button catching, but just for you guys they have added a user bonus on the defensive side when you click on the defender and use the defensive ball in air mechanics. So all those ballers out there who click on and control there guys, rejoice as you will now be rewarded. They have also added a ton of more animations so that the DB and WR battle looks more realistic and the defender actually performs according to you input.

So not only is spectacular aggressives catch limited to top WRs, they improved the swat mechanic, aka the aggressive catch killer. This year using the swat will give you no chance for the interception but will basically shut down aggressive catch attempts. The only downside being you lose the chance of intercepting the ball.

The new ball physics system is a game changer. It impacts so many facets of the game from knockout when catching the ball, the kicking game, loose ball recovery, even QBs taking hits when passing. Those plays where the WR would catch the ball through the defender are gone. When a defender swats the ball or breaks up a play it’s not longer a “canned animation”, the ball realistically reacts how it would in real life. So the frequent high popups of Madden 16 are gone, but now they give defenders a better chance to catch it when there is a realistically tipped pass.

Individual physics on the ball now allows for randomness in the outcome of QB hits and the addition of strip sacks. In Madden 16 when a QB was hit most of the time it resulted in an incomplete pass into the ground. In Madden 17, the ball will organically go where it should. The new ball mechanics make recovering a loose ball look so much more organic as players dive and fight for a fumble it has a randomness to it the same way a fumble recovery does in real life.

That’s it for today guys, hope you enjoyed another breakdown. If you have any questions leave them in the comments below and I will answer the ones that I am allowed to speak about. Don’t forget subscribe to our YouTube Channel and check the site so you don’t miss any of our Madden 17 content as we release content daily!

Madden 17 Aggressive Catch & Ball Physics Breakdown

Madden 17 Gameplay Improvements: Competitive Changes

EA is continuing to dole out information on Madden 17, and today on the blog they’ve detailed how they’re making the game better for competitive players.

For starters, Madden 17 is changing up man coverage. In last year’s iteration, man press made defensive backs would stick to receivers effortlessly, forcing players to result to the same type of motion routes in order to beat it.

That’s changing this year with an enhanced win/loss system, created to ensure that any route can get open against the coverage. The new man coverage should make the game more balanced and allow for a game more true to the ratings.

Similarly, on the defensive side, the changes to the zone coverage system should also make for a much more realistic game. The new zone coverage system was designed around thwarting some of the same old plays from the previous game, and if you’d like to learn more about that, you can check out our post on the subject.

It should also be much easier to deal with a QB scramble thanks to the new mechanics, which had previously been much harder to stop than it should have been. A number of formations have also been recreated to be more authentic to how they would work in real life. Quarter is one of the examples given in the blog post.

Offense is changing as well. In Madden 16, the double juke was too effective. It was so effective that it wasn’t very difficult to predict, making running straight forward a viable strategy. Head to head should be a lot more engaging now, thanks to a number of fake moves having been made more viable, allowing for much less predictable gameplay. If you want to get a more detailed look at that, you can check out our post on special moves.

When it comes to the playbook, audibles have been changed this time around. Run heavy sets will now have two audibles, one that attacks the inside, and one that pushes the ball outside. A number of changes have also been made to the pass blocking to account for some of the strategies that were more effective than they should have been. Turbo blitzes and looping blitzes are two things that have been addressed.

Perhaps most importantly, and one of the best things for competitive players who end up online the most, online play has been improved to allow for less lag. We’ll find out whether or not that holds up when the game launches, but for now, a reduction in lag sounds like a good thing.

Do you think these improvements will be good for competitive play? Let us know in the comments or on social media, and as always, stay tuned to SGO for the latest news on Madden 17.

Madden 17 Gameplay Improvements: Competitive Changes

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

Madden 17 Gameplay Improvements: Zone Coverage

Continuing their series of Madden 17 gameplay details, EA released a new post covering improvements to Zone Coverage.

The biggest addition is something EA is calling the “Behavior Coordinator”.

Designer Anthony White says, “Prior to Madden NFL 17, our zone coverage logic was written independent of the play. Simply put, our zone assignments didn’t work together and therefore had no concept of a global scheme. It was a priority based system that evaluated the coverage level of each receiver in order to determine who to pick up.”

They also only had three underneath zone coverage assignments (flat, curl flat, and hook). The new AI architecture in Behavior Coordinator is design to solve that problem.

With the new BC, EA added 10 new underneath zone coverage assignments. The Coach Cam diagrams have been changed as well to better showcase the types of coverage being run.

For a more in-depth look, check out the Madden 17 blog for breakdowns of all 10 coverages and more AI changes to how defenders read the offense.

Are you excited to see a better AI? 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: Zone Coverage

Madden 17 Gameplay Trailer Analysis: Ball Carrier Moves - JUKE!

Madden 17 Gameplay Trailer Analysis: Ball Carrier Moves - JUKE!

How Madden 17 is Addressing Player Concerns

In a post on Game Informer’s website today, they’ve detailed some of the ways that Madden 17 is making improvements over its predecessor, and from the sound of things they’re addressing a lot of player feedback with the latest iteration of the franchise in order to please fans and ultimately craft a more satisfying experience.

According to Madden 17 creative director Rex Dickson, one of the goals with this installment is to reduce the viability of money plays, so named because they typically have a high success rate despite their frequent use. Some people will probably take issue with that, but it seems like the goal is ultimately for EA to create a much fairer game.

There are a number of improvements to that end listed in the article from Game Informer with bullet points. Firstly, a new section of the playcalling menu called run/pass counter which will let you pick areas of the field where you’re getting beat up. If you move players around though, you’ll have less focusing on another area. That means you’ll still have to pay attention to what your opponent is doing as well.

Rather than having four spot drops for defenders, you’ll have eight new zones, and defenders should cover better in them. There are a number of examples in the article, but if you’ve already read about the changes to the AI with Madden 17, then you already know that AI should be much improved this time around, allowing for better defense.

Ratings will also play a more important part in the game with Madden 17, with the article offering more insight as to how that will work. Again, if you read the blog posts today, you should already have an idea.

Game Informer notes that the developers have been looking at player ratings and tweaking them to fix certain mismatches that have occurred over the years. As an example, cornerbacks seem to have been making too many tackles on power backs. That’s changed. This time around, the development team is looking at the cornerback’s tackle rating and compare it to the other player’s break tackle rating.

They also describe the new kicking meter, which they say will function like the traditional 3-click golf swing. This new kicking meter was designed to better account for the ratings of kickers and punters.

Block kicks will also be a potential outcome, but the team behind the game is looking closely at the game to make sure that you wouldn’t be able to block more kicks than statistically possible. This is just one of the many ways that EA Tiburon aims to bring Madden closer to the NFL with Madden 17.

There are some pretty important physics changes, too. While Madden 16’s physics made the game more realistic, the physics didn’t always apply to the ball. That’s also changing this year. No longer will the ball snap to a player’s hand during a catch, even though the ball might get pulled through a defender.

With the improvements to the ball, there will also be more drops for receivers in traffic. The ball will also bounce differently after tips thanks to a lack of scripting. There will be a number of new animations to accompany that, and player models should track the ball a lot more realistically.

Of course, the running game will also be improved, but you should already have an understanding as to how if you’ve been keeping up with the gameplay blog posts. Outside of that, EA is redoing cleats and gloves, as well as offering new sleeve options.

It sounds like EA has been listening to player feedback for Madden 17, but is it enough to sell you on the game? Let us know in the comments or on social media.

 

How Madden 17 is Addressing Player Concerns

Madden 17 Details - Defensive Gaps and Run Fits

EA has released another post detailing the gameplay in Madden 17 today. This time they’re focusing on defensive gaps and run fits.

It seems like defensive AI is getting a “complete reboot”, for run defense and pass defense. For the first time in Madden history, however, the defense will have a defensive gap control system that should make running closer to the real sport.

According to the blog, the run fits system is installed the same way that defensive coordinators install their defenses in the NFL with alignment, assignment, and technique. Each defender should now have a specific job for each play.

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 to see a better AI? 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 Details - Defensive Gaps and Run Fits

Madden 17 Details - Ball Carrier Special Moves

EA is continuing to update the Madden website with tidbits on Madden 17, and with their latest gameplay blog post they’re talking about ball carrier special moves. Let’s get into it.

Since running the ball can be one of the most rewarding aspects of Madden gameplay, EA says they’ve set out to new creative controls for all levels of play. The first thing on their list is special moves.

Ball Carrier Special Moves

In Madden 17, every on-field player will perform special moves tailored to their playing style and ratings. Special moves will now be spread out across different player-types in the NFL. Bruising backs will have better trucks and stiff arms, while smaller backs have better jukes and spins. These animations will all be brand new, according to the blog.

Ball carriers will use different animations depending on their special-moves rating, which can range from elite to lumbering. Elite moves are the higher tier, available only to players with ratings to match. The example given is for athletes with a move rating in the 90’s.

For players with move ratings in the 70’s and 80’s, there will be alternate versions of the moves that aren’t as powerful, but can still be used effectively with good timing. The higher ranking the moves, the more effective and highlight-worthy they become.

Lumbering moves, which are by far the slowest and lowest impact carry very little reward. They’ll be used by players who come in at over 300 pounds without a ball carrier rating of 65. Fatigue will also have an effect on the moves, making moves less effective when the ball carrier is out of stamina. How much less effective? One rank.

An elite player with a rating in the 90’s will perform moves as if he’s rated in the 80’s, so you’ll want to manage your stamina usage accordingly.

Fakeout Interaction System

The fakeout system is also receiving an update to accompany the new special moves. If you time the special moves correctly, you should be able to feel the power of the new multi-player fakeout animations, which EA says can have almost a thousand possible outcomes.

The multi-player fakeout is a dynamic animation that includes multiple players all at once, based on their location. These can range from 2-6 player animations, depending on the type of move used, the ball carrier’s skill level, and the user’s skill.

To successfully fakeout defenders will require more than the perfect timing, however. To be successful, you’ll have to know your ball carrier and his best moves. Knowing where the defender you’re trying to evade is also crucial, thanks to the ideal zone of each move that will increase the chance of success.

The ball carrier will have more success eluding the defender when he’s directly in front of the runner, rather than from the side.

Ball Carrier Mechanics

Madden 17 will feature an array of new ball carrier mechanics to keep Madden players of varying skill levels engaged. Modifiers will allow for four unique tactics to customize the running game, all carrying their own risks and rewards in combination with the fakeout interactions.

You can find a detailed list of the new mechanics and their functions at the blog post, but there are standard moves, speed modifier, precision modifier, steerable modifier, and utility moves.

There will also be a number of new tools available to help users become better ball carriers, with recommended special moves, a projected path indicator, special move feedback text, and a ball carrier threat cone which will be specific to your settings.

As you can see, EA is making a number of improvements with Madden 17. Whether or not they’ll be enough is up to you. What do you think of these improvements? Let us know in the comments or on social media and be sure to keep your eyes on SGO for the latest Madden 17 news.

 

Madden 17 Details - Ball Carrier Special Moves

EA Offers Head Start on Madden Ultimate Team 17

If you’re big into Madden Ultimate Team, EA is offering everyone the opportunity to get a head start on Madden Ultimate Team 17 by allowing players to earn vouchers for the newest iteration of the franchise by playing Madden 16.

Starting today, you’ll be able to unlock vouchers for Madden Ultimate Team 17 by playing MUT16. To secure the vouchers, you can play MUT16 and earn MUT16 loyalty vouchers by playing solo challenges, Draft Champions Ranked, and Salary Cap Ranked. For every set of 10 loyalty vouches you collect, you’ll earn a MUT17 voucher.

You’ll only be able to unlock a total of 10 vouchers this way, but EA will also offer up MUT17 vouchers through other means such as major milestones for solo challenge wins, major milestones for set completions, or pro, all-pro, and legendary tier members of MUT Rewards.

For the first time in Ultimate Team history, players will have a number of year-over-year rewards to choose from using MUT17 vouchers. The rewards you’ll be able to unlock include the following:

• Contract Pack


• Silver Offense Pack and Silver Defense Pack


• Gold Offense Pack and Gold Defense Pack


• Elite Offense Pack and Elite Defense Pack


• Event Tickets


• Pro Pack


• All-Pro Pack


• Legends Pack

Rewards will be doled out when players try out Madden Ultimate Team 17 for the first time this fall. Players who have completed MUT Master, Road Master, or MUT Ultimate Master sets will receive exclusive rewards as well in the form of player items that have master chemistry in MUT17.

• MUT Master – 85 ovr. Odell Beckham, Jr.


• Road Master – 85 ovr. Tom Brady


• Ultimate Master – 87 ovr. Marcus Allen

Additionally, MUT17 players will also be rewarded with loyalty vouchers based on the number of Head to Head Seasons games played, Draft Champions Ranked games played, Salary Cap Ranked games played, solo challenges won, and sets completed in MUT16.

More sets and challenges will be added to MUT16 leading into August when Madden 17 launches, so you’ll have plenty of time to start working on earning vouchers to get a head start in MUT17.

Looks like it’s time to start working toward MUT17 vouchers! Will you be working on your head start for MUT17? Let us know in the comments or on social media.

EA Offers Head Start on Madden Ultimate Team 17

Madden 17 In-Depth Feature and Trailer Analysis

Madden season is officially upon us! Rob Gronkowski was announced as the cover athlete, and EA Tiburon released the first trailer of the game, along with a blog detailing what to expect come August. So naturally, it’s time to dust off the old analysis machine and do what I do best: analyze any snippet of gameplay down to the last pixel. So check the video out for a more detailed examination or read below for my general findings.

Too Long Didn’t Watch:

• Lineman still engage in overly long scripted animation sequences, where a player’s upper body and lower body DO NOT work independently from one another


• Special Teams play can not be improved solely through new trick plays, a new kick meter, or “icing the kicker”. Special teams is predicated on line interaction, and if that remains essentially the same, special teams will remain….not very special


• A tiered system of special moves will surely differentiate between backs, BUT will these moves prove effective? Special moves in Madden 17 must allow the player to more easily maneuver past defenders. This remains to be seen, but the evidence here is very encouraging

Check back on my channel for more meticulous Madden coverage and analysis.

Madden 17 In-Depth Feature and Trailer Analysis