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!

FIFA 17 to Feature "The Journey" Story Mode

Do you like story mode in your sports games? If you do, you’ll be happy to know that FIFA 17 will be including a story mode with the game when it ships in September. The story mode has been christened “The Journey,” and will feature Alex Hunter as an up-and-comer with a legacy to live up to as the grandson of Jim Hunter.

As Alex Hunter, you’ll work your way through your Premier League career, where your actions off the pitch will have results as well. That includes a dialogue wheel, which is something that the developers seem to have borrowed from RPGs like EA and Bioware’s Mass Effect franchise.

The Journey will also feature a “true-to-life” experience by giving players a cinematic world “informed and influenced by real players.” For now, they’ve released a trailer for the new game mode along with an interview with Creative Director Mat Prior. We’ve included some of the questions from the interview below, but I’d recommend giving the whole thing a read over at the website.

Why develop a story mode for FIFA 17?

It’s a side of football we have never been able to showcase before and is something we have wanted to do for several years – give the player the experience of living a professional football career on and off the pitch. We have done an amazing job of recreating football through gameplay but up until now we have never ‘peeked behind the curtain’ and brought to life what happens off the pitch. That side of the game has become more known about in recent years through social media and the countless number of websites devoted to the sport. Fans can digest football 24/7 and have a window into footballer’s lives outside of matches that just wasn’t available before. I think it’s a side of football people are very interested in now and it’s a great opportunity to really innovate in FIFA 17.

It’s also a mode that will allow players to learn about the sport but just as importantly get familiar with the game – you can learn the fundamentals of FIFA and some of the more advanced functionality through playing. Any player that completes The Journey should not only have a great time but come out the other side with the ability to play the game at an even better level.

How long has it taken to develop The Journey?

We have been thinking about this for a long time and been plotting ideas for more than two years. We mapped out the story and all the features, then a large section of the team came together back over a year ago. Most of the EA SPORTS FIFA team have worked on an annual cycle. So for this, it was a pretty long production but at the same time, a very rewarding process.
FIFA 17 is the first in the series to use the Frostbite engine, how did it help shape developing The Journey?

Without Frostbite, a story this immersive doesn’t happen. It really gave us the means to tell the story. We built our engine around delivering authentic true to life action on and off the pitch, but with the move over to Frostbite gave us the opportunity and the tools required to create scenes and environments necessary for this kind of mode. The Frostbite engine has given us a lot of incredible games many of which featured story modes and it was the perfect vehicle for us to bring a story into FIFA.

Are you excited to see a story mode on the way for FIFA 17? Let us know in the comments or social media and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for the latest FIFA news and tips. We’ll be at E3 all week!

FIFA 17 to Feature "The Journey" Story Mode

Madden 17 E3 2016 Trailer Drops

EA dropped the latest reveal trailer for Madden NFL 17 during their E3 2016 press conference today.

While the trailer features in-game graphics it doesn’t really show off any specific new gameplay features. We got some hands on time with the game yesterday though so keep up with us for more news as the day goes on.

Madden 17 E3 2016 Trailer Drops

EA Introduces New eSport Competitions at E3 2016

During their pre-E3 press conference, EA introduced a number of new eSport initiatives for their big sports titles.

The three new events run the gamut from in-game challenges to EA sponsored real world events.

Challenger Events – This new mode is supposed to allow people to create and host their own local tournaments. It’s kind of a return to old LAN days.

Premier Events – These events are a mixture of in-game and out-of-game events that EA will hosts with sponsors.

The big events though will be what EA is calling ‘EA Major Events’. These events are specifically run by EA and feature the top players from the games.

For 2016, through 2017, EA says that they will be giving away up to $1 million in prize money through their Majors.

The events start this week with an eight player Madden NFL 16 championship series. It’s a big event featuring ‘Problem’ and ‘Serious Moe’ two of the best Madden players today. The gamers are playing for a $50,000 Grand Prize pool.

The championship will culminate on Tuesday night at 6 pm and will be viewable online or on ESPN3.

EA Introduces New eSport Competitions at E3 2016

E3 2016: Core Games We"re Excited to See

We’re just a day away from E3 2016, and continuing our pre-E3 coverage, we thought now would be a great time to talk about some of the games we’re looking forward to seeing at the trade show. There’s a lot to be excited about, many of which didn’t make the list!

Battlefield 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7nRTF2SowQ

Battlefield 1 is probably one of the games that a lot of people are most excited for. Why? Because rather than go further into the future as their competitors are doing, DICE decided to take it back into the past. It might be an alternate past, but it’ll still be cool to see how that turns out.

That game will of course be making an appearance at E3 this year, including a massive demonstration during EA Play that will pit a number of celebrities and content creators against each other. Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman, along with a number of rappers like Snoop Dogg, The Game, Lupe Fiasco, and Wiz Khalifa will all be taking part in a 64-player multiplayer match that will be streamed on June 12 at 2 p.m. Sounds awesome, right?

Mass Effect Andromeda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uG8V9dRqSsw

Mass Effect is one of the most beloved franchises of all time, thanks to the phenomenal trilogy released last generation. Sure, fans had some problems with the ending, but Andromeda promises to be the start of a new trilogy. That means new characters, and a story that isn’t tied to Commander Shephard.

We got a trailer for the game last year, but it’s been a year and we haven’t seen any actual gameplay. The game has since been pushed back to 2017, but hopefully we’ll get an idea as to how the game will look in action.

The Last Guardian

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXLZvsSmBIs

Until last year at E3, everyone thought that The Last Guardian was dead. Now the game is shooting for a release later this year, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a new trailer and gameplay.

No Man’s Sky

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLtmEjqzg7M

We’ve seen quite a bit of this game since it was announced, but now that the game has been delayed until August, it seems that we’ve still got a bit to wait before it gets released. Still, given the hype, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it get a new trailer.

Even better if we get to get our hands on it. With a release date just two months out, I don’t see that being much of a problem.

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeF3UTkCoxY

Call of Duty might not be the most unique game on this list, but the franchise has provided a consistent level of entertainment throughout the years. Maybe not a lot has changed, but we’ll all buy it anyway. It’s the ubiquitous first person shooter, and frankly, a lot of fun to play with friends.

Besides, even if you don’t like the multiplayer aspect of the game, the series has done a good job telling stories since Modern Warfare. This time around they’re getting the one and only Kit Harrington, who you may know as Jon Snow on Game of Thrones, as the main villain of the story.

Sure, it might seem like they’re banking on celebrities at this point, but those games make plenty of money to do so. Besides, who doesn’t love Jon Snow?

Those are the core games we’d like to see at E3 2016, what are some of the games you’re looking forward to seeing? Let us know in the comments or on social media.

E3 2016: Core Games We"re Excited to See

Rocket League"s Biggest Update Neo Tokyo Coming Soon

Rocket League is getting a massive update this month, and it will be bringing new arenas, items, and improvements on June 20. The update is called Neo Tokyo, and Psyonix is calling it the biggest update for the game yet.

The update, which is “inspired by the cyberpunk dystopias made popular in the 1980s”, will feature a brand new arena of the same name. The arena was originally released as part of the Rocket Labs experimental playlist, and is a reimagined version of the multi-tiered Underpass stadium. This reimagining adds streamlined gameplay improvements and a “highly detailed” environment.

This Neo Tokyo update also comes with a plethora of other inclusions, which they’ve kindly listed out. You can check out that list with bullet points below, which comes directly from the press release.

• The beginning of “Season 3” for Competitive Playlists, which resets all skill ratings and rewards last season’s players with exclusive Rocket Boosts that reflect their final rank


• An expanded Item drop system that adds…
  
  • More than 20 “Rare” and “Very Rare” Item types for online, post-game drops
  
  
  • An easy-to-use “Trade In” system that allows players to exchange multiple Items of one rarity type for an even rarer one.
  
  
  • New “Painted” Items that offer different color variations on existing Garage favorites like Toppers and Wheels
  
  
  • Special “Certified” Items that track specific in-game stats and increase in prestige the higher those stats go
  
  

• New Quick-Chat customization options that expand player choices for fast, in-game communication


• New Post-Game celebrations that spotlight the winning team and allow them to jump, spin, and boost their car to show off their accomplishments


• “Pillars,” a new experimental Arena that separates the field into three lanes via two massive walls in the middle of the stadium


• A new, in-game “Showroom” that allows players to view and purchase all previously-released and future premium DLC


• Eight new Trophies and Achievements on all three platforms

According to the blog post on the Rocket League website, new blog posts will be on the way to discuss some of the features included with the update. A blog post detailing the trophies and achievements added to the game will hit on June 13, while details on the showroom will be available on June 15.

Two Neo Tokyo inspired cars will also become available, though they’ll initially only be available through the collector’s edition of the game. Those of us that aren’t picking it up will have to wait until July 5 in North America. Europe will get the cars on June 24.

Those cars are called Esper and Masamune, and will be included with the other collector’s edition cars in the $1.99 DLC that will become available worldwide on July 18.

Are you excited to see more Rocket League DLC? Let us know in the comments if you’ll be picking this one up.

Rocket League"s Biggest Update Neo Tokyo Coming Soon

Gran Turismo Sport Trailer Shows Off Social Features, Livery Editor, Photo Mode

We’re just a few days off from E3, and Sony is showing off Gran Turismo Sport, the latest entry in their flagship racing franchise with a new trailer. The new trailer shows off some of the social features, as well as the livery editor and what looks to be a robust photo mode.

You can bet on finding out more about the game at E3, as the blog post says that Yamauchi will be at PlayStation LiveCast to demonstrate gameplay. The game will also be playable at Sony’s booth this year.

What did you think of the trailer? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to stay tuned to SGO for more news on Gran Turismo Sport.

Gran Turismo Sport Trailer Shows Off Social Features, Livery Editor, Photo Mode