Madden is back for another season (Madden NFL 09 (PS3))

Member Name: Ryandinho

Product:	Madden NFL 09 (PS3)
Date:	07/03/09 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Looks brilliant

Disadvantages: Some minor faults

Now I can really feel a part of the dooyoo community because this is my first suggestion that has been accepted and added to the reviewable items...even if they did use a different picture from my suggestion featuring the wrong console!

Madden NFL 09 is the latest in the long running American Football series featuring the name of John Madde, long time coach and commentator. The game was released for Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox, Xbox 360 but this review is only about the PS3 version.

It would be easy to just make each new version of Madden a roster update of the last but the development team at EA Sports seem to be working hard to really improve the game by adding new features each year. The characters now have more emotion than ever and the game really looks so realistic.

A new feature added this year is the Madden Test and player skill levels. The idea is that if you are good at rushing the ball for example, the computer will raise its level to make that aspect more competitive. If you aren't so good at this area then the computers level will decrease. Ideally, this means you will always have competitive and realistic games when playing against the computer.

The online mode is also a good inclusion. As I have only recently been able to use my PS3 to play games online, Madden was my first venture into this strange yet compelling world. I found it to be much more fun playing against other real life players rather than just competing against the PS3. Although you will come across a variety of different types of players, from people who take it way too seriously, people who cheat, people who try to run up the score, people who quit when losing, generally most of the people you come across are decent players who just want to test themselves against others. Being online also allows you to get the latest roster lists so you don't have to spend time editing players as the change teams.

There are some bad points however. The Superstar mode is a good idea in theory but in actual implementation it just isn't as good as it should be and quickly becomes boring. The idea of being an NFL player is appealing to most, even if it is virtual but there definitely needs to be some improvements from EA Sports to increase its longevity.

The Franchise mode could also do with some work. The draft in particular sees most teams choosing a Quarterback, which means there is an influx of them in the game. Also, the computer teams' players don't improve so if you do play for a few seasons it becomes much too easy. It wouldn't take too much to improve this aspect so hopefully the developers are able to before Madden 10.

Possibly the biggest error in terms of gameplay is when a player somehow manages to block or intercept a pass when they are looking the opposite direction and wouldn't have any idea where the ball is. Fortunately EA Sports have already said they are working to correct this fault for the next game so we wont have to suffer through it anymore


The commentators in the game aren't bad either. Some games can get too repetitive but they did a good job and most of the time they are correct in what they say. From time to time they will say you should have made a play that would be 99% unlikely to work but this can be forgiven since it is obviously not going to be a perfect game.

Overall, the game is brilliant. It looks amazing and while there are some flaws, there is nothing that will majorly ruin your enjoyment of the game. Unfortunately, the game still costs £28.97 at Amazon, which is quite expensive, but if you look around you may be able to pick up a bargain somewhere! It's a must for any NFL fan but Im sure other gamers will also really enjoy it.

9/10

Summary: Highly recommended to all sports and games fans