For NCAA Football the answer is easy - online dynasties.
With Madden, different folks seem to enjoy news of different features. And while we haven't been treated to all "85" of the new features, we have a good amount of information.
So, from what we know about the game so far, which of the new features appearing in Madden will have the best positive affect on the game?
Patrick Williams (BigWill33): Best feature the new Madden will have is a correctly working franchise - assuming we have a correctly working franchise.
That aside I am liking the presentation and weather, to me they are under the same category. There is nothing like being imersed in a game and escaping reality for 45 minutes or so. With the new weather affects and presentation we are a little closer to blurring those lines.
If the gameplay is half decent we should be treated to a very memorable Madden this season. I am not holding my breath, but maybe crossing my fingers.
Will Soistman (wdogf0rel1fe): Well ... if you can really call it a feature I really am looking forward to the new play-by-play commentary that will be implemented. I actually really like Cris Collinsworth and Tom Hammond and cannot wait to finally be presented with a TV style game again.
With a supposed pregame and halftime show with John Madden announced in some previews, I do believe that EA is finally bringing the presentation up to snuff and hope to be immersed once again in a football game
Richard Chavez (Chavez21): I'd have to agree with that. The radio announcer was terrible and I'm happy he's gone for a more a TV style presentation.
Caley Roark (CPRoark): Count a third vote for the new presentation. Regardless of your opinion of NFL 2k5, it seems to be the pinnacle of sports games presentation. I'd like to see Madden get back there - hopefully the new presentation breathes some life back into the franchise mode.
I'm also looking forward to the dynamic difficulty setting. I like the challenge of a real game without modifying billions of sliders combinations. It seems recently I've spent more time setting sliders than playing games.
Chris Sanner (ChrisS): While I do agree the new presentation is HUGE for Madden, I think that Madden's online leagues will be a pretty big deal for folks as well. I know Operation Sports will be running a 16 person league on the PS3 and 360, so there is also my cheap plug for that. However, I just feel that online leagues, no matter what form they are in, are long overdue.
Another thing I think people might be overlooking is the slightly improved visuals. Everyone I have talked to that has seen the game in action so far has commented on how much better the game looks. Some of the screenshot comparisons we did with NCAA (which saw a similar facelift) are night and day. If we can get some new animations to go along with the excellent lighting, we could have a really good looking game as well.
Matthew DiStaulo (distauma): I have to say, I am most excited for the new camera system. Previous iterations of the game always had me favoring my slot receivers and tight ends in the passing game. Frankly, I never knew what to expect when throwing to my outside receivers from the pocket because I was unable to see them half the time! If done well, this new system will be amazing; allowing every receiver on the field to be visible at all times.
Patrick Williams (BigWill33): That is big distauma, but I need to see more before I say it is a winner. I wonder what happens if there are sideline patterns run to both sides of the field. Does the camera just pan back real far? When playing head to head does it bluff pass plays well or do you know from the snap what the play is?
Until those are answered I won't praise that feature.
Chase Becotte (Slizeezyc): It's not an entirely new feature either since a similar camera made an appearance in the series some years ago. If you watch the videos out there though Patrick, basically the camera does just pan back as the routes spread to the sidelines.
Some other things mentioned such as the presentation tweaks and the Madden IQ look interesting and even promising, but I need extended time with those additions to know how good they actually are.
So I'm actually more excited for something that falls outside the field of play, and that is the expansion of the community features. In this case it seems like the series will start small because you will be able to upload Madden pictures to social sites like FaceBook, but nothing else like videos and so forth.
Nonetheless, this feature in addition to the assumed expansion of EA Sports World, which hopefully will become more user friendly and maybe escape the beta phase, gives gamers an outlet to better share experiences. Expanding these areas will give more life to leagues, dynasty reports, and in general should liven up the various communities.
Ryan Spencer (rspencer86): It has been said over and over again, but the addition of Cris Collinsworth and Tom Hammond in the announcing booth is huge. I had no tolerance whatsoever with the "Radio Guy" I turned the radio announcer volume all the way down the first time I played Madden 08. Presentation can go a long way in making a game enjoyable to play, and it looks like Madden has finally taken some steps in the right direction in this area.
Carlos Hernandez (YankeePride): Again, as others have mentioned, it's the announcing team. Atmosphere is an important aspect of sports gaming and a new, fresh announcing team makes playing much more enjoyable. The radio play-by-play was one of the worst ideas in a long time and really made sitting through a game of Madden difficult.
It's possible that even if Madden doesn't improve tremendously in the game play department, the new two-man booth will give the game enough energy to deem the quality of the title vastly improved.
source
