PlayStation 3
Released in 2009 by EA Sports
Grade: B+
Madden 10 is another slight step up for the franchise. It’s got smoother, more sophisticated gameplay and revamped visual presentation, but it’s burdened with questionable AI and annoying bugs.
Where it falls in the series
It’s the fourth of 11 versions on PS3.
Praises and gripes
The big innovation this year is gang tackling, where piles of players yank the runner down, and you have more controls to fight for extra yardage. And how does EA make sure this new focus takes center stage? Lots of broken tackles. Too many of them, actually. Even skinny receivers break free from hulking linebackers often.
The game favors offense all around. Receivers make tough catches. Runners fall forward for extra yards. In the open field, blockers are reliable and allow for long runs. Quarterbacks miraculously avoid sacks by releasing a harmless incomplete pass just in time. It all adds up to high-scoring games.
The action is slower than in years past, which helps reveal the newfound smoothness. Hits initially seem awfully soft, and I didn’t like how QBs release the ball so slowly — but after playing for a while, the game feels in sync with itself. There’s a bunch of new sliders for tinkering with many aspects of the gameplay, including game speed, which is set at “slow” to start.
Another new feature is “fight for the fumble,” where you mash buttons (following an on-screen prompt) to get the ball. This feature is stupid, and luckily you can turn it off.
A lot of plays have more detailed designs, with scripted pre-snap motion, fancy QB dropbacks, and routes with many subtle variations. To excel at the game, you’ll want to learn the subtleties of your team’s playbook.
The playcall screen is finally restored to the classic 3-box design. There’s a multitude of tactical options, and the pre-snap interface is more user-friendly than in the previous few Maddens.
Unfortunately, there are bugs all over the place. Certain plays don’t work right, players go way out of bounds, the refs make terrible calls, the camera occasionally leans sideways for no reason, and the CPU still makes the same bad coaching decisions it has for years. And with the flashier, TV-style presentation comes more funkiness, like the ball disappearing into the grass and a jarring camera cut before field goals.
There’s also the first appearance of in-game purchases — the start of a bad trend in video games, but at least they’re easy to ignore.
Overall, it’s another step forward, but with a few steps sideways.