Madden NFL 23 review: not a fumble, but still lost yardage

Madden NFL 23 review

Madden NFL 23

MSRP $69.99

“Madden NFL 23 is an improved game compared to Madden NFL 22, but not enough to make it any good.”

Average

  • improved gameplay

  • madden legacy game

Against

  • extremely flawed

  • Minimal mode improvements

  • MUT is not playable

  • Missing important features

EA Madden’s soccer series has been in a free fall in quality for years. Stripped features, gameplay that felt like it was based on stiff animations rather than realistic physics and skill, and tons of game-breaking bugs marred every entry in this best-selling sports game series. They all played like Justin Fields in that Browns game in 2021. The field for Madden NFL 23 from EA was to honor the legacy of John Madden by addressing these issues. In reality, the results are mixed, as the new additions are useful but still overshadowed by some major issues.

Madden NFL 23 it’s a clear step forward Madden NFL 22 in many ways, with some key gameplay and animation improvements that make the game harder, more accurate, and less persistent. However, other problems that have plagued the series for years are still there. Simulation aspects Madden NFL 23 they are not as deep as they should be. Some bugs disappeared, but terrible ones appeared in their place. Major mods seem to be neglected as EA is unable to balance game fixes and feature improvements during their yearly development cycle. While EA may have slowed the Madden series’ free fall a bit with some nice gameplay changes, Madden NFL 23 It’s not a comeback season for the franchise (although I hope it is for Justin Fields).

Madden 23 Official Gameplay Announcement | FieldSENSE™ Deep Immersion

Minor Field Improvements

There is no great review in the center of how Madden NFL 23 game, but a lot of minor improvements make the game a bit better than Madden NFL 22 and collect catchy nicknames under the new FeildSENSE brand. For starters, the animations flow more smoothly as there are many new animations for quick passes, scrambles, blocks, and turnovers. Lineman and linebackers feel more involved and threatening crazy nfl 23 because they aren’t locked into game-defining animations.

“The gameplay enhancements are the real star of the series. Madden NFL 23″.

Other FieldSENSE mechanics include ball carriers making 360-degree cuts, and cornerbacks and wide receivers have new moves to counter each other. Those are minor additions compared to the real star of the series: skill-based addition. The addition was processed in Madden NFL 23 so players can more accurately aim and measure the power of their throws as quarterbacks. While not the best taught in the game, this new system gives the player much more influence over ball position and makes the passing game feel like more of a quick event.

All in all, these minor gameplay improvements are the real star of the series. Madden NFL 23, and I’m glad EA finally took the time to fix some of the issues that have plagued the series for years. However, this comes with one major caveat: I’m reviewing gameplay on Xbox Series X. Please note that if you don’t have a current-gen system and are playing on Xbox One or PS4, you won’t see any of these improvements in-game at all. even though EA is still promoting FieldSense in the latest version of the game.

It’s also hard to ignore the fact that these are just gameplay tweaks that EA gave them a tongue-in-cheek name to make them sound fancier than they are. Good core gameplay is key to any sports game, but it’s also just one part of a much bigger package in any given year. unfortunately for Madden NFL 23FieldSENSE is really all it has going for it, and it’s a bit incriminating that it’s all I can do between innings.

chaos mode

New additions for Madden NFL 23 the basic modifications seem relatively minimal. Like the past entries, the game features Play Now Matches, online Head-to-Head multiplayer, a managerial franchise mode, a more player-driven narrative mode Face of the Franchise, and the perennial money-maker Madden. Ultimate Team.

The most significant franchise improvements come in free agency, as players now have the motivations and labels to determine whether or not they will accept your offer. Unfortunately, this system seems to be on hiatus for several seasons as talented and highly-skilled players leave their teams. The exploration has also gone a bit deeper with position-specific attributes, but casual players can ignore them and heavily simulate them without much of an impact on the field. It’s nice that EA isn’t completely ignoring Franchise Mode anymore, but there should be more here to take advantage of their major overhaul in Madden NFL 22.

The lack of substantial improvements means the experience feels less than the sum of its parts.

Face of the Franchise brings back most of the narrative elements of the mode and adds the Cornerback position and weekly side activities for small power-ups instead. Considering how lame it is Madden NFL 22 The face of franchise history was, that’s good Madden NFL 23 it focuses more on playing as your fourth-year player tries to make it to the Madden 99 clubhouse. Unfortunately, Cornerback isn’t the most exciting position to play all season, and some frequent glitches prevent this mode from running smoothly.

A Bears player prepares to tackle a Lions player.

Meanwhile, Ultimate Team received some tweaks for things like MUT Champions, but a menu bug made that mode nearly unplayable during the review period, so I never got to those items. In addition, there is a special game in honor of John Madden that players will experience upon starting Madden NFL 23 first time. It’s a nice tribute to the series’ namesake, with restored audio clips from Madden and a presentation that differs from the standard games. I long for something narratively deeper, like a way players can experience moments from Madden’s career as a coach, especially with the lack of story in Face of the Franchise. Then again, there wasn’t much they could do in the seven months of development EA had after he died.

don’t call it comeback

Madden NFL 23 It feels like a game made by developers who are mostly concerned with small gameplay improvements to assuage the anger of the fans and put the game in a good place before the NCAA spin-off arrives. While it works in some cases, the issues and lack of substantive improvements mean the experience is less than the sum of its parts. The limitations of EA’s vision for annual sports series are beginning to show.

The more time I spend with Madden NFL 23, his problems still bother me. FieldSENSE improvements feel good in early quick matches. However, over time you will still notice the lack of an NFL simulation with animations that cancel as soon as you score a touchdown, the lack of actual offensive and defensive coordinators, a pregame coin toss, or refs on the field while playing. play. Madden NFL 23 maybe the best played Madden game in years, but that doesn’t mean it’s realistic. Players will also have to deal with tons of bugs. Despite executive producer Aaron McHardy detailing to Digital Trends how EA has been systematically fixing bugs found in previous games, many issues remain.

A Saints player catches a pass intended for a Falcons player.

Some persistent issues, such as strangely changing player and manager models or players continuing to run after the game ends, are gone, but other bugs remain and appear in their place. Stadium lights flicker and Madden NFL 23 the menus in particular seem to screw up a lot. I’ve mentioned Ultimate Team menu issues before, but at one point my Face of the Franchise menu became completely invisible when I changed the difficulty setting. This made the mode almost unplayable until it was randomly fixed after I progressed for a few weeks. I am also stuck on loading screens and a quick look online reveals many other issues. Releasing a game with so many bugs is unacceptable, even if Madden NFL 23 has a little less bugs than Madden NFL 22.

If anything, that error situation is emblematic of the fact that the Madden series has fallen into a hole that will take over a year to climb out of. While Madden NFL 23 it technically stopped the series’ decline in quality, it didn’t start the rise. I want to avoid clichés, like saying Madden NFL 23 it’s a “step in the right direction”, but EA can improve this series if it is repeated faster, more meaningfully and with fewer bugs. It’s clear that EA has no intention of taking a year off this series, but Madden NFL 23 shows that this could be what the series needs if it wants to win back everything it lost and exceed expectations.

Our opinion

Madden NFL 23 makes a lot of nice improvements to the game aimed at its hardcore players. Unfortunately, that approach also exacerbated some of the series’ other lingering problems. If you really need a Madden game for your next-gen system, this is the best option. But that doesn’t mean it’s good. Casual players can enjoy some buffs while playing a match or two online, but crashes, inconsequential mode buffs, and other issues with their situation mean Madden NFL 23 more frustrating than fun in the long run for hardcore gamers.

Is there a better alternative?

EA currently has the exclusive rights to NFL simulation games, so it doesn’t exist. If you want a less clunky Madden game, you probably have to go back to the Xbox 360 era. Still, the current state of the Madden series makes me curious to see what a non-simulation 2K soccer game looks like.

How long will it last?

Madden NFL 23 it does not have an end point, so the playing time will vary from player to player. I put over 20 hours into the game for this review.

Should you buy it?

No. Madden NFL 23 It’s still not a good soccer simulation game. If you need to buy a Madden game for your next-gen system, make it this one, but honestly, the series is best avoided until EA builds more on the foundation it started laying here.

editor’s recommendations

Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn

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