The biggest improvements of Madden NFL 15 is the changed core system
Players of Madden NFL 15 still awkwardly fall over each other as plays conclude and receivers are too often outmatched by similarly skilled corners, but even so, Madden NFL 15 is the spark that this series needed. Controlling players on defense finally feels both fun and functional, and more informative playcalling gives newer players context for the technical side of the game. The feature set remains fundamentally unchanged, but each of the core modes in Madden NFL 15 have increased in breadth and decreased in clutter, making it easy to dig into features that might have seemed too dense from a distance. Madden NFL 15 looks sharper than ever, but its biggest achievement is its dedication to improving core systems that have held the series back in the past.
And before long, you are dropping the suggestions and making your own decisions. Recognising opposing formations and switching up, or adjusting your play on the go. It worked for me, at least, and I’ve come away from Madden 15 more invested in the game and the sport. It helps, of course, that the on-field action is a significant improvement on recent Maddens. The series had fallen away somewhat, particularly when compared to the success of stablemates FIFA and NHL. 15, though, feels like Madden NFL 15 back on an upwards curve following the relatively lackluster 25th anniversary edition last year. It looks tremendous, of course, with sleek detailed on-field visuals and an excellent broadcast presentation let down only by supine commentary.
Then of course there are niggles and legacy issues in Madden NFL 15. Defensive backs are turned up in the Richard Sherman era, making a lot of picks, especially undercutting shallow routes. This is partly because receivers (still) won't try to muscle toward the ball. The only time I remember one coming to the ball was when he was sitting -- completely uncovered -- in a curl route in the end zone. The one time I want a receiver to sit there and catch the ball, he ran out of the end zone (on 4th and goal) to catch the ball, locking me in an animation and leading him to get tackled before I could turn him back into the end zone. The first thing I do in Madden brought to you by Verizon Wireless Prison Cells? (Your inmates will be LOCKED IN to these plans!) is go into the settings and turn the commentary volume off because it is (still) horrible. At least it is a passive assault on the NFL player. Worse is the forced pageantry, the "presentation" elements that slow the game for no reason.
Much closer to reality are the tweaks in NFL 15 made to how, and what, information is presented within games. The new 'Coach Stick' (an idea borrowed from the seemingly defunct NCAA college football series) offers a basic review of how your receivers and running back match up against their respective defenders. A traffic light system communicates whether a particular battle is favorable, middling or bad for you - this information potentially influencing your likelihood of throwing risky passes. If the match-up is favorable, for instance, you might be more inclined to throw a 50/50 pass in the hope that your superior receiver will live up to his billing.
Another big change to this year’s game is playcalling. In the past, suggested plays were limited to the old "Ask Madden" feature, which would spit up a few situationally correct plays, and way back when would also offer up a bit of John Madden-voiced coaching commentary (EA really needs to get him back in the recording booth some day). Madden NFL 15 expands on this considerably, offering up multiple suggestion options based on analytic. You'll still get a list of plays ideal for the game situation you're in, but they come with actual quantifiable data that helps explain why those plays make sense. And then there's a whole other category of plays built around suggestions from the community and how effective those plays have been in similar situations. It takes some getting used to, but I found it vastly preferable to any play-calling system this series has used in the past.
That said, it’s really a crying shame that EA let those massive issues in Madden NFL 15 sneak into the final product, since having one of the game’s two main modes be operational is a pretty important factor. Once those are addressed (which may very well be within a few days of this being published), Madden NFL 15 will become one of the most complete sport game experiences available.
