Madden NFL 11 Demo Available Now, Please Post Impressions Here

[TheBrothers24]

Quote: Originally Posted by ODogg

I think the new strategy pad idea comes from the slogan "If it ain't broke, fix it until it is.."

LOL that may be true. It wouldn't be a pain if the cpu QB didn't snap the ball right after they get to the line.

[petersondagreat]

I smell a new feature for madden 12 presenting our all new pre snap adjustments they messed it up on purpose. I do like gus johnson even if he does sound spliced in ive heard some funny things so far like "Greene breaks a tackle Oh and he is off Feet dont fail me now

[Triathlete_201]

+ I actually like the gameflow a lot.
+ IMO, the gameplay and locomotion is smoother in Madden than NCAA
+ Passing is decent. I like the receiver moves to get separation. Seems to be less WR and DB warping than in NCAA. Trajectory of the ball seems good.
+ LOVING Gus Johnsons enthusiasm on big plays.
+ Some awesome catch animations


- D Pad strategy pad needs to take a hike.
- Gus and Chris have zero chemistry.
- Horrid transition animations..herky jerky
- Lots of repetitive cut-scenes. Need a ton more variety.
- Crowd noise is almost absent at times where they should be going nuts.

Overall, I like it more than NCAA 2011. I may trade in that game for this one.

[PantherBeast_OS]

After playing 3 games in the last few hours. I have to say I've finally got use to the Strategy pad and no longer have a problem using it on D. It just about knowing what you want to and hitting before the AI snaps the ball. But overall I think the Strategy pad will work out when you get use to it. Now the only other problem I have is the AI throwing the ball away right as you get to him. I'm sure that can be adjusted easy.

[Rich Yung Stars]

Quote: Originally Posted by buddy321813

I really love gameflow great addition!

after playing this the gameflow addition is amazing it brings an authentic feel to the game !

[xylocaine]

Is it me or did the graphics take on a more lifelike 3d look with locomotion added (which I do like) at the expense of less texture detail (which I don't like)?

Even the menus etc seem to move faster but seem less graphic and almost last gen looking.

Oh I do like being able to chose normal, squib, onsides kickoff by a button at the bottom rather than going through a playbook, this definitely will speed things.

The game definitely plays faster and you don't get caught waiting through cutscenes.

[bomza]

I really, really, really would like to know who came up with the "strategy pad" idea and decided THAT would be one of the new things they actually took time out to program into the game this year instead of one of the hundreds of decent actual "football" suggestions I read in the forums this past year. Maybe this is the latest innovation from the "weapons" and "vision cone" guy who is the son of one of the executives.

And honestly, after all this pre-hype I heard about "Gameflow" changing everything, I think NCAA 11's Gameplan where they give you three choices for six different options on both offense and defense on how you want to play the game beats the hell out of this coach in Madden 11 telling you on almost every play action "hopefully we'll fake them out and we can beat them deep". Really coach? Is that the purpose of a play action? BTW, could you help me tie my shoes, too?

[DaveDQ]

This demo is an odd experience. On one hand the pace of players seems smooth and natural, but on the other things seem to twitch so much it creates an unbalanced feel to what's going on on the field. Players are sliding into blocking assignments. I literally watched my guard slide to the left right in front of my QB. It's almost like an "ends justifies the means" scenario. He should get into that position but the manner in which he gets there looks so awful.

A good example of how off the movement is is with running the ball. My RB ran 7 yards and then Pro-Tak kicked in. The run to about 6 yards felt ok, but then all of the defenders twitched so quickly into the group tackle and then their response to the motion was way off, bouncing off of a tumbling running back that had no positive motion. It's just a very odd looking scenario.

Passing the ball feels good. It still seems that receivers get far too much separation on slants, making it easy to gain big yardage. Having gameflow calling the plays with its very dumbed down language while using Manning is silly. You are telling Manning how important this play is and how it will develop? It's silly and the slightest experienced Madden player will dismiss the feature.

Obviously the strategy pad on the defensive side of the ball is broken. By the time you pull up the pad the ball is snapped. This may have to do with accelerated clock. The CPU is snapping the ball when it should, you just approach the line too close to the clock running low.

One thing I noticed about the demo (in comparison to the concept of making games playout faster and in half the time) is that maybe the game is playing faster, but it feels so boring and out of place. All the neat things like "J-E-T-S" is in there, but it just doesn't mesh into a seamless experience. Even with Gus Johnson calling the plays, he'll yell out, "He's going fo it all!" and then he casually says, "Touchdown..........Colts." It makes the game fell so sluggish and unresponsive.

Overall, I think the demo confirms what many have said. Madden is just in a very stale state right now and while some things have been added to enhance that experience, they just don't flow properly into the game to make it seem like a quality NFL experience.