Also this year EA Sports is launching a new offshoot of the Madden series on the market. In addition to FIFA, NHL and NBA, Madden has now become an integral part of the annual sports games. American football is also becoming more and more popular in Germany, as it is no wonder that the offshoot on the PlayStation is well received. Although king football continues to govern our country, Madden is becoming more and more a prince. Whether it is worth the virtual egg itself to fly or you can limit your annual football dose to the Superbowl, you will be in our test.

Let’s Go

American football is not only a sport but also an impressive show. Anyone who has seen this year’s Superbowl will know what I mean. Through this, Tom Brady, the quarterback of the New England Patriots, became without a doubt the G.O.A.T. (= Greatest of All Time). Since it is not really surprising that this year the cover of Madden NFL 18 is decorated. As soon as you start the game you are also directly confronted with it. Personally, I am not necessarily the biggest Patriots fan, but the design I find quite successful.

Then ask the game for your previous Madden experience and your favorite game style. So, for example, if you play action-packed, or rather, the tactical aspect of American football. If you have these presets done it goes directly with a match. You play the Superbowl LI with the Atlanta Falcons against the New England Patriots. There can be a different output then the real game. Even before you start the game at all the Patriots same a clamp, I find good.

Everyone who claims that ball games should be aggressive, has never had a sportsimulation of EA in the console. Do not misunderstand, on the other hand, such a game can also provide considerable happiness. The gameplay of Madden NFL 18 is made for both of these. The actual game principle has not changed in comparison to the predecessor. Even if there are several players on the field, you control only one. If your offense is on the pitch, you first direct the quarterback. As soon as you take the football to a team-mate, you will be the one to steer. In Defense, you can choose a player and then steer it.

Which race paths the respective players choose at the beginning of a turn over your Playbook. Then just one button for throwing and one for catching. Really much more complicated the gameplay is not. But if you think that it is an extremely relaxed player experience, has never seen football. You have to think carefully about what moves you choose. The players then run prescribed routes and you have to time the pass exactly. If you throw before the player is free or has reached its optimal position, then you risk losing a ball. However, always keep the quarterback in mind as to whether he or she is in danger of being blown away by the opponent’s defense or not. So a lot of things to look at at the same time. A small mistake and the whole move is in the bucket.

A Long Way To The Top

New in Madden NFL 18 is the game mode “Longshot”. This story mode is about the young quarterback Devon Wade and his best friend Colton Cruise, who is traveling as a wide receiver. Both dream of playing in the NFL and sense their chance through the TV show “Longshot”. Here they are given a former NFL coach and have to work their way up. The mode is similar to “The Journey” from FIFA 17 – if there are readers here who had the other “Football” times in the console.

In Longshot it is less about the tactical aspects of a complete football match. Throughout the entire run, you will not, for example, play a single complete game. When you are on the field, you often find Quick-Time events, or you only play short sections where Devon usually has to lead his team to victory. If you do not have a touchdown within 4 downs, you are almost “Game Over” and the drive starts again. Otherwise there are many dialogues and you have to choose one of several possibilities for answering one or get several minor examples. For some, however, it is very annoying that the language output is completely in English and there are not even subtitles.

Pure power does not offer this game play now, but it is worth it. On the one hand there is the prominent cast: Mahershala Ali as Devin’s father, Billy Corbin as his former coach and Dan Marino (former quarterback of the Miami Dolphins) as himself. I personally also liked the humor very much. The scene as Devin and Colt sitting together in the car and singing a song by Miley Cyrus I still celebrate. After completing the story, Devin Wade continues to play in Ultimate Team Mode. On the positive side, as it goes on at all, on the other hand only there. EA pushes Ultimate Team wherever it goes.

NFL Fantasy On The PlayStation

The Ultimate Mode you get in NFL Madden 18 yes quasi impressed. Feeling of the loading screens indicate this and even at the beginning of the game special windows are displayed.” Join Twitch and get an NFL legend, sign up for the newsletter and get a legend, baptise your first-born Brady and get a legend.” For me personally this is all a bit too much of the good. Yes, I find the Ultimate Team mode really great, no matter what sport of EA, but here you really exaggerate with the hints.

The mode itself is then quite good. You get a very good introduction and enough hints on how to start. In order not to be completely exhausted, certain game modes are only gradually released by reaching certain levels of experience. So if you do everything nicely in turn, you have a halfway sensible squad together, then do not go completely under games against other players. There are several challenges that do not include complete games, but only certain situations. If you are successful, you get coins and even players. In this way, one not only collects experience in different situations, but can also improve his team at the same time. Find me good.

Otherwise, the mode is as in the last few years. With the coins (which you get either for completed games or through the purchase in the PlayStation Store) you can buy players directly in the auction house or bring you packs and hope for a lot of luck. A bit of a pity I find that the focus is very much on the purchase by real money. There are a lot of packs that you can only unlock through points that you have to earn with real money. I would have preferred an “either-or” solution. Ultimate Team makes me a lot of fun, a light-bodied flavor has EA but then unfortunately.

The Road To Minneapolis

My personal favorite mode, however, remains “franchise fashion”. Here you can play the complete season including the pre-season, the playoffs and (at the start of next season) even the draft with your favorite team. When you start a game, you can choose whether you want to make the entire game or just intervene as soon as the action moves to the Red Zone (starting from the 20 yards line in front of the respective end zone). If you are generally not fond of a certain game, it can also be simulated.

The most interesting I find the whole drum around. Once a week you can do a specific training. There, certain game situations can be practiced and additional experience points can be collected for your players. To do this, you can adjust the set up as desired, commit new players and have the contracts of your current in mind. Class I also think that from the 2nd season always a draft takes place, as one knows it from the real NFL. Sure, such a season mode is now absolutely nothing new in a sports game, but he is still fun and is the mode that has me personally most captivated.

Trophies Check

Almost half of the trophies are designed for the Ultimate Team and the Longshot mode. Most of them come automatically, but you have to be careful with some, so that you meet the required conditions. The most difficult ones, however, are the trophies that you have to perform with certain actions during a normal game. Running a specific block or performing a winning field goal at a given time in the game is likely to cost some attempts. Additionally, you can try a reliable online store like Madden-Store where offers cheap mut coins for sale at any time.