Alex Smith is a good, but not great, tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who were 4-12 last season. In contrast, Chad Johnson is an NFL superstar – a flashy wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals whose mouth never stops running and who has led the AFC in receiving yards for four straight seasons.
But last Valentine’s Day, it was Smith who had all the bragging rights. Smith beat Johnson to claim his second consecutive Madden Bowl, a competition in which NFL players play each other in EA Sports’ popular Madden video games. And the NFL players take the game just as seriously – if not more so – than the average gamer sitting on their couch at home.
The Madden games are undoubtedly a national obsession. An ESPN.com columnist called for “Madden Day” – August 15, the day Madden 2008 was released – to be declared a national holiday. As of Aug. 18, Madden 2008 had sold 1.8 million copies, according to data collected by Video Game Chartz, a website that compiles video game sales figures. And the game, which is wildly popular with students, may just be the biggest virtual hit on the campus.
But all is not perfect at EA Sports. Although both Madden 2006 and Madden 2007 sold exceptionally well, neither was as highly praised as their predecessors.
And that’s not just where Madden’s problems end. In 2004, EA Sports and the National Football League signed a five-year exclusivity agreement that effectively prevents any other video game company to use the NFL license. The move effectively eliminated Madden’s main competition, the NFL 2K games, and perhaps also EA Sports’ need to make the Madden games more than just a roster update. Also, the PS3 version of Madden 2008 is reportedly marred by a slow frame rate, making both the game’s graphics and game play choppy.
With all these factors working against it, it wouldn’t be surprising if enthusiasm for the game had dulled. But both the sales figures and student reaction indicate otherwise.
“I think Madden has gained popularity in the last few years, actually,” said Matt Barry, a junior economics major who claimed he plays the games for about an hour each day. “A few years ago, my friends would buy it maybe a week after its release. This year, I know some people who went to buy it at midnight.”
However, the 1.8 million copies Madden 2008 sold is slightly less than the 2 million copies IGN.com reported Madden 2007 sold in its first week last year.
Despite the lower sales, some students agree Madden is one of the more often-played games – if not the most – on the campus.
“I would say Madden is probably the most popular game on campus, with Halo, Mario Kart and Guitar Hero behind it,” sophomore journalism major Jeff Nash said.
“Either [Madden] or an old Nintendo 64 game like Mario Kart,” added Alain Parcan, a sophomore English major.
However, students complained about Madden’s displaced franchise mode feature. When the series first made the jump to the Xbox 360 gaming system, EA inexplicably left out the franchise mode option – where you act as a team’s general manager and make roster moves or train rookies – that may be considered by some as the core of the series.
“It’s fun to play a random game here and there, but when it comes down to it, I want the playoffs and the off-season of the franchise mode,” Barry said.
Despite these complaints, few students are bothered by EA’s move to license with NFL.
“I like to believe EA is devoted to their gamers,” Barry said.
Nash views the lack of competition as a positive.
“I am personally glad there is no competition to inspire the makers of Madden to drastically change the game,” he said.
And Barry admits that even without the franchise feature, the lack of competition and lower sales, Madden fans are still dependent on EA to keep producing the game they love.
“If they chose to, I’m sure EA could sit back and do nothing,” he said. “They dominated the market even when other games existed. Madden has become like a part of pop culture – so EA can do what they want.”
Contact reporter Kevin Robillard at diversions@dbk.umd.edu.