Madden 17, It's Gronk's World

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And we just live in it.

Your 2017 Madden cover boy:

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They are concentrating on three areas to improve gameplay this year:

Madden NFL 17 Features Overview

Let's start with offense and the new Ball Carrier Controls. We’ve added a tiered system to the types of special moves different players are able to pull off – depending on their attributes, ratings and speed. So now, expect your bigger bruising backs to be more effective with truck moves and stiff arms, while smaller, shiftier backs have more effective jukes and spins. Now don't worry if you’re not a magician yet on the sticks. New Ball Carrier UI Prompts help teach moves available to you, while the new Path Assist helps you navigate and anticipate down field. Additionally on lower skill levels, you can put the work on us and we will pick the appropriate moves for you, unlocking the fun for all of our players. Now, onto the defensive side of the ball.

While the new tools on offense make you a better, more creative ball carrier, the New Defensive AI System is built on up to date NFL Strategies – such as Gap Play, Force Defenders and improved Zone Coverages. It’s time to force your opponents to stop being so one dimensional. New Gap Play AI brings a new level of NFL authenticity and strategy to your defensive teammates. Each of your teammates has a gap assignment on run defense that puts them in position to better defend the run. Force defenders protect the outside of the field, pushing the ball carrier back inside allowing cut back defenders to make the big play. Finally Zone Coverage has been completely overhauled, with the addition of 8 new zone concepts never before seen in Madden. Defenders have more awareness of threats to each zone and can pattern match receivers, creating defensive counters to stop virtually every passing concept. It's our most realistic AI to date and it's across the entire field.

Special Teams, the 3rd phase of football, is where big games are often won and lost. For the first time years we’re bringing the excitement back to special teams. A New Kick Meter is designed to increase the challenge of the kicking game like we see in today’s NFL. Additionally, the ability to ice the kicker allows you to turn up the pressure on those late game winning field goal attempts. New trick plays and a new block kick mechanic add new elements to the risk and reward of Special Teams.

More info will be dropping soon. Looks like we will get some gameplay blogs from the debs, and then some news on the improved Franchise mode.

The first two blogs just happen to come out to day. Here is the first one:

Madden NFL 17 Gameplay Deep Dive - Ball Carrier Special Moves

Ball Carrier Special Moves

Each on-field player in the game will perform special moves that fits his playing style and ratings. Special moves are now spread out across all the different player-types in the NFL: Bruising backs have better trucks & stiff-arms while smaller backs have better jukes & spins and all are new animations for Madden NFL 17.

Based on the special-move ratings (and body weight in some cases), ball carriers will use an animation that ranges all the way from ‘Elite’ to ‘Lumbering’. Elite moves are the best moves Madden has to offer and are reserved for the truly upper-class ball carriers - those with the corresponding move rating in the 90’s. These moves give the runner the highest chance of success when timed correctly.

For those ball carriers with special-move ratings in the 70’s and 80’s, they’ll get versions of the special moves that aren’t quite as explosive as the elite moves, but can be effective nonetheless when timed correctly. These moves are a bit less efficient and highlight-worthy than the elite moves.

Also noteworthy is the impact fatigue can have on the special moves. When the ball carrier is completely out of stamina, the moves he will use will go down one level from his default – when an elite player runs out of gas, he’ll perform moves as if he’s rated in the 80’s instead of the 90’s – so make sure not to overuse that Acceleration Burst!

Fakeout Interaction System
To accompany the new special moves, the fakeout system has been overhauled to deliver a new experience to the ground game. When timing the special moves correctly, users can see and feel the power of new multi-player fakeout animations, with nearly a thousand possible outcomes.

What is a multi-player fakeout? It’s a dynamic animation that includes multiple players all at once based on their location. These can be 2 player interactions up to 6- player interactions, all depending on the type of move used, the ball carries skill level and the user’s own stick skills.

Being able to successfully fakeout defenders takes more than just timing. The user first must know his ball carrier and his best moves. In addition, recognizing where the defender or defenders are that you’re trying to evade is critical because each move has an ideal zone in which the success chance is increased:

Ball Carrier Mechanics

Madden NFL 17 will feature a broad cast of new Ball Carrier mechanics to keep all Madden players engaged, from beginners to the hard core. Using modifiers, there are now four unique tactics available to customize the running game. In combination with the Fakeout Interactions, all carry their own risks and rewards. The four special-move types are: Standard, Speed (RT/R2), Precision (LT/L2) & Steerable (RT/R2 + LT/L2).

Standard Moves – Standard moves are executed by simply pressing the button while NOT using either modifier. The ball carrier will perform a ‘standard’ move based on their special- move rating for the corresponding button-press: Spin, Stiff-Arm, Dive, Hurdle, Juke, Back Juke and Truck - all paid off with new animations for each. Standard moves carry the base risk for stamina, fumble and injury and can fakeout as many as two defenders at one time.

Speed Modifier – Speed Moves are short, quick moves that can be pulled off at full speed while not veering off the path the ball carrier is currently on. These moves are performed while holding or pressing R2/RT (Accel Burst) + the corresponding special-move button. Again, the quality of the move is based on the player’s ratings with all new animations. Users will now have to perfect the skill of laying off the gas pedal on RT/R2 and mix in changing up speeds when running the ball. Speed moves carry the lowest risk for stamina, fumble and injury and can fakeout one defender at a time.

Precision Modifier – Similar to Madden NFL 16, Precision Moves can be performed while holding or pressing the Precision Modifier on L2/LT + the corresponding special-move button. These moves are longer and more deliberate than Standard and Speed moves, but can fakeout multiple defenders at once – the better the running back is via his move-rating, the more explosive these moves will be. Precision moves carry the highest risk for stamina, fumble and injury.

Steerable Modifier & Utility Moves – For users with elite finger dexterity, most special moves can be steered by holding down both modifiers while performing a special move (L2 + R2 + Special-Move Button/LT + RT + Special-Move button). Steerable moves offer the most control due to the user having the ability to choose the direction of the move via LS input. However, these moves don’t use the fakeout interactions – they instead influence the defender’s pursuit angle. Steerable moves carry the base risk for stamina fumble and injury. Also, not all moves are steerable – here’s a list of applicable moves for reference:

Spin

Juke

Back Juke

Truck

Utility Moves – For the move-buttons that aren’t steerable – Dive and Stiff-Arm - they double as specific-use utility moves – using both modifiers + the corresponding button. Here’s a list of the utility moves:

Celebration Run – LT+RT / L2+ R2 + A/X

Ball Carrier Give-Up – LT+RT / L2+ R2 + Square/X

QB Slide – Tap X/Square or LT+RT / L2+ R2 + Square/X

Hurdle is not steerable, both modifiers result in a Precision Hurdle

Ball Carrier Accessibility and Visual Feedback

There’s some new tools available in Madden NFL 17 to make the user a better and more creative ball carrier, including recommended special-move prompts, projected path indicator, special-move feedback text and a setting-specific ball-carrier threat cone.

Recommended Special-Move Prompts – On Rookie and Pro by default, you’ll see special move prompts above the ball carrier that serve as a recommendation for both the proper move to use for your ball carrier’s skill. Since this is a recommendation, you can follow it and hit the given button, or free-style it and perform the move you want. These can be toggled ON/OFF via settings, but more on that to come.

Special-Move Feedback Text – On Rookie and Pro by default, when using the special-move mechanics, you’ll be given feedback text about your timing in the fakeout window – Early, Late or Perfect.

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Projected Path Indicator – On Rookie and Pro by default, there will be a path on the field showing the direction the ball carrier is currently headed based on the stick-input of the user. The path will help users anticipate obstacles when navigating through the line and visually assist by letting you see when you should turn to avoid the obstacles. This is best used to align your projected path with a hole in the line of scrimmage, then hit sprint (R2/RT) when the path is clear.

Ball Carrier Threat Cone – Used exclusively on the ‘Assist’ setting (more on that shortly), the threat cone is a visual indicator to show you the fakeout zones within the fakeout interaction system for the move being recommended to you.

All these new tools are meant to be teaching tools for users who want to get more comfortable running the ball and onboard users of all types into the new and improved run game experience.

New ways to Play: Ball Carrier Special-Move Settings

There are three unique ways to experience running the ball via the Ball Carrier Special Moves setting, which allows the user to customize the ground-game experience to his or her own liking:

Auto – When using the Auto setting, the AI will perform Ball Carrier Special Moves for the user, using the proper timing and with an increased emphasis on using the highest tiered moves for that player. this is meant to introduce you to the new mechanics and show you their power as your ramp up. The user just needs to steer the ball carrier into the open lanes and the AI will take care of the rest. The Auto setting will teach users the proper timing for the new special move mechanics as well as a full display of all visual feedback. This will be ON by default on Rookie and Pro skill levels and can be toggled ON/OFF for any skill level via the Gameplay Settings menu for all Offline game modes. For those that just want to optimize to the fun and wow moments, Auto Moves will be your new way to play.

Assist – When using the Assist setting, AI will determine the best type of move to use based on the button pressed by the user (Standard/Speed/Precision), as well as the best direction for the move. The Assist setting will allow the user to choose when to use a special move and what type of special move to use, but the user won’t have to use either modifier as the AI will choose the best move type possible for the situation. The Assist setting will also feature all the visual feedback of the Auto feature, but will show the user the Ball Carrier Threat Cone, which displays the range and direction in which the ball carrier is most likely to successfully fakeout a defender. This will be an option that can be toggled ON/OFF via the Gameplay Settings menu across all skill levels for any offline mode and will NOT be used by default on any skill levels.

Manual – When using the Manual setting, the user is in full control of all Ball Carrier special moves. This setting lets the user decide when to do a move, what move-type to use (Juke, Spin, Hurdle, Stiff Arm, Back Juke, Truck, etc.), the direction in which to execute the special move (Steerable) and when to use either modifier (Precision, Standard, Speed). There will be no visual feedback for the user when using manual and is tailored for more experienced users who want a fully customizable run-game experience. This setting will be ON be default on All-Pro and All-Madden, as well as all online game modes, but it can be toggled ON/OFF via the Gameplay Settings menu across all skill levels for Offline modes.

I left out one section so that I could make sure it gets more attention here. It's easily the sketchiest of the new features mentioned in the blog.

Tackle Battles

There’s also a new mechanic in the run game that can be used on both offense and defense – Tackle Battles. This is a twitch mechanic that gives uers the ball the ability to influence the outcome of tackles as both the ball carrier or the defender making the tackle.

Whenever a defender and ball carrier get locked up in a standing tackle, a random face-button will appear on screen – the first player in the tackle battle to hit that button, wins the tackle battle. For the defender, this means completing the tackle and for the ball carrier, a win is breaking the tackle. The size of the timing window and the frequency of tackle battles are determined by the ratings and styles of both players in the tackle battle. A bruiser running back is more likely to get a tackle battle with a linebacker than a cornerback.

I seriously hope this can be turned off. I'm not sure there will be a more rage inducing feature in online games, when you continually lose these battles to some kid, as he continues to take it to the house.

That said, a guy over at OS that has been playing the game mentioned this:

AFAIK tackle battle cannot be turned off. At least, it wasn't in the build we played.

I'll also offer a little extra information. It certainly does break you out of most tackle animations, but it also heavily penalizes you on speed and acceleration coming out of the battle, so the defense has the opportunity to clean up. It also does not pop up on every single tackle.

Hopefully this is not game killer.

The devs also released a deep look at the defensive side of the ball. I think this all looks fantastic.

Madden 17 Gameplay Deep Dive - Defensive Gaps and Run Fits

Defensive AI has gotten a complete reboot in Madden 17 for both run defense and pass defense. Not only has the coverage gotten an overhaul, but for the first time in Madden history, the defense will have a Defensive Gap control system that makes defending the run more engaging and authentic.

When implementing the run fits system, we installed it the same way the defensive coordinators install their defenses in the NFL – Alignment, Assignment and Technique – and what this amounts to is every defender on the field having a specific job to do on each play the user calls.

ALIGNMENT
IMAGE(https://media.easports.com/content/www-easports/en_US/madden-nfl/news/2016/madden-17-gameplay-run-fits-gap-assignments/_jcr_content/par/image.img.jpg)Cover 3 Defense vs. Gun Trips

The first step in upgrading the AI is ensuring that defenders are aligned in the correct place to give them the best chance at executing their jobs, thus the first piece of the run fits system is the new Defensive Auto-Flip feature.

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Cover 3 Defense vs. Gun Trips Flipped

The AI will automatically flip your defense when the offense flips so that your defense aligns to the proper strength in relation to the offensive formation they are seeing after the huddle break. When your defense has been flipped, you will see visual feedback in the Score HUD to tell you that your defense has been flipped, as well as what part of the defense was flipped (Entire defense, Coverage, Front).

And if you prefer to handle all the alignment yourself, the Auto-Flip feature can be toggled OFF via the Gameplay Settings menu; the user can also re-flip the play at the Line of Scrimmage just like in previous versions.

The different ways the defense can be flipped vary based on the type of play you call. Each play-type carries its own ‘flip rules’ and will align to different strengths of the offense. When aligning to the ‘Run Strength’, the entire defense will align to the side of the offense with the most TE’s or Fullbacks, or the ‘heaviest’ side of the offense. When aligning to ‘Pass Strength’, the entire defense will align to the side of the offense with the most eligible receivers. And lastly, when aligning in ‘Sub’, the defensive front will align to the run strength while the coverage will align to the pass strength. Here’s a quick breakdown of the flip rules:

- ‘Base’ defenses, such as 3-4, 4-3 & 46 align to run strength
- Sub coverage defenses, such as Dime, Nickel & Quarter align with Sub rules
- Sub Blitz defenses align to the pass strength

Assignment
The next step in the Run-Fits system is Defensive Gap assignments. All defenders, both in the NFL and Madden 17 have a specific responsibility on each play – this includes gap integrity for ‘run-fit’ defenders and coverage responsibility plus run-support for coverage defenders – making the play-calling experience more engaging and strategy-based than in previous iterations. The defenders now have AI and behaviors to execute the play called by the user and realize the intent of that decision, and these will be apparent to you both before and after the snap.

PRE-SNAP
The individual gap assignments come from the intent of each play and is completely dynamic, both before and after the snap, and even includes gap responsibilities for each defender for plays going in either direction. You can see the desired gaps before the play via Coach Cam Art by using the RS right/left to see the Run-Fit art for either direction.

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Run Right
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Run Left

The number of ‘run-fit’ defenders is completely dependent upon the specific play you call on defense. Defenders who are considered to be ‘run-fit’ defenders are the players that are ‘Run First’ players and the art will show where their fit is, which will dynamically update to match the formation of the offense. These are the players generally inside the tackle box and/or players who are critical to each specific play type (for example, in Cover 4 plays, all the defenders in the box will show as run-fit defenders, plus the two deep safeties are run-first players within this scheme). Some defenders will not have a run-fit or gap because they are ‘pass-first’ players, but will still react to the run and fill-in as support players when they confirm it’s not a pass play.

The decisions you make as the play-caller will have a big impact on your team’s ability to stop the run. Not all defenses fill every gap vs. every offensive formation – if the offense come out in Goal line Normal and your defense is in Quarter 3-Deep, there will be gaps that are not accounted for because the Quarter defense has more ‘pass-first’ players than it does ‘run-fit’ defenders.

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Quarters 3 Deep vs. Goaline

POST-SNAP
After the snap is where the new gap logic really separates itself from previous Madden iterations. Just because a defender is assigned to a gap pre-snap doesn’t mean he’s locked to that gap for the remainder of the play. Each defender has AI that allows him to update his gap and react to the war in the trenches to fill the open lanes created by the blockers as the play develops. This AI relies heavily on the Play Recognition Rating.

Based on the PRC rating, defenders will be faster or slower in reading the play and finding the right gap to fill. Each player that is not blitzing will start the play in an assignment we call ‘Read and React’. You can see this in action with our new Read and React movement animations, which has players strafing laterally in a controlled state as they read the play, while also leveraging their assigned gaps. Even defenders who are on the line of scrimmage, but not blitzing, will use this assignment to read the play before attempting to make a play. The higher the player’s PRC rating is, the faster he will be able to break out of his read and react assignment and fill the gap he’s targeting. In combination with the ratings of the DL as they engage the OL, a defense with higher cumulative ratings will be more successful at defending the run than lower rated defenses.

Because of the new Run-Fits system and Gap logic, users on the defensive side of the ball will have the ability to use strategy and realistic football concepts to counter running plays that their opponent uses regularly.

TECHNIQUE
The improved AI doesn’t just stop with gaps. Not only do defenders now have a gap to play, but they also have a technique in which to play that gap. As any football fan knows, the defense can’t just get in a gap and shut down the offense. The defenders also have to take that gap with an intent, and in Madden ’17 we now reflect that with new run-fit techniques they will use to play their gaps authentically: Force, Cutback, Fill, Jet, Crack-Replace and 2-Gap

FORCE
The Force Defender is something Madden fans have been wanting for a long time and Madden 17 delivers. The Force player is essentially the outside contain defender to the playside – his job is to ‘force’ the run back to the inside where his teammates are to make the tackle. He tries to play his gap in a way that ensures he doesn’t get beat to the outside and this is reflected by new Force specific blocking animations. So when you want to stop the outside run in M17, call a play with a Force player. Again, just like the defensive gaps, the playcall matters. Not every defense has a force a player, so you’ll want to make sure you are familiar with the plays that have the force player in an advantageous positions to force the run. You can see the Force player by toggling the run-fit play-art – he will be denoted by an ‘F’ icon above his head.

The effectiveness of the Force player is based again on the PRC rating. The higher the PRC rating, the faster the Force player will break into his force assignment. Once he is blocked, Strength and Block Shed will determine his success chance vs. the blocker.

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Cover 2 Zone Force Defender

CUTBACK
The Cutback defender is the inverse of the Force player – his job is to play conservatively on the backside of the play so that he is in position to make the tackle if the ball carrier cuts it back away from the playside. The Cutback player can be DL, LB or DB, it just depends on the specific play called. The higher the PRC rating, the more conservative he will play. You can see the Cutback player by toggling the run-fit play-art – he will be denoted by a ‘C’ icon above his head.

FILL
Fill players are the rest of the run-fit defenders who are not Force, Cutback or blitzers. Their job is based on where they are positioned relative to the direction of the run. The fill player to the playside, inside of the Force player, will look to attack his gap with outside leverage similar to the force player – he also does not want to get beat to the outside. The Fill player inside of him will attack his gap with inside leverage and look to make the ball carrier make a decision – either cut back to the Cutback player, or run right into the Force or opposite Fill player. Working together as a unit, the Force, Fill and Cutback players try to make a funnel to force the RB into the teeth of the defense. Again, the play rec. rating determines how successful and efficient these players are.

JET
Jet players are blitzers – they can be on the line or off – but their job is simple; aggressively run at the assigned gap with the intent to penetrate. These players are denoted with red playart lines via Coach Cam.

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CRACK-REPLACE
This assignment really shows the dynamic nature of the run-fits system. The Crack-Replace defender is a player whose primary job is to support the Force player. He’s not originally in the run-fit and won’t show play-art as such, but he has a job to do in the run regardless. When the Force player gets blocked, or ‘cracked’ by a blocking WR, this player must recognize and read the offense and take over the Force assignment – and it’s all done dynamically. When there is a defensive back outside or behind the force player, he will become the ‘Crack-Replace’ – if you are in a defense where the Force player is on an island, you won’t get the benefit of having a crack-replace player. So again, we’ll emphasize that the play you call matters!

2-GAP
Madden 17 will feature 2-gap players for the first time in its history. A 2-gap player is responsible to cover both adjacent gaps – so he will play the block straight up and try to engage the blocker down the middle so he can read the play and then make a decision on which direction to shed. The 2-gap assignment is an AI-assigned technique and used primarily by players on the line of scrimmage in an ‘Even’ alignment (meaning they are aligned head up on an offensive lineman). 2-gap players can be found most commonly in Base Odd fronts (like 3-4).

BLOCKING
To provide the proper balance for the ground war, many blocking improvements have been made as part of the run-fits feature, with an emphasis on zone blocking AI and animations.

With defenders now working to fill gaps created by the blockers, outside zone and stretch-type plays look and feel more like their real-world counterparts, with the defense getting stretched laterally. This creates lanes for the ball carrier to read and gaps for the run-fit defenders to fill. With the new ball carrier mechanics, finding the cutback lane that has not been accounted for by the defense has never felt more rewarding.

You will also see new laterally moving blocks, such as zone steps, reach blocks, double teams, cut blocks and force blocks that will make you feel ground war just like you see on Sundays. Blockers also have a job to do to execute the intent of the play, so you’ll see the blockers performing their blocking assignments to meet that expectation.

My take so far is that the devs feel like I do, that the gameplay of Madden over the last two iterations has really been on point. Right now they are just enhancing it with better AI and more options for the user. The game looks and feels great already. These additions will hopefully make it feel even more realistic as you play.

Now if I can just find a group of XB1 Goodjers to start a league with...

27 Ways Madden NFL 17 Wants To Fix Money Plays, Ratings & More

One of my favorites is the first one listed.

A new section of the playcalling menu called Run/Pass Counters lets you pick areas of the field where you're getting beat. Someone keeps dinging you with RB passes to the flat? Go to Run/Pass Counters>Pass Counters>Short Passes Outside. This brings you to the new zones like a Cover 2 Hard Flat where the linebacker matches the player going out to that area of the field. If you commit to the flat you can get burned elsewhere, so you still have to anticipate your opponent's moves and call the right plays.

In Madden 16, while playing online in MUT and DC, I find myself scouring the playbook in game to stop something my opponent is doing. I almost always find it, but it can be hard to nail down. This could help speed up that process.

More importantly, it might stop the incessant cries of of cheese in games. While, yes, a guy spamming the same plays over and over is annoying, if you can't stop it, why should they change? And in the current game, there are ways to stop everything, regardless of what you may have heard from others. So making it more intuitive to find those solutions should help everyone feel more comfortable in the strategic part of the game.

I just want Madden back on PC. Been so long

Always look forward to a new Madden.

I got this from OS Sports. It's a list of most of the gameplay videos made by an assortment of Youtubers invited to EA Play to record their footage. I think, it looks pretty great.

There has also been a lot more information blogged by EA about the new game that I will try to get to. But all signs point to this being a stellar release.

Madden 17 Gameplay Videos from EA Play:

Gameplay and Features from MoonlightSwami

Commentary and Presentation from Moonlight Swami

Gameplay from Two Brothers Gaming

Presentation and Commentary from Two Brothers Gaming

Gameplay Cam Dabbing by QJB

Gameplay Blocking a FG by QJB

Gameplay, Presentation, and Commentary by Simfballcritic

Best Madden 17 plays of EA Play by Simfballcritic

Gameplay by JayOh

Commentary & Presentation by JayOh

Packers Bears Gameplay by MaddenDaily

Titans Rams Gameplay by GoodGameBro

Commentary highlights by MrPrice33

Gameplay Overview by MrPrice33

Started the EA Access trial last night on my XBox One. So far so good, I like the new running game feel although I have yet to get a hang of the quicktime event-like button presses to execute moves.

Only about an hour into the trial so much left to evaluate.

ANother year - another Madden. Ready to play - I like what I'm hearing. Wish there was a GWJ League again.

I think I will try to get one rolling. I am playing in one with Frankie and Ruthless, who used to post here more and were part of our old 2K leagues.

But they like to move pretty fast, advancing several times a week. It's a fun way to play if you have time. Everyone from the league gets in party chat and plays there games at the same time, usually in the early evenings, and we might get two games in while everyone chats about what they are doing, which can be really fun for the H2H games. But that's a bad time for me.

There is also a league with some guys from DSP I play with that is much more casual. We just finished up the last season with 16 and will start up anew. I'm kind of anxious to take a team and relocate it to St. Louis in year two.

The game is absolutely solid. Lots of modes, improved mechanics, improved defense, improved running, and MUT has been improved even more.

And for NCAA fans, Madden has re-introduced formation subs like we had in our Goodjer Dynasties. Lots of folks are posting that the gameplay feels like NCAA now, too.

League or no league, this is a great year to jump back into Madden. There are lots of ways to enjoy the game. Draft Champions is back, MUT has brought back the Salary Cap mode which makes playing H2H with your favorite players more fun and fair than ever.

We'll see how many folks pick it up. I did see that 51 folks on my friends list have played, so there is a good shot.

Well, this is some welcome news.

If you have any room in a league I'd be interested in playing.

If you need someone to occupy the bottom of the standings, I'd be interested in a casual league.

I do like to have company while a suck scum as I dwell on the bottom.

I think I will crank up a Goodjer league. I'd like some input on what folks want.

From playing a lot of MUT the last few years, I'm more okay with shorter quarters. I think the default is 6 minutes. But when I'm playing more sim, I've run with 13 minutes, with a run-off to 15. I'm good with either, or anywhere in between.

Would we want to group us up in one or two divisions, or spread out? It depends on how many human games you want.

As for advancing, I prefer it to be semi-casual. Generally we will give everyone a week, but if folks get done, we'll roll early. If folks need more time, in particular if they are playing H2H, then we wait.

I wouldn't mind doing a fantasy draft and have us each create our own team, but using official rosters I fine, too.

I'm flexible. Whatever folks want to do I'm good with.

I'm interested in a league too. I pretty much guarantee I will be at the bottom of the standings.

If you're serious about a league, I maybe able to be presuaded to buy 17

I will get a league up and going today, then.

I am going to go with 13 minutes and a run off to 15 seconds. The goal is generally about 120 plays from scrimmage, give or take. If this feels like a slog or less than fun, I'm open to change.

Unless there is a lot of support for a fantasy draft, I'll just start it with default rosters.

I'm going to run it on All-Pro, and leave sliders as default. Again, if we want to change them, we can do it as we move on. I don't mind adjusting things, but I'm not so invested I will wait on some magical sliders, nor feel a need to start over.

Let's give everyone a week to get the game and signed up?

Sounds good. How long does that make an average game last?

Just played a game using quick presentation, beating Dallas with KC 15-10. It took56 minutes.

There is a game killing bug that needs to be fixed before going forward. I won't name it, as it is something that gives the User Offense a huge advantage, both versus the CPU and head to head. And if you don't know it, you can still enjoy playing.

I will say that it is simple enough that I expect it to be fixed by next week.

Jayhawker wrote:

Let's give everyone a week to get the game and signed up?

I'm totally new to this. How do I get signed up?

Yeah, I should have mentioned that. I think the easiest way are for folks to claim teams in the thread, and then make sure I have you gamertag. I will send out invites.

And this is on XB1.

I am going to take the Chiefs. My gamertag is JayhawkerStL.

I'll take the Broncos. Gamer tag is sneekypete78

I'll take the Steelers. We can use any playbook we want right? I don't mean custom, I mean something like Tampa's offense and 4-6 Defense as opposed to the Team defaults.

Yeah, I'm not too worried about playbook at this point.

Great. I typically play each year with the same 3 or 4 playbooks that I've used for years and am very comfortable with. Looking forward to this. My first non-Peyton Manning year and I am in uncharted territory.

I'll take the Cowboys. Gamertag is erichoya

Just a heads up that I think it is best to wait for the first patch to come out to create the league. Since we haven't started yet, I'd rather make sure the patch doesn't break the leagues. But before anything close to competitiveness occurs, there is one simple fix they need to put in.

The devs have said it is fixed and will be in the first patch. Rumor is that patch is already in the certification process.

To be clear, if you figure out the glitch, it ruins all modes of play, against the CPU or humans. I kind of wish I did not know about it. So go googling at your own risk.

In that case I will hold off buying till it's fixed and a league is confirmed

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