PlayStation LifeStyle » Madden

Madden 12 Demo Touches Down in August

Joseph Peterson — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 18:44:10 +0000

During August, football fans wait in eager anticipation for what is known as the “Madden Holiday“. Essentially, this is the time where many Madden fans take the launch day off of work to play the newest entry into the series non-stop. Those looking to get their hands on the demo of this year’s Madden title don’t have that much longer to wait. Especially considering that this year’s game looks to be a great one for football fans.

The demo will feature a game of four five minute quarters for you to play through with two selectable teams. Football fans will recognize the game immediately as the NFC Championship game between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears. The demo will be available for download on August 9th, which is a little over a week away. Remember to get your copy of Madden NFL 12 when it does release this coming August 30th.

Will you be taking a “Madden Holiday” when you pick the game up on release?

PLAY This – Xperia Play Launch Titles Reviewed

Paulmichael Contreras — Fri, 27 May 2011 23:16:32 +0000

The time is upon us in the United States. The Xperia Play has officially launched at Verizon Wireless stores across the country, after being available for pre-order last week online. While the phone may have disappointed some with its hardware specifications, there are still plenty of people who see this smartphone as a unique gaming-centric device. Curious how the launch games perform on this phone? Find out in our newest feature after the break.

First on our list: Asphalt 6: Adrenaline. For the uninitiated, it’s the latest entry in Gameloft‘s popular arcade racer. It features drifting, numerous shortcuts per track, nitrous for quick boosting, and combat in the form of shunting opponents off the road. The game controls decently with regular smartphone controls, as do most games in this genre via just an accelerometer. But Asphalt 6 does include support for the left analog touchpad on the Play. While it takes a bit getting used to, the touchpad has quickly become my preferred method of driving. You can also use the d-pad without changing control schemes. One of the only gripes with this control scheme, at least in my experience, is that holding down the X button to accelerate can get tiring in career mode, and there is no option to change the button layout to your liking. Still, there is a lot of gameplay here included on your phone, and it will definitely help you get used to the subtleties of using the analog touchpad. The soundtrack is a bumping techno collection, and it really showcases just how great the stereo speakers hidden in the Xperia Play are. There is also multiplayer via Gameloft Live, but be forewarned – the people who play this game online are usually hardcore vets of the series with Lamborghinis, Bugattis and other supercars. Only go online once you’ve unlocked a supercar or if you plan to play in a private match. That is, unless you like having your ass handed to you.

Verdict: PLAY

Next is Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior. It’s a fairly standard fighter, with graphics that are well above the PlayStation Portable. You start off with only two fighters and one arena to choose from, and must earn the rest from the career mode. The career mode has a decent storyline to go along with it, so it isn’t just fight after fight. Fighting fans will probably be appeased, though it will leave you awaiting with bated breath for a more thorough fighter such as Street Fighter or Tekken. Regardless, the game controls extremely well using the directional pad and face buttons. Combos are easily performed, and of course this game is likely nearly unplayable on regular smartphones without being on nearly autopilot for many of the combos. Sadly, there are no multiplayer options here, as it’s just you against the computer.

Verdict: PLAY

Third, you have the original Crash Bandicoot. This is the first of many promised PlayStation One classics planned for the Xperia Play. It was crafted just under 15 years ago by Naughty Dog, well before they developed the genre-busting Uncharted series. It runs in Sony‘s own isolated emulator, and by runs I mean absolutely screams. It is always locked at a constant, high framerate, with no stuttering whatsoever. There are numerous control options, so you are likely to find your best setup here. Playing this game can remind you of how demanding oldschool games were – some levels require exact timing in your jumps. Play this game for instant nostalgia.

Verdict: PLAY

Sports buffs may be looking forward to the inclusion of EA‘s Madden 11 on the Xperia Play. Unfortunately, this is easily one of the worst of the bunch of games preloaded on the phone. The graphics would hardly look out of place on the DS, and the audio is atrocious. Sure, you have John Madden’s likeness as one of the game’s two commentators, but when all you hear during the rest of gameplay is an extremely repetitive crowd, playing through an entire game can become quite tedious. Also, some portions of Madden 11 are touchscreen only, such as when selecting a play. It’s not all a lost cause, however – the game does control well enough with the touchpad and buttons, and there is even a season mode and roster management. For those really pining for a properly-conrolling football game, my suggestion is to start a music player app before launching Madden, turn the crowd noise volume as far down as possible, and play a decent game of ugly-looking football while rocking out to your own tunes. Everyone else should wait until a better version of this or something else comes along.

Verdict: Skip

Enter Star Battalion. It’s a sci-fi flight action game, another entry by Gameloft. There is a story mode, but it is hard to care about the characters or why you’re destroying a particular set of enemies since the story feels a bit rushed. But the game does boast pretty largescale battles, with countless AI-controlled characters duking it out. Control is done via either the directional pad or both analog touchpads, which is a nice offering to ease you into getting used to the new input method. The framerate stays nice and solid, and dogfights can actually get pretty intense. There is multiplayer here much like in Gameloft’s other launch title Asphalt, but there hardly seems to be anyone online. Perhaps that will change when more people get their hands on the Play, but the game seems a bit niche to begin with. This is a good game to get used to the analog control scheme with, especially considering it is included on your phone at no additional charge.

Verdict: PLAY

Up next, we have The Sims 3 from EA. If you are a fan of the series, you will probably be entertained by this game. You control one Sim at a time, and tend to their needs as they present themselves. Analog control is supplemented by smart usage of the touchscreen, and since this game has many different elements to it and things to manipulate, you will make good use of both the gamepad and screen. Customization is a bit light for characters, but there are more options for the house your Sims live in. It’s obviously a very causal game, so look to The Sims 3 if you have a few minutes to spare and don’t really want to play something fast-paced.

Verdict: PLAY

Last but certainly not least is the classic Tetris, the third entry from EA. This game is not located in the Xperia Play application that by default launches when you open up the phone. This seems odd at first, given that even when you install other games from other marketplaces many of them show up here. But once you launch the app from your favorite launcher and get past the title splash logos, the reason why this game does not show up in Sony’s app becomes painfully obvious – the game does not have any option to control it with the gamepad! That’s right, it is touchscreen only. Sure, the touch controls are done amicably, and Tetris is easy enough by nature that this control scheme is serviceable. But still, a touch-only interface can and does get clunky here. When the action speeds up, it becomes increasingly harder to accurately lay town those tetrminoes. Besides the traditional “Marathon” mode, you are also given a “Magic” mode which contains various goals and items to add variety to an old game. At the very least you have a preloaded game to play when you’re too lazy to open the gamepad or don’t want to answer a random passerby’s question of just what kind of phone that is you’re playing with.

Verdict: PLAY

So there you have it. The Xperia Play has a huge potential as you can see in Asphalt, Bruce Lee, and Crash Bandicoot. Ultimately, the most fun will be had here in those titles, while Madden 11 will only be played by football fanatics and Star Battalion is a niche genre definitely not for everyone – though it does control and play quite well. Future editions of this feature will showcase (in greater depth) a single new game alongside a verdict similar to what you see above. Let us know your thoughts or any specific Android games you would like to be analyzed on the Xperia Play in the comments below!

PLAY This is a new feature focusing on the many titles available on the Xperia PLAY, Sony Ericsson’s new PlayStation Certified smartphone.

Madden NFL 12′s Franchise Mode Fully Detailed

Mitchell Sellar — Tue, 17 May 2011 00:22:00 +0000

EA Sports’ Madden NFL series has long been one of the most popular in video games. In fact a June 2008 article appearing in Forbes Magazine listed the Top 10 best selling video games to that date and the Madden NFL series took four of the ten spots (coming in at positions three, five, seven and ten. For those interested, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas snared the top spot). Since then every yearly iteration in the series has become a multi-million unit seller with the fan favourite Franchise Mode certainly acting as a driving force to that end. The Franchise Mode feature allows gamers to play through multiple seasons with a team while micro-managing specifics such as depth charts, player salaries and trades, concession prices and much more. Today EA Sports released full details on the new additions they have made to the ever popular feature.

The most lauded new franchise mode feature announced for Madden NFL 12 thus far goes by the moniker of ‘Dynamic Player Performance’ and will have a direct impact on player performance come virtual Sunday (Or virtual Monday Night. For that matter virtual Thursday and Saturday as well as the season progresses, but I digress). Each player will be assigned a ‘Consistency’ ranking and throughout the course of the season and their career this will affect their overall player rating. Senior Designer on Madden NFL 12 Josh Looman described the feature on the EA Sports Blog:

One week you might get the 90 overall Michael Vick and the next week you might get the 70 overall Michael Vick. Or you could just get the 80 overall Michael Vick.
If a player is very consistent, their ratings will only change slightly each week and you’ll typically always know what you’re getting (example: Peyton Manning or Tom Brady).

Tendency and trait progression will also allow some players to improve their consistency as their careers move forward providing a light at the end of the tunnel for teams (see: Carolina) who take a shot at a Quarter Back with a high upside (See: Cam Newton). In-game performance may also set players on a hot or cold streak for as many as three consecutive games, increasing or decreasing ratings respectively.

Other changes to the Franchise Mode revolve around roster management. Besides promised tweaks such as letting players edit the ratings of any player in the franchise, improvements to the player injury and rookie scouting systems and expanded pre-season rosters (now up to seventy-five players before regular season cuts) perhaps the most captivating new roster management feature is the reworked Free Agent Bidding. In fact the new process for landing those big off-season acquisitions is actually a throw back to the system used in EA’s doomed NFL spin-off NFL Head Coach 09. This year, players will need to remain alert and aware of their salary cap space as they navigate through an interactive bidding space with 31 other teams bidding against them in real time. Be too slow to pull the trigger on a deal and that All-Pro Left End will sign with a division rival and your Quarter Back will be none too happy. It may not be a ground breaking advancement but it does appear to be something fans of the series have been asking to return.

EA Sports is touting a plethora of other additions to this year’s game such as Coach impacts, reworked player award and retirement logic, fine tuned weather patterns and simulation stats as well as the ability to practice, trade future draft picks and even change teams every year if your fickle heart desires. However, it is another throwback feature that seems to have evoked the most interest from the devoted Madden community and this time it goes all the way back to the previous generation of consoles. That feature is Player Roles. This feature means that players on a team will be labelled with individual ‘Roles’, some good and some not quite as appealing. Examples given include a player with the role of ‘Mentor’ increasing the ratings of younger players on the team and a defender with the role of ‘Shutdown Corner’ not only seeing a boost to his own ratings but also a decrease to those of the opposing Quarter Back. There are meant to be in excess of twenty unique Player Roles in Madden NFL 12 ranging from ‘Fumble Prone’ or ‘Quarter Back of the Future’ to ‘Playoff Performer’ and ‘Franchise Quarter Back’. Be wary though, as these assigned roles are not to be taken for granted. Season performance will dictate if a player will retain or lose his Player Role going into the following year or even change from ‘Iron Man’ to ‘Injury Prone’.

The National Football League is currently in the midst of a player lockout, but still Electronic Arts has Madden NFL 12 slated for release on August 30th 2011 regardless of whether the actual NFL season moves forward or not. For many fans of the NFL the Madden game is the only sure gridiron fix coming in the immediate future, particularly since the current NFL lockout has forced the NFL to extend its exclusivity deal with EA through the 2012 season. Many football gamers were interested to see whether 2K Sports would be able to make a return to the video game football world after the 2011 season but now we’ll have to wait another year longer to see if that world will once again become a competitive environment or if EA Sports will ink a further extension to the arrangement.

Did EA add everything you were looking for in your franchise mode? Or are you still left wanting for further additions and/or improvements? Let us know and discuss in the comments below, and feel free to chime in with your thoughts on EA Sports’ exclusivity deal as we know the Madden vs 2K debate is still a hot topic even nearly seven years removed from 2K sports’ last NFL foray, ESPN NFL 2K5.

Amazon Tackles Madden 12 With $20 Credit

Joseph Peterson — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 21:36:04 +0000

Although Madden is the king of football already, and voting for the current cover athlete is already underway, there is no reason that we can’t receive a great pre-order incentive right? Well, it seems as if Amazon has stepped up and offered a fantastic deal to an already fantastic gaming series.

Amazon is already pretty well known to gamers given the fact that they give a lot of pre-order “credits” to a lot of big name AAA titles. They don’t disappoint with the upcoming Madden 12 either, offering a whopping $20 credit to get your pre-order for this years entry into the only NFL game on the market. Now for the real question, will you be taking advantage of this?

EA Being Sued By Gamers Due to Football License Exclusivity

Paulmichael Contreras — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 01:06:12 +0000

There was once a time when EA Sports was not the only company that you could get your officially-licensed NFL football game. But that all changed in December 2004, when EA signed a deal with the NFL that gave exclusive rights to use the license in its video games. Two gamers had signed a lawsuit against the company, and it looks like the suit may finally be headed to court.

Two gamers from Washington, D.C. filed a class-action lawsuit against Electronic Arts. The lawsuit’s central argument was that EA’s deal with the NFL should be considered “blatantly anticompetitve conduct.” This is mostly based on EA’s actions before nabbing the exclusivity license and after. In 2004, when no company had said license, Take-Two Interactive released NFL 2K5 for a low $19.99 price. EA responded by selling Madden 2005 at $29.95 instead of its original price of $49.95. NFL 2K5 went on to sell over 2.9 million copies, a dramatic increase from NFL 2K4‘s sales of under 450,000 copies. In a controversial move later that year, EA signed an agreement with the NFL which gave the Madden series exclusive rights to use the license. Madden 2006 went on to sell at the then-normal price of $49.99, while Take-Two didn’t have another football game entry until 2007′s All-Pro Football 2K8, which proceeded to sell around 275,000 copies. Steve Berman, the lawyer assigned to the suit, has stated their side to the case:

We believe EA forced consumers to pay an artificial premium on Madden NFL videogames… We intend to prove that EA could inflate prices on their sports titles because these exclusive licenses restrained trade and competition for interactive sports software.

The suit is also seeking payment for damages to anyone who has purchased an Electronic Arts football game since August 2005. If you’d like to add your name to the list of plaintiffs, you can do so here.

A judge recently allowed the lawsuit (originally filed in mid-2008) to proceed, so if the ruling is handed down the way the plaintiffs desire, we may see the NFL license declared null and void and perhaps even a licensed version of NFL 2K someday. Stay connected with PlayStation LifeStyle for more on this as it (slowly) develops.

NPD August Numbers: PS3 Up, Madden Rushes Ahead

Paulmichael Contreras — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 19:27:16 +0000

The NPD Group releases monthly statistics for video game consoles (among other things). The numbers for August are in for the United States, and the PlayStation 3 showed growth in console sales.

As can be seen in the graph above (and further explained in the raw numbers below), the PlayStation 3 was the only console to see any positive change in the number of consoles shipped from July to August. Xbox 360 numbers are still the strongest of the group, however that console also saw the largest decrease in sales, with an almost 20% drop in hardware sales compared to July. The PS3 only saw a 5.3% increase in sales, but once again this was the only console that saw positive growth from July to August. Below are the numbers for consoles sold in August:

Xbox 360 – 356,700
DS – 342,700
Wii – 244,300
PS3 – 226,000
PSP – 79,400

The PSP dipped by around 5K units compared to July. Overall, the industry is doing a bit worse than the same time last year: compared to August 2009, software sales were down 14.4% from $471.2M to $403.5M.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days did not sell well enough to make the top-20 list on either platform. Madden NFL 11, on the other hand, saw combined sales of 1.8 million copies sold between the PS3 and Xbox 360 version, up 12.5% (200K copies) from August 2009′s 1.6 million units for Madden NFL 10. The game took the top spot for the 20 best-selling games for August 2010:

Madden NFL 11 (Xbox 360) – 920.8K
Madden NFL 11 (PS3) – 893.6K
Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii) – 124.6K
Mafia II (Xbox 360) – 121.6K
New Super Mario Bros. (DS) 110.4K
New Super Mario Bros. (Wii)
Mafia II (PS3)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360) (101K)
NCAA Football 11 (Xbox 360) (87K)
Wii Fit Plus (Wii)
Just Dance (Wii)
Red Dead Redemption (360)
Pokemon SoulSilver (DS)
Madden NFL 11 (Wii)
NCAA Football 11 (PS3)
Wipeout: The Game (Wii)
Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
Dragon Quest IX (DS)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3)
Mario Kart DS (DS)

So while the PS3 may have placed fourth this month, it still showed growth and with the Move launching this month those numbers may very well be higher when the September numbers have been tallied.

PlayStation Release Horizon 08/09/10

Kishen Patel — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 15:47:17 +0000

Anyone else notice the eight, nine, ten in the date? Lets add an 11 to it so we can get a good ol’ kick-off countdown going (despite counting upwards). While the puns and hints offered here will most likely only be intercepted by the American audience, one has to appreciate said sports game for being the biggest sports game franchise in the video game universe, selling over 75 million copies worldwide. Still clueless as to what this week’s blockbuster release is? Check the full release list to find out!

PS3 -

Madden NFL 11 (08/10)
Scott Pilgrim vs The World (08/10)

PSP -

Madden NFL 11 (08/10)

PS2 -

No new releases

Is the American sport of football in your PlayStation’s forgettable future? Tell us in the comments below along with what your favorite NFL team is along with who we think is going to go all the way. On a side note, do you believe in the “Madden curse“”?

You Can Still Score On These Madden 11 Pre-Order Deals

Paulmichael Contreras — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 20:32:16 +0000

The king of the NFL game crown, Madden 11, releases this Tuesday. If you have yet to pre-order a copy, it might not be too late. Three retailers are still running pre-order deals, and one of them involves chips. Details after the jump.

Mmm...Doritos

Seen above is Target’s ad. If you purchase Madden 11 from Target as well as two specially-marked/flavored bags of Doritos (either Stadium Nacho or Tailgate BBQ), you can receive a $10 Target gift card. To top things off, the Doritos also include codes to be entered in-game to redeem for Adrian Peterson DLC. Alternatively, you can order the game online for $49.99 ($39.99 for the PSP or PS2 versions).

Up next, electronics giant Best Buy currently has three rewards for you if you pre-order Madden 11 through them. You can pick from a slew of other games to buy for 50% off when ordering at the same time as Madden 11. There are some great titles here as well, including God of War III, Assassin’s Creed II, Just Cause 2 and many more. Those of you enrolled in Best Buy’s RewardZone program might be enticed with 500 bonus points for pre-ordering. And arcade junkies will surely appreciate a voucher you’ll receive to download NFL Arcade on the same platform that you pre-order.

Finally, online retailer Amazon.com has a $20 voucher for your next video game purchase with your name on it if you pre-order Madden 11 with them instead. The PSP and PS2 versions come with a $10 voucher and are priced at $39.99. So now, finding these pre-order deals should be easy. The hard part? Deciding which deal is for you. Better be quick, the game releases in just a few days this Tuesday!

New Madden 11 PSP Bundle Tackles Retailers

Thomas Williams — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 23:36:05 +0000

Have you been waiting all this time to finally buy a PlayStation Portable? Now’s your chance! With Football season starting in no time, Sony and EA have teamed up to offer a touchdown of a deal for the PSP 3000 and Madden NFL 2011 on the PSP. The best part about this deal is the price and it’s quite the ‘first down’ of a quality deal.

The PSP 3000 by itself runs around $169.99 brand new about anywhere you go. Starting August 10th, the Madden NFL 2011 PSP 3000 Bundle will cost you $169.99 and that comes with the FREE copy of Madden NFL 2011 packed-in! Plus hey, if you don’t want Madden 2011, you could always visit your favorite local game store and trade it in for any of the top 25 games on the PSP. You might not want to trade it in though, as EA is promising that this years Madden will be one of the best ever!

If you’re new to the PSP scene, then check out our PSP Review section for some of the best PSP reviews around. Make sure to check back for our review on Madden NFL 2011 when the games invades the masses starting next week. Ain’t no fever like Madden Fever! BOOM!

Madden NFL 2011 Soundtrack Sacks Your Ears with Over 20 Songs

Thomas Williams — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 12:47:16 +0000

Every year, millions of NFL fans run to their local Gaming store of choice to pickup the newest and improved Madden game. Ever year, thousands of bands do their damnest to be included on the ‘EA Trax’ soundtrack, because hey, even I’ll admit, I’ve bought a few CDs due to a song being played a million times while I ‘got my game on’. This years latest slew of songs is a bit of a change though. Gone is the mix of indie and well known rock, as this year it’s being replaced with a nice mix of classic rock, a bit of rap, covers of some famous tunes, and even a few team’s fight songs. Oh yeah, Madden fans get ready to rock this August 10th with this soundtrack as we have all 23 songs for you to check out.

Original Recordings:

AC/DC – Thunderstruck
Archie Eversole – We Ready
Blur – Song 2
Bush – Machinehead
Guns N’ Roses – Welcome to the Jungle
Kevin Rudolf featuring Lil’ Wayne – Let It Rock
Kiss – Rock and Roll All Nite
Ozzy Osbourne – Let Me Hear You Scream
Ozzy Osbourne – Crazy Train
The Hives – Tick Tick Boom
Todd Rundgren – Bang the Drum
Ying Yang Twins featuring Homebwoi – Halftime

Cover Versions:

Rock N Roll Part 2 – as made famous by Gary Glitter
We Will Rock You – as made famous by Queen
Crowd Chant – as made famous by Joe Satriani
Kernkraft 400 – as made famous by Zombie Nation

Team Fight Songs:

Chicago Bears – Bear Down Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions – Gridiron Heroes
Green Bay Packers – Go Packers Go!
Miami Dolphins – Miami Dolphins #1
Minnesota Vikings – Skol Vikings
Philadelphia Eagles – Fly Eagles Fly
Washington Redskins – Hail to the Redskins

While I’m a bit disappointed that there isn’t any indie bands represented, I’m certainly down with the classic and current rock songs they choose. What do you music fans think? Did EA ‘sellout’ too much?

Oh, by the way, Lions fans, just because they included your fight song in the game doesn’t mean your team is going to win the Super Bowl anytime soon. Had to give you a friendly reminder!

The ‘Summer sales monster’ that is Madden NFL 2011 arrives this August 10th, with promised improvements to make the game more accessible for casual gamers and this years rookie class, plus an improved online mode, Madden fans will be most pleased.

This Week in PlayStation – April 30th

Kyle P. — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 18:24:28 +0000

As announcements for new games and hardware come and go, it’s easy to lose sight of the momentous events that shaped the gaming world into what it is today. This Week in PlayStation highlights Sony’s rich videogame heritage, which dates back to the 1980′s. Step back in time with us as we put the spotlight on events big and small that have significantly altered the gaming culture.

This Week in PlayStation April 24th – April 30th

April 24th

2007 - The latest iteration of the long-standing Medal of Honor series (first making its debut on the PlayStation in 1999), now has a release date! Medal of Honor Airborne is set to parachute into retailers August 28th.
2008 - What could arguably be one of the most underrated titles on the PlayStation 3, Valkyria Chronicles, gets its first release in the Japanese territory. The North American and European versions will arrive months later.
2009 - In what would signal a coming trend, EA reveals that two athletes will grace the cover of Madden 2010 this year. Both Troy Polamalu and Larry Fitzgerald will have to share the coveted spot.

April 25th

2006 - PS2 airplane gamers shake with excitement as Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War hits North American retailers.
2008 - In what would not turn out to be his last season, EA announces that Brett Favre is the cover athlete for Madden 2009.

April 26th

2007 - With a 24% jump over the previous year, Ubisoft announces its yearly fiscal report, which topped €680 million.

April 27th

2004 - North American fans of the the Onimusha series finally get their hands on the latest PlayStation 2 installment of the popular franchise: Onimusha 3: Demon Siege.
2009 - In a move that would be highly questioned (primarily by the series’ hardcore fans), Sony announces that Uncharted 2: Among Thieves will feature online multiplayer modes.

April 28th

2006 - Following his Heisman Trophy win, Electronic Arts names Reggie Bush as the cover athlete for NCAA Football 2007.
2008 - Continuing the long Prince of Persia legacy, Ubisoft reveals development of the newest PoP title, which is scheduled to release in the holiday season.

April 29th

2004 - Thanks to strong sales from Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell™: Pandora Tomorrow, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Tim and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six 3, Ubisoft reports profits for the previous year to be € 508 million, which represents roughly a 22% hike over the previous year.
2008 - EA announces the finalists for their seven month long FIFA Interactive World Cup 2008 Final competition. The winner of the competition would not only be declared as the best FIFA player in the world, but would receive $20,000 and an invite to the FIFA World Player Gala 2008.
2008 - Kiev, Ukraine warmly embraces the city’s newest video game studio. Ubisoft opens up a development studio in the city, which is the company’s third Eastern European studio.

April 30th

2007 - In what would turn out to be one of the best games in 2007, Electronic Arts officially unveils Burnout Paradise. The game, which would release in the winter of 2007, would turn out to be one of the best supported (in terms of DLC, both premium and free) games in recent memory.
2007 - Gilbert Arenas is named the cover athlete for NBA Live 2008.
2009 - Entering into an agreement with Namco Bandai, Ubisoft announces it has exclusive European publishing rights for the PSP exclusive, SOULCALIBUR : Broken Destiny.

Spike TV Kicks Off EA Sports 2010 Season With Exclusive Madden 11 Trailer

Anthony Severino — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 00:02:38 +0000

Tonight at midnight on Spike TV, a world exclusive trailer for Madden 11 will be revealed, kicking off the EA Sports 2010 season. The on-air special titled “GTTV Presents EA SPORTS Season Kickoff” will feature a”world exclusive” premier trailer of Madden 11, and an interview with Madden 11 cover athlete Drew Brees.

GameTrailersTV host Geoff Keighley will meet with EA Sports President Peter Moore and along with a collection of all-start athletes ready to give a look at their most anticipated titles of the year.

That’s not all, college football fans will get new details on NCAA Football 11 and an exclusive interview with cover athlete Tim Tebow. The special will also feature a more in-depth look at EA Sports MMA which features some of the most talented MMA fighters the sport has to offer. Last, but certainly not least, there will be an exclusive first look at Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 running on the PlayStation Move controller.

Madden NFL 11 Cover Athlete Revealed

Joseph Peterson — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:41:41 +0000

This year the athlete of Madden NFL 11 was chosen a bit differently than previous years. EA Sports got together with Doritos allowing users to log into www.doritoschangethegame.com to vote for the next cover athlete for this years title. The choices were between Jared Allen, Drew Brees, and Reggie Wayne. Well EA Sports announced today who exactly will be gracing the cover of Madden 11.

Drew Brees is the chosen player this year. EASports.com had this to say on the selection:

“Brees’s decorated NFL career has included four Pro Bowl selections, three All Pro selections, three NFC Offensive Player of the Year awards, the Associated Press 2008 NFL Offensive Player of the Year and the Pro Football Weekly 2004 Comeback Player of the Year. Off the field, Brees has been a champion as well through his charity – the Brees Dream Foundation – and his work in the New Orleans, San Diego and West Lafayette/Purdue, Ind. communities, which have provided over $4,500,000 to charitable causes and academic institutions.”

Though there have been many discussions of the so-called “Madden Curse” that has been around for years, it is still considered an honor to be featured on the cover of Madden.

[Source]

YOU Choose Who the Madden Curse will Hit this Year

Thomas Williams — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 23:05:12 +0000

Madden fans pay attention: It’s YOUR chance to decide who will be hit with the yearly ‘Madden Curse’ for Madden 2011, as EA and Dorito’s Chips are putting the decision on your shoulders this season.

Dorito’s Chip is letting you, the fans, decide who’s going to have a blown-knee this season. Or a major concussion. Or a season-ending injury in the Pre-Season. 3 different All-Pros have been chosen. One will win. The ‘Contenders’ are Drew Brees, QB of the New Orleans Saints. Jared Allen, Defensive End for the Minnesote Vikings, and last, Reggie Wayne, WR for the Indianapolis Colts. Choose wisely…because you just don’t know what kind of injury is going to happen to the winner.

Don’t believe me? 2002′s cover star, Daunte Culpepper, threw 23 interceptions and broke the NFL’s record for most fumbles in a season. 2004′s star, Michael Vick BROKE his leg during the Pre-Season and was lost for the entire season, plus it hit him with that whole ‘dog fighting’ scandal. I could go on, but I think you get the picture.

If you don’t mind ruining a franchise’s season, then visit the Official Website and vote away. Just remember..when the Winner is relaxing at home injured, probably eating Doritos, he’ll think back to this promotion and curse your name in vein, because it’s going to be all your fault!

Place Your Bets: Madden Used to Predict NFL Playoffs

Joseph Peterson — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 14:12:13 +0000

The NFL playoffs are an exciting time of the year for football fans all over as fans root for teams that they love, or root for teams to beat teams they hate. So how does using a PlayStation 3 and a copy of Madden NFL 10 fare in the real life counterpart when guessing the scores through simulating? Read on to find out.

NFC Playoffs:

Arizona at New Orleans

Final Score via Madden NFL 10: 45-41 Arizona wins

Dallas at Minnesota

Final Score via Madden NFL 10: 34-30 Minnesota wins

AFC Playoffs:

Baltimore at Indianapolis

Final Score via Madden NFL 10: 34-27 Baltimore wins

New York at San Diego

Final Score via Madden NFL 10: 52-46 San Diego wins

The only way to see if it is accurate is to wait for the games to be played out today and tomorrow.

[Source]