Madden NFL 20 | |
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![]() Standard Edition cover art featuring Patrick Mahomes | |
Developer(s) | EA Tiburon |
Publisher(s) | EA Sports |
Designer(s) | Clint Oldenburg [1] |
Series | Madden NFL |
Engine | Frostbite 3 |
Platform(s) | |
Release | August 2, 2019 |
Genre(s) | Sports |
Mode(s) | Single-player Multiplayer |
Madden NFL 20 is an American football video game based on the National Football League (NFL), developed by EA Tiburon and published by Electronic Arts. The 31st installment in the long-running Madden NFL series, the game was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows on August 2, 2019. It features Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes as the cover athlete. Mahomes became the second player after Rob Gronkowski to win a Super Bowl the same season they were on the Madden cover, and the first player to win the Super Bowl MVP while doing so, thus breaking the "Madden Curse", a curse where the cover athlete ended the season early due to injury. [2]
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and 2018 NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes was unveiled as the cover athlete alongside the game's announcement on April 25, 2019, becoming the first player for the Kansas City Chiefs to be on the cover of a Madden NFL video game. [3]
The soundtrack includes 22 original tracks written specifically for the game, a first for the Madden franchise. The soundtrack includes songs by Sage the Gemini, Denzel Curry, De La Soul, Joey Badass, Jay Park, Wiz Khalifa, Snoop Dogg, Lil Skies and Saweetie. [4]
Brandon Gaudin and Charles Davis are the in-game announcers, and Jonathan Coachman is the studio halftime and pregame host.
In Season 1 of post-launch content, Superstar KO is a brand new mode in which players can select a team with a head coach and three players in 1v1, 2v2 and 3v3 matches. Winning a match will add another player to the team. The goal in this mode is to win three matches to become the "undefeated champion". Losing a match will end the run. Each team has a unique playstyle, such as the Florida Keys, with DJ Khaled as the head coach, focusing on blitz plays, the Magicians, with Patrick Mahomes as the head coach and Twitch Prime as the sponsor, focusing on run pass options and play actions, and Backyard Heroes, with Lil Yachty as the head coach, focusing on sandlot plays.
Madden NFL 20 features a new "personalized career campaign" known as QB 1, following the journey of a player-created college quarterback from their participation in the College Football Playoff, to being drafted by an NFL team. Ten licensed college teams (Clemson, Florida State, Miami, Florida, LSU, Oregon, USC, Texas, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech) from the ACC, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC, are available in this mode. The mode acts as an updated version of the "Superstar Mode", where the player would take their custom player and control them throughout a career, which was featured from Madden NFL 06 until its removal in Madden NFL 25 . [5]
In September 2019, EA Sports introduced another mode called Superstar KO, as part of the game's first "season". [6] [7] In each round, each team plays a drive from their 25-yard line to score a touchdown and a two-point conversion. If teams draw, the round is decided over a "tug-of-war", where each team does three plays, and the team that advances furthest wins the round. After each round, the winner can draft a player from the rival's team.
EA continued with including accessibility features for blind and visually impaired end users. Not least among these is menu narration, in which options are spoken aloud as the player navigates to them using synthesized speech. As part of his voice role for the game, Brandon advises via the game intro concerning accessibility settings and how to reach them. Other settings like image contrast and color-blind friendly settings are also available. While the majority of menus are narrated, some menus deep in franchise, for example, are not narrated. An example of this is when you are scouting college players, or are trying to purchase free agents or when you are attempting to complete the training. Menu narration is also notably absent from the in-game playbooks, although a text-only manual is available in the accessibility section of EA's website.
The game was released on August 2, 2019. It was able to be accessed three days prior on July 30 by those players who purchased the "Superstar" or "Ultimate Superstar" editions of the game, which included packs and special abilities. [8] [9]
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | (XONE) 79/100 [10] (PS4) 76/100 [11] (PC) 72/100 [12] |
Publication | Score |
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Game Informer | 7.5/10 [13] |
GameRevolution | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
GameSpot | 8/10 [15] |
GamesRadar+ | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
IGN | 8.1/10 [17] |
Shacknews | 4/10 [18] |
According to review aggregator website Metacritic, Madden NFL 20 received "generally favorable" reviews from critics for the console versions and "mixed or average" reviews for the PC. [11] [12] [10]
IGN gave the game an 8.1/10 and wrote: "Madden NFL 20's new superstar players and control refinements make its moment-to-moment gameplay the best the series has seen this console generation, but areas like Franchise have been left behind." [17] In its 8/10 review, GameSpot wrote that "Madden NFL 20 is an improved version of the annualized professional football series that excels in some areas and leaves something to be desired in others." [15]
GamesRadar+ praised the updated story mode in comparison to Longshot and the addition of the X-factor players, saying that the game "clears the roster and properly initiates the rebuilding phase for football's first franchise," although noted Franchise mode again felt neglected. [16] Game Revolution , which gave Madden NFL 20 a 3/5, also praised the X-factor addition, saying stars felt "bigger than ever", but was equally disappointed with the lacking in Franchise mode. [14] Game Informer gave the game a 7.5/10, summarizing its review with: "New features can only do so much for a series that needs work in multiple areas." [13]
In a scathing review, Shacknews gave the game a 4/10, calling it "the worst major sports league video game out there," criticizing EA for only making marginal improvements to previous installments. [18]
Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
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2019 | Game Critics Awards | Best Sports Game | Nominated | [19] |
2020 | 23rd Annual D.I.C.E. Awards | Sports Game of the Year | Nominated | [20] |
NAVGTR Awards | Control Design, 2D or Limited 3D | Nominated | [21] | |
Game, Franchise Sports | Nominated |
Madden NFL is an American football sports video game series developed by EA Orlando for EA Sports. The franchise, named after Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and commentator John Madden, has sold more than 130 million copies as of 2018. From 2004 until 2022, it was the only officially licensed National Football League (NFL) video game series, and has influenced many players and coaches of the physical sport. Among the series' features are detailed playbooks and player statistics and voice commentary in the style of a real NFL television broadcast. As of 2013 the franchise has generated over $4 billion in sales, making it one of the most profitable video game franchises on the market.
NFL 2K is an American football video game series developed by Visual Concepts and published by Sega. The series was originally exclusive to Sega's Dreamcast video game console due to the absence of EA Sports's Madden NFL series on the system. As the foremost "2K" title, it marked the beginning of a running athletics series that eventually led to the spinning off of 2K's sports publishing business under the name of 2K Sports. Upon the Dreamcast's discontinuation, the series continued to be published for other sixth generation game systems and became the chief competitor of the Madden series.
Madden NFL 2003 is an American football simulation video game based on the NFL that was developed by EA Tiburon and Budcat Creations and published by EA Sports. The 14th installment of the Madden NFL series, the game features former St. Louis Rams running back Marshall Faulk on the cover. This edition of Madden was the first to have EA Trax, the Mini Camp mode, and to feature Al Michaels as play-by-play announcer, who took over for Pat Summerall. Although it featured the expansion Houston Texans and the relocation of the Seattle Seahawks to the NFC, it was actually the second to do so. The game was released on August 12, 2002 for the Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The PlayStation version also includes the Sega Genesis version of John Madden Football 93.
Madden NFL 06 is an American football video game released in 2005. It is the 16th installment of the Madden NFL series by EA Sports, named for color commentator John Madden. It is the first Madden game for the PlayStation Portable and Xbox 360 and was a launch game for the 360. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb is on the cover.
Madden NFL 07 is an American football video game based on the NFL that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the first in the video game series to debut for the PlayStation 3 and Wii consoles as launch titles and the last Madden game to be released on the Game Boy Advance. Former Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander is on the cover.
Madden NFL 08 is a 2007 American football video game based on the National Football League that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the 19th installment in the Madden NFL video game franchise. It features Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young on the cover, and San Diego Chargers defensive end Luis Castillo was the cover athlete for the Spanish-language version. This was the first Madden game made for 11 different platforms. It was released on August 14, 2007 for Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, GameCube and Microsoft Windows. A Mac version was released on September 1, 2007. This was the last version of Madden to be released for Microsoft Windows until Madden NFL 19, and the last video game for the GameCube produced and released in North America.
Madden NFL 09 is an American football video game based on the NFL that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the 20th annual installment in the Madden NFL video game franchise. The game was released for the Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox, Xbox 360, and mobile phones. It was the last video game for the original Xbox produced and released in North America and the last Madden game to be released for the Nintendo DS.
Madden NFL 10 is an American football video game based on the National Football League that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. The 21st installment of the Madden NFL series, it is the first game to feature two players on the cover: Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals, who played against each other the previous season in Super Bowl XLIII. It was released in August 2009 for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox 360 and BlackBerry, and for the iOS on September 9 through the App Store.
Madden NFL 11 is an American football video game based on the National Football League, published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the 22nd annual installment in the bestselling Madden NFL video game franchise. It was released in 2010 for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, BlackBerry, and iOS platforms. The PS3 and Xbox 360 demos were released July 27, 2010.
Madden NFL 12 is an American football video game based on the National Football League published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It was released on August 30, 2011 in North America and Asia, September 1, 2011 in Australia, and September 2, 2011 in Europe. It was available on August 27, 2011 to EA Sports Season Ticket subscribers for a three-day trial. It was the last Madden NFL game to be released on the PlayStation Portable and the PlayStation 2.
Madden NFL 13 is an American football video game based on the National Football League, published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. EA's Chief Creative Officer, Richard Hilleman, said that defense would receive various changes in mechanics and controls, one of the first known changes in the game. The 24th installment of the Madden NFL series, the game was released in 2012. For the first time in the series, the game was officially released in Brazil, due to the explosive growth of the sport in the country. This was the last Madden game to be released on the Wii, the first and only to be released on the Wii U and PlayStation Vita, and the final in the series to be available for non-mobile phone handhelds and Nintendo systems. It was the first game of the series since Madden NFL 2002 to not feature EA Trax and instead only had instrumental music, which was met with criticism.
Madden NFL 25 is an American football sports video game based on the National Football League and published by EA Sports. It was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in August 2013. Instead of numbering it Madden NFL 14 with the year like in previous versions, the "25" in the title refers to the 25th anniversary of the Madden NFL series. The eighth-generation console versions of Madden NFL 25 are the first games to run on EA Sports's Ignite game engine. However, the seventh generation versions still run on EA's previous game engine, Impact. The seventh-generation versions featured former Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders on the cover, while the eighth-generation versions featured Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, and were released as launch titles for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in November 2013.
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Madden NFL 21 is an American football video game based on the National Football League (NFL), developed by EA Tiburon and published by Electronic Arts. It is an installment of the long-running Madden NFL series. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on August 28, 2020, and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on December 4, 2020. It features Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson as the cover athlete, and Brandon Gaudin and Charles Davis as its in-game commentators. The game received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its gameplay but criticized its technical issues, while player reception was negative, with many heavily criticizing the lack of innovation.
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