http://wii.ign.com/articles/881/881573p1.html
June 13, 2008 - Madden and Wii have been a pair since the very beginning of the console's life. Kicking things off quite literally at the first showing in E3 2006, Wii's top baller broke the mold with intuitive motion control, a gigantic list of features for its opening year, and the promise of some seriously innovative sports action down the line. And for the most part, Madden has delivered. 07 was a pretty innovative overall, while 08 attempted to refine – succeeding in some areas, and ending up a bit lackluster in others – the control and ideas in 07, adding online into the feature set with mixed results. All along the way though, we couldn't help but feel like Madden Wii was still basically a bigger version of the PS2 and GCN games before it. Now with Madden NFL 09, that concept is really starting to fade out, as players will be getting a better, stronger Madden game built specifically for the Wii user.
At first, Madden NFL 09 for Wii will look like it did in previous versions, only now donning Mr. Green Bay Brett Favre on the cover and main title screen. The legendary quarterback may not have a starting spot on this year's Packers due to his recent retirement, but he's got his place in the game when playing as the 2007 Packers, and he's littered all around the game's interface and load screens. As far as main game modes go, you've got Play Now returning, along with the Wii-specific Party Mode, a huge slew of mini-games, Franchise Mode, Superstar Mode, and online; now refined to make use of both EA Nation support as well as Friend Codes, so you can hook up with people via EA's service, or Nintendo's.
Where the big push comes this year though is in the new All-Play feature, Call Your Shot, and the five-on-five multiplayer mode. Rather than wasting time, let's get into what really makes Madden 09 a true contender on Wii, an something gamers can truly be proud of this year.
For starters, All-Play is the new hybrid of advanced (traditional) control and last year's Family Mode. Don't let the "family mode" mention throw you though, as All-Play is a much more entertaining alternative to what was used in 08. Rather than being too dumbed down or Wii-mote only (last year's offering), All-Play actually removes any of the strange oddness that ends up coming with Wii motion, and instead goes for a simpler – but still deep – experience. You'll keep control of your player with the nunchuk, but the game is more arcade-like overall, so general play is a bit faster, there are new optional playbooks make up of simple sets, and all motions are mapped to any direction on the Wii-mote, replacing stiff-arm, juke, spin, and power move with one "evade" action.
When passing, All-Play also watches the field for you, so a quick motion will throw to the most open receiver on the field. If you're an advanced player using All-Play, and you see an obvious must-throw opportunity, tapping the d-pad in the direction of that receiver will make him the default destination for your flick. As with general Madden play, the speed that you motion will change the ball's throw from bullet, normal, and lob results. As you'd expect, All-Play does the same thing on defense as it does with offense, now having your defenders run better interception paths on their guarded receivers, an invisible wall stops you from running off-sides pre-snap, and all motion including spin, rip, big hit, strip, and dive are all handled with a quick flick of the remote. Yes it's simpler, but it also feels like a smarter design over Family Mode from last year.
Next up on the must-know list of Madden 09 is Call Your Shot mode, which is hands-down the best gameplay feature we've seen from Madden in years, and that includes any version of the game. Call Your Shot works as an active audible situation, so any time pre-snap when you're on offense you can hit A, and then initiate Call Your Shot mode. From here, it's up to you to make your own plays similar to Pro Evolution Soccer's pointer-based control, so you'll tap on any eligible receiver with the A button, move your cursor anywhere on the field to make another point for them to run directly to, and repeat until hitting the minus key on the Wii-mote. Once the patch is drawn, move to the next receiver and repeat. Any player you don't change will run the regular route, but any shot calling is also picked up instantly, so you can tweak on the fly, change up your play, and then smoke the defense seconds later.
And if you only get one thing from this entire hands-on, it's that Call Your Shot really changes the game, and it's implemented extremely well. Computer AI does a great job of reacting to your changes (via previous hot route AI already used in Madden 08 and 07), so it'll take some seriously innovative plays to trump them. In the video preview we have paired with tonight's update you can see how intricate it can get, with an offensive player forgetting about a block, passing a blitzer, and actually opening up the zone for an easy one-on-one beat. If you know how football is played, you'll dominate with Call Your Shot. In fact, the mode is also available in local multiplayer (though since players see what you're drawing, you're better off changing just one path, and maybe using it as a decoy some of the time to throw them off), and online, where Call Your Shot is completely stealth from player to player. In fact, as a testament to how versatile Call Your Shot can really be, we've dominated on the field with the simple use of a regular Play Action play, tweaking it into screens, deep plays, slants, buttons, quick crosses, and corner end zone bombs. That's just one play in the book.
The new five-on-five move is a pretty simple addition, but it's a no-brainer after the success of the simple 2 on 2 that was in previous Madden games for Wii. This time around though, the game takes players to a smaller field (both length and width), and actually changes up play selection and the rules of the game. Hits are bigger, now featuring players with huge heads and an oversized football, the field dons a new kid-friendly look, there are no first downs, and TD's are only worth one. Players can either select short, medium, or long pass, as well as a basic run play, or on defense can guard with a short zone, medium zone, or long zone, as well as blitz. On offense though, Call Your Shot returns again to vary up the play, and we use it constantly when playing here at IGN. Sure you can see the play against local opposition, but if you're clever with your designs, you give yourself a huge list of outs even with just five players on the field. Try guarding a deep pass, possible screen, and short button all with one playable character at a time; it's tougher than you think, even if you do have a general feeling of where it's going.
There's a laundry list of things we could talk about, but seeing as this is our preliminary hands-on – and we've got interviews and more coverage to follow shortly – we'll save a few things. Visually the game looks great though, now using higher poly models with better textures, the fields have shadow effects and stronger lighting, some animations have been cleaned up, and the game is generally faster due to the removal of pre-play "wandering animations" that normally show up to add cinematic value. Speed steaks are added to players who are currently sprinting, ball trails now accompany bullet passes, and huge impact effects make the big hits really, really rewarding. There's more to talk about (including the new online structure), so check back soon.
end of core gaming days prediction:
E3 2006-The beginning of the end. Wii introduced
E3 2008- Armageddon. Wii motion plus introduced. Wii Music. Reggie says Animal crossing was a core game. Massive disappointment. many Wii core gamers selling their Wii.
E3 2010- Tape runs out
http://www.fivedoves.com/letters/march2009/ICG_Tape_runs_out.jpg
Which is pretty interesting considering that the huge majority of Madden sales are in NA (specifically the US).
