American football fans you are in for a treat this year with Madden NFL 25 released not long after EA Sports College Football 25, so there is no shortage of content when it comes to these games and EA have done something quite special this year with Madden NFL 25.

I’ve noticed EA each year will upgrade a heap of little things and then find one big thing to update and damn this year I was hyped. EA described it the best with “Bringing Back The Boom”. They have updated the tackling and movement system and the hits have never looked so good. I admit I might have switched to a player a little further back to put the biggest hit on because it looked so good and authentic. I’ve loved seeing the technology the developers use to make things authentic to the game, and something like tackles has never looked great as you have to have models clashing, but EA has done it with this year’s title.

Ultimate Teams has added a new Head to Head ranked mode which if you win you can improve your rank, and if you are like me and tend to lose a little you might move down more than you move up. If you are the opposite of me you might be interested in the Weekend Gauntlets which put you and your team against the other good players and you can fight it out on the field.

The developers have also adjusted the lineup screens to make it more user-friendly. They have now added the most seasons in Ultimate Teams, with 8 seasons planned which will finish before Madden NFL 26 which should keep all the Ultimate Team players nice and happy.

The franchise has been pulled apart and revamped and has never felt or looked so real. There have been some additions to the Draft Night presentation which includes draft boards that update in real time which is a good little addition. You can get the call or walk across the stage and get your jersey from the one and only Roger Goodell the NFL commissioner, they have also updated the menu so it’s never been easier to navigate the mode and get to things nice and simple. If you want a story to get immersed into then this game is great for you and no story will be the same with different reactions to different responses.

The superstar system has been overhauled with the player-building system being fine-tuned so you can make your player look more real than ever before. Don’t be too concerned if you built your players in College Football, you can import them over and continue to use them which is a cool little feature added.

If you have a couple of friends you want to jam some Madden with then you can with Superstar Showdown which is an online 3 versus 3 match-up with the created players, so it creates that original gameplay in the online world. The developers have confirmed there will be regular events to keep players coming back for more.

If you like jumping online and not versing the computer like me then Online Head to Head gives you a leaderboard and competitive seasons which is a little like Ultimate Teams, it’s a ranked structure in which you can try and get yourself a spot in the Top 100 Division, and the developers have confirmed there is a variation of skill based matchmaking which will be taken into account when you are paired with people. I think I’ve mentioned plenty of times before I suck online and enjoy playing the game offline.

I didn’t notice much difference from the controls of last year’s title or even EA Sports College Football 25. I think they must be running off the old saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” which I have no objection to. Returning players will slide straight into this title and new players can do the training to get up to scratch to play the game.

I’m still amazed at how the developers can pull out the stops each year improving things like the sounds from last year and making it more immersive. The crowd and stadium feel alive to the music playing in the background when you score a touchdown. The developers have made it feel like you’re not only watching it on TV but have made it feel like you’re in the stadium as a fan. The variety of music in the middle of the plays was great and found myself singing some of them.

If you jumped into College Football then you won’t notice a huge graphics change between those titles, and apart from making the character models look a little nicer there is not much change to the graphics in this title. I’ll be the first to admit it does not need changes the game looks stunning.

If you are an American Football fan then there is so much choice this year with EA’s releases needless to say “Bringing Back The Boom” has worked for EA with Madden NFL 25 and I’m keen to see everyone jumping online and seeing the content that comes from this title.

Written by: Hayden Nelson