Why does Madden 21 lack a sense of rhythm?

Whether they are the organizers of competitions, clubs, or franchises, have clearly not been spared since the beginning of 2020. The all-powerful National Football League is an exception, given its 100th season ended with a Super Bowl in February and the Chiefs' victory just before the health crisis. Madden 21 marked the comeback of American football after a long absence without a hitch, before the Kickoff on September 10.

Do not stagnate, evolve. If we follow the logic of the player who embodied the cover of Madden 20, namely the young and talented Patrick Mahomes, this is what should happen for this new version. Yes, but here it is, this time it is the reigning MVP Lamar Jackson, QB of the Baltimore Ravens who has been headlining. The challenge is therefore to swim against the current of recent releases marked EA Sports, to breathe new life into Madden, without competition and being able to afford to remain on its achievements.

First of all, what are the advantages and disadvantages of Madden 21 that I personally think:

Madden 21 Pros:

• Very solid content
• Stable servers online
• The show is visually transcribed
• Really complete playbooks
• Updated regularly
• A free upgrade to the next-gen
• The concept of The Yard

Madden 21 Cons:

• This model lacks a bit of pep's
• The flat scripted mode ...
• Very weak in its realization
• A MUT mode that does not advance
• Menus and modes lose readability
• No advances in gameplay
• Big drops in FPS during cutscenes
• Still no French translation!

Lack Of Innovation

Proof of its self-sufficiency in this field, EA Tiburon has not budged an iota by its realization and the incarnation of the American show. Frostbite is still relevant to the graphics engine, enough to faithfully transcribe the faces and animations of players in-game and during cutscenes. On the other hand, the game disappoints at launch on this point with large drops in FPS observed during the pre-match cutscenes and during the celebrations. The rest is classic, with visuals and an immersive TV broadcast effect, just like the sound environment. The licenses are all present except, you will have seen, the Washington Redskins. In the process of changing the identity of its franchise, Washington will see its license be temporarily generic on Madden.

On the gameplay side, the X factors are back, as are the Superstars Abilities. Each more or less famous player has one or more X-Factors, a takeover that is activated when the player achieves an objective during the match. A very nice idea kept, like all the other gameplay mechanics. It's not really moving, but it's hard to describe it as a big flaw, it's so hard to see how the title can do better. Announced as innovative, the new set of skills did not mark us, unlike the contextual information on the opposing defensive line to better take it failing.

Note that the playbooks have been updated compared to last season, even if we found the classic patterns that often make the difference. What to inflate the possibilities in the drives, and improvise with his QB. Speaking of updates, EA remains in the nails for its Madden saga and will offer regular updates on the numbers and comments of the game. On the other hand, and it's starting to weigh on us as big fans of the game.

The Same Feeling

After "QB1: Face to the Franchise", Madden renews its scripted part, called this time ... "Face to the Franchise". Yes, well, we are far from the reflection carried out with "Longshot", the former successful career of the saga. But after QB1, we could name this new version QB2 in view of the context. We embody our character established before launching the game before arriving at university as a replacement Quarterback. The latter will forge a fusional relationship with the holder and will have to face choices that will modify your QB profile, or make you switch to Wide Receiver. As with Madden NFL 20, the post-draft switches the game to Franchise mode without much change. A disappointment like last season, therefore, especially as the cutscenes are sorely lacking in humanity and technically speaking. We regret the Longshot.

Anticipation & Disappointment

The great novelty of content, therefore, remains The Yard mode, announced as the "Street" leaning of US Foot. 6 vs 6 games on reduced grounds, up to three players in a co-op like the Superstars KO mode described below, with its personalized player created in the introduction. The concept is very nice on paper and inform, so the freedom of movement is increased and the stadiums friendly, but extremely messy and not at the level of the other street modes of EA Sports. We define a prototype for our players but without feeling real ingame changes and getting lost in the countless menus. In addition, even if we can change the cosmetic aspect of his character, the real axis and desire for progress lie solely on his precept. Pity.

The Ultimate Team part of the software is certainly very complete. But regresses in its readability when entering the mode. The loading times are long and the explanations too obscure to fully grasp the essentials of the mini-games and challenges. In summary, in addition to being identical to the last MUT, the 2020 vintage is declining.

Besides The Yard, there is the Superstars KO mode for this iteration. Do not get lost, this is not a novelty, but we had not talked about it during the test of the previous opus and for good reason: EA has integrated this part in post-launch for Madden 20, on the occasion of the official launch of the season. The concept is back, perfect for any sudden death lover. Indeed, 11 against 11 on a dedicated field, but with good dimensions unlike The Yard, the principle is to eliminate your opponents online one by one with dynamic rules. Unfortunately, Superstars KO does like its street counterpart The Yard and doesn't go any further in immersion and leaderboards. Madden  21 has tried things, without much success.