EA signs a 5 year exclusive deal with NFL

[Scroby 0]

Let me add to the list the ESPN football and Basketball games were better then Madden and NBA live. So much better that Madden and NBA live both dropped in price very quickly to try and compete.

[Guest Vitamin X]

I agree quite strongly on ESPN NBA2k5, but not so sure on Madden. To be honest, while ESPN has all the bells and whistles, and the gameplay is much more realistic, Madden was sometimes, I don't know.. More fun. Except for the ridiculous passing shootouts that ran rampant in that game, which of course made for some frustrating games with my abysmal pass defense.

[Guest Flyboy]

Let me add to the list the ESPN football and Basketball games were better then Madden and NBA live. So much better that Madden and NBA live both dropped in price very quickly to try and compete.

You forgot that ESPN College Hoops > EA March Madness as well.

[Red Baron 0]

and ESPN Hockey > EA's NHL Series.

[Guest Big_Jay101]

I hear John Madden is retiring and the new game will be caleld somethign other than madden. Is this true?

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

I hear John Madden is retiring and the new game will be caleld somethign other than madden. Is this true?

Maybe Bradshaw '05.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Will we finally get LaVar Arrington as a player now, or will we have to still "edit" him in?

 

And as big a Madden fanboy as I am, I want ESPN around to keep EA on its toes...

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

I still could care less about Sega cause they wouldn't support the gamecube with their sports games. EA on the other hand does, so at least it didn't go the otherway where SEGA got the exclusive rights and then Id have no NFL games to play for the next 5 years.

[jimmy no nose 0]

Will we finally get LaVar Arrington as a player now, or will we have to still "edit" him in?

 

And as big a Madden fanboy as I am, I want ESPN around to keep EA on its toes...

He was definitely in this year's ESPN. He even had a bobble head that made mention of their not being able to put his name in in the past. I'm not sure if he was in Madden.

[NoCalMike 0]

The only thing that bugged me about Madden was that there were just too many "bread and butter" plays where it seemed like no matter what defense you used, the opponets receivers would still end up wide open. ESPN never seemed to have that problem, and the overall gameplay to me was more realistic, running backs having to hit holes, not just the opponent constantly hitting the jump button and avoiding being tackled.

[Guest pinnacleofallthingsmanly]

If you think EA has a monopoly, then you should think THQ has a monopoly.

[KingPK 0]

See, I was thinking that too. Is there a difference between what EA did with the NFL and what THQ did with WWE?

 

For that matter, what about Sony making GTA games exclusive to the PS2?

[Exslade ZX 0]

See, I was thinking that too. Is there a difference between what EA did with the NFL and what THQ did with WWE?

 

For that matter, what about Sony making GTA games exclusive to the PS2?

But GTA isn't exclusive to PS2.

 

And, how would THQ be a monopoly with WWE games? I doubt there'd ever be a chance of having like...3 different WWE games, like you could do with basketball/football etc. It's just...blah.

[Hogan Made Wrestling 0]

You guys use the word "monopoly" was too liberally. Some of these things are simply far to specialized to be considered as such. It's one thing to have a monopoly on the video game industry. But on football games with NFL teams and player names? That's doesn't cut it.

[nogoodnick 0]

Lavarr Arrington was in this year Madden, name, picture and everything.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

Midway presents Playmakers??

 

In order to get around the NFL liscensing, Midway is creating NFL Blitz: Playmakers. I don't what to say, I never watched the show.

[Guest Flyboy]

I hear John Madden is retiring and the new game will be caleld somethign other than madden. Is this true?

Sega could probably swing to EA now, so don't be too surprised if there is a Berman '06.

[gWIL 0]

This is interesting?... (for those who won't click the link)

 

Midway Games has announced development on BLITZ: PLAYMAKERS, a new take on the company's football games. Unlike earlier BLITZ games, PLAYMAKERS is focused on the behind-the-scenes stories of a fictional professional football league. Gamers will be able to make the moves on the gridiron and then participate in the locker room antics and the front-office politics that make up a professional football franchise.

 

BLITZ: PLAYMAKERS has been in development at Midway’s Chicago studio for the past year in collaboration with a writer from ESPN’s controversial PLAYMAKERS television series. The game is scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2005 on multiple videogame console platforms.

 

 

"Midway's Chicago studio has laid the foundation over the past year for what is the ultimate alternative to watered down NFL sanctioned football games," said Steve Allison, chief marketing officer of Midway. "No longer bound to the NFL license, there will be no league restrictions on content and gamers will finally experience what makes playing a football videogame really fun: off-field controversies, dirty hits, excessive celebrations and much more. BLITZ: PLAYMAKERS buyers will be assured of one thing - our game will include all the gameplay and fun the NFL won’t allow."

 

 

If Vince McMahon was smart, how about an XFL game?

And I agree with the need for ESPN CFL 2K6.

And more Arena football games

[GreatWhiteNope 0]

The easiest way for the ESPN series to go would be to continue developing through a College Football game so that the engine remains up to date should they bid for the NFL license again in five years.

[Golgo 13 0]

Yeah. Some of you are definitely using 'monopoly' where there isn't one. Is it a bastard move by EA which undercuts the competition? Yes, but EA isn't taking the game of football away completely. If they were to suddenly pick up the NCAA rights, before moving on to NBA, MLB, NHL, etc., then there could be a case made. However, as for how this, combined with EA's past actions stacks up for a 'monopoly' argument, it's a good case.

 

As for comparisons between WWE and NFL, etc., they're completely different beasts as far as the entertainment they specialize in and how they approach matters. The best I could come up with is that WWE is nothing more than television show or movie franchise, and that's how they've always approached the way they hand out licenses. However, what's baffling is that the NFL has always encouraged competition between game makers, for as long as video games has been around, even if the games were awful. This deal is bad not only for EA and gaming as a whole, but for the NFL as well.

[Mole 0]

I never understood the EA hate.

 

But then again if anything is 'hip,' at TSM IT MUST BE HATED. ARGHHH.

[Golgo 13 0]

Mole again proves that he's completely oblivious.

[Ced 0]

I have Madden 2004 and I'm gonna stick with it until I see a huge update in the play mechanics.

 

On a side note, I'd really wish EA would update their custom team logos to ones that didn't suck.

[Vern Gagne 0]

How the other games can get around this.

 

Seattle Segulls

Oakland Sea Robbers

San Fran.Goldminers

San Diego Voltage

Arizona Songbirds

Denver Mustangs

Houston Houstonians

Dallas Wranglers

Kansas City Medicineman

St.Louis Mountain Lambs

Minnesota Nordic Warriors

Green Bay Butchers

Chicago Kodiaks

Indianapolis Mares

Tennessee Atlas

Cincinnati Stripped Cats

Detroit Leos

Cleveland Blacks

Pittsburgh Welders

Philadelphia American Birds

Washington Nativeskins

Buffalo Codies

New England Minutemen

New York Goliaths

New York Stealth

Baltimore Crows

Carolina Pumas

Atlanta Prargrine

Jacksonville Spotted Big Cats

Tampa Bay Swashbucklers

New Orleans Martyrs

Miami Aquatic Mammals

[Mole 0]

Mole again proves that he's completely oblivious.

Yeah, since no one said that they hated EA...

 

That's nuts.  I fucking hate EA

 

EA is evil and must be stopped.

 

EA's the biggest cancer to the videogame industry, seriously. They put out mediocre games, and nobody says anything bad about them because they have the reviewers paid off.

 

And I'm oblivious because of their awesome graphics for the next-gen system? Or since they mistreat their employees?

[Golgo 13 0]

I said as much because the reasons for the EA hatred were clearly laid out in the wikipedia link I posted in that thread, criticisms repeated on these boards and others many times over, yet you still can't grasp any of it and pass it off as though it were some childish anti-whatever mob mentality, which is pretty much the lowest form of defense and reasoning there can be.

 

Stick to Buffy and MTV, please.

[Guest pinnacleofallthingsmanly]

I'm really going to miss my ESPN Football next year. How similar is Madden to it?

[teke184 0]

I think it's time to pull the Cyberball franchise out of mothballs at Midway-Williams-Atari...

[Red Baron 0]

I'm really going to miss my ESPN Football next year. How similar is Madden to it?

as similar as Bush and Kerry political beliefs.

[TheBigSwigg 0]

Yeah, since no one said that they hated EA...

 

That's nuts.  I fucking hate EA

See, I've always hated EA. I've never liked Madden, never liked their baseball games, the next-gen NBA Live games were bad IMO, they made horrible wrestling games for WCW, and horrible Bond games.

 

And I had no idea about how they treated their workers.