Real Players Play Playstation Football Games

Once considered a failure due to slow development and limited technology for the majority of home users, Madden NFL has come a long way since its initial release in 1988. To date, the software title has sold better than 85 million copies that total will over 3 billion dollars in sales. Using the names of real players, real plays from professional play books, taking advantage of graphics capabilities and a real game feel are just a few of the reasons Madden football games have come to be one of the most popular playstation football games ever.

It is no secret that Madden was not the original namesake for the game. The designers had reached out to a few other high profile players and even some other coaches, but none were able to participate due to other agreements or a simple lack of interest. Madden came on board and educated the designers, and ironically, it is the game and not his professional career as a coach and announcer that has brought him the most recognition. The game has not remained static by any means. New things are added to each new version which is released every year. Almost 10 years after the game began a new mode called franchise mode was created. This allowed people to control the players if they chose to do so, but it also allowed for drafting, trades, and other functions of a general manager. It was the fist of its type for a football game. In 2003 multiple ways to play the game were introduced. Players could opt for a single, quick game or they could choose to play an entire season or even multiple seasons. It was as time time that online play, where players could match their skills against others using the internet, was introduced. This was initially available only on the playstation 2 console.

A new feature called the playmaker tool was included in the 2004 version. This was a feature that enhanced the realism of the game considerably. Players could now make changes to the direction of plays after they broke the huddle. Previously they were limited to 4 audibles, but now they could be more flexible and could send receivers on hot routes too. When the 2005 version was released, the playmaker tool was implemented for the defense. This was an important addition since in the previous versions the offense could make changes that were difficult for the defense to adjust to. Now, the defense could use the joystick to make adjustments just as the offense could. This made the game more fair on both sides of the ball and once again enhanced it's realism.

Later released added more new and exciting features such as the trick stick, the ability to control lead blockers for enhanced running plays, a new weapons control for superstar players, and league play. League play allowed for up to 32 people to play an entire season week by week on the internet. Newer versions are moving Madden to a true-to-life football simulation making it more than just a game.

Playstation football games have dominated for good reason and have become as much a simulation as they are a video game. Playstation 3 Madden football games have been super popular for over 20 years, and future development promise to make the simulation even more true to life.