Madden NFL 16

 Xbox One
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 137 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 69 out of 137
  2. Mixed: 24 out of 137
  3. Negative: 44 out of 137
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  1. Jhagman
    Aug 16, 2023
    7
    This game is solid. It's pretty good for Madden standards and is fun to play. It could be better, but it's decent.
  2. Cowboysrule1235
    Sep 4, 2020
    5
    Game is very limited in what you can actually do but gameplay is actually much more realistic compared to Madden 20 or 21. Gameplay feels a little more fluid but all the characters faces are almost all the same and don’t look like the actual players. Still better than the stuff is releasing nowadays.
  3. storygamer
    Aug 28, 2020
    7
    Madden NFL 16 is a solid sports game for American Football fans. Nice optics, fine gameplay and singleplayer as well as multiplayer are great fun. If you`re a fan of the franchise, you`ll probably still get the best Madden game on the market. The problem with EA sports series is, that they don`t really distinguish among themselves. Nevertheless a pretty fun game with beautiful animations.
  4. Broyax
    Jan 11, 2017
    1
    Je trouve le football américain plus intéressant que le rugby en général mais son implémentation en jeu vidéo annuel par EA laisse à désirer, surtout cette cuvée 2016 qui fait la part belle aux microtransactions à tout va et aux sollicitations en ligne indésirables (autant dire qu'il spamme comme un ouf la boîte mail virtuelle).

    Sous couvert d'une certaine "richesse", Madden 16 propose    Je trouve le football américain plus intéressant que le rugby en général mais son implémentation en jeu vidéo annuel par EA laisse à désirer, surtout cette cuvée 2016 qui fait la part belle aux microtransactions à tout va et aux sollicitations en ligne indésirables (autant dire qu'il spamme comme un ouf la boîte mail virtuelle).

    Sous couvert d'une certaine "richesse", Madden 16 propose une multitude de modes dans des menus tous plus fouillis les uns que les autres y compris la gestion de l'équipe, du coach, de la saison (ou plutôt des innombrables saisons dans tous les modes imaginables) ce qui contribue à entretenir la confusion ambiante.

    Idem pour la jouabilité rapidement aussi confuse que l'ensemble du jeu lui-même (et je ne parle même pas des tactiques) malgré une tonne de phases d'entraînement dont on ne voit pas le bout et malgré le mode "rookie" disponible. Autant dire que le temps de maîtriser un tant soit peu ce foutoir, le Madden 17 sera déjà sorti !

    Techniquement assez joli mais pas transcendant, loin de là, le jeu pâtit de temps de chargement trop longs pour charger un simple stade avec deux dizaines de bourrins dessus. Bref, cette mouture ne m'a pas convaincu du tout.    … Expand
  5. FootCreem9
    May 16, 2016
    0
    LEGITIMATELY THE WORST GAME I HAVE EVER PLAYED. enough said, buy any other game not this scripted piece of ea ****. I mean if they were to even put 2 hours of effort into fixing this POS, but nope.
  6. LCOOLJ03
    Apr 25, 2016
    0
    This game is horrible all you have to do is run 4 vert and throw it to you star receiver and hold Y or triangle and that's how you win considering that a 75 ovr WR can moss 99 deion it's ridiculous. There's no point in having a good o-line becausee 3 people blocking will still get blocksheded by base elties, and speed doesn't even matter in this game, youtubers are saying that 99 GT Bo isThis game is horrible all you have to do is run 4 vert and throw it to you star receiver and hold Y or triangle and that's how you win considering that a 75 ovr WR can moss 99 deion it's ridiculous. There's no point in having a good o-line becausee 3 people blocking will still get blocksheded by base elties, and speed doesn't even matter in this game, youtubers are saying that 99 GT Bo is a dissapointment because he doesn't feel like 101 speed considering he gets SUCTION TACKLED by d-linemen. I'm Just waiting for I hope ea fixes this or don't make madden 17 at all JUST LET 2K MAKE A FOOTBALL GAME… Expand
  7. jamalt
    Apr 2, 2016
    3
    I understand that EA doesn't need to value its customer base, because they own exclusive rights to the NFL and haven't had competition since NFL 2K. So as a non-loyal, but still a dumb ass that has played Madden 2003- 20016 I am officially done. There are numerous reasons to list, but I don't need to repeat what numerous people have already said. This game is as fresh as the announcersI understand that EA doesn't need to value its customer base, because they own exclusive rights to the NFL and haven't had competition since NFL 2K. So as a non-loyal, but still a dumb ass that has played Madden 2003- 20016 I am officially done. There are numerous reasons to list, but I don't need to repeat what numerous people have already said. This game is as fresh as the announcers tiresome statements (Jim Nanz and Phil Simms again) They're repetitive, asinine, and like the Madden franchise should be chucked in the garbage.
    My complaints other then that are all with Online and here they are:
    - I can no longer see my opponents DNF. So there is no reward for not quitting. Some turd with a DNF of 50% that quits as soon as he throws an interception and falls down by one score will be matched with me. So much for rewarding good sportsmanship... this has been the case for at least the last two maddens.
    -In the same vein, I can also no longer see who I'm playing. It's so fresh to get stuck playing someone 8/10 times who picks Carolina all the time b/c they have one of the best QB's and defenses in the game.
    Like I said, I could go on but almost everything's been said already. EA knows we're the same public that shells out $15 to see the new Fast and Furious, its titled Furious. No need to make a compelling game, too greedy and complacent for that.
    -    … Expand
  8. bushy1214
    Mar 17, 2016
    8
    I haven't played a Madden game in 15 years. I've always loved NCAA football more. The day before the super bowl this year Xbox had a sell where the game was only $20. So I bought it and so far I really like it. I was never impressed with Madden games but this one is a lot of fun. The graphics are great and so is the gameplay. It's fun playing against friends.
  9. Ambushstealth
    Feb 27, 2016
    1
    This game is only fun for franchise mode (solo or with friends online). I am only giving this game a 1 because it is pretty cool that league owners can now adjust how much experience players get in the online franchise mode. Below this I am listing most of the issues I’ve encountered while playing Madden 16.

    People still have to test out stats to see which ones are actually meaningful.    This game is only fun for franchise mode (solo or with friends online). I am only giving this game a 1 because it is pretty cool that league owners can now adjust how much experience players get in the online franchise mode. Below this I am listing most of the issues I’ve encountered while playing Madden 16.

    People still have to test out stats to see which ones are actually meaningful. Why should people that buy a game have to figure out which stats matter? There are so many videos on youtube of people testing stats, but we never receive a clear answer as to what they do for each player position from EA.

    EA added new catching animations, but it seems that people only lob the ball deep to a WR and abuse aggressive catch with the Y button. If the WR is 6 feet+, has 90+ speed, 90+ spectacular catch, 90+ jumping, you will 90% of the time not be able to stop him. The 10% chance is if you have a DB 6 feet+, with 90+ speed, 90+ jumping, 90+ coverage stats and amazing luck on which animation is generated. The WR with these stats can catch the ball 15 feet in the air while 2-4 defenders flop around him. This makes MUT and Draft Champions almost impossible to play against other users without raging or wanting to break the controller. These new catch animations are worse than when people used the rocket catch in earlier maddens.

    Blue and Purple zones don’t work similar to the way they used to. Zone coverage is almost useless in this madden, it is easily beat against deep passes. There are specific plays that can glitch cover 3/4 deep/middle zones, I understand in some circumstances that this is realistic, but a 80 zone cover FS/MLB/ROLB shouldn’t be beat by a TE with 60 route running.

    MUT has taken over as the featured mode to play, but in reality it is a waste of time and money unless you don’t mind spending a lot of time and/or $300+ on it. Cards in this mode usually start with 25 contracts and then you need to spend 11k madden coins to get another 25 games for every starter on the team (maybe even more if you use multiple people on the depth chart). There are modes that you can play that will earn you extra contracts, but who wants to play against the cpu all day on pro difficulty just to gain enough contracts to play a few head to head games?

    I am glad I didn’t pay full price for this game, it has to be one of the worst maddens I have ever played besides madden 11. I have been playing since 1996… in my opinion, ever since 2008, madden has been continuing the streak of becoming worse every year. I am glad EA got sued for $60 million, thank you judge Claudia Wilken.    … Expand
  10. redsoxaholic
    Feb 6, 2016
    0
    For the eighth straight year, EA has pumped out a pile of **** that somehow classifies as a football game. How close to actual football is Madden? Maybe 1%, it does have the players in it after all. The other 99% is what EA obviously wants you to do, and that is buy MUT points in the form of micro-transactions. In fact about 80% of what is available in the online store is pay to win. IfFor the eighth straight year, EA has pumped out a pile of **** that somehow classifies as a football game. How close to actual football is Madden? Maybe 1%, it does have the players in it after all. The other 99% is what EA obviously wants you to do, and that is buy MUT points in the form of micro-transactions. In fact about 80% of what is available in the online store is pay to win. If you ever needed a perfect example of a pay to win game, any Madden that has MUT in it would do perfectly.

    This doesn't even touch the menus that take forever to navigate, gameplay that has not changed since Madden 08 (the last good one), glitches that make the lack of developer testing incredibly apparent, servers that do not allow you to play online (have to play everything offline because you disconnect 100% of the time), and lack of effort in a game that they know people will buy simply because it says "Madden" on it that is so **** obvious that literally any other company with any attempt to make a football game could outclass Madden in a heartbeat, much like The Show outlclassed MLB 2k. I'd say this game is worth $5 maximum, maybe $10 if they throw enough free MUT points at you.

    In short, **** you EA Sports, you literally are the worst division of the worst company on Earth and I hope you go under and all lose your jobs.    … Expand
  11. MasterChase66
    Dec 5, 2015
    9
    I have always been a huge fan of the Madden series. This particular entry is by far the best. I love how the connected franchise works in this entry. If you love Madden, this is your game.
  12. Boltrunner25
    Dec 2, 2015
    8
    Madden 16 is one of the better Maddens since 2014. The game play has been lifted since last years Madden. The drive goals are pretty cool but for the most part have no barring on what you should actually do one a drive. 4th quarter under 2 min. it wants you to run the ball 3 times. The goals should be situation based. The only thing that irritated me with Madden 16 and why i didnt rank itMadden 16 is one of the better Maddens since 2014. The game play has been lifted since last years Madden. The drive goals are pretty cool but for the most part have no barring on what you should actually do one a drive. 4th quarter under 2 min. it wants you to run the ball 3 times. The goals should be situation based. The only thing that irritated me with Madden 16 and why i didnt rank it higher was the fact that they removed online career coop mode. I play with friends in other states and we can no longer create and play on a team together. Kind of a bummer and something i hope they add back.… Expand
  13. Towelzz
    Nov 28, 2015
    0
    I created a metacritic account just to make a review for this game.
    This piece of **** is by far the WORST Madden game to exist.

    This game isn't "innovative" or "refreshing." They said the new mechanics would be more realistic? **** NO THEY'RE NOT. This is the most unrealistic football game IN HISTORY.

    Madden 15 is 10x better than this piece of raw crap.
  14. thedirtyrussian
    Nov 26, 2015
    4
    Pros of this game
    - nice graphics and physics - fun to look at
    - roster update Cons - commentary - makes you want to shoot up a shopping mall - loading screens - even though you install the damn game the wait times for loading are incredible - worst Kinect implementation - it will randomly call timeouts for you online/ will randomly waste challenges and change plays without you    Pros of this game
    - nice graphics and physics - fun to look at
    - roster update

    Cons
    - commentary - makes you want to shoot up a shopping mall
    - loading screens - even though you install the damn game the wait times for loading are incredible
    - worst Kinect implementation - it will randomly call timeouts for you online/ will randomly waste challenges and change plays without you saying a word
    - gameplay has not been improved much since the other Maddens
    - franchise mode sometimes freezes the game
    - its still $60    … Expand
  15. Krazylegs75
    Oct 13, 2015
    7
    Madden has not been incorporated with more depth. Almost the same game as the previous year. What happened to the old madden skill games (bench press, sprints, i.q. tests). This stuff made the game very interesting especially in My Career (Connected Franchise). Game mechanics are great and visuals are on point. Tackling is terrible. The rag-doll effect is a little too much after everyMadden has not been incorporated with more depth. Almost the same game as the previous year. What happened to the old madden skill games (bench press, sprints, i.q. tests). This stuff made the game very interesting especially in My Career (Connected Franchise). Game mechanics are great and visuals are on point. Tackling is terrible. The rag-doll effect is a little too much after every single tackle and watching players seem to be dead as they lay there after every tackle is hilarious and annoying, as their limbs flail everywhere. Madden needs to step up the game play mechanics… Expand
  16. BBBentley239
    Oct 7, 2015
    0
    Horrible trash. Madden is the worst game in history. The worst football company in history. They put all emphasis on competitive gameplay. No emphasis on storyline or presentation. IT is crap. It's nothing but a roster update. The improvements are barely observable. It's disgusting, how they are allowed to do this year in and out. Franchise sucks. They might as well just make a game thatHorrible trash. Madden is the worst game in history. The worst football company in history. They put all emphasis on competitive gameplay. No emphasis on storyline or presentation. IT is crap. It's nothing but a roster update. The improvements are barely observable. It's disgusting, how they are allowed to do this year in and out. Franchise sucks. They might as well just make a game that is made for online or multiplayer. If you're going to do such a piss poor job on franchise or other single player options. I used to love football games and these a--hats have virtually made it so I can't play the game I love. I hate them. FAIL!… Expand
  17. xRAIDER34x
    Oct 5, 2015
    9
    I like the direction madden took this year but there are some things that need attention. MUT is growing and the addition of draft champions was a good idea for the series hopefully they continue it. I do understand some of the negative feedback but these additions to the passing game add depth to the gameplay. If they throw it deep play good D dont complain because someone goes over theI like the direction madden took this year but there are some things that need attention. MUT is growing and the addition of draft champions was a good idea for the series hopefully they continue it. I do understand some of the negative feedback but these additions to the passing game add depth to the gameplay. If they throw it deep play good D dont complain because someone goes over the top like an idiot all the time. Most players I have encountered are sporting players so dont listen to the nagging response of players throwing bombs all the time. Connected franchise is still a solid mode and I think they made it deeper and more fun. They still have much work to do in the future but it is worth the up grade.… Expand
  18. Defo4
    Sep 25, 2015
    3
    If you were hoping to play single player don't even bother. The AI is awful; you'll either blow it out on lower levels, or watch the game brutally cheat to beat you. The new catch options are mostly a non-factor for the user, but have fun watching the AI make insane one-handed grabs in double coverage with regularity. I had high hopes for this game, but will be trading it in tomorrow.If you were hoping to play single player don't even bother. The AI is awful; you'll either blow it out on lower levels, or watch the game brutally cheat to beat you. The new catch options are mostly a non-factor for the user, but have fun watching the AI make insane one-handed grabs in double coverage with regularity. I had high hopes for this game, but will be trading it in tomorrow. Another cash grab for EA. Don't waste your time.… Expand
  19. LeBlanket
    Sep 18, 2015
    4
    I loved Madden 15 but Madden 16 is horrible in my opinion. I thought that the new catching mechanics would help but it doesn't. You almost never do a possession catch, the RAC catch is the one you always do. When you go deep to a tall receiver and make an aggressive catch, the receiver always catches it. I find it an unrealistic game and it doesn't feel like your playing football. Too muchI loved Madden 15 but Madden 16 is horrible in my opinion. I thought that the new catching mechanics would help but it doesn't. You almost never do a possession catch, the RAC catch is the one you always do. When you go deep to a tall receiver and make an aggressive catch, the receiver always catches it. I find it an unrealistic game and it doesn't feel like your playing football. Too much broken tackles. You can't slam the ball down anymore on defense, you either play the ball (trying to catch it, not slam it down) or the receiver. One thing that I could say that was fun was playing Draft Champions.… Expand
  20. ZacharyNeal
    Sep 15, 2015
    9
    I waited until the first patch came out to write my review.

    In my experience with this game, I've come away pretty pleased with how it's played. The balance between offense and defense was my main worry coming off a defensive year in Madden 15. I was a bit worried of the overtilt BACK to the offensive side of the football. However, the WR/DB interactions are very balanced. You have a    I waited until the first patch came out to write my review.

    In my experience with this game, I've come away pretty pleased with how it's played. The balance between offense and defense was my main worry coming off a defensive year in Madden 15. I was a bit worried of the overtilt BACK to the offensive side of the football. However, the WR/DB interactions are very balanced. You have a chance to take those one on one shots down the sideline, but the ratings definitely dictate who is coming down with the football. Furthermore, the defensive system really rewards the user for calling the right play/making the right adjustment. I rarely, if ever see WRs coming down with the ball when it's thrown into double coverage. This is a vast improvement from Madden 16 where you could "box out" defensive backs with big WRs regardless of their rating (Chris Matthews of the Seahawks before his big game in the Super Bowl comes to mind). Now, your WR better be up to snuff, ratings-wise when you take that shot. I will say that the size of the WRs and DBs in the interaction needs to play a bigger role. Small, but excellent WRs like Antonio Brown are playing much much MUCH bigger than you see them play in real life. Fullbacks target blocks MUCH better this year, so 2-back undercenter offenses are much better this year as well.

    My biggest beef with the game is actually the errant passing underneath. Too many times I'm seeing my QB airmail drag routes/shallow crosses in a clean pocket with no pressure and a wide open WR or check down RB. It's a little too frequent for my taste but definitely something that you can get used to by keeping balance in your offensive system.

    Draft Champions is a great tie-in mode to Madden Ultimate Team. Playing and winning 8 games of Draft Champions will get you two free elite players towards your MUT team. Which is very nice. I would prefer this mode be accessible offline to play vs. friends, as well as offline to invite friends to matches. It would become a major mode in my rotation if there were a competitive online leaderboard to track my progress/my friends' progress.

    Madden Ultimate Team,again, is stealing the majority of my playing time. I love the mode. This year, I saw that the pack odds are a little bit better. Still could be improved. Hard to imagine spending $60 on the mode and not getting major bang for the buck. This year I've taken a "no money spent" approach after my first bundle that I purchased, and I've found that I am doing alright with my coin bankroll. Currently winning games at 81 OVR with over 200K saved up. Not too bad. Would still like the leaderboard to reflect actual record in terms of W's and L's rather than coins earned (i.e. who has the most time to play the game regardless of win/loss record). I'm in the 300s, rank-wise but maybe 2 or 3 people in the Top 100 have a record anywhere near my 82-5 record. All in all, it's not that big of a deal.    … Expand
  21. moss2chappy
    Sep 15, 2015
    9
    This years game of madden is a huge step in the right direction. The gameplay has added a ton of new options on both sides of the ball give the user the ability to make adjustments and changes to match what you see in the NFL. Draft Champions game mode added a new experience to the game and if your a fan of MUT or fantasy football this mode will likely intrigue your interest as well. TheThis years game of madden is a huge step in the right direction. The gameplay has added a ton of new options on both sides of the ball give the user the ability to make adjustments and changes to match what you see in the NFL. Draft Champions game mode added a new experience to the game and if your a fan of MUT or fantasy football this mode will likely intrigue your interest as well. The gameplay & visuals has made a significant jump in progress from previous years. This year's game is the most fun I've had with Madden since 2009. This could go down as one of the best versions of the game in it's history and is a strong indicator that the current development team is moving towards simulation football.… Expand
  22. GainesvilleGuy
    Sep 13, 2015
    8
    First the good. The actual on-the-field play is the best ever. The QB->WR controls are very smooth and empowering. There is much complaining about the aggressive catch, and although it sometimes can frustrate you, I've found it to actually be pretty fair. Most of the time the ridiculous catch people complain about is a very highly rated WR over a scrub DB which can happen a lotFirst the good. The actual on-the-field play is the best ever. The QB->WR controls are very smooth and empowering. There is much complaining about the aggressive catch, and although it sometimes can frustrate you, I've found it to actually be pretty fair. Most of the time the ridiculous catch people complain about is a very highly rated WR over a scrub DB which can happen a lot especially in Draft mode. I recommend you get some good DB's when doing draft mode...

    The play calling is varied and can be approached in many different ways. The AI (both yours and your opponents) is decent enough, although if you replay in super slow mo you can find issues: I recommend not doing that;). Both man and zone defenses are viable, again the AI works as best as you can hope really for a game as complicated as 11 on 11 with hundreds and hundreds of plays/variations.

    I think draft mode is a good addition, and much less money grubbing than ultimate mode. And the rewards can be good from draft mode and quick to achieve. Ultimate mode is also addictive as usual, with multiple ways to try to build up your squad.

    The above is the good, and since the good includes the on-the-field play, which is by far the most important aspect of the game, I'm giving it a solid 8.

    However, there is still very much wrong with this game. In fact franchise mode is so bad on so many levels that it is essentially unplayable for me (note that this is after the patch). Below are all the things I consider utterly broken:

    1) Managing your team, in coach/owner franchise mode particularly, is extremely tedious and unwieldy. Sorting through players and stats is very difficult, as there are very limited ways to filter and sort, and the stats take lots of horizontal scrolling to see all of them. You can't do simple things like figuring out the strengths of your entire offensive line. I challenge you to figure that out: even seeing the strengths of a single position is hard, let alone groups of players together. And the information you want seems to never be available where you need it. For instance if somebody is on the trade block and you choose to consider a trade, there is no way to access that players full information from the trade screens. You need to back out to a roster screen and go to that teams roster to really get a close look at the player. Then after doing that you have to work yourself back into the trade screens. Owner/coach mode just is too tedious to actually play smart so what's the point of trying to make smart decisions? And if you can't really play smart why bother at all?

    2) Want to play player franchise mode? Have fun with the garbage super-sim you need to do when you are not on the field. It gives horrendous results. Really breaks the immersion. Such a simple thing for EA to fix but they didn't bother.

    3) Even if you want to simplify it to Ultimate team mode (avoiding the trading and drafting and signing, etc), there is still no way to fully optimize your team. Want to create certain player groups for different formations? Nope, can't set that permanently. Ultimate team mode would be a blast if you could really optimize your formations and plays to your players. Instead its one size fits all just throw em on the field.

    4) Even in Ultimate mode the horrible user interface bites again. Managing the market interface or figuring out what to do with your excess players is extremely tedious. It is bad on so many levels I really won't even begin to describe it.

    In summary, Madden 16 is a great on-the-field experience, but fails utterly in the off-the-field user experience. All of the systems they created off of the field are extremely unwieldy to the point where I just don't even bother anymore. I've given up on franchise mode entirely and have stopped trying to optimize my ultimate team. They really really need to tear down the off the field interfaces and redo them from scratch. For Madden 17 I suggest they don't touch the on-the-field at all and focus all of their resources into making the deep off-the-field complexity actually usable.    … Expand
  23. B5HARP
    Sep 8, 2015
    2
    Another rear end violation without lube from EA. EA still expecting us to shell out 60 bucks for what should be DLC. Biggest complaint- LOAD TIMES. I mean come on. I just want to play football and not look at that ridiculous CGI of Beckham taking a dump or farting, whatever that is he's doing. Secondly, if you have a Kinect, get read for frustration. The game will sporadicallyAnother rear end violation without lube from EA. EA still expecting us to shell out 60 bucks for what should be DLC. Biggest complaint- LOAD TIMES. I mean come on. I just want to play football and not look at that ridiculous CGI of Beckham taking a dump or farting, whatever that is he's doing. Secondly, if you have a Kinect, get read for frustration. The game will sporadically call time outs and audibles on you and there is no way to turn off the Kinect feature that i could find. I would stay away from this one if at all possible. I know how hard it is for football lovers. I had the game for 24 hours before i returned it to gamestop.… Expand
  24. ExBocksWun
    Sep 8, 2015
    4
    Pros: Draft champions added

    Cons: Game has too much to load so loading screens take forever. When a lot is happening, the game tends to lag down. Camera angles are terrible when playing defense. You can not see where the ball is thrown to unless you play safety or corner back. Gaining xp in cfm is ridiculous , on average you might get 10k xp built up if you manage to get every drive    Pros: Draft champions added

    Cons: Game has too much to load so loading screens take forever.
    When a lot is happening, the game tends to lag down.
    Camera angles are terrible when playing defense. You can not see where the ball is thrown to unless you play safety or corner back.
    Gaining xp in cfm is ridiculous , on average you might get 10k xp built up if you manage to get every drive goal and accomplishment finished. Building up a drafted player takes about 5 years plus now.
    The catch modes sound fun, but require quick button pushing and if you hit it too late, your player will dive or jump.    … Expand
  25. jdk8008
    Sep 6, 2015
    8
    The Good:

    -The new passing and receiving mechanics are a great addition to the game. I have read a number of complaints about the fact that this is the year of the "unbeatable deep pass". I definitely do not agree because defenders actually do have an equal fighting chance on every pass. This year, for the first time ever, a completion has everything to do with the angle of the    The Good:

    -The new passing and receiving mechanics are a great addition to the game. I have read a number of complaints about the fact that this is the year of the "unbeatable deep pass". I definitely do not agree because defenders actually do have an equal fighting chance on every pass. This year, for the first time ever, a completion has everything to do with the angle of the player, the location of the pass, what button is pressed to catch or defend the ball, when you press the catch/defend button, and how long you hold it. If you are getting beat by endless deep passes, it is because you have not yet figured out how to defend a pass.

    -QB accuracy actually matters for the first time ever. If you choose a QB with accuracy ratings in the 70's, they will throw occasional errant passes and their ball placement won't be quite as good.

    -The new draft champion mode is a fun addition to the franchise.

    -The new H2H matching system is definitely a breath of fresh air. You no longer get to see what team your opponent is selecting or the playbook they are using and it takes you right into the game. There are obvious cons to this, but I think this was a change for the better. Pick whatever team and playbook you want. No more whiny people quitting if their matchup isn't exactly what they want it to be. (They really need to make it so you can't be matched up with the same team you are using though)

    The Bad: (most of these things are nitpicky)

    -I spent 4 hours meticulously crafting a custom playbook, just to have every single game error out with a desync error in online H2H when using it. It took me around 8 games of that error occurring to figure it out that it was the custom playbook causing it.

    -I have to constantly re-order my depth chart after every game in online H2H. I have tried everything to get my depth chart to save. The same thing happens with my playbook occasionally and I get stuck using an unfamiliar playbook all game.

    -There is a delay in the ability to move my defenders after plays are selected. There are also cutscenes of the offense walking up to the line after plays are selected. There are a lot of people that hike the ball right when they line up. (including the computer) This small delay in the ability to move my defenders has lead to some very big gains/touchdowns by my opponent.

    -There is no clock run off when you choose to play select instead of no huddle with under 2 minutes left. It is faster to not use no-huddle in the two minute drill in most cases.

    -You can run no-huddle wayyyy to fast. It is impossible in real life to lineup, have a new play, and new formation called this fast. Please fix this!!!

    -The playbook editor: It forces you to keep certain plays in every playbook. You can't order your formations and plays in the order you want them to be. There is no way to preview plays before selecting them. There are mysterious gameplan situations that you can't select/remove plays for.

    -The Online H2H statistics are very poor. They need to include a minimum games played requirement for the statistics leaderboard. Want to see who is leading in PPG? It's that one guy who put up 128 points in one game played.

    -The EA Trax are terrible this year. "Ain't too Cool" by Lunchmoney Lewis has one of those choruses that makes me want to pull my hair out.    … Expand
  26. strongarm_playa
    Sep 3, 2015
    8
    Ok... So this year I decided to play the game a little longer before giving my review. Sometimes I feel like we may rush a review without actually having enough time hands on with the title.

    Madden 16 definitely comes to us revamped and improved from last year. With the new catching animations and features, offensive playmakers are not able to make a play on the ball in clutch moments.    Ok... So this year I decided to play the game a little longer before giving my review. Sometimes I feel like we may rush a review without actually having enough time hands on with the title.

    Madden 16 definitely comes to us revamped and improved from last year. With the new catching animations and features, offensive playmakers are not able to make a play on the ball in clutch moments. Now there have been numerous cases of users complaining about the newest features, but did you take time out of your Madden Season to learn the controls? Did you run through the tutorials?

    The tutorials are long and very boring at times. But your learning the ins and outs of the game and how it works. They are definitely there to help you. So if you're not using the tools that are being supplied, then yes you may not be as successful as you'd like to be.

    DB/WR interactions has finally took lift off. You will now notice more hand-chucking, bumping and in air collisions than before. It really looks like they took a lot of time to get these animations correct.

    The running game seems slow paced at times but more realistic. Though I have noticed that you may sometimes get sucked into a slow moving animation (running) when chasing down a player. I say that b/c I have noticed a safety getting out ran but then a linebacker chasing down the receiver. Hopefully it's an easy "patch" update.

    Throwing seems improved and more realistic as well. Though I cannot honestly say, the QB inaccuracies seem a little high. Or maybe that's just when I'm playing (Raiders).

    As for the newest game mode, Draft Champions. It's a lot of fun! I really enjoy drafting my team and building them through a draft. There is a lot of cards out there and I rarely see the same cards coming my way during the draft process. One downfall to the mode that I do not care for, is that I am forced to play all 4 games consecutively without being able to "pause" or go play another mode. I understand the games are short and a lot of people may quit, but I feel locked in and have no choices. At least give me the opportunity to play when I'm ready to play.

    Another cool feature about draft champions, is it gives you MUT (Ultimate Team) rewards. Though I have yet to see a really cool reward. Needless to say, I have yet to dive into MUT completely. I read some reviews about high contract usage for "No Money Spent Teams", so I decided to not go that route. Not yet anyway.

    Head to Head seemed a little shaky at first. I kept getting matched with people who were pulling the plug. But since then, most of my games have matched up pretty well. Honestly.. it's probably been one of the best Madden's to play H2H on in a very long time.

    My biggest complaint, would be: Still no online communities. This was a feature that had in the game a few years ago but then removed it. I enjoy playing with my friends and I understand the leaderboards situation and take on it. But what baffles me is that we have "lobbies" and it's a feature that is rarely used. Online communities was so much more useful and actually used by gamers. So they could play and interact with like minded individuals and friends.

    Overall I would give Madden a 84 this year. Obviously they are moving in the right direction.    … Expand
  27. somerset72
    Aug 30, 2015
    10
    My first Madden purchase for 5 years and, as a casual gamer, I am very impressed. The gameplay has been east to get into to the point that I feel like I've achieved slick stuff after only a little game-time.

    The presentation/ user-interface/ team management is really well thought out (I prefer it to Fifa)

    Big recommend from me
  28. michaelg2014
    Aug 29, 2015
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Worst madden game in history a total failure of trash of EA sports is. game sucks spoiler alert to many glitches and bugs,no improvements at all. peice of crap the STUPIDIST THIS IS CONNECTED **** why couldn't be like MYCAMPAIN INSTEAD WITH 2k sports made a football,there wouldn't be a Madden game,anymore because the ncaa case of O BANNON.… Expand
  29. TobiasSmellsBad
    Aug 29, 2015
    10
    The emphasis on WR/DB interaction, combined with the new catch mehcanics, gives this madden a refreshing feeling the franchise hasn't produced since Madden 2005. One title at a time, the game is moving in a great direction.
  30. Jpdavis1982
    Aug 28, 2015
    8
    I would like to see a decimal system added in the future for more precise scores. With that being said, my actual score for Madden 16 is 8.5, I gave 15 a 7.5, I see enough improvement in one year to justify a full point increase. The first thing that will stand out to most people familiar to the series, is that the speed of the game has been slowed down. This creates better flowingI would like to see a decimal system added in the future for more precise scores. With that being said, my actual score for Madden 16 is 8.5, I gave 15 a 7.5, I see enough improvement in one year to justify a full point increase. The first thing that will stand out to most people familiar to the series, is that the speed of the game has been slowed down. This creates better flowing animations and more realistic movement on the field. The next thing that stands out are the WR/DB interactions, they have been done very well and you will see things never before seen in any football video game to date, and definitely never in Madden. You will see WRs and DBs reach out their arms to feel where each other are at on the field while the ball is in the air, you'll see DBs grabbing WRs arms and wrists to break up passes, they will fight for the ball on simultaneous possession catches, swat the ball out of wrs hands, safeties will come from over the top and knock the ball out, DBs can punch out the ball and will tip the ball in the air, and many other interactions like you expect to see on Sundays. The other side of this feature is that there are 3 different catch options for a WR to choose from. They are aggressive, RAC, and possession, the aggressive catch has the biggest risk/reward to it, and the other two are best used to either try to gain a few extra yards after the catch or simply make a safe catch to move the chains. Penalties are back and in some cases working properly for the first time, you'll see pass interference on both offense and defense, defensive holding, etc... There are many other new gameplay additions, but to me the WR/DB interactions and penalties are the big difference makers on the field.

    As far as presentation, there are no major improvements this year, but a few nice additions in terms of crowd models(females), towels, signs, hd face scans for players, improved night and indoor lighting, and drive starters and finishers in commentary that help tell the story of the game and what happened in previous drives. The play by play commentary is still Nantz and Simms and it is still fairly dull and lifeless. There needs to be a new direction and focus in this area of the game, as it is severely holding back the presentation in game. There were no improvements of any substance in the halftime show, there is still no weekly wrap up or post game show or even a scores & stats ticker in CFM. These are things the community has wanted for years and they cannot go unnoticed another year if Madden wants to deliver a true next gen presentation. They still haven't achieved their goal of "Living Worlds", there is no major improvement on the sidelines, other than less generic faces and they added cold weather gear for camera and other sideline personnel. The sideline players and coaches do not interact with the players much if at all and sideline players react to plays like you would expect on a Xbox 360 or PS3, it's very dull and repetitive. These areas must also be addressed to get presentation up to par with the best in class sports titles presentation.

    As far as CFM goes, there were a few nice additions with a new scouting system, and they added combine results, but the biggest difference is in the interface and menus. Everything flows much smoother, they added a visual depth chart now which allows you to make roster adjustments much easier. Player cards have been added to allow you to see a quick overview of your players stats, ratings, and other info, you can also edit your player(not appearance or ratings), and make roster moves with this card. The other improvements in CFM are not as major and overall I was disappointed with the lack of improvement in CFM, it still doesn't create a lot of immersion as far as presentation and doesn't do a great job representing the excitement and brilliance of the nfl season. Stadium atmosphere doesn't change much depending on the stadium or time of year, Playoff and Super Bowl presentations are still lacking and virtually unchanged. Overall CFM is what it has been in the past, so if you're familiar with the mode then you know what to expect.

    Draft Champions is a new mode this year, it's basically fantasy football meets Hearthstone, there are 15 rounds to select your team, coaches and players, which you can then use to compete against the CPU in a "gauntlet" type mode or head to head online. I highly encourage everyone to try this mode even if you are not a fan of MUT, this is a new, fun, addictive experience and something that I would like to see all sports games introduce in the future.

    Overall, Madden 16 shines brightest on the field and it truly is the best playing Madden in a decade IMO. would like to see a lot of innovative improvements in presentation and CFM going forward, as noted, but if gameplay is king for you, like it is for me and you can overlook the lack of immersive presentation elements that are lacking, this is the Madden you have been waiting for    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

18
#18 Best Xbox One Game of 2015
31
#31 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2015
41
#41 Most Shared Xbox One Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 23
  3. Negative: 0 out of 23
  1. Sporting News
    Mar 3, 2016
    70
    Madden NFL 16 continues an upward trajectory for the series, just maybe not at the rate that consumers would hope.
    Read full review
  2. games(TM)
    Oct 25, 2015
    80
    It’s a nice mix of team building, draft tactics and instant gratification that shows off some of the best side of this area of the game.
    Read full review
  3. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    Oct 6, 2015
    80
    Smart alterations to the throwing and catching game shake up the Madden formula enough to pass the taste test, without necessarily adding any new ingredients. [Nov 2015, p.84]
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