Madden NFL 21

 Xbox One
User Score
0.5

Overwhelming dislike- based on 1047 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 1047
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 1047
  3. Negative: 1,006 out of 1047
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  1. PB301
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    Franchise mode is completely untouched.
    Face of the franchise is a completely linear story in which your actions make no difference, whether you throw 10 touchdowns or 10 interceptions a game, its the same regardless.
    EA own the exclusive rights to make an NFL simulation game, yet it seems they spent the last year solely working on a 6v6 arcade mode full of unrealistic gameplay and micro    Franchise mode is completely untouched.
    Face of the franchise is a completely linear story in which your actions make no difference, whether you throw 10 touchdowns or 10 interceptions a game, its the same regardless.
    EA own the exclusive rights to make an NFL simulation game, yet it seems they spent the last year solely working on a 6v6 arcade mode full of unrealistic gameplay and micro transactions.
    With the new game modes, first down celebration animations, the new theme and flash cards, it feels like this game is aimed at 12 year olds.

    Shame on me for giving money to this company again.    … Expand
  2. rizrah
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    THE WORST MADDEN EVER!!! Terrible animations so many glitches and bugs I don’t want to buy madden from EA EVER AGAIN!!!!
  3. nnnhhhggy
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    just stick with madden 21 pls it’s so bad and sad. legit same graphics just
  4. Cedrics195
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    I played madden almost everyday... Not anymore. 20 year madden player and this is by far the WORST it's been. NFL NEEDS TO DROP EA!!!
  5. maddrew
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    Horrible game the madden franchise just keeps getting worse and worse it’s a buggy game no new content
  6. zbeau73
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    If I wanted to be disappointed every year at the same time I’d watch the Browns play week 1
  7. jokill72
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. pure crap. Not fun. Not a sim game even when you play sim. Sim is still arcade. Its all offebse and no defense. Man coverage is horrible. Cpu will throw slants and inside routes that will never be incomplete and instant 1st downs against ANY coverage. The worst madden ive ever played and i have played evwry game since the beginning. This is not a sim game. This is arcade style trash with lots of glitches. Do not buy unless you like arcade trash.… Expand
  8. Bryandavis77
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. #NFLDropEA. Game is atrocious. How do they get away with this year after year?… Expand
  9. neillenhoff
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    I unfortunately bought the game on PS4 and got the demo on XBOX. Both versions are huge disappointments.
  10. jmanchi1
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    If you are intelligent enough to have not bought this game yet don’t do it. If you enjoy getting spit in your face by EA every year then buy this game. I grew up and loved Madden until around 13. Every year I get my hopes up only to be let down within the first two weeks of gameplay and realize it’s the same game as madden 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. It is genuinely laughable at this pointIf you are intelligent enough to have not bought this game yet don’t do it. If you enjoy getting spit in your face by EA every year then buy this game. I grew up and loved Madden until around 13. Every year I get my hopes up only to be let down within the first two weeks of gameplay and realize it’s the same game as madden 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. It is genuinely laughable at this point that people still play madden. The disrespect the community receives every year is sad and we have been lied to for far to long. We deserve better as a community.… Expand
  11. YhoppedYheese
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Don’t waste your time buying this load of dookie, hopefully nextgen will be better.… Expand
  12. KippShire
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    hate the game. Its the same refurbished game with updated roster. #nfldropea
  13. Acamp1989
    Aug 31, 2020
    1
    Same thing as last year. Terrible A.I. nothing innovative. Just 60$+ for an updated roster and a few tweaks
  14. GreaterScott
    Aug 31, 2020
    0
    Save yourself $60 and just hook up your old Sega Genesis and play the first Madden on that. It's a better game.
  15. Dnorwood114
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    This game is the worst “simulation” football game ever created. EA simply does not care about the consumer and will do anything to make money off of you. You’d be much happier buying NCAA 14 for $150 and playing on your old Xbox 360. NCAA 14 was way more in depth and somehow the physics were better than a game released in 2020.
  16. iMTHABADGi
    Sep 2, 2020
    0
    The only thing that works perfectly in this game is the micro transactions $$$

    Usual madden Bs. Glitches galore. Ex: 80 CB flying through receivers body one hand Odell pick 6. DT flying right past unoccupied blockers, cpu defense not reacting, etc. Copy and paste franchise. Copy and last this that and the other. Mut squads is broken. Can’t get into a game. It will freeze in the load menu    The only thing that works perfectly in this game is the micro transactions $$$

    Usual madden Bs. Glitches galore. Ex: 80 CB flying through receivers body one hand Odell pick 6. DT flying right past unoccupied blockers, cpu defense not reacting, etc. Copy and paste franchise. Copy and last this that and the other. Mut squads is broken. Can’t get into a game. It will freeze in the load menu and you’ll have to dashboard. But when you do manage to get in a game after many failed attempts (that count as losses) & playing as QB, your HC will switch to QB at the snap on pass plays. It’s insane how broken a game can be. Corner routes, crossers, etc are still broken unless you user them. Just dumb cpu defense can’t react to ANYTHING. Menu speeds are terrible. It takes 20-30 seconds to load between menus. Making building a team and doing chems frustrating as ever.    … Expand
  17. YoLuckyBastard
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Feels like a terrible revamped game. I’ve played about 10hrs...

    The Yard has glitches with player customisation, you unlock gloves and cleats and it will only appear on your players right side. The left side stays with the default boot and bare skin hand.

    Franchise mode is literally the same as Maddie 20.

    The story mode is Tedious, bland and unoriginal.
  18. Nacdon
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Such a bad game. It has so many bugs and not many features at all that don’t try to squeeze all of your money away. Do NOT spend your money on this trash. You will regret it
  19. OwenBerry1999
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    No updates to gameplay for the last 8 years, any updates they did add made it worse,when you add a new game mode and you have to buy your jerseys, you know it's a 0 out of ten
  20. DaRobstoppa
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    I haven't played madden since madden 17 because i thought each game was the same as the last one. I pre-ordered madden 21 because i thought in 4 years EA would've been able to fix the game. However, with almost everything EA touches, madden 21 was ruined. The same bugs exist, franchise mode is still broken, I AM STILL GETTING PACKS SHOVED DOWN MY THROAT, ultimate team is way tooI haven't played madden since madden 17 because i thought each game was the same as the last one. I pre-ordered madden 21 because i thought in 4 years EA would've been able to fix the game. However, with almost everything EA touches, madden 21 was ruined. The same bugs exist, franchise mode is still broken, I AM STILL GETTING PACKS SHOVED DOWN MY THROAT, ultimate team is way too repetative, and its just not fun. I was really hoping this game would be good because it had Lamar on it.… Expand
  21. JoeyClark50
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Man I wanted to like this game. It’s awful. The animations it FORCES you to do is nothing like real football. For a simulation style game it’s really bad at simulating the game.
  22. JustApollo
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    So I only got the 10 hour trial for this game through EA Play, which I'll likely be canceling. I cannot understand, as someone with an education in game design and CG work - How a company has been supported financially while making virtually zero improvements. Here are a few glaring examples:

    - Franchise mode is a re-skin of the previous year at best, while removing features like owner    So I only got the 10 hour trial for this game through EA Play, which I'll likely be canceling. I cannot understand, as someone with an education in game design and CG work - How a company has been supported financially while making virtually zero improvements. Here are a few glaring examples:

    - Franchise mode is a re-skin of the previous year at best, while removing features like owner mode. Re-skin might even be giving them too much credit, they changed the font.

    - With the introduction of Madden Yard or whatever, they did provide a lot of cosmetics for characters, unfortunately after a few draft classes in Franchise you'll be left with the same dozen or so character models until the end of time as they clearly believe the future of football lies in cloning. The cosmetics and customization upgrades are hard to find in other modes in my experience.

    - Glitches all over the place, I only played ten hours and encountered dozens of graphical glitches such as broken textures, and the locomotion system will cause your players to do things you didn't intend. You'll break a tackle while running 10 yards in the opposite direction frequently. The locomotion is improved over previous years, but is that really all you could accomplish in a year? Yard and locomotion improvements?

    - The difficulty has always bothered me. It's either you destroy your opponent or they destroy you. Sometimes it can feel like the defense can see the future with how they'll break on a ball, and other times they're clueless. I lowered the difficulty and beat my first opponent 104-0. I don't think they ever made a tackle, and Dwayne Haskins went 19/19. You'll be playing with sliders for days until you feel out a decent "difficulty".

    - Creating/Moving a Franchise is an afterthought. These games used to allow you to customize stadiums and edit logos/uniforms if you move a franchise. This year I tried to move Washington to Toronto, mostly because it's the only team without a logo in the game. They give you a few places you can move to, that's fine, but there is virtually zero customization options outside of the basic stadium type and picking between 3 logos and uniforms. How is it 2020 and you have less features than 2001?

    - Every mode outside of microtransaction ultimate team (MUT) is virtually ignored, and MUT is basically gambling and FOMO pressure. This game is downright insulting to anybody who just wants a football simulation.

    - Draft classes are hysterically bad, as teams pick players arbitrarily and the player rankings and ratings are often all over the map. It sucks to need a replacement at tackle, and realizing that the random draft class doesn't have a single OT in the first 4 rounds.

    - The soundtrack is laughably weak. Seems like every year there are less and less tracks, and the artists have gotten more and more obscure. Back in the early 2000's my ipod was full of tracks that I discovered through EA games like NFS Underground and Madden. Over a wide range of genres as well. They have truly given up on this front. I could probably record a song shouting out EA sports while dropping a few football references and I'd get into this game. That's what many of the tracks seem to do.

    OVERALL

    Don't buy this game, just play an old one and update the roster with a user created one - those are always really solid and more accurate than the launch roster. We should all stop purchasing this game until the exclusivity rights are pulled by the NFL and competition returns to the football simulation sphere. I know most football fans want old-school NCAA games and 2K5 level features. It's about time we force their hand and get what we're asking for. Holding consumers hostage like this is a tragic insult to such a revered sport. Please don't support this company, hit them in their wallet and reclaim this space.

    If not, well. Next year we might get owner mode back and a few new character faces. Maybe?

    0/10 - This game insults my entire ancestral tree, just play an old one and be sad like the rest of us.    … Expand
  23. Zekes2517
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Preordered game. Virtually no content on Ultimate Team on day 1. Mechanics have gotten worse than previous years. Many times the field markings will simply fail to load. Stadium banners fail to load. Players faces fail to load. Kicking system remains the same but frequently lags out causing bad kicks. Tackle animations glitch severely, and sometimes players will stay stuck in an animationPreordered game. Virtually no content on Ultimate Team on day 1. Mechanics have gotten worse than previous years. Many times the field markings will simply fail to load. Stadium banners fail to load. Players faces fail to load. Kicking system remains the same but frequently lags out causing bad kicks. Tackle animations glitch severely, and sometimes players will stay stuck in an animation even after being tackled. A huge step backwards for Madden.… Expand
  24. Maddensucks1992
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Worst madden I have ever played in my life and I though madden 09 with brett Favre was bad but oh my god... the most glitchy subpar game I have ever played and I actually payed 100 dollars for this **** ass game because the defense user movement was slowed down so a linebacker couldnt guard 3 different guys while the ball is in the air... the QB switching glitch should have been #1 on theWorst madden I have ever played in my life and I though madden 09 with brett Favre was bad but oh my god... the most glitchy subpar game I have ever played and I actually payed 100 dollars for this **** ass game because the defense user movement was slowed down so a linebacker couldnt guard 3 different guys while the ball is in the air... the QB switching glitch should have been #1 on the list to fix but yet you have waiting till September 10th to fix ur broken ass game. I want my money back for such a lackluster **** game.. EA should be ashamed for getting a new 6 year deal with the NFL and this is the first **** product you put out .... unbelievable… Expand
  25. Orsen
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    EA has time and time again proven they don't care and refuse to even do the bare minimum when it comes to making new games, they make the same thing every year, practically being a $60 annual subscription fee yet it's still worse than the classic madden games by miles, see madden 05, 08, etc.
  26. TRAPDADDY
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Literally trash. I made an account just so I can downvote this game. Shame that EA is allowed to do this to customers.
  27. bulldogpride08
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Full of bugs. Launch menus are absurdly slow. Texturing issues with lines not showing up on the field. Old commentary applying to wrong players. Squads unplayable. Sets open up ghost packs that don't exist. Poor UI changes - old actions take longer and more clicks. Overall a worse game. NFL needs to DROPEA.
  28. Iron4life
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Last year's game with updated roster, a few new animations, and apparently that is worth 60 dollars
  29. Yomperz
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    By far the most glitches in any game I have every played including indie developer games. Prices for packs go up and up while pack odds and game play experience goes lower than anyone could imagine a AAA developer could go. Certain game modes are unplayable and have yet to be fixed over a week after release. Through and through every aspect of this game is broken or below par.
  30. Slightnegative
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    Everything new in this game could have been added in an update. EA is a pathetic excuse of a company. Anybody who worked on this hunk of garbage should be fired.
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Awards & Rankings

93
#93 Best Xbox One Game of 2020
4
#4 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2020

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
69

Mixed or average reviews - based on 20 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 20
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 20
  3. Negative: 0 out of 20
  1. GamingBolt
    Nov 1, 2020
    70
    Madden NFL 21 is as fun and realistic as every Madden game, especially in its new “The Yard” mode and its increased focus on superstars, but its stagnation in gameplay innovation and established modes makes it sometimes difficult to distinguish its improvements over previous games.
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  2. TheSixthAxis
    Sep 14, 2020
    60
    Madden 21 has the components to be a solid, if utterly by-the-numbers entry in the franchise. However, a raft of bugs and glitches serve to undo the game’s atmosphere at every turn.
    Read full review
  3. GameCritics
    Sep 10, 2020
    75
    Given the sheer depth of the title, this Madden NFL 21 review could theoretically go on for another 1,000 words but there’s a good chance most readers already know whether or not they plan to invest in another season of tried and true NFL gameplay. Make no mistake, Madden NFL 21 is the best rendition of football this generation, and is A solid experience for anyone who takes the plunge — it just comes down to whether or not the new features warrant another purchase for regular fans.
    Read full review
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