Part 1 of Welcome Back, Football! can be read here.
Welcome to Part 2 of Welcome Back, Football! In Part 1, we talked with Ben Haumiller and discussed the new features that NCAA Football 13 would be bringing to the table. Today, we move on to Madden.
This year, Gaming Examiner sits down with Larry Richart (Gameplay Designer), Matt Bialosuknia (Audio Producer), and Josh Looman (Senior Designer) to discuss what’s new with Madden 13.
Larry Richart (Gameplay Designer)
Gaming Examiner – We all saw the Kinect demo at E3 which featured Joe Montana. It’ll be fantastic being able to call out plays (and other features) using our voices. Can you go more into depth on what other Kinect features we’ll be able to use? How much freedom do we have when calling plays, or are we restricted to a “script,” if you will?
Larry Richart – You can use any pre-snap commands that are currently mapped to the controller (individual coverages, hot routes etc.). Plus, we have added a wide range of popular synonyms. If you see it onscreen, you can say it. If you don’t see it onscreen and don’t know if you can say it, give it a try. There are multiple ways to make adjustments using your voice. We also allow you to bypass the syntax of having to say “audible†or “custom play†before actually saying the name of the play. If you know the adjustment you want to make, just say it.
GE – A new physics engine, the Infinity Engine, is being implemented for Madden 13. In previous years, “new” animations and physics were touted for each iteration of Madden, from Pro-Tak to last year’s effort. To be blunt, most Madden fans saw not much more than a change in name. How will the Infinity Engine differ from previous physics/animation engines?
LR – This is the most realistic implementation of physics in the Madden NFL franchise to date. The Infinity Engine will affect interactions to create the type of variety that people dream of when they think of real time physics in a game. Predefined outcomes are history, and the emergence that comes as a result of the Infinity Engine will completely change the gameplay experience.
GE – I’m VERY excited to see all the new QB pass trajectories added to this year’s game. It should make players actually feel more like the QB of a team. Can you expand on that and tell us a bit more about the new system? Along with that is the new receiver awareness system. Is this something that you feel will work naturally, or do you potentially see players simply dropping back and looking for an open receiver icon all day?
LR – The new pass trajectories we have added to Madden NFL 13 make it easier for users to get more realistic passes, including lobs, medium/touch and bullet passes. For example, if you tap the receiver icon on a swing pass to a running back, you will get a much more realistic trajectory instead of the “moon ball†that was in previous versions of the game. Overall, there are more than 25 new pass trajectory zones that have been specifically tuned to allow the user to throw the exact type of pass they want at any given time. The new receiver awareness system is a combination of changes. First, the receivers’ icons will only light up when they are expecting a pass and looking for the ball. The icons also won’t light up right away for receivers who have longer routes like a deep posts, a comeback or a cover two corner route. The icons lighting up are also not an “open indicator,†so you still have to make the correct reads as a quarterback or you could be in trouble. This new system is based on real life and how and when receivers would look and expect a pass based on the route they are running.
GE – On the opposite side of the ball, the defense has also gotten an overhaul with true read and react defense. Now the defense must actually see the ball to make a play, and coverages can be disguised. Can you tell us more on what we can expect from the opposing defense?
LR – The new Read and React Defensive AI System is again, like every feature we try and add to the game, based on what happens in the NFL. Even the best defenders, like Darrelle Revis and Champ Bailey, have to see the ball before they can actually make a play on it. In Madden NFL 13, defenders, as well as receivers on offense, will only be able to go for a catch or swat if they see the ball first. Our goal here is to eliminate the “Psychic DB†because, again, it’s not something you see in real life. Also, defenders in man coverage will not be able to cut when receivers cut on their routes unless they actually see the offensive player make a move.
Another huge addition to Madden NFL 13 is the ability to disguise your coverage. It starts off with the new alignment system we added to make sure that you get the best possible match-ups (e.g. a DB will align over a slot receiver instead of a LB taking that coverage). We talked to several different NFL defensive coordinators over the years to build these new alignment rules. The new alignments allow the defense to better disguise their coverage as you can no longer immediately tell if it’s a man or zone coverage. If a receiver is sent in motion, defenders will simply swap zone assignments giving the offense the impression that defenders are in man coverage. So just like the chess match you see on Sundays between the offensive and defensive coordinators, there are several new ways to hide what your defense is playing in Madden NFL 13.
Matt Bialosuknia (Audio Producer)
GE – Last year we were given an increase in camera angles, player info overlays, commentary, etc. that was meant to look closer to an NFL broadcast. While it was a good direction to start with, it still seemed a little generic and repetitious. For Madden 13, you have mentioned that the presentation is set to receive another overhaul meant to mimic a CBS broadcast. Can you tell us more about that?
Matt Bialosuknia – We continued to invest in authentic NFL Films cameras, creating another 650 new cameras for presentation.
– We created another 200 cut-scenes throughout the game, mainly for pregame and postgame.
– Auto Instant Replays received an upgrade to show the play from multiple angles, at various replay speeds, including a wire cam following the play.
– Added Motion Blur, better Depth of Field, Progressive Skies, and HDR Lighting to create more realistic visuals.
– Added pregame segment with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms in 3D broadcast booth to welcome the broadcast audience and setup the story of the day.
– Updated our broadcast graphics package (banners, wipes, and overlays) to match our TV-inspired broadcast reference images.
– All new composed music throughout the game experience (in and out of game).
– New Boot Flow through the 3D environment to the Action Grid Main Menu.
GE – Chris Collinsworth and Gus Johnson are gone from the commentary, replaced this year by Phil Simms and Jim Nantz. The repetition and stilted quality of previous years’ commentary track has long been a sore spot for Madden fans. What’s being done this year to make the commentary sound more natural and flow better?
MB – In Madden NFL 13 we introduce the Emmy Award winning broadcasting team of The NFL on CBS’s Jim Nantz for play by play and Phil Simms for color commentary. We are huge fans of their broadcast style and their team chemistry. They have worked as a team for quite a number of years and have called numerous regular season games, postseason matchups and Super Bowls together. They perfectly compliment the innovations we’ve made in gameplay and especially broadcast presentation.
We recorded most of their commentary sessions with both Jim and Phil together in the booth, at the same time, with the same headset mics they use when they’re broadcasting the NFL. We recorded basically all of our commentary at a studio in New York City and so the audio is consistently high quality. With two new commentators in Madden NFL 13 we were obviously starting from scratch. We would script the situations we needed them to call and provide an example line. Everything else was essentially unscripted. What you’re hearing in Madden NFL 13 is the authentic natural flow of Jim and Phil. We are super proud of what we achieved in year one and look forward to going deeper and getting even more detailed in the future.
GE – On a personal note, I was upset to see the NFL Films music excluded from last year’s game. Will that be back this year?
MB – We took a fresh, new direction in the music for this year’s game. Heavily inspired by NFL Films and the high-end broadcast themes of prime-time network pro sports, we’ve introduced a new, high energy, and dramatic orchestrated Madden NFL theme and soundtrack. We wanted to create a theme for Madden NFL 13 that would be recognizable to our fans. We love the rush we feel when hearing the ESPN Monday Night Football theme or the NFL on CBS or Fox. Now the Madden NFL franchise has an elite, iconic theme all its own. Working with composer and arranger Colin O’Malley (who did an incredible job on EA Sports’ NCAA Football 12), we also created a complete soundtrack that plays cohesively throughout the game just like broadcast production – at the game’s intro, quarter breaks, halftime, and postgame. This soundtrack plays in the front end and all menus and replaces the traditional EA Trax mix. I think that you and our fans will love it – the fan reaction so far has been amazing!
Josh Looman (Senior Designer)
GE – Connected Careers sounds like a FANTASTIC addition to the career mode of Madden. As someone who spends the bulk of their playing time in Franchise Mode, it’s nice to see all aspects of the careers integrated into one mode. Will each facet of Connected Careers (Franchise, Superstar, Online Franchise, etc.) still maintain its depth from previous years, or will features be taking a hit in order to streamline the overall experience more?
Josh Looman – Not only does Connected Careers maintain the depth of the previous three modes, but it exceeds that depth by leaps and bounds. New additions such as In-Season Progression, players coming out of retirement, injuries that last longer than one season, CPU proposed trades and every player and coach having season, weekly and milestone goals adds more depth than any other sports game on the market.
GE – Player tendencies was a fantastic addition to last year’s game which made each player respond to weekly situations much like they would in real life. It went a long way towards creating a more realistic experience. Is this something that will be back in Madden 13, and will you be building on last year’s effort in any way?
JL – They’re definitely back in Madden NFL 13 and the great part is that they’ve been integrated into Connected Careers. Players can actually save up experience points that they earn by meeting goals to upgrade their tendencies permanently, which adds a whole new dynamic to the system.
GE – Integration with NCAA Football has always been something many fans look forward to. In previous games, the incoming rookie class (especially the ones that match up with true to life draft classes) often had attributes that did not reflect real life counterpart very well. In addition, a player’s Dynasty Mode players were often not represented all that well when imported to Madden. Is this something that will be tweaked for this year’s game in order to create a more realistic attribute system?
JL – NCAA Football 13 draft classes will not be supported in this year’s game.
GE – Can you elaborate to our readers why the feature has been excluded in this year’s game?
JL – Due to the completely rebuilt nature of Connected Careers we have to totally rewrite the logic that governs draft classes and how they’re handled in Madden NFL. It’s an important feature that we want to be sure is done right, and unfortunately we didn’t have enough time to include it in this year’s game. We understand it is a feature many of our fans love, so we’re working hard to get it back into the game as quickly as possible.
Thank you to Josh Looman, Matt Bialosuknia, and Larry Richart for their time! Madden NFL 13 is shaping up to be one of the better entries in the franchise in quite some time. Plenty of tweaks are being made, and come August 28th, it looks like NFL football is back in season!
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