Madden NFL 07
North American cover art
Developer(s)	EA Tiburon, EA Canada, HB Studios (Wii)
Publisher(s)	EA Sports
Series	Madden NFL
Native resolution	480i, 720p
Platform(s)	GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, Windows, DS, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation Portable, Wii, PlayStation 3
Release date(s)	August 22, 2006 PS2 & Windows NA August 22, 2006 EU August 25, 2006 AUS September 14, 2006 Xbox NA August 22, 2006 EU August 25, 2006 AUS August 31, 2006 Nintendo DS NA August 22, 2006 PAL August 25, 2006 Xbox 360 NA August 22, 2006 EU September 8, 2006 AUS September 14, 2006 PlayStation Portable NA August 22, 2006 PAL October 26, 2006 Game Boy Advance & GameCube NA August 22, 2006 Wii NA November 14, 2006 AUS December 7, 2006 EU December 8, 2006 PlayStation 3 NA November 14, 2006 PAL July 30, 2007
Genre(s)	Sports
Mode(s)	Single-player, Multiplayer, Online multiplayer
Rating(s)	ESRB: E OFLC: G PEGI: 3+
Media	Blu-ray Disc, Game cartridge, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, GameCube disc, UMD, Wii disc
System requirements	Windows 2000 or better

Madden NFL 07 is the 2007 edition of the popular Madden NFL series. It is the first in the video game series to be released for the PlayStation 3 and Wii consoles. Former Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander is on the cover.

[edit] Release

To mark the debut of Madden NFL 07, EA Sports released Madden NFL 07 in Madden, Mississippi, the only community in the United States to have the same name as John Madden. Each resident received a free Xbox 360 gaming console and a free copy of Madden NFL 07. NFL stars in attendance were Jerry Rice, Warren Moon, and Marshall Faulk.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Madden NFL 07 was released for more formats in a single year than any previous version. In addition to its appearance on the PC platform and cell phones, versions of the game were produced for every game console of the previous generation, including the Xbox, the PlayStation 2, and the Nintendo GameCube. Hand-held versions appeared on the PSP, the Nintendo DS, and the Game Boy Advance. It is also the second iteration of the series to appear on the Xbox 360, and the first to appear on the PlayStation 3 and Wii consoles.

After John Madden's induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, EA Sports released a version of Madden NFL 07 called the "Hall of Fame Edition" with John Madden on the cover. It contained two discs, one with the normal game and the other a DVD with special features. Special features included an interview with John Madden, a behind the scenes look at the making of Madden NFL 07, and a sneak preview of the new PlayStation 3. The Xbox 360 version had the first season of Madden Nation, the PlayStation 2 version did not have Madden Nation. To go along with Madden's inception into the Hall of Fame, there are special Hall of Fame teams that players can unlock with credits earned during the game. These teams are statistically superior to the default NFL team rosters.

[edit] Features

Just as in previous titles in the Madden NFL series, Madden NFL 07 makes a few additions to the general game play. The most notable features include:

• Lead Blocker Control: After selecting a running play, the player will be able to cycle through the offensive players as they get into position at the line. The player can choose the athlete to control when the ball is snapped, and the game camera will zoom in on the fullback, tackle, guard, center, tight end, or wide receiver selected. With this feature, it is now possible for the player to open up a path for a running play, as the computer controls the halfback and tries to slip through the gap created. This feature also appeals to Madden players who do not wish to use computer assistance in any way, shape, or form. This feature allows the player to manually block with their fullback, tackle, guard, center, tight end, or wide receiver and quickly switch to their halfback to manually slip through the gap created, thus eliminating any computer assistance during the gameplay.
• Highlight Stick: Players can now move the right analog stick in any direction to see an animation where the smaller running backs will duck, spin, or squirt out of a tackle. It is also possible to string such evasive moves together, piecing together a juke left with a hop step backwards (down on the right analog for stick on Ps2 and Xbox or for gamecube down on the C stick) to elude defenders. The Truck Stick animations still exist for the bigger backs, but also feature more variety of running moves with the addition of the Highlight Stick. For example, using the Highlight Stick with Tiki Barber, a smaller back not known for trucking, utilizes an array of moves to avoid and squirt out of tackles.
• Juking and Spinning: Players can now choose two types of both Jukes and Spins to avoid would-be tacklers. For the PS2, players can either do a cut move to the left or right using the L1 or R1 buttons respectively, or a wider juke to the left or right by flicking the Right Analog stick left or right respectively. For a quick spin to allude a tackler the player simply taps the circle button. For a stronger spin which could possibly break a tackle, simply hold down the circle button.
• FreeMotion Controls: The Wii version of Madden NFL 07, which was developed at EA Canada rather than Tiburon, features a unique control scheme that has been completely redone to complement the motion sensing capabilities of the console's Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers.

[edit] Franchise Mode dilemma

While simulating years in Franchise Mode, Defensive players attributes gradually drop while offensive players rise. Most notably on defense, the linebackers and defensive lineman show the largest decreases, while on offense the offensive line and wide receivers show the largest increases.

Players have found a glitch enabling them to get several achievements in the Xbox 360 version of the game. By choosing each team in the league then simulating all the games, they can gain Madden level achievements, Season Record achievements, and Game Record achievements without playing a single game. Most if not all of the achievements can be gained in this way. EA has not provided any updates to fix this issue.

Another changed detail doesn't affect the game, but the concession Beer has been replaced by Coffee, since it is an E rated game. Seattle, which originally served coffee, now serves 2 coffees, both with different pictures and prices. Another trick that can be employed works usually for most players. The user simply changes the position of a player, usually causing his overall rating to heavily decrease. The player trades for that player, who's grade may have been an A+ but now is an F, and changes back to the original position.

[edit] Xbox 360, Playstation 2, Playstation 3 and Wii versions

The seventh generation version of Madden NFL 07 featured the Superstar Mode and Franchise but the Tony Bruno Show was absent in this game possibly due to a contractual issue, but he was in the Wii and Playstation 2 versions. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 version also did not allow the player to edit the players appearance or attributes or change the numbers on their jerseys, but the Wii version and Playstation 2 version did. The franchise mode is not as deep as the previous generation versions, as Owner Mode is not present. Fantasy Draft and Two-Player co-operative play are missing as well. Also this game would be the last appearance of the NFL Europe teams in the Xbox version, next gen games came without the league teams.

[edit] Reception

This article is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this article to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (December 2008)

Scores
Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	84.4% PS2: 84.4% (26 reviews) [6] Xbox: 82.0% (28 reviews) [7] PC: 80.3% (15 reviews) [8] GCN: 81.6% (15 reviews) [9] X360: 81.1% (59 reviews) [10] Wii: 81.1% (39 reviews) [11] PSP: 80.5% (20 reviews) [12] PS3: 76.2% (27 reviews) [13] DS: 70.3% (9 reviews) [14] GBA: 63.4% (5 reviews) [15]
Metacritic	84% PS2: 84% (29 reviews) [16] GCN: 82% (14 reviews) [17] Wii: 81% (35 reviews) [18] PC: 80% (15 reviews) [19] PSP: 78% (18 reviews) [20] PS3: 76% (25 reviews) [21] DS: 70% (9 reviews) [22] GBA: 68% (4 reviews) [23]
Review scores
Publication	Score
GameSpot	8.4 out of 10 Wii: 8.4 out of 10 [24] GCN: 8.1 out of 10 [25] PS2: 8.1 out of 10 [26] Xbox: 8.1 out of 10 [27] PS3: 7.9 out of 10 [28] X360: 7.9 out of 10 [29] PC: 7.8 out of 10 [30] DS: 7.7 out of 10 [31] PSP: 7.6 out of 10 [32] GBA: 6.5 out of 10 [33]
IGN	8.5 out of 10 Wii: 8.5 of 10 [34] X360: 8.5 of 10 [35] GCN: 8.3 of 10 [36] PC: 8.3 of 10 [37] PS2: 8.3 of 10 [38] PS3: 8.3 of 10 [39] Xbox: 8.3 of 10 [40] PSP: 8.0 of 10 [41] GBA: 7.5 of 10 [42] DS: 6.0 of 10 [43]
X-Play	Wii: [44]

• The Wii version of Madden NFL 07 won GameSpot's award for Best Traditional Sports Game and for Best New Control Scheme of 2006. The reason cited for this selection, particularly in light of other versions that feature more detailed graphics and online play capability, is the Wii version's FreeMotion controls, which provided a fresh take on play mechanics that the editorial staff felt had grown stale after years of minimal year-to-year adjustments.^[45]
• It received GameSpot's Award for Best Original Game Mechanic for the FreeMotion controls used in the Wii version.^{[citation needed]}
• It was named the "Best Sporting Game of 2006" on G4's television series, X-Play.^{[citation needed]}
• It was named the "Game with the most Game" on the Spike Guys' Choice Awards on June 13, 2007.^[46]
• It was named BB&B's Sports Game of the year on August 22, 2006.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] US sales

In December 2006, all versions of Madden NFL 07 combined sold 1.9 million units, making it the best-selling title that month in the United States.^[47] Overall in 2006, the PlayStation 2 version of Madden NFL 07 sold 2.8 million units, making it the best-selling video game that year in the US,^[47] while the Xbox 360 version sold 1.1 million units in the US.^[47]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Web site