It’s third and long, I shuffle through play options as I look for a way to get the first down and keep my drive running, yet I’m wary that even a perfect play, where I’ve done everything that I’m supposed to, will still see me fall short.
Madden 24 is a frustrating beast. While capable of providing edge-of-your-seat moments with brilliant plays that make you believe you’ve finally mastered the new passing mechanics, it’s just as common to see a high-rated receiver drop a catch like it’s a bar of soap.
Of course, not every catch in the NFL is clean. Receivers drop balls, QBs get sacked, RBs fumble, and the defense miss blocks. The problem, however, is that all of the above happen far, far too often in Madden 24.
Fresh lick of paint
Developer EA Sports does at least deliver on its promise to provide more control with the FieldSense technology and skill-based passing allows you to place your throw in the perfect spot for receivers, who come equipped with an overhauled catching system.
Players look more authentic too. Linemen look like linemen, running backs look the running backs, and there’s no mismatch in figures that leaves the bulky centers looking like stickmen. Visually, Madden 24 is on point and takes advantage of the capabilities of next-gen consoles.
Franchise mode makes relocation easier too. With over 30 cities to choose from, you can move an existing NFL team to a new environment, which led me to take the Titans across the pond to become the London Monarchs.
The new uniforms provided for the relocated teams are a considerable improvement on previous years of Madden, although the game is still short on customization in that regard. Unfortunately, you are stuck with the default options and, rather irritatingly, you can only see the home jerseys when scrolling through new names for your franchise.
Madden 24’s improvements are felt most in Ultimate Team, the big money-maker. The game does a great job of getting you into the mode quickly, directing you on exactly what you need to do to build your team, how to improve it, and other key tips.
This guidance provides a brilliant entry point for new players or those someone who may not have played Ultimate Team in Madden before. Returning players, meanwhile, are welcomed by a UI layout that is much easier to navigate than previously.
Unfortunately, almost every positive about Madden 24 is outweighed by disappointing attention to new features, bugs, and areas that appear to have been created without any proper thought at all.
Fumbling in the Redzone
In EA Sports’ own words, Madden 24 aims to “blur the lines between our game and the real-life game,” but it falls far short of those goals, and, at times, you’re left wondering if the developers even watch football.
Take the new Superstar mode, for example, which, in truth, is just a rebrand of Madden 23’s Face of the Franchise mode, with mini-games added for the NFL Combine, which you’ll play once at the start of a new save and never touch again.
While playing as a QB, I was stunned to learn that taking a knee reduces your performance grade, as the game sees it as losing yards. In another instance, I was punished for getting sacked almost immediately after the snap when the offensive line crumbled like a castle in wet sand.
There was also a situation in Superstar mode where my actions saw me send a message to Sosa, the player agent from Madden 23’s Face of the Franchise, who never appeared in Madden 24 but seems to exist anyway.
That lack of attention to detail spreads across to Franchise mode. Your objectives for the game are not adjusted for the length of quarters you select, meaning you are still tasked with achieving 400 yards in a game even if you are playing with three-minute quarters—a tally that is near impossible to achieve.
To make matters worse, I didn’t have the option to change my settings in Franchise mode again. I was stuck with the settings I chose for quarter length and AI difficulty, so if I wanted to change either, I’d have to start all over again.
Cynics may point towards the fact that those modes are not the biggest money driver for EA Sports, which is why Ultimate Team always gets more attention than other modes, yet things aren’t perfect there either.
Madden 24 Ultimate Team’s jazzed-up UI is counteracted by its frustratingly slow menu navigation, which lags and stutters in every mode. It’s within the game, however, that the major problems lie, which is a big concern for a game with a huge competitive scene.
Receivers drop balls they shouldn’t, and I even had 99-rated Justin Jefferson drop a perfectly timed, perfectly accurate, perfectly waited ball under no pressure at all. It happens far too regularly, yet there’s no explanation on why.
EA Sports made a big deal about blocking improvements, yet it doesn’t seem that way on offense or on defense. Linebackers charge through like shoppers at Walmart on Black Friday, then, when play flips, cornerbacks are left gazing into thin air while receivers pass them by.
A disappointing outcome
Patches will come that should fix some of the biggest gameplay issues, but the fact similar problems are prevalent year after year is a massive problem. While it doesn’t have the same game-breaking issues that Madden 23 was plagued with at launch, Madden 24 falls short once again.
The consolation for many may come from the fact that earlier this year, reports emerged that stated EA Sports saw Madden 24 as a “make or break year,” which may mean another disappointing release leads to big changes in the future. But the developer still retains exclusive NFL rights until at least 2026.
Those hoping for changes of that manner should not hold their breath. Sure, Madden 24 is playable and, if you are a diehard fan of the game and have to have your hands on the latest edition, there are some minor improvements.
If you don’t fall into that bracket, however, you wouldn’t be missing out on much if you just decided to stick with a previous iteration of the Madden franchise.
