Madden NFL 2006

by Electronic Arts

Product Features

• Start your superstar journey just like the pros do - Pick your parents DNA make-up, sculpt your body, sign with an agent, even take the famous Wonderlic test given to NFL prospects
• QB Vision Control lets you scan the field, look off defenders, and make perfect throws within your quarterback's unique field of vision
• QB Precision Placement puts the ball exactly where you want it - Lead the Receiver to an open area, throw it behind him so he can come back to it, or throw a jump ball and let him go get it
• New Adaptive AI gives you a stronger defense that adjusts according to the routes you pick
• Fake snap button for quarterbacks, to add a chance at drawing the defense offsides

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00083G5D0
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.8 x 0.5 inches ; 4 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: September 8, 2006
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #13,930 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

For the first time in 10 years, the Madden NFL Football franchise has revolutionized its passing game-giving Madden NFL 06 the most groundbreaking and innovative offensive arsenal ever created. The new QB Vision Control lets you scan the field, look off defenders, and make perfect throws within your quarterback's unique field of vision. QB Precision Placement allows you to put the ball exactly where you want it. Lead the receiver to an open area, throw it behind him so he can come back to it or throw a jump ball and let him go get it.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Originally gave it a 3 - after further review, it's 4 stars, August 10, 2005

By 

Ivan K. Samuelson "Bolski" (OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Madden NFL 2006 (Video Game)

My initial reaction to this year's edition of Madden was 3 stars and highly critical. Now, after playing it for four days, I must say I was wrong. Here is my updated review. There still are some issues I have with it, but some of the original gripes have turned into positive points for the game and the game play itself. On the surface, the game may look like it hasn't changed, but what may seem like subtle "tweaks" have turned this into a much better football game than I initially thought. I blame EA on this one because a lot of this stuff is not spelled out clearly in the manuals nor in the on-line tutorials. I think this leads people to believe that the game hasn't changed much, but under the hood, it really has. Please read on to see how.

First off, the commentary is about the same and at times, does NOT flow well. Voice inflections with Michaels are REALLY bad. He starts off sounding really excited when he says "We're here at the (insert field name) where" and then when he states the team name (such as the AFC South Champion Colts), his excitement drops and even when he's finished saying the team name, he sounds as if he wants to say something else but doesn't. Madden's commentary is exactly the same from last year. Not much new here and just as boring as ever. I've turned off the commentary because it's just not fun to listen to.

Now, lets get to the good stuff. First off is QB Vision. At first, it may not seem that great. In fact, if you play against an on-line opponent, it could tip them off to which receiver you're eyeing if you stay focused on your primary receiver. You can make it so the cone just focuses out in front of you before the snap and doesn't tip your hand. With practice (go to the mini-camps and such), you can make it work and it actually adds realism to the game. At first, I didn't like it, but after much playing and practice, I've found that this actually can help improve your gaming experience and it makes you feel like a real QB, having to check off receivers. Moving the cone can be done with a combination of buttons presses (switching from one receiver to another, just like it used to be many years ago) or use the right stick to scan your field (the better option but takes practice). Don't throw to a receiver that is not in the cone (unless they're in the flats or running short slants) because you'll throw the most lame-duck pass you have ever seen. Fortunately, for Rookie and Pro mode, throwing outside of the cone is just like it was last year and you won't make the lame-duck passes and it provides an excellent playground for practicing with the cone vision. However, once you get to All-Pro and Madden level, you MUST use the cone. Still, don't write this off so quickly like I did.

Next is the "precision passing". At first, I thought this was just like leading your receiver. It is in some respects, but with some excellent improvements. You can throw the pass low, making the receiver having to scoop up the pass (and you'll see him actually do this). You can throw high (which works great over the middle) and this stops the problem from last year where the D-line would swat the ball down. You can throw to the right, left, up-and-right, up-and-left, down-and-right, and down-and-left as well.

Another new feature is the offensive blocking scheme shift. You can audible and make your o-line block in a spread formation, compress itself tighter, block to the left or right.

The "truck stick" is nice, in addition to juking or spinning. Just don't abuse it or you'll end up fumbling. I find that hitting it once per play is enough and it's very satisfying when you see the RB throw the defender on his rear end.

Another nice feature is the having ability to tell your receiver to extend his route on 3rd and long if his initial route won't make it to the first down marker. Just hit Y, select your receiver and then pull the right analog stick down. He'll alter his route to make it just past the first down marker. This also works in the reverse situation. If you are third and short and you discover a serious mismatch on a receiver running a 10-yard route, you can again hit Y, select the receiver and pull the right stick down. He will shorten his route to the first down marker. A really nice plus to all of this is you can do this to more than one receiver as long as it's not a half back route or an option route. It even works with playmaker adjusted routes.

Defense has some new things as well. Scrolling through your defenders is easier now. No longer do you have to cycle through with the buttons. Instead, press the A or B button and then move the stick in the direction you want to move. For example, if you highlight a player on the D line, press A or B button and then up on the D-pad or left analog and you'll now be in the linebackers. Do it again, you'll have the safeties. The same goes with moving the stick left or right. What could have taken six clicks now takes one button press and one or two analog stick pushes. Nice touch.

There are also individual assignments, which allow you to view the assignment of one player without tipping off the opponent to what the other defenders are doing.

Playmaker Zones have some new additional coverages. You can move the stick once to select one type of coverage for a highlighted player. If you do the same move again, you'll select a different coverage. For example, if you highlight your DE and then press right on the analog stick, he'll go into flat coverage. If you press right again, his coverage changes from flat to hook coverage.

You can also do zone shading for the safeties so they can play certain routes better. Your safeties can play wide or tight, depending on what you think the offense will do. Your corners can also shade the receivers as well.

With linebackers, you have the option of putting any linebacker or defensive back into man coverage as well. Just press the coverage audible button (Y), press the receiver you want to cover and then right on the D-pad or left analog stick. This changes the defender into man coverage.

The option to adjust to a run or pass after the snap is back. This premiered in Madden '04 but took a hiatus in Madden '05. If you set up a defense and then after the snap, you know that the offense is running or passing, you can immediately press down (for the run) or up (for the pass) to shift your defense into a better position to stop the play. Kudos to EA for bringing this back.

Franchise mode is great as usual. But, there are a few new tweaks that are very nice. When you are ready to play a team, you can actually get an overview of each key player on the team. This way, you can see how their defense and offense stack up against yours. Rather than having to go to the opposing team's roster, you can go to your PDA and view the information in the game plan section. This includes just about every player on their roster that is scheduled to play, including the kickers! It gives you their strengths and weaknesses and can identify key match ups between your team and the opponent.

Another nice addition is you can rep through key plays against the opposing team's defensive plays. You still practice against your teammates, but they will set up in the defensive schemes that are considered to be key for the opposing team you will face that weekend. The more reps you do against that play, the more points you get which will help you play better in the upcoming game.

I've noticed that with on-line, there are a LOT of false start penalties when you try the no-huddle. I believe this could be due to the new "fair-play" rule that states if you do the no-huddle too much or out of place where a team normally wouldn't, then it can result in false starts. Well, I was playing a game, getting waxed 14-0 with no time outs left. It was near the end of the game (3 minutes to go) and I was marching down the field. When I finally picked a play that had definite mismatches with the D, I immediately attempted to no huddle. I wanted to hot-route someone so I hit the Y button and I got whistled for a false start. 1st and 15 for my team. I then chose another play, again resulted in a first down and then no huddled again. Again, false start. Just way too many of these and I was using it in a situation that most teams would use it in. Even my opponent had it happen to him a lot when he tried the no-huddle, although he was doing it when he had the ball near the end of the game and was winning 21-0. It just seems it wasn't taking into account that I was trying to score quickly to hopefully tie the game up.

Sound wise, nothing spectacular. They boast THX 5.1 surround, but it didn't seem to make much difference on my system. ESPN NFL, ESPN MLB 2k5 and even MVP 2k5 sound better than Madden '06 does. Still, it sounds a little crisper than Madden '05, but again, I didn't really notice it much. NCAA Football '06 has the best sound between the two of them.

Graphically, there are no boosts here except with new animations. The players still look like they're on steroids. The RCA Dome in Madden 06 shows astro turf when in reality they've replaced it with the new fake grass! Even the local newspaper in Franchise Mode notes this change! Still, this isn't a game breaker, but it would have been nice to at least have some updated graphics.

The DNA stuff takes a long time to set up, and even then, don't sim anything, otherwise you lose out on choosing various options that may come up in your players career that can affect the rest of his life. This appears to be more of a marketing ploy more than trying to "spruce up" the game. It's not that bad, but I'm not sure if it was necessarily needed.

I have to admit, my initial review might have... Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't believe the negativity....Passing cones improve realism., December 23, 2005

By 

Eric N. Lieberman "One Bright Monkey" (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Madden NFL 2006 (Video Game)

As a long time Madden fan I was hesitant to buy the new version due to all the backlash over the new passing system, but trust me when I say that it is well worth the initial frustration. Between the ability to extend passing routes beyond the fist down marker, being able to lead a receiver with "precision passing", and the aforementioned passing cones, the passing game is far more robust and improvisational. Each Touchdown pass feels like an actual accomplishment that you earned based on skill and attention to detail.

As an avid Giants fan, I couldn't be more aware of the effect that a players stats now have on the game. While Peyton Manning can see roughly the entire field while dropping back to throw, Eli has to meticulously select which receiver to focus on before throwing. The game becomes more interesting because often you will have to select a receiver before the snap to focus your passing cone on if you are running play action, or if you O-Line stinks. I've never spent more time scanning defenses and making adjustments pre-snap before, and it's all because it is integral to your success on offense.

Beyond passing, the computer can actually run the ball against a human opponent now. In previous versions the opposing team would usually end up with some absurdly low rushing total despite the caliber of running back, but (at least on All-Pro Difficulty) I can tell you that stopping the run is as legitimate a concern as it is in real football.

In conclusion, I say that if "looking off" receivers is a central part of real NFL games, then let it be a central part of virtual ones.

Personally I think the new features rule.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK, an honest review: Not too bad, but still needs improvement; Playoff system is BROKEN., December 5, 2005

By 

C. Johnson (Lawrenceville, GA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Madden NFL 2006 (Video Game)

After vowing not to buy another EA Sports Football game after I completed Madden/NCAA 2003, I finally broke down and bought both of them. After finally becoming bored with the 2003 editions I simulated my final seasons and so I could start fresh with a brand new game.

I thought long and hard before I got this game. I remembered how much 2003 frustrated me, and never wanted to go through that again. Before I bought this game I rented it to see if it was even worth considering. I played a few exhibition games and was pretty satisfied with the visual and game play improvement over 2003. After returning the game I finally decided to buy it three weeks later.

Before I continue I must mention that there is a playoff bug in Madden that has been there since 2003. It involves the Divisional matchups in the postseason. The game bases the Divisional matchups on team record and not playoff seeding. This may not always be the same if it so happens that a divisional winner has a worse record than the 5th or 6th seed playoff team. I sent my findings to EA, they responded saying that they will send it to the Dev team, but no word it is fixed or will be fixed. I recently got a response from a rather rude rep telling me to "hope it does not appear in next year's version" So much for great customer service and support.

Coincidently the above scenario just occured in real life with the Steelers and Pats winning their wildcard games last weekend. I simulated the entire NFL season in madden to match the actual regular season and wild card results. And not suprisingly, Madden has the Pats playing the Colts and the Steelers playing the Broncos in the Divisional playoffs; when in reality, the Pats are playing the Broncos and the Steelers are playing the Colts.

In simulating the season, I also discovered that there is another playoff error that does not follow the NFL tiebreaking procedures. I discovered that Madden gave Tampa Bay the #2 seed and 1st round bye over Chicago, despite the fact that Tampa Bay lost to the Bears in the regular season. In actuality, the Bears have the #2 seed. Madden is wrong here as well.

so much for being "In the game"


Anyway back to the game.

Graphics/Visuals
=====================

Graphically the game is much improved over 2003, the players move better, look better and the stadiums look better as well. In addition to this, all teams have all there uniforms that they have used. The Dolphins have their orange uniforms as well do the Bears. The Jaguars and Eagles also have their black uniforms. Thank you EA! The 49ers also have an all gold uniform that I never seen. Although limited, tou can also create custom uniform for you team in Franchise mode, but be warned, once you create a uniform, you cannot delete it. It doesn't really cause any problems, because you don't have to ever use them, but if your playing Franchise, your team news will constantly say that your team has "new Threads" that will be unveiled. I haven't found out a way to delete the custom uniforms, other than starting a brand new franchise. I probably will just deal with it knowing never to do that again when I switch teams. Another thing I must mention about the custom uniform is that you CANNOT put the team logo on the helmet which is pretty lame. So if you have the Falcons and create a custom uni, the closest you can get to the helmet is creating a black helmet.

Madden added new player animations and also fan animations, adding to the realism of the game. This is a welcome addition to a rather bland 2003 in this department.


Sound
=======================
Sound-wise the game is improved over 2003, another cool feature they added is that you can now play your custom CD tracks from your XBOX hard drive in the game. While I don't think they will play during an actual game, they do play on the game menu's and even during training camp drills. The hits sound good as do the crowd, getting more true to life. Michaels and Madden have some new dialog, but for the most part they are carried over from past games, and still repeat themselves.

Controls
=========================
Like NCAA for some reason EA decided to almost completely revamp the button assignments, if you are used to past Maddens then this will certainly frustrate you to no end until you get used to the new layout, a good thing though is that you can change it back to past Madden button assignments.

The game also seems a lot more fluid and have more control this time around, In 2003, players sometimes seemed to run like they had lead in their shoes, and other times, they moved like they were on ice. 2006 improved this by making the game faster with more fluid and precise movements.

New Features
=========================

Madden added quite a few new features in this game, some I will never play probably, and others that are very fun in my opinion.

Superstar mode seems to be the main feature that EA focused on this year. Basically you become an NFL player and control his life on and off the field, from getting haircuts to starring in movies. Eh, OK, not my type of thing, but may be very fun for someone who is into the role playing aspect of this. For me I just want to play football with some interaction with my players, but to my Superstar seems to go a little overboard. It may be something I mess around with later, but not right now.

QB Vision / Precision Passing
===============================

QB Vision is basically a Love it or Hate it aspect. For me I am in the "Love it" group. This adds another depth of realism to passing that rewards you for making right decisions and punishes you for making bad ones just like in real life. The better vision your QB has (ie, Peyton Manning, Brett Farve), the wider his "field of vision" will be. New QB's or QB's with not so good vision, will have a small field of vision. As long as you throw to a receiver in your field of vision, you can then place the pass where you want it. If you throw out of the vision cone, then you cannot place it and worse yet your defender can pick it off. Defenders can use the field of vision to there advantage as well, if they see you are keying on the same receiver too much, then they can act accordingly. QB Vision can be turned off if you like. But I plan to leave it on. Another cool thing about this is as you QB gets better in franchise mode his field of vision becomes wider.


Improved Franchise Mode
========================
Since this is where I will spend most of my Madden time, this is the most important part of the game to me. First off, the Franchise mode incorporates training camp drills. At the start of every season you can choose one player to participate in the training camp drills from past Maddens, depending on how well you do you get points to add to your player's attributes. Very cool.

Another cool thing is that Madden now has national and local newspapers for every team in the league basically reporting on the team's current news. In addition to this, there is also a weekly radio show by Tony Bruno that talks about the current weeks events, complete with callers from current NFL coaches, fans, and he even has trivia questions. While it doesn't take long for this to repeat itself, it does help keep you involved. If you don't pay too much attention to it, then you probably won't even notice.

You are also involved with your players. You can check each player to see their moral and if they are happy. For stat buffs like myself you can get nearly every bit of information you want about a particular player, like College attended, draft year, Round picked, number picked etc. Hopefully this will also apply to players drafted from NCAA 06.
Like 2004 and 2005 (which I never played) you can set your ticket prices, food prices etc. But I won't mess with that too much.

Another cool thing is that you can relocate your team to another city, redesign your stadium, rename your team etc. Another thing I probably won't mess with but a pretty cool feature.

Also as mentioned before you can create new custom uniforms for you team, but this is very limited in the colors you can choose from and the fact that you can't put your teams logo on the new helmet. Another frustrating thing is that once you create a custom uni, it is there forever, even if you never use it; there is no way to delete it.

Over all this game is an improvement over 2003. Not a bad game at all, and the actual game play is pretty fun. But Madden still has a ways to go to match the excellence of NCAA Football 2006. The come back AI is still there, and those not quite as bad as 2003, there are still BS catches in which the ball seems to be magenetically attracted to the CPU's hands changing directions in mid air to end up end it's hand's rather than yours. Your defenders still dive in the wrong direction while trying to make a tackle. The CPU still moves your defenders across the line to get enchroment calls, when they reall need free yardage. I must also mention that the punting game seems to have actually declined from 2003. Your teammates will NEVER block for you on a punt return. TWO of your guys will let ONE person from the other team right through and knock the bejesus out of you. If you are leading or if its a close game, this will almost always cause a fumble which they will pick up and run into the endzone. I HATE this part of the game. I don't know what EA was thinking here.

Also the playoff bug that I mentioned earlier is very frustrating, they say its "in the game", but how could they... Read more ›