New Madden Patch

Salutations from the Madden team to our community. Today, we are pleased to announce the release of the 2nd title update, bringing with it a brand new game mode for you to enjoy as well as some fixes, improvements, and new content. Below is a summary of what to expect when you see that bar hit 100%:

Note: PS3 users will automatically update if they are signed online. Xbox 360 users will also automatically update, but will need to download the Madden Moments LIVE DLC separately (it’s a free download you can find in the Xbox 360 menu under “game content”)

Madden Moments LIVE: Ever dream of recreating the pivotal moments of a big game? Madden Moments LIVE allows you to do exactly that and more. No pre-game here; Madden Moments LIVE drops you right into clutch situations and tests your ability to be a true playmaker. Each week over the course of the season, the Madden team will be releasing new moments for you to enjoy from the biggest NFL games of the weekend.

We’re kicking things off with “March of the Saints,” a series of Madden Moments LIVE that put you in control of Drew Brees and the “Who Dat” nation as they stage some of the most improbable comebacks in recent history on their road to the Super Bowl.

Remember their answer for Miami’s Wildcat offense after being down by 21…Can you bring the Saints back? How about the game they literally stole in Washington, even after losing the coin toss in OT…Can you get the stop and a score of your own? What about that epic NFC Championship game…Do you have what it takes to make Brett Favre retire (again)? There’s only one way to find out, and it’s absolutely free in the 2nd title update. Start playing some online games to collect some coins, though, because future Madden Moments LIVE entries will be purchasable every week. You can even stay ahead of the game and purchase the whole season’s worth. Madden Moments LIVE is just one of the ways the team we can show we are committed to supporting our games post-release and extend to life of Madden NFL 11. You can expect 2-4 new moments each week, and we’d love to hear some suggestions from you on our forums about which moments from the 2010 season YOU think deserve to be called “Madden Moments.”

Content Updates:

Pre-Play Functionality

• You asked for it, you got it! Pre-play functionality makes its return to Madden. A new menu option called, “Strategy Pad Shortcuts” is available. When turned on, you will see the hot routes, coverage audible, and shifts menus using the same buttons as Madden NFL 10.

Ultimate Team Improvements

• You can now view your opponent’s lineup in Ultimate Team

• New iem tiers added

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

• Breast cancer awareness mode is now available for play. You can access it by scrolling right from “Play Now”. In addition, franchise games that take place in October (in Franchise mode, not next month) will be given this theme. The Madden team is proud to support the NFL in the fight against breast cancer.

Miscellaneous

• Scouting has been added to Online Franchise games

• Fixed overtime rules for preseason and regular season in Franchise mode

• Online Franchise: Fixed a feedback issue when commissioners attempted to add friends via Online ID

• Tie breakers for divisional winners now work correctly in Online Franchise

• Fixed issues resulting from challenging a play after using Supersim

• Fixed a feedback issue where the game wasn’t informing players when their selected storage device had insufficient space, which could cause data loss

• Fixed a feedback issue related to the tracking of tie breakers for division clinchers

• Fixed a menu pop up problem when an opponent resumes, calls timeout, or uses a challenge while a player has the Friendly Quit pop up on screen

• Multiple game stability fixes implemented

• Miscellaneous gameplay balancing (with more coming in title update #3)

Presentation

• Multiple lighting tweaks for improved stadium lighting

• Numerous improvements to player models and uniforms – including Titans AFL, Jets throwbacks, Vikings alternates, Jaguars uniforms

• Many camera shot improvements improved & tweaked for cut scenes

• Fixed a warping animation on the placekicker during FG and extra point attempts

Server Side

• Added penalization to quitters and awards to users to help address quitting in Ultimate Team head to head games

• Added various Game Reporting improvements for unranked games and Online Franchise. Also included various game stat fixes

• Fixed an issue where too many boosts were being deducted for each OTP game

• Fixed an issue where posting a card for auction would incorrectly show the length of the contract

• Fixed an issue with Ultimate Team injuries so that injured players will correctly come out of depth charts and lineups at the end of a game, and players will not be able to enter new games without addressing injuries and readjusting depth charts

• Fixed an issue where Ultimate Team coin rewards were incorrect for quitters

We are well aware that some of the current high priority issues out there are not yet fully addressed in this title update, so a quick reminder that the turnaround time from the 3rd party approval process is lengthy, and this update basically was completed right when the demo came out. As we mentioned in this blog a couple of weeks ago, there is another nice batch of updates and improvements coming right around the corner (see that blog for the prioritized list that we’re looking at). One specific update we’re looking to implement is correcting the QB spy glitch. You can expect this change and others as part of our next patch, which is on track for release in the 2nd half of September.

Regardless, we hope that this update will get you charged up and ready to hit the virtual field. You’ve got Madden Moments LIVE, you’ve got your old-school pre-play controls back, you’ve got a bunch of other fixes, the NFL season is upon us…so now it’s time to get on the sticks. See you on the gridiron!

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