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As Super Bowl LIII fade into memory , the bombilation will now move on to the current NBA and NHL season as well as professional baseball ’s Spring training right around the corner . But if you ’re aMaddenfan , there ’s a good hazard that the NFL wo n’t be disappear from your television anytime presently , as gamers are still racking up the playtime on last summers’sMadden NFL ' 19 — and likely will continue to do so until next time of year ’s installment hits .
TheMaddenvideo game serial publication has been around for over thirty years and has long been one of the well - sell franchises in gaming history . Initially think by Electronic Arts father Trip Hawkins , the early ontogenesis phases of the first installment can be traced back as early as 1984 when Hawkins first approached legendary coach and reviewer John Madden about impart his name and expertise to what was to be the most realistic sport secret plan possible at the time . After four years and a muckle of ups and downs , John Madden Footballwas finally release and would soon deepen the course of sportswoman game history — as well as video recording gambling in general .
Needless to say , a fate die into wee-wee a mutation biz on the orbit ofMadden , especially when you consider that EA not only frame out a new installment every single twelvemonth but often does so for a half 12 or more platforms at a time . frankly , even specialize down this clause to 25 entries was difficult , as there are enough interesting bit of trivia behind theMaddenseries to fulfil a list the length of several football game fields .
It Started On PC, Not Sega Genesis
It ’s been age since theMaddenfranchise has been relate with any one weapons platform , but in the early-’90s , its Genesis translation were considered the " main " entries with the rest just being porthole . Because of that , a plenty of multitude mistakenly believe thatJohn Madden Football , released for the Genesis in 1990 , was the serial ' unveiling entry .
In reality , the franchise in reality got its get-go two years earlier , when the very first version ofJohn Madden Footballhit the Apple II . Though the basic groundwork was there , it was very underlying and did n’t make much of an impact , not reach mainstream achiever and finding its leg until it made its 16 - minute console table debut .
It Has Faltered In Its Super Bowl Predictions In Recent Years
Beginning with Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004 , EA has run an AI vs AI simulation in each year’sMaddeninstallment with the two teams play in the giving game , seeing if the game can " predict " the winner of the upcoming Super Bowl .
After pick the correct victor in its first four attempt , Maddenbegan to start catch some ill-timed , and their truth has sire bad over time . With erroneously wager against the Patriots this year and last , the overall standings come to 10 right and 6 incorrect predictions for a 62 % success rate , down from 71 % before their two late whiff .
John Madden Was EA’s Third Choice To Front The Series
To millions of people , John Madden is primarily associated with the TV game enfranchisement that digest his name . " Madden " has been shorthand for video game football game for so long that it ’s hard to imagine ever being without it — but we almost were .
Trip Hawkins ' first choice to front his new football game secret plan was field general Joe Montana , but he was out because he had an indorsement deal with Atari at the time . Hawkins then decided to look for out a coach , and talked to then - UC Berkeley coach-and-four Joe Kapp , but make a motion on when Kapp said he ’d want royal house . ultimately , Hawkins moved on to his third choice , John Madden , and third time was the charm .
The First Game Was Co-Developed By Bethesda… Kind Of
While Bethesda is most well - screw for RPGs likeFalloutandThe Elder Scrolls , the company actually get its get-go grow theWayne Gretzky Hockeyseries and a little - bed football game game calledGridiron !
The biz that finally becameJohn Madden Footballstarted with EA rent Bethesda to create a conform to - up toGridiron!Bethesda did just that , but the game they develop was never free . A small later , John Madden Footballhit fund shelves without any credit given to Bethesda , with the developer claiming that the secret plan hold cathartic systems and other code that they created . Bethesda went on to action EA for over $ 7 million , but the results of the case are not publicly recognize .
It Has Appeared On Over 30 Different Platforms
Maddenis one of those franchises that seems to automatically come to any available twist that can run a telecasting plot . As of now , theMaddenseries has appeared on over 30 different weapons platform , including console , computers , handheld gaming systems , and mobile gimmick .
It ’s easier to talk about the platforms thatMadden didn’tcome to then endeavor to number all the ones ithascalled home . CD - i , Virtual Boy , Neo - Geo , and Atari Jaguar are among the light lean of platform that did n’t have aMaddengame . In summation , Maddenhas yet to amount to Nintendo Switch , and EA ’s complete avoidance of the Dreamcast mean noMaddengames for Sega ’s final console .
John Madden Wouldn’t Sign On Until 11-Man Teams Were Possible
Even once Trip Hawkins in the end get John Madden interested in help to create a football picture game , Madden still had some demands for the gameplay . One of Madden ’s biggest stipulations was want the game to have teams of 11 players each on the field , something that simply was n’t possible yet when the game was first being planned .
Insisting that you need 11 - gentleman team in order for it to be real football game , Madden was out until that goal was achievable . It took a couple of days , but Hawkins and his squad in the end image out how to have 22 players on the field at once , and Madden was officially back on plank for his video game introduction .
It Skipped A Year On PlayStation
Maddenhas been an yearly enfranchisement since its cabinet unveiling , switching to year - based championship begin in 1992 . The franchise also typically does n’t take very long to make its debut on a new platform , often being released within the launch window .
Things commence a small complicated forMaddenin the modulation to the PlayStation , however , with the first PS1Maddennot hitting until the summertime after the cabinet was release in the U.S. Developer Visual Concepts was far too ambitious with their plan for the first PlayStation entry , and thing just did n’t add up together forMadden ' 96for PS1 , direct to the tough decision to just cancel it altogether .
Player Names Weren’t Introduced Until Madden ‘95
From the very start , Maddenset itself apart in its realism — but even though it expend its first handful of years as the premier picture plot football game sim , it was missing a pretty crucial composition to the puzzle : player names .
The NFL license and the NFL Players Association licence are two separate entities , and a good deal needs to be reached with both in order for a biz to have both genuine teamsandreal players . Tecmo Bowl , for case , only had the NFLPA lot which is why that secret plan had player names but generic squad names . Madden , on the other hand , had genuine teams but not players untilMadden ' 95 .
EA Developed Its Own Rival Game In 1990
Sega felt that Joe Montana had more cache than John Madden — which Trip Hawkins initially thought as well — and having a deal in seat with Montana by the time EA and Sega were working together , Sega wantedJohn Madden Footballto be turned intoJoe Montana Football .
Then , EA had an estimation : why not both ? The company adjudicate to go in advance withMaddenfor EA , andalsodevelopJoe Montana Footballfor Sega … to be released in direct rival for the 1990 Christmas season . Of of course , they madeMaddenthe upright biz , and combined withJoe Montanamissing its Christmas deadline , Maddenwas the winner andJoe Montananever received a follow - up .
The Series Has Earned Over $4 Billion
Obviously , EA would n’t pump out newMaddengames each and every yr , as well as ensure the serial come to as many different platforms as potential , if it was n’t profitable for them to do so . The entireMaddenseries has sold over 130 million written matter , which equates to over $ 4 billion in sales event — so , yes , Maddenmakes EA plenty of cash .
Things show no sign of slowing down , either . In fact , the most recent installment , last year’sMadden ' 19 , saw the best first - calendar month sale in the history of the enfranchisement . Maddenis also one of only 18 other video game franchises that are currently part of the 100 million+ copies sold club .
