For more than 20 years, it has been embraced by its fans, honored by critics, and envied by its rivals. It has endured the test of time and has satisfied a demanding public like no other sports video game in history. It’s been recognized as ‘the game the players play,’ ‘the benchmark in sports video gaming,’ and ‘the number one selling football video game in history.’ It is Madden NFL. Since its inception, the Madden NFL franchise has reigned supreme as the preeminent sports title in the video game industry. Sales of more than 85 million units worldwide and $3 billion in lifetime revenue along with a countless number of gaming awards have helped make Madden NFL the most critically acclaimed sports title in history. From the original John Madden Football, released by Electronic Arts in 1989, to last season’s award-winning Madden NFL 10, the franchise has found a permanent home atop the video game pedestal. With record-breaking numbers that scream off the charts, there is little doubt about Madden NFL’s effect on the consumer—sports fans love it, hardcore football fans fawn over it, and NFL players deeply respect it. What started as a simple idea many years ago has profoundly affected today’s pop culture in many ways. On the field, the game dominates the virtual gridiron. Off the field, its popularity is growing larger by the year. ™ Backed by events like the EA SPORTS Madden Bowl, EA SPORTS™ takes a look at the EA SPORTS™ Madden Challenge, Maddenoliday, Maddenpalooza, Pigskin Pro-Am, and Madden Gras, past, present and future of the Madden NFL is no longer ‘just a game.’ The Madden NFL franchise. most influential sports video game of the past two decades has turned into something much, much more. New Orleans’ MVP 03 The Game the Players Play 05 Its release is an unofficial national holiday, as fans regularly storm the stores at midnight the day the The Curse 07 game hits the shelves just to be one of the first with How It All Began 09 a copy, before playing into the late-night hours. Simpler. Deeper. Quicker. 12 John Madden Football debuts John Madden Football f loods First game in the for Apple® II computers thousands of living rooms across franchise to offer the country via Sega’s home a 3D playing f ield First-ever football console unit video game to offer Groundbreaking 11-on-11 action Isometric view introduced playcalling and to the game, altering its passing mode Playbook is limited look and feel systems open new but realistic roads for fans JULY 2010 MORE THAN JUST A GAME. It boosts the reputation of the superstar, as being named its cover athlete is an honor to virtually every player in the NFL. It’s even a curse. The game is regularly featured on national magazine covers, talked about on sports radio, and showcased on ESPN’s SportsCenter. Its cover athletes appear on morning and late-night talk shows, and even share the spotlight with some of the biggest events in the NFL. In April 2010, on the morning of the 2010 NFL Draft, Madden NFL 11 made headlines by announcing New Orleans Saints and Super Bowl XLIV MVP quarterback Drew Brees as its new cover athlete with a billboard reveal party in New York’s Times Square. The festivities continued into the night when Brees thanked the fans for voting him on the cover of Madden NFL 11 on stage during the 75th anniversary of the NFL Draft, before announcing the Saints’ first-round pick. Brees went on to make appearances on Regis and Kelly and The Late Show with David Letterman, featuring a Top 10 list dedicated entirely to Madden NFL. Over the past decade, Madden NFL soundtracks have even influenced the music industry by helping launch artists that include Good Charlotte, Fallout Boy, Franz Ferdinand, and 30 Seconds to Mars. The soundtracks have also featured such superstars as AC/DC, Green Day, Outkast, Foo Fighters, Guns ‘N Roses, blink-182, Bon Jovi, and Ozzy Osbourne, to name a few. For more than 20 years, Madden NFL has offered unparalleled quality that no other sports video game has been able to match. Going forward, the most celebrated franchise in the EA SPORTS lineup continues its quest to capture the imagination of its fans, while setting the standard by which all other sports video games are judged. It is, after all, more than just a game. Game is f ine-tuned with the EA SPORTS acquires the NFL First game to use the addition of more teams license allowing the use Players Inc. license— including all-time greats of team names and logos Madden NFL features names of NFL players Zeroed-in player ratings make Players have the ability to for the f irst time it one of the most popular play the same schedule games in the series Battery-backed RAM as their favorite NFL addition allows users team in Season mode to save game data JULY 2010 PAGE 02 MORE THAN JUST A GAME. Earlier that same year, days before the NFL was set to kick off New Orleans’ MVP the new season, the city of New Orleans suffered through one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States— In the final game of the 2005 season, Drew Brees, then Hurricane Katrina. Causing mass destruction throughout the quarterback of the San Diego Chargers, suffered a severe entire Gulf Region, the hurricane spared few in its path, shoulder injury in a game against the rival Broncos. It was an including the storied NFL franchise, the New Orleans Saints. injury some said would significantly derail his young career. Although he was coming off his best year with the Chargers, Brees, a free agent at season’s end, was suddenly a man without a team. With Training Camp mode gamers The series is launched on Enhanced 64-bit capability can create a player and work 32-bit home consoles— with Nintendo 64® allows him through the ranks in a PlayStation® and Saturn® programmers to use variety of tests polygons (3D players) Higher-resolution graphics Madden NFL development make players more def ined The beginning of modern- moves to EA’s Tiburon in appearance and the game day Artif icial Intelligence Studio in Maitland, FL more lifelike than ever (AI)—the game features an increased level of realism JULY 2010 PAGE 03 MORE THAN JUST A GAME. With damage to the Superdome beyond immediate repair, the On the heels of his hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, Brees contin- team, like much of the city’s population, was forced to seek refuge ued his fairy tale story as fans voted him to be on the cover of elsewhere. Playing its home games at LSU’s Tiger Stadium in Madden NFL 11 via the EA SPORTS-Doritos Change the Game Baton Rouge, LA and The Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, contest. It was the first time in franchise history the fans selected the team finished the season with a dismal 3-13 record. the game’s cover athlete, and an honor that all will celebrate on Bourbon Street during Madden Gras on August 9, the day when Then came 2006. Madden NFL 11 hits the streets. Struggling to recover in the aftermath of the hurricane, the city was yearning for hope. Just one year later, the Saints began to provide it. In the offseason before the start of the 2006 NFL season the Saints took their first step to turning things around by hiring Head Coach Sean Peyton, the architect behind the potent Dallas Cowboys offense. Seeking a signal-caller to command his high- powered offense, the rookie coach looked no further than Brees. The gamble more than paid off. Led by their new quarterback, the Saints quickly rose to challenge the NFL’s elite, playing their way to the NFC Championship game. Although the team fell one game short of reaching the Super Bowl, the city and team were with hope. With expectations higher than ever, the Saints fell back to NFL reality, failing to reach the playoffs in the two seasons that followed. However, the disappointment of two mediocre seasons was short-lived. Through key acquisitions and a healthy lineup, the Saints stormed out of the gate in 2009, winning their first 13 games of the season. During the undefeated stretch, the Saints posted some of the most impressive offensive stats in league history. Although the Saints suffered its first loss in Week 14, it was a team destined for greatness. With home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, Brees ignited the city once again, leading New Orleans to its first- ever Super Bowl appearance. Playing as an underdog against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, Brees capped New Orleans’ magical season by leading the Saints to a 31-17 upset victory in Super Bowl XLIV. On that glorious night in Miami, the former NFL Comeback Player of the Year completed 32 of 39 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns, and was named the game’s MVP. All versions of the series now Evolution continues with improved, Game takes dramatic feature polygon characters, sharper graphics, as well as leap forward on the putting the franchise far bigger playbooks on both PlayStation®2—players’ ahead of competitors offense and defense faces are more similar to the real-life player’s Franchise mode added with Players in the game a salary cap, giving gamers mimic the on-f ield Madden Cards introduced, the chance to run an celebrations of their allowing gamers to enhance entire organization NFL counterparts players in the game JULY 2010 PAGE 04 MORE THAN JUST A GAME.