Electronic Arts speaks about Madden on the PS3 and Wii

Electronic Arts already released Madden 2007 for every console back in August. Now with two new consoles out, EA is hoping to bring Madden NFL 2007 to the masses again. What’s new in the PS3 and Wii versions of Madden? Katherine Coulthart from Electronic Arts explains.

How do the graphics of Madden for the PS3 compare to the Xbox 360?

For the Madden PS2 fan and Sony fans, Madden NFL 07 for the PlayStation 3 is really their first next-gen, hi-def football experience. Everything has been built from the ground up to leverage the PS3’s Cell Processor and architecture that results in more realistic player animations and movements, and stadiums and field environments in tremendous detail.  Everything is more realistic and creates a more immersive and believable NFL game experience.

With the extra development time before the PS3 launch, we’ve been able to incorporate some additional visual presentation elements that you’ll see right away, including new cut-scenes and camera angles in between plays, and new physics-based player movements such as gang tackling.  The PS3’s processing power allows us to create these lifelike player movements — so when you see a ball carrier get tackled down low by a defender, and then get hit up top by a second defender, you’ll see that ball carriers body move and fall according to how he’s being hit — exactly like he would in a real game.

What features of the Playstation 3 allow Madden to be experienced in a new way?

In addition to the new visuals and physics-based player movements, you’ll also be able to pull off various new plays using the PS3’s new SIXAXIS motion controls.  By doing a few small, quick movements with the controller, you’re able to execute certain moves before the snap and after the snap.  If you’re on offense, you can do a hard count as the QB and try to get defenders to jump offsides, or use the controller movement to execute Lead Blocker Control, one of our new running game features this year.  If you’re on defensive, you can use the movement to jump the snap on a blitz to get to the QB quickly, or use it to lay a big hit on a ball carrier.

Is Madden 07 going to have downloadable content like updated rosters on the Playstation store? If not do you plan to include downloadable content for future installments of Madden? 

For Madden NFL 07 for PS3 this year, you’ll be able to download roster updates like you would for Madden on PS2.  As we learn more in the coming months about the PlayStation online store, we’ll let everyone know what’s in store for Madden.

The Wii version of Madden 2007 has a 2-on-2 “schoolyard football” mini game only found in the Nintendo version, can you tell us about this? 

2-on-2 is one of several awesome and fun minigames in Madden NFL 07 for Wii.  It really does bring players back to childhood days of playing schoolyard football, where one player covers a receiver and the teammate rushes the QB.  And like the real game, the rusher has to count to “5 Mississippi” before rushing in.  What’s cool is that you can use the new FreeMotion controls to rush the count, by making a drumming motion with the Wii remote and nunchuck — the faster you drum, the faster the count goes by.  It’s a new cool way movement using the new control system for the Wii and keeps all players involved in the gameplay all the time.

This is the first version of Madden to use EA’s Free Motion control, how does the set up work in Madden 2007?

Madden NFL 07 for Wii uses FreeMotion Controls based on a simple premise:  see the move, then do the move.   So nearly all of the in-game movements are based on real-life movement’s you’d actually do.  To pass the ball in Madden Wii, you imitate a passing motion.  To kick the ball, you imitate a kicking motion.  We wanted to create easy controller movements that let anyone play the game, from the experience Madden gamer to players who might have been intimidated by the complexity of playing a football video game in the past.  Now anyone who can do these basic moves can play Madden for Wii.

Madden 2007 for the Wii certainly sounds like a new evolutionarly branch for the series that might drawn in new players. The Playstation 3 version sounds more like an upgrade for die hard Madden fans who want better graphics since it is light on the SIXAXIS controls. What do you think?