EA Sports - Madden NFL 09 review

Not much, if we're going straight to the nub of matters, has been changing in the world of John Madden, an American Football gaming franchise that has transcended decades and formats like no other.

After a few years where the Madden games had been making surprisingly sizeable jumps forward - proving that there can be lots of fresh energy even when the sequel count has long since passed double figures - this is a more measured annual update.

It's still polished and buffed up to the Nth degree, although you'd expect no less from EA (the razzamatazz is, once more, simply unmatched, with quite exceptional production values), yet the main changes and improvements this year aren't fundamental.

They are helpful additions, though, particularly for those who struggle to understand American Football. The key addition there is the training programme, which uses a virtual reality-esque approach to teach you both the fundamentals of the game and some useful ideas for playing it. You can undertake training exercises and wind them pack to key moments in a play. It's well done, and a thoughtful inclusion with quite a striking visual look.

Less successful is the initial Madden test, which annoyed us a bit. It gives you some exercises to do, assesses you and then tries to balance the game as a result. But it was a little too clunky and disparate for our liking, with the correlation between success in said exercises and performance on the park not all that clear.

When you do get onto the field of play itself, to call the game slick would be doing it a disservice. It's where year after year of tuning and tweaking comes into play, as Madden 09 plays a highly entertaining game, wearing its experience very much on its virtual sleeve. It's fluid, looks terrific and features artificial intelligence that most of the time balances out well.

But there's nothing radical that would in itself warrant forking out your cash if you're a gamer who bought last year's edition. That said, the franchise mode is still an easy way to get sucked into losing a good chunk of your foreseeable free time.

Madden 09 is a game where the intentions are clear, in that it nudges the franchise forward without taking any major risk or threatening to destabilise a good thing. It is friendlier than usual to the casual gamer, particularly the one that doesn't understand the sport, and it's particularly challenging to beat as the difficulty level ratchets up.

It also remains the best virtual recreation of the sport that you'll be able to buy this year. Just don't rule out picking up the 08 edition from the bargain bin if you're merely curious, rather than committed.