Madden 25 Review – Is it WORTH Playing?

With another football title already making waves with its return, gamers turn to Madden 25 and ask, “Okay, what you got? We have choices now.” Honestly, the last thing you can say is that they didn’t sit on their hands.  Immediately, you will notice they have redesigned almost everything and loaded it with gameplay upgrades that make you pause and think, “Okay, that’s cool.” But one question remains: Can Madden finally figure out how to deliver a full-package football simulation? Let’s find out in our SGO review of Madden NFL 25.

Madden 25 Review: Does The Numerous Changes Hit or Miss The Mark?

BOOM TECH

The biggest feature of Madden 25 is the BOOM Tech, which overhauls the game’s tackling mechanics to make it more physics-based. Combined with Hit Stick 2.0, it adds a new layer to the game’s collisions, emphasizing how you approach the ball carrier and your timing. What’s funny is sometimes I will get an ideal hit indicator or something telling me I did well, only to bounce off because the guy is way bigger. I mean, look at the disrespect on this tackle attempt, bro! I also really like the green BOOM indicator you get on certain Hit Stick attempts; it makes you feel accomplished when you do land one.

Overall, tackling in Madden 25 feels a lot better than it did last year and is especially better than in College Football 25, where trying to tackle someone sometimes feels like you’re chasing Speedy Gonzales with your hands tied behind your back. EA always promises to make size matter, and I feel like they finally delivered on it.

PRESENTATION

For years, I’ve always wanted Madden to drop the charade of having their own broadcast package and just pay CBS, FOX, or ESPN to use theirs. Well, they didn’t do that, but this is probably the closest Madden I’ve played that imitates an ESPN broadcast. Look at that score bug, people! Combined with all the different stat overlays and the new cool pre-game montages have me saying, “Okay, Madden, I see you, this legend looks like an NFL production.” Even the stadium playing classic madden music is a nice touch, and the new madden theme song ahh man. Madden’s presentation has leveled up to a height I didn’t know it could reach.

COMMENTARY

Now let’s talk about the commentators. Adding two new teams, TWO helps with the game’s longevity now. Having Mike Tirico and Greg Olsen join the lineup is a big wow, and even the third team of Kate Scott and Brock Huard gives you a different feel than the other two. I love that having different commentary teams in the same game is a staple in every sports game now—it’s cool.

GAMEPLAY

KICKOFF

One thing that’s going to take me a while to get used to is the new NFL kicking rules making their way into the game. Honestly, I have no idea what I’m doing, and I guess I didn’t pay close enough attention when these rules were first introduced. Like, where did those guys even come from? The kickoff meter from College Football 25 is also in this game. It requires you to lock in power and accuracy in two separate steps. It’s not as difficult as it was in College Football 25, but it’s still challenging—if that makes sense.

SIGNATURE ANIMATIONS

Madden 25 also continues to push for realism with further advancements in Signature Animations and pre-play behaviors for both offensive and defensive players. Players no longer just run to their matchups and stand robotically; each quarterback approaches the line of scrimmage differently, and backs have distinct running styles. Incredibly, we’ve reached a point in video games where this level of detail is possible.

USER ABILITY

On defense, Madden 25 has introduced a mechanic called the Defensive Switch Stick, which lets you quickly take control of other defenders, making it feel like you’re covering the whole field. Im so glad this feature has made its way over. However, I do want to point out that using on defense is challenging whether you use the switch stick or not. Either I’m not picking good linebackers, or they’re super slow, but I always feel a step behind, and their not jumping when I think I should. Maybe im getting exposed here. So far, the game really makes you think it if you take a slightly wrong angle, which is how it should be, but man, it’s challenging.

Also, man, I was so excited that Madden 25 included manual spec catches with your receivers. Sure, there’ll be times when it’s a risky move, but let’s be honest—I’m still going for it just because.

OFFENSIVE PLAY

I will say the offensive line play has been pretty good so far. You get punished for dropping back too far, of course, but they consistently set up nice pockets for you to step into, and random defenders aren’t dropping 2-3 sack games on you. Also, the addition of pre-snap blocking adjustments is so cool, giving you added tools in your toolbox to prevent or when your offensive line is getting dominated.

RUNNING THE BALL

Although I want to point out how much slower and less agile the players feel, which is, using the running back has more pros than cons because of this, making running the ball really enjoyable for me so far. It’s hard to describe, but I can feel every step my back is taking and the angles that are being created when I run, which gets me excited to run through them. I also love the variety of new moves at your disposal and how the juke move is no longer the be-all and end-all for anyone with the ball.

PASS DEFENSE

Pass defense in Madden 25 can be easily exploited by any opponent who knows how to throw the ball. I’ll give credit where it’s due—Deep Blue cornerbacks have an impressive ability to jump corner routes. However, anything thrown towards the middle of the field or underneath often feels like an open invitation for the quarterback to easily complete passes. Man defense, in particular, seems lackluster, failing to provide any worthwhile coverage most times. On the bright side, the game does offer some tools to fight back. You can manipulate defensive shells to potentially confuse the quarterback and use the Switch Stick to shift between defenders during plays, giving you a fighting chance out there.

GAME MODES

FRANCHISE MODE

As a big-time Franchise Mode fan, I was genuinely excited by the promise of a major overhaul, and honestly, I love it. Franchise Central is beautiful, the new menus look smooth and throwing more stats to look at, like the league leaders in stats being right on the front page is something simple but helps you get more invested in the league as a whole instead of going over to check it out yourself, having the record underneath the team during games is such a small touch but adds so much and the draft experience has received a significant upgrade with a revamped draft board and new cinematics—that’s a win.

Just the new presentation of the NFL Draft Night with Roger Goddell and the fake players going up to the stage to receive their jerseys with different animations ALMOST makes me want to watch the whole thing…almost. But that’s such a cool addition, making these guys seem a bit more natural to you than just names on your screen

The much-talked-about “stories” feature is beautiful. I love its cinematics, and although it’s basically an expanded version of the press conferences, I love the RPG slant to these.

Now, the scouting system, on the other hand, although they have made some quality-of-life changes to make things more accessible, is in desperate need of a complete overhaul to match the college game. With College Football back in the mix, the inability to import draft classes is also a huge miss. It feels like a missed opportunity to merge these 2 games in the 1 spot you can enhance the depth for the Franchise Mode fans

Superstar Mode

In Superstar Mode, I don’t now about you but I always like to do the combine drills They are fun to me, but there are some nice additions, such as the ability to import your Road To Glory character from College Football 25, which is a big one and a nice touch. The draft experience has also been revamped all over which is great to mirror what you see on TV closely. Getting a call from Nick Siriani was so dope.  While many elements have returned, there are key new features and additions like new archetypes to play with, a new quest system, and such designed to keep die-hard fans of the mode satisfied.

ULTIMATE TEAM

Lastly, let’s dive into Madden Ultimate Team, a mode with which I have a love-hate relationship. On the one hand, it’s genuinely fun to collect cards and play with them, and EA has introduced a new Head-to-Head ranked mode, which I’m a fan of, adding some fresh changes to the experience. However, it’s still not enough to disguise that it’s still a cash grab dressed up as fun. Seasons upgraded solo challenges for the guys who don’t know head-to-head, and those new Epic Challenges are worth checking out for longtime fans if you want to get the most bang for your buck.

Madden NFL 25 Review Verdict

Madden 25 has stepped up its game with several noteworthy improvements, earning its spot as a worthy football title in 2024, especially with other options now available. The introduction of BOOM Tech and the revamping of Franchise mode elevated the experience for the game, and the game’s presentation now closely resembles an ESPN broadcast, creating a more immersive atmosphere. The commentary has been refreshed with new teams, and gameplay features like the Switch Stick and manual one-handed catches add excitement to the game. Overall, Madden 25 makes significant strides in gameplay and presentation, making it a title worth playing throughout the year.