Madden NFL 07 for Dummies help, please?

Cafe Society
1

Okay, so the game “Dead Rising” (yay, zombies!) finally convinced me to buy an XBox 360, and it just so happened that Madden NFL 07 came out a couple of days after I bought it. It sounded cool (especially the Superstar Mode, where you can design your own character and take him from training camp through the draft through a season in the NFL) so I picked that up too. I also got the players’ guide, since I’ve tried football video games before and always been mystified by all the options available. I was hoping that the Superstar Mode (where you only control one character, not the whole team) would help with this.

Well, it didn’t, not much, and neither did the player’s guide, which apparently assumes that you know way more about football strategy than I do. I know the basic rules of football, but pretty much nothing about the right plays to pick.

So, my questions are:

  1. Does anybody make a guide for Madden NFL 07 that assumes that you’re an idiot who watches football games occasionally and knows the basic rules but no more than that?

  2. For you football-video-game experts out there: are there some ‘80/20’ type rules that I can use for picking plays and whatnot, that’ll at least get me started until I start to get the hang of it better?

  3. For anybody who has the XBox 360 and this game: I get the fact that it shows you your pattern laid out on the field, which is cool, but what I don’t get is: when it shows you the diagram for the play, most of the routes are in yellow but one is in orange, and the orange one doesn’t necessarily correspond to your character (but it does sometimes). Also, there are button icons next to each route (A, B, X, and Y next to the yellow ones and the orange one) but so far I haven’t made a connection between those icons and anything actually happening when you press those buttons. Can anyone help me out here?

Use small words, please :). I really am an idiot when it comes to football video games, but this one looks so damn cool that I really want to at least get to the point where I can have fun with it.

Thanks!

2

I have NCAA Football 2006, but I think there’s quite a bit in common. On the XBOX for NCAA, the regular routes are one color, but you also have “Impact players”. Their route(s) are in white on the XBOX for that game. Its quite likely the orange route is the one an impact player has. Impact players are more powerful and harder to take down, kinda like leaders or heroes for a team.

As for plays, I don’t know much about the Madden playset, but in college games at least, I make Cover 2 my basic defense, and change it up with blitzing on occasion. Generally, the AI in most if not all of the football games I’ve played is much better at passing than running so I worry most about the pass. (I frequently make the opponent go into negative running yards, even when they have tons of passing yards.)

If I know the offense will run (like a third and inches or fourth and inches where its virtually assured), I’ll play a 4-4 with lots of rushers. But thats pretty extreme and when they do pass I’m exposed. The button icons in the XBOX game indicate what button to press to pass to that player, but I know Madden is different with its whole directed passing thing, so I couldn’t say.

I’m also the sort of Football game player who had to figure this stuff out from a position of only casual interest in real football. I’ve never found any guide, either for football games or for football itself that really explained plays and their tradeoffs. Would be neat to have such a reference.

Offensive plays are trickery in one way but easier in others. I have a hard time finding good passing routes in NCAA 2006. I recommend looking for whichever ones have some short passes because all long pass routes means a lot of failed passing downs. I don’t like throwing to the outside either because I get a lot lot lot of incompletes from out of bounds throws on those plays that indicate the player going out of bounds.

As a beginner I definitely recommend starting out with a running type team. With every football game I’ve played since the NES, I’ve found running is the easier option to get used to, and juking, etc is lots of fun. After a bit, trying out a lot more passing can be fun, but if your clunky on the controls like I am, it can be really trying. (and 90% of the passing plays in NCCA 06 seem unsuitable to me

3

This is based on Madden '06, but it sounds from your description like the interface is similar.

When you’re at the line of scrimmage before a pass play and you see the different routes for each receiver, the receiver highlighted in orange is the primary receiver on the play. Your QB has what they call a “vision cone,” which shows where he’s looking on the field. The width of the cone depends on the awareness of the QB - Peyton Manning’s cone covers the entire field, while Rex Grossman’s cone extends maybe three feet on either side of his receiver. When the play starts and receivers start moving away from the line of scrimmage, your QB’s vision cone will follow the primary receiver.

While the play is going on, you can shift your QB’s vision to another receiver using either the right analog stick or a combination of buttons (again, this Madden '06, but they seem to be pretty consistent with the controls). Using the stick shifts his vision either direction, based on where you move it (it’s left-right only - depth of field doesn’t play into it). To use the buttons, hold down button 8 (the bottom trigger on the right side) and press the button corresponding to the receiver you want to look at. Those are the floating numbers you see above each receiver before the play - each receiver is linked to his own button.

That button is also used (without holding button 8 down) to throw to whichever receiver you choose. If you throw to a receiver you’re not looking at, your throw will be less than accurate - how much less depends on your QB.

If this sounds intimidating… it kind of is. It took me a while before I could really use it efficiently. Madden '06 lets you turn off the QB’s vision cone - if you haven’t played games like this and you’re just getting used to looking at multiple receivers for the first time, you might want to try that option until you’re comfortable with that, and then turn it back on.

4

Thanks for the info! Enginerd, I’m not sure what you mean by the “vision cone,” but that might be because I’ve only played in Superstar Mode, where the only character you control is your own (my first one is a wide receiver). The part about the orange player being the primary player makes sense, though, and explains why sometimes it’s me and sometimes it isn’t.

MindWanderer, that’s a good idea about starting out with a running team–which I think I’ll translate into starting a running back character in Superstar Mode and seeing if maybe he isn’t easier to control.

I doubt I’ll ever pick up on all the nuances of this game, but that’s okay–I have a lot of other games to play too, so I don’t need to become an expert. I just want to learn enough so I can have fun at a beginner level.

Thanks again!

5

The default vision cone setting is off on 07. Many didn’t like it (I loved it, especially when playing someone else, as you can look down one receiver with the cone, pump fake, then quickly look at another.)

Another thing regarding the route colors: blue means that there is a delay in the route. You’ll see this often with RB’s, allowing them to maybe pick up a block, then letting their man pass while they run the route. You’ll see blue assignments on defense too, same thing (delayed blitzes).

6

Any more tips would be appreciated. I picked up this game a few days ago for the PC (my most modern console is the Sega Ganesis!). I’m getting fairly good at the kicking, and not too bad at running, although I can’t get juking or anything to work.

One of the problems another person mentioned tho that I’d appreciate some help is how to pass to the recievers on the outside without them always going out of bounds. I saw somewhere that if you tap the reciever’s button that lobs the pass whereas holding it down fires a bullet at them…thought maybe I was jsut taking too long to get them the ball, but I still have that problem. So how do I get it to them in bounds?

7

Throw the ball earlier. It sounds flippant, but it’s something to keep in mind. Also, some QBs have quicker releases than others.

Another thing to keep in mind is where the ball is spotted on the field. The ball is snapped from a spot between the two has marks in the center of the field. If the last play ended between the hashes, the ball is placed there; if it ended outside the hashes, it’s placed on either the left or the right has mark. If a receiver on the left side is running an out, running the play from the right hash mark gives him a little more space to play with.

8

I had to get a new controller for my XBOX anyway, so I just picked up Madden 07 today as well, mostly for the superstar mode. They promised something similar in NCAA 06 but failed to deliver since you played the game as normal despite the focus on a player. I’ve always wanted to see the game from (say) an offensive lineman’s point of view. Or wide receiver, running back on a passing play, etc.