Guide Note:

Madden NFL 08 is a football video game developed by EA Sports and is the 18th game in the Madden NFL Series. The title bears the name of broadcasting and coaching legend John Madden. The game is available for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS and computers with Windows XP or Mac 0S X. As with all of the games in the series, several changes were made to how the game is played. The game features Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young on the cover. A Spanish-language version of the game was released several months after the English version, with San Diego Chargers defenseman Luis Castillo on the cover. The game received above-average ratings from video game critics.

Gameplay:

The biggest feature added to Madden 08 was the Weapons System. Every player was designated into one of several categories based on their ability. Depending on their featured ability, a player could exploit it to his or her advantage during a game.

• Smart Quarterback: The quarterback could read defensive schemes.
• Possession Receivers: These receivers are likely to make catches over the middle of a field.
• Shutdown Corners: Cornerbacks will be able to stay with the receiver they are covering during a play.
• Spectacular Catch: These receivers have the ability to leap above defenders and make tough catches.

Player ratings:

For the first time, players received 100 in-game ratings in some of their abilities. Previously, no player had received a rating higher than 99.

• Speed: Devin Hester (Chicago)
• Acceleration: Reggie Bush (New Orleans)
• Elusiveness: LaDainian Tomlinson (San Diego)
• Juking: Tomlinson
• Strength: Larry Allen (San Francisco)
• Awareness: Joe Montana (San Francisco legends teams), Tom Brady (New England), Peyton Manning (Indianapolis)
• Route running: Marvin Harrison (Indianapolis)
• Coverage: Champ Bailey (Denver)
• Separation: Steve Smith (Carolina)
• Blocking: Lorenzo Neal (San Diego)
• Toughness: Brett Favre (Green Bay)

Competitive:

EA Sports and Best Buy conducted its annual Madden Challenge, a multi-city tour where players compete on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 versions of the game. Champions were crowned in 17 regional events as well as locations in Mexico City, London and Toronto. All of the regional winners competed at the championship tournament at Universal Studios in December 2007. The finals tournament was won by Eric Wright, a Madden player from West Covina, Calif.

Fast Facts

1. Developer: EA Sports
2. Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC, DS, PSP, PS2, Xbox, GameCube, Mac, Mobile
3. Genre: Sports
4. Mode: Single and Mutiplayer
5. Produced annually since 1991
6. ESRB Rating: (E) Everyone
7. Release Date: August 14, 2007