Madden NFL 22 Reviews
Madden is a billion dollar franchise that has grown content. Thanks to its exclusivity deals, EA takes zero risks and fumbles each year providing us rehashed versions of previous entries. Madden NFL 22 is no different. Meager improvements are outweighed by series fatigue. Instead of focusing on giving us polished gameplay mechanics and an improved Franchise Mode, EA's focus is divided into unwelcome modes like Face The Franchise and The Yard leading to an overall incomplete and broken experience.
All in all, Madden NFL 22 is ultimately disappointing. Even after all these years, it still feels like EA is coasting on its exclusive rights to NFL simulation football.
As usual, Madden is best enjoyed with friends on Sunday mornings before watching games on TV, but most of what’s available beyond Exhibition mode feels like a downgrade from the same product released 10 years ago.
From a modes standpoint, Madden 22 does a lot of great things. Unfortunately, the gameplay keeps the game as mediocre as it comes.
Madden NFL 22 is another Madden game, with not many new features to warrant a new price label of $59.99. If you do not like NFL Football, you will not like this game. While known NFL commentators such as Rich Eisen lend their talent to this entry, it is wasted by being overshadowed by nameless voices called ‘coach’. Ultimately, if you own Madden NFL 21 and don’t NEED to play online, you could possibly skip this entry.
For every enjoyable new thing in Madden NFL 22, there's something else that's equally as frustrating. The real saving grace that makes the game a solid experience is the upgraded gameplay and graphics for next-gen. If you like Madden, you'll have fun, even if you get annoyed from time to time, but the franchise still has a long way to go if it wants to catch up with the other sports games on the market.
Madden NFL 22 definitely tries to get things right, but the lack of competition turns it into its own worst enemy. The rush to release a new game every year during a period in which game development takes more time than ever results in an incomplete and bug-filled launch. EA Vancouver skipped a next-gen version of NHL 20 to try to knock things out of the park with NHL 21 — maybe EA Tiburon should have done the same with Madden. If they do not learn from their mistakes, they might stumble into the same fate they have with their own NBA Live series.
Madden 22 makes strides in several areas, but lack of polish, numerous bugs, and mostly reloaded content put it behind the sticks.
Madden NFL 22 has some good parts to it, mainly the usual suspects, but falls flat with Face of the Franchise. I know Face of the Franchise is a key part of Madden's success and what fans look forward to as a main piece of the Madden pie each year, but honestly, it has so many glitches in it that at times it is unplayable. Could these be fixed, and this year's title saved? Most definitely, but as it stands at launch, the game has issues that need rectifying.
I really wanted to like Madden NFL 22. After a hiatus from the franchise, however, I find myself facing the very same issues that made me stop playing the game in the first place after trying out this year’s iteration. These include a lack of significant changes to the gameplay as well as a host of game-breaking bugs and glitches. All in all, Madden NFL 22 probably isn’t as bad as some of the game’s more vociferous critics make it out to be. But “not as bad” isn’t exactly something to aspire to when you’re the only football game in town — or for any game for that matter. As a longtime player since the 16-bit days, seeing Madden stuck in neutral once again is a heartbreaker. Here’s hoping things get better as no one would like to see Madden make a comeback more than longtime fans such as myself.
Madden NFL 22 features a revamped franchise mode, minor gameplay improvements and a successful story mode, but the NFL simulation is still growing stale.
Madden NFL 22 is an upgrade from the last few entries in the series. The new momentum mechanic, addition of Quality/Performance Modes, and some changes to Franchise genuinely make it feel like a step forward. However, the game fails to skirt around some of the same issues that’s held it down for years. A poorly executed Face of the Franchise, and an Ultimate Team mode that’s pretty much more of the same stop the game from being the endzone celebration that it could be.
There's some mild improvement on last year's game but the Madden franchise still feels lost, with too little depth and too many bugs.
Madden NFL 22 takes a small and unimpressive first step into the Xbox Series X and PS5 generation, with even its better new ideas hobbled by poor execution.
I always find a message within the selection of the Madden cover athlete, and in the picks of Tom Brady (arguably the greatest quarterback of all time) and Patrick Mahomes (arguably the most naturally gifted QB of all time), the message felt like a dual nod to Madden's age and enduring legacy as well as the promise of a bright future. However, even with the new stuff, I can't shake the sense of sameness in the experience of Madden NFL 22. The love of football keeps me playing, but there were no moments that made me think, "OK, we are in the next generation." That holds the series back while other games have passed it by. It looks like another year where "the leap" will have to wait - if it ever comes at all.
Madden NFL 22 disappoints on several levels whether it is for its gameplay which offers virtually no change since last year or even in its visual aspect which is not worthy of the new generation. Not to mention that the Face of the Franchise mode offers no real interest in low impact dialogue and poor quality cutscenes. If you already have last year's edition, this edition is clearly not necessary!
Review in French | Read full review
Madden NFL 22 has brought even more realism with the ability to manage the coaching staff, a great option for those who follow every detail of their favorite franchise, and GameDay Momentum, very welcome additions after last year's "copy and paste". However, the game continues with the sameness of the other game modes, which had little or no change, and does not open the doors, at least in a more inviting way, to beginners or more casual players.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Madden NFL 22 makes the same mistakes the franchise has had in recent years and its successes are not enough to reverse the score against.
Review in Spanish | Read full review