Madden NFL 21 Reviews

Madden NFL 21 is ranked in the 25th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
68 / 100
Aug 27, 2020

Madden NFL 21 isn’t necessarily a bad game; it will improve over time with updates. Yet the product at launch is riddled with deficiencies and the incremental additions aren’t significant enough to warrant a purchase recommendation from me.

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7 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2020

Madden NFL 21 makes a good attempt at adding variety into a tried and true formula. However, Face of The Franchise has awkward and dry storytelling and cannot match up to the excellence that Longshot offered the franchise. The Yard has some ambitious ideas and offers up a nice change of pace, but it needs some control tweaks to feel like the mode it's trying to be. The fundamentals are getting better and better, with gameplay getting long-awaited touches of realism.

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6 / 10.0
Nov 30, 2020

Next-gen upgrades will hopefully sort the loading times a bit but the problem is that’s just a part of Madden 21’s issues. Unfortunately, there are so many small things that build up to make Madden 21 an experience that, at times, feels like a step backward.

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7.8 / 10.0
Sep 1, 2020

Madden 21 incorporates some innovative aspects to the franchise in order to attract the public that had gone furthest.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

7 / 10.0
Sep 1, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is the clearest example yet of how unwieldy the series has become, so your en-joyment will vary depending on which modes best suit your play style. For me, that comes from seeing my virtual 49ers hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season, so anything else on top of that is just a bonus.

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Sep 2, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is as enjoyable as it has ever been on the field, but a litany of off-field issues make this one of the weaker efforts in recent years.

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PlayStation LifeStyle
Staff Reviewer
Top Critic
5.5 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2020

At the risk of beating a dead horse, Madden NFL 21 feels very much like the byproduct of a game being developed in a vacuum, devoid of any true competition.

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3 / 5.0
Aug 28, 2020

Madden 21 is fine and serviceable but other than The Yard (and that’s a stretch), there’s almost nothing that is worth getting excited over this year.

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4.5 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is a mess of lazy modes, bad gameplay, and a continued descent into a focus on over-monetized offerings. The Yard is a neat idea though!

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6 / 10
Sep 13, 2020

A killer soundtrack and inclusive accessibility settings don't make up for the lack of innovation and gameplay fumbles of this just-another-Madden experience.

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8 / 10.0
Aug 17, 2017

Madden 21 is a great game that old and new players would be excited to play. New modes and updated features like Superstar X-Factor and The Yard have put youth into a veteran series. The way the players acted and how the games sound makes it feel like a real NFL game and in 2020 that is needed. While it still has flaws, it may be one of the best Madden games yet.

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Operation Sports
Robert Kollars
Top Critic
Unscored
Dec 9, 2020

In short, Madden is never as bad or as good as what forums or social media will have you believe, and they should never be used as the barometer. There have been some substantial improvements made with the generational leap, specifically on the gameplay front, and now it's up to EA to keep this train rolling.

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3.5 / 5.0
Sep 9, 2020

For NFL diehards, there remains hundreds of gaming hours at your disposal in Madden 21. These same diehards – much like players of EA's NHL and Sony's The Show – will be left with the impression they've played this game before, however.

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3.5 / 5.0
Sep 1, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is a game that is generally fine.

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7 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is as fun and realistic as every Madden game, especially in its new "The Yard" mode and its increased focus on superstars, but its stagnation in gameplay innovation and established modes makes it sometimes difficult to distinguish its improvements over previous games.

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GameZone
Top Critic
6.5 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2020

For Madden NFL 21, the only one that's going to be affected by any sort of Madden Curse is EA themselves. While it can initially get by with some fun gameplay, there's little here to justify playing this for an entire year until Madden NFL 22. For a game that's supposed to be the start of a new-generation of Madden, it lacks severely.

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Unscored
Aug 28, 2020

All that being said, if you understand that and simultaneously understand that Madden 21 offers up a good game of football between the lines, then there is something here for you. If you're looking for Madden to be more than that this year, then just wait until next-gen to see if it's improved, or wait until the game has a big sale/hits EA Play.

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3 / 5.0
Aug 28, 2020

Madden NFL 21 is a mix of missed opportunities.

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Cubed3
Top Critic
6 / 10
Mar 10, 2022

With beautiful and accurate presentation as well as great gameplay, the basics are done fantastically well. It is such a shame then to see the rest of the package convoluted with endless menus and unnecessary, incomplete feeling modes. Madden 21 is certainly heading the right direction, here's hoping the newest iteration 'pads' everything out.

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7 / 10.0
Sep 14, 2020

Madden NFL says goodbye to a generation with more questions than answers and with an uncertain perspective on what may happen in the years to come.

Review in Spanish | Read full review