Madden NFL 12 kicks off August 30

For the past couple of years, EA Sports has kicked off the game industry's busy fall schedule with the release of Madden NFL during the second week of August. Not so this year, as EA Sports president Peter Moore confirmed at an event in San Francisco last night that Madden NFL 12 will be available for platforms that include the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, PSP, and Wii on August 30.

The release date comes despite an ongoing dispute between the league and its players' association that could result in a cancellation of this year's season. According to Moore, irrespective of a season-long lockout, Madden NFL 12 will be released on its announced date.

One of the primary concerns of the NFL-NFLPA negotiations--player safety--will still be seen in Madden NFL 12 in other ways. Last month, EA Sports confirmed that player concussions will factor more importantly into this year's installment. Specifically, if a player is concussed in-game, he will be benched for the remainder of the bout.

EA is currently polling fans to see which football star should appear in Madden NFL 12 through its official website. For more on the game, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.