EA must be paying for favorable reviews, because this is mediocrity at it's finest.
There are as always a litany of gameplay and interface problems with Madden.
First, is the game pretty? Yes, very pretty. I think the "pretty factor," somewhat cons some people into believing the game is great, when in fact it's just not.
Roster updates on the menu screen yet? No. That's beyond dumb. Having to start an online game session to magically get roster downloads? Terrible.
The actual gameplay is fair at best. On "normal," speed, incredibly fast players like Devin Hester have the feel of slogging through mud.
Controller mapping is an essential element to many games, so that players can maximize the "feel," of the game. Will Madden EVER incorporate this? Apparently not.
The Pro-Tak system is broken. In a one on one situation, it's just too easy to plow over the defending player. Using Hester as an example, he's 5'10" and(maybe) 200 lbs. I destroyed a middle linebacker as though Hester were a fullback, plowing forward for 5 extra yards.
EA makes no attempt whatsoever to incorporate solid AI at the onset of a game. It's up to each individual to spend countless, wasted minutes (hours?) tweaking slider bars, trial and error, trial and error. On one setting I run 20 times for 29 yards. On the next setting, I run 10 times for 230 yards. Oh geez.
The computer sim is overlooked because, frankly...most people don't care. Take a peek sometimes. Michael Turner ran for 269 yards...in the first half in another game today. Seriously?
Silly, sloppy things that have existed since the 90's- kickers still can't kick field goals farther than approximately 45 yards on the default setting. How lazy.
I keep buying these games because I love pro football, and I don't really have any other choice, and there is no continued support for the previous year's games.
$60 for the game, but you get less features than you did 10 years ago, and they want you to microtransaction to boot? This is a bad, bad deal.