I was excited to remove the plastic. Couldn't put the disc in fast enough. Then my heart was broken.
Release night I had to have taken the disc out of the machine a minimum of ten times and turned off the 360 just as much because I thought something was wrong with the game. I thought maybe I'd picked up a bad copy. Through my frustration, when I was no longer turning on and off my machine, the main screen finally appeared. The loading time for this game is ridiculous. I've played with the idea of returning it on that issue alone.
I dug right into franchise mode where the differences, to me, did not warrant a Madden 12 title. The choice box sits in the middle of the screen. You now have the option to lower or raise the skill levels of your players. Throughout the year, you can hire guys from free agency to 1 year contracts. During the off-season you're timed as you try to out-bid other teams for players. Practice has been put back into this mode. You spend time scouting future draft picks while you play through your season. That's pretty much it when it comes to the Franchise mode screen. You're no longer setting prices for merchandise, food, parking etc. Which I enjoyed and you should be able to do if it is your franchise.
When ready to play, loading time, again, is an issue. Loading time is approximately 1:18 where the screen is just white. When the teams enter the field there is a lot of pomp and circumstance, which is fun at first. The presentation has clearly been worked on but the repetition gets old. The way each team enters the field does not change. Evey team has its own presentation but that's it, so you may find yourself skipping this. The commentators use the same words for every team. The comments are not based on the teams recent play, or the new players that you may have aquired which has certainly changed the makeup of the team. Every player gets the same tired lines. To me, most other things in this mode are pretty much the same as last year like the fans, the weather, how the players look when it rains etc. The players do have a glossy presentation though. This madden does its best to make the players look like their live counterparts. At least in the faces. I notice how slight Michale Vick is in reality but in the game he's a little beefy. Minor things like this you may notice. The texture of characters has changed a little but there are so many other areas that need the same attention.
With my created team, before I could use them in Franchise mode, I had to get rid of an existing NFL team. I did. The AI never called my teams name and after winning the Superbowl my team was called the name of the NFL team that I deleted. The commentators also gave the stats of the deleted team and did not say anything about my team and its first Superbowl win. I have played games where if you create a name the AI still recognizes it and calls it out. The AI also does not call out the offensive and defensive players of your created team, like it does your opponent, nor the name of your home stadium.
The created team players run out from the middle of the goal-post even though you have created a mezzanine with openings on the sides at the end-zones. I thought that maybe I'd created my stadium incorrectly but my team continued to take the same path from the middle of the goal-post no matter what design I used.
Tackling is different this year. Players must be wrapped up or the momentum will carry them forward. Hit's, though, are not up to par. These are grown men hitting each other with incredible velocity. Yet, each player pretty much just brushes it off with the occasional grab of a body part that has nothing to do with the injury that has been received.
I created a Madden Ultimate Team. It's a part of the game where you will have to keep putting money into it to even have a chance to get to the Superbowl. The first card collection you receive is atrocious. Your team may be ranked in the high 50's or low 60's to start. Uniform cards, you may want to change immediately, which means you will have to purchase a new card pack. Bronze represents mostly low ranking players and is the least expensive. Silver and gold follow with better players and more coins needed for purchasing. I wonder, why, if I am creating a Madden ultimate team do I not have the choice to name my team. I, twice, have been the Raiders playing the Raiders.
This is the gist of my experience with Madden NFL12. My opinion is that you can wait to purchase this game, if at all, when the price has been lowered. I agree with some reviewers that the creators of Madden should take several years off to reinvent this game.