One step forward, two steps backwards for the franchise.
There are several things that are striking about Madden 95 in contrast to the previous games. For one, the once bulky players are now mostly thin and tall. For another, the game speed seems to have changed drastically, going from the once slightly slow pace to a now much faster game that will tear you up if you aren't able to think quickly. Finally, the passing windows at the top of the screen during pass plays are now gone and have been replaced by "A," "B," and "C" icons on each receiver. This method is both more realistic and more challenging since you'll have to keep a close eye on all of your receivers, some of which may travel to the top of the screen where you can no longer study their positioning in relation to the defenders guarding them.
The gameplay in this Madden game is faster and more furious than in the previous games. At times, it can be downright frustrating and I am about to explain why.
Passing the ball in this game can be ridiculously hard, and there is more than one element that makes it so difficult. For one, you can drop back to pass, find a receiver open, and throw the ball only to have it swatted down by a linebacker who is seemingly not even close to the ball or high enough to reach it. For another, even when you do find a receiver and throw the ball without it being swatted down, the pass is almost always incomplete or intercepted because almost every throw is one of two things: a super fast bullet that is thrown ahead of the receiver (making him 'dive' for it), or a lob that doesn't get to the receiver in time until he's in double or even triple coverage.
It's frustrating that there doesn't seem to be any "in between" on throws; it would be nice if you could throw a quick pass that isn't a speedy bullet and there doesn't seem to be any control over the direction of the passes, either. You simply press the button and depending on whether or not it's held down, your pass is a bullet/lob and that's all the control you have. You can control your receivers as well, but this is only very useful for lobbed passes because bullet passes are almost too fast to catch anyways considering the ball is generally thrown a yard or two too far ahead of the receiver.
The running game is also tough but not as frustrating as the passing game. When you run the ball, as long as you can get lucky and find open holes you will be OK. At times the game can be frustrating in that you will run into a defender and hear a "pop," only to run a few yards further and suddenly fall down even though your running back showed no signs of being tripped up or getting ready to fall down. The main problem with the running game is the passing game. This sounds odd, but it's the truth. When you pass the ball, it's so difficult that you'll eventually have to turn to running - but if you try to run consistently, the defense will catch on and you'll almost surely end up with a defense that stops nearly every type of running play you do whether it's a sweep out of I-Formation or a HB toss out of Shotgun formation.
As you can tell by what I've said, playing on Offense in this game is very frustrating. Passing the ball is very difficult and almost seems unfair at times, and running the ball is acceptable but can't be a 100% viable option without being able to pass the ball successfully during the game in order to keep the defense on their toes.
Playing defense is not bad, although the fast pace of the game can make it difficult to switch to the correct player in time to make a big play. Also, it's as if the AI's passes are almost always the perfect speed and make it right to their receivers, meanwhile you can never seem to have that kind of control over your own passes. Their running is not hard to stop, however, and this is a good thing because that would just make it even worse!
Overall, Madden 95 is not one of the better Madden games for Sega Genesis. Although it does offer Season play (and even Playoffs) and even features the Jacksonville Jaguars and Carolina Panthers as unlockable teams, the frustrating and, at times, unfair gameplay keeps it from competing with the previous Madden titles. The new style of passing (without windows) is great but the passing game is far too difficult to make this a satisfying change to the game itself.