All Articles: Madden NFL 18

Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, Assassin’s Creed Origins, and Super Mario Odyssey are October 2017’s best-selling games

A northeastern cold snap proves that Fall is all… as does the massive number of new releases that cracked The NPD Group’s list of best-selling games from October 2017. WB Games’s Middle-Earth: Shadow of War lead the way at #1, but it was closely followed by Assassin’s Creed Origins at #2, Super Mario Odyssey at #3, and South Park: The Fractured But Whole at #4.

Nintendo actually had a huge month, placing four titles in the Top 20 (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#15), Mario Kart 8 (#16), and Fire Emblem Warriors (#17) were the others), as well as owning the top two hardware platforms. However, GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that overall industry sales still dropped 11% versus October 2016 to $825 million:

With interest in the Switch and the Super NES Classic still sky-high, Nintendo hardware managed to account for two-thirds of the hardware sales generated. That being said, NPD noted that Sony’s PlayStation 4 is still the best-selling hardware platform year-to-date. Furthermore, in the accessories category, the black DualShock 4 wireless controller was both the best-selling accessory of October, and the best-selling accessory year-to-date.

The complete Top 20 from October 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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EA Sports might discontinue yearly releases of Madden and FIFA

EA Sports has a particular way of doing things, and sticking to an annual release schedule for their games lineup is a big one. For decades, a new Madden appears on store shelves every August. It’s followed by updated NHL and FIFA games a month later, and the latest NBA Live (when it’s not on the bench) typically launches in October. But things might be changing for the venerable publisher.

Speaking to Bloomberg, CEO Andrew Wilson said that EA Sports might discontinue yearly releases and switch to offering downloadable expansions or subscriptions instead:

“There’s a few different things that have got to happen first. We do a lot in a FIFA game every year, and a lot in a Madden game. There’s a lot of code that we make available as part of the new iteration. But when we look at what we do in Korea or China, we don’t do it that way. There, every four years we release a new big code drop, and we offer incremental change over time.”

Wilson didn’t lay out a road map for how this change might be implemented, but I’m sure many sports fans would be interested in purchasing a full-priced game once and adding to it with roster updates and Story Mode expansions in future seasons.

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Destiny 2 tops September 2017’s list of best-selling games

Activision has been rather quiet on the Destiny 2 front since the game’s launch, but The NPD Group confirmed this morning that it was the best-selling game during the month of September. It’s doing so well at retail that the tracking firm has also declared Destiny 2 the best-selling game in all of 2017… so far.

Aside from Destiny 2, sports games dominated the sales chart in September, including the debuts of NBA 2K18 (#2), FIFA 18 (#4), and NHL 18 (#8). It was also a good month for games with long tails as Grand Theft Auto V (#7), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#9), and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege (#10) continue to hold onto their slots in the top ten.

You can read more about last month’s best-sellers and view the monthly Top Ten after the break. (more…)

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No surprise there… Madden NFL 18 was the best-selling game in August 2017

It gets harder and harder every year to interpret the NFL rulebook, but one thing is always certain… the latest entry in the Madden NFL series will be the best-selling game in August.

That axiom held true once again this year, as The NPD Group declared that Madden NFL 18 was the best-selling game of last month. August 2017’s other big sellers include Grand Theft Auto V (#2), Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (#3), Splatoon 2 (#4), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#5), and the newly-launched Agents of Mayhem (#16).

You can read more about last month’s best-sellers and view the monthly Top 20 after the break. (more…)

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Xbox Store Today: Madden NFL 18, F1 2017, Mages of Mystralia, more

It’s a big day for the Xbox Games Store, as a dozen new releases are now available to download through the digital storefront.

We start things off with EA Sports’s annual football simulation, Madden NFL 18. This year, the publisher gave the Xbox One game a “significant visual leap” thanks to the use of EA’s proprietary Frostbite Engine. A brand new Story Mode, “Longshot,” will also give Madden fans something new to try out.

Sports fans will also get the chance to put the pedal to the metal in Codemasters’s F1 2017. The Xbox One racer will include a revamped Career Mode and other enhancements over previous entries.

The magic of sports gives way to actual magic in Mages of Mystralia, an overhead action RPG from Borealys Games. Players will be able to create their own spellbook to solve the puzzles and overcome obstacles “put in place by people who do not want you to succeed.”

Finally, Bandai Namco will re-release the first three games in the Naruto Shippuden series (Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 – Full Burst) for the Xbox One with improved graphics and sound.

You can learn more about all of today’s new releases after the break. (more…)

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PS Store This Week: Uncharted Lost Legacy, Madden NFL 18, Thimbleweed Park, more

It’s yet another big week for the PlayStation Store, and Naughty Dog is leading the way with a new Uncharted adventure and the return of Jak & Daxter.

Nathan Drake is taking a well-earned (and possibly permanent) vacation, but Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross will help PS4 fans get used to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Players will venture out in search of the Golden Tusk of Ganesh, but they’ll have to contend with a “ruthless warmonger” who also wants the prized artifact. The developer will also add Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy to the PlayStation Store this week as a PS2-On-PS4 re-release.

To football fans, a Super Bowl Ring might be the ultimate treasure, and PS4 owners will get the chance to reach the big game this week in Madden NFL 18. New features this year include a revamped visual presentation and the “Longshot” Story Mode (starring Oscar winner Mahershala Ali).

Elsewhere on the PlayStation Store, a trio of indie developers have added new titles to the digital storefront. PS4 owners will be able to investigate a murder in Ron Gilbert’s Thimbleweed Park, cast spells in Borealys Games’s Mages of Mystralia, and escape from a new set of prisons in Team17’s The Escapists 2.

Finally this week, Codemasters is back with another racing simulation, F1 2017, and Bandai Namco has remastered the entire Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm trilogy for the PS4. Also, Telltale is teaming up with the Guardians of the Galaxy once again in Episode 3: More Than A Feeling.

You can learn more about all of these games (and a few other new releases) after the break. (more…)

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New Retail Releases: Madden NFL 18, Uncharted The Lost Legacy, F1 2017, More

Are you ready for some football? EA Sports is getting ready to hike Madden NFL 18 into stores this week for the PS4 and Xbox One. The latest football sim from EA Tiburon makes use of the Frostbite Engine for the first time, as well as a Story Mode known as “Longshot.” And if you’re looking to pick up an Xbox One this week, Microsoft is now offering an Xbox One S 500GB + Madden NFL 18 Bundle.

Also available this week is a new Uncharted adventure from Naughty Dog. Nathan Drake hung up his spurs at the end of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, but Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross will carry on this week in Uncharted: The Lost Legacy for the PS4.

In typical Uncharted fashion, Chloe and Nadine are in a race against the bad guys in The Lost Legacy, but players interested in a different kind of race will be able to pick up F1 2017 for the PS4 and Xbox One. Codemasters has added a revamped Career Mode to F1 2017, as well as other improvements both online and off.

Career criminals might be interested in The Escapists 2, which will be available this week for the PS4 and Xbox One from Team17. New prisons, a new combat system, and a range of character customization options have moved The Escapists 2 to an even bigger house (pun so intended).

Finally this week, a trio of re-releases will bring some old favorites to new places. Telltale will launch Minecraft: Story Mode – The Complete Adventure on the Switch. Koei Tecmo will compile together the four Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm games in Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Legacy for the PS4 and Xbox One. And Bethesda will bundle together Wolfenstein: The New Order + Wolfenstein: The Old Blood in a single package on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

That’s all for now, but we’re definitely going to learn more about the Fall’s biggest upcoming releases during the 2017 Gamescom expo this week.

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EA Sports introduces “Longshot” Story Mode to Madden NFL 18

After its successful debut last year in FIFA 17, EA Sports is expanding their sports-based storytelling to include Madden NFL 18. Taking most of its cues from Friday Night Lights, as well as a dash of Any Given Sunday and The Program, the “Longshot” Story Mode was revealed during their E3-adjacent EA Play event today.

“Longshot” will follow the story of Devin “Longshot” Wade, a star quarterback who stepped away from the football field for a few years after high school. Portrayed by JR Lemon, Wade wants one last shot at NFL glory. The cast also includes Oscar winner Mahershala Ali as his father, along with Scott Porter as his best friend, and Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino as himself (insert your own Ace Ventura: Pet Detective joke here).

The first trailer for “Longshot” has been embedded above, and a quick overview of the new mode can be found at the game’s official website.

Madden NFL 18 will be available for the PS4 and Xbox One on August 25.

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