Madden NFL 25 is here, and in this review, we wanted to see if EA Sports can deliver a better football experience than last year's title. This year, Madden 25 brings new changes and improvements to the gameplay and several modes. The game features a new tackling system, improved draft night experience, team builder, and more. However, do these improvements justify its price tag? Without further ado, let's see if Madden 25 is worth your time and money this year.
Madden NFL 25 Review – What is Madden 25?
Madden NFL 25 is EA Sports' latest installment in their annual football video game series. Overall, Madden NFL features real NFL teams, players, stadiums, personnel, etc. The series began in 1988 and named after legendary head coach John Madden. Over thirty-five years later, it stands as the only NFL football game, thanks to EA's exclusive license agreement with the NFL.
The game was developed by EA Tiburon and released for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
Madden NFL 25 Review – Gameplay
Besides last year's title, Madden 25 is the first Madden game I've played since Madden 16, released in 2015. And right off the bat, I already felt like I was playing an ever-so-slightly improved version of Madden 24. And sadly, that's not saying much.
Last year, my biggest issue with Madden 24's gameplay was the bugginess and awkwardness of player movement. And sadly, that has remained the same for the most part. I'm not sure if it's Frostbite Engine typically not working well with Sports games, or the countless animations that make the gameplay feel weird. In Madden 24, I joked about players running like they have a stick up their rear. And again, that's the same case here.
Another thing to mention is player movement, which feels so slow in newer Madden games. And I'm not just saying that because of the faster player movement in CFB 25. Try spinning in Madden 25, then watch a clip of a player spinning in Madden 16. You'll notice a dramatic difference in how much slower players are now.
Furthermore, Madden 25's gameplay feels awkward to me because of its incessant need to be so animation and ability-based. This is especially the case with the new physics-based tackling. It's like the game is trying to take so much into account that it struggles to give a clean result.
For example, say Saquon Barkley is running in open field and Fred Warner goes for the tackle. Between the different animations, abilities, and physics-driven data all factoring into the tackle, what you get is a jumbled mess. Tackles look rough, with players spazzing out before tackling or falling to the ground. Speaking of tackles, it still feels impossible unless you're in direct contact with the player.
And of course, Madden 25 is brimming with even more technical issues and glitches that hamper the experience. I see strange things like player models spazzing out and moving at light speed at random moments. On one play, I saw Jalen Hurts fumble after getting sacked. Hurts was nice enough to spin at 500mph, striking the ball with his helmet into the defender's arms.
On another play, I had an interception taken away from me because the booth had to review whether there was a fumble or not. Umm, excuse me ref, but why are we talking about fumbles when the QB threw a pick? Unfortunately, you can't argue with virtual refs, and I lost my precious interception.
And that's not all. I've seen linemen fall to the ground only to teleport back to their feet. I've seen numerous flags that should've been called and others that shouldn't. Opposing AI QBs get away with Intentional grounding while I seemingly receive roughing the kicker flags on almost every other FG attempt.
At some point, the glitches become less funny and more frustrating. Sometimes you just want to play the game and enjoy a somewhat authentic football experience. But due to the glitches, it's hard to do that. However, maybe some of the new gameplay features make up for these issues.
Madden 25 adds a brand new one-handed catching type, but why would you risk using it? Receivers drop too many catches already in these newer Madden games. If a defender makes slight contact with the receiver during the catch, it seems the receiver drops the ball way too often. This has been an issue in the game for years and still feels wrong. Thankfully, you can adjust sliders to find what works best for you.
Madden 24 introduced a new blocking system that made linemen much more intelligent in blocking situations. For some reason, Madden 25 feels like it's reverted to a more primitive blocking system. I'm seeing hall-of-fame-bound tackles like Lane Johnson miss opportunities to create more running room or block edge rushers. And receivers just refuse to block sometimes, even if the defender is directly in front of them.
Lastly, let's talk kick-off rules. I can't blame this one on EA Sports, since they're just trying to replicate the real rules. That said, I think it's safe to say the new kick-off just isn't fun. It feels like the NFL wants offenses to score 50+ points per game after all the changes implemented recently. Again, this isn't something I can blame EA Sports for, but it just feels too arcade-like, too unnecessarily complex, and unenjoyable.
Overall, Madden 25's Gameplay feels exactly like Madden 24, but with a few changes that do not feel impactful. Player movement feels sluggish, tackling feels awkward, and the glitches are way too abundant to be enjoyable. But perhaps the improvements to each mode might fix some of these issues.
Madden NFL 25 Review – Franchise
Out of all modes in Madden 25, Franchise seems to have gotten the most love. With improved presentation mechanics, Team Builder, and new Dynamic Storylines, has Franchise mode finally returned?
Firstly, Team Builder finally returns to Madden, letting you create your professional football team. You can use a pre-made logo, or submit one of your own as long as it's not copyrighted or offensive. It feels great to see the feature return, even if we haven't been able to use it yet. I'm just glad to see players have the choice of using a real team or putting in one of their own.
Unfortunately, Team Builder is limited to either Quick Play or Online Franchise. You can't use team builder teams in offline franchises, which kind of sucks. If the EA Sports servers are down, you won't be able to play with your team, even if it's just an offline franchise. Furthermore, you only have one of six default stadiums to work with, as opposed to the boatload of stadium bases useable in CFB 25.
It feels great to see Team Builder return, but of course, there had to be a catch.
Another big feature this year is the new Dynamic and Breakout Storylines. Overall, these storylines follow your players and their goals throughout the season. On the surface, it seems like a nice way to keep things interesting every week.
However, Storylines has already given me a couple of problems in my first few weeks in Franchise. As the coach of the Eagles, I had a chance to attend an event with Jalen Carter or another one with Jordan Davis. I chose Carter and was told to expect a response from Davis. Instead, Carter texted me shortly after about how he was disappointed I did not show up. What?
I appreciate the idea of new features being in the game, but not when, like the rest of the game, it's plagued by glitches. So instead of trying to come up with a new gimmick that will likely disappear in a few years, I wish EA Sports would focus more on a couple of things:
- Improving gameplay without the need to create new gimmicks that end up being removed or untouched. This includes:
- Player movement
- Catching
- Tackling
- Blocking
- & more
- Fixing bugs that have plagued the series for years
- Using an engine that isn't primarily used for first-person shooters
- I understand College Football 25 used Frostbite and is a good game. However, it seems Madden still feels weird on Frostbite.
Presentation was a big issue for me in Madden 24, but EA Sports did make some general improvements this year. This includes a new Draft Night experience, a new Super Bowl Celebration scene, new commentary teams, and a couple of other things.
I do like the new Draft Night experience. It's cool to see players walk up to the podium to take a picture with Roger Goodell. Speaking of the draft, the new Mock Draft Boards did feel a bit more accurate than last year. However, I've only completed one draft in my experience with the game so far, so that might not be enough to fully gauge its accuracy.
And the new Super Bowl and defensive celebrations are a nice touch. EA Sports put more effort into upgrading the presentation of the game. While I think it could be better, it's decent enough. It'd be cool to see a more detailed halftime show and more voiced dialogue, but the core presentation is fine.
Overall, Franchise is still the best mode in Madden 25. The process of coaching and maintaining your team over the years is still fun. Although Dynamic Storylines feel gimmicky and broken, the returning Team Builder feature is a nice touch. It's just a shame that the core gameplay experience is underwhelming.
But Franchise isn't the only mode to play in Madden 25, as Superstar and Ultimate Team make their return.
Madden NFL 25 Review – Superstar
Superstar returns this year, and boy does it feel stripped of all life. No more pre-draft cutscenes with your agent. No more meeting with Deion Sanders or Chad Ochocinco. When you receive a text from your agent, all you see is a blank silhouette of a person with the name – AGENT. When you do finally interact with people, you see them open their mouths and big words appear on the screen.
I get it. You can't have fully voiced dialogue for a 15-year career. However, would it hurt to add some more dialogue from at least one teammate or staff member? Despite being drafted by the Patriots, the only other person whose voice I heard before the season began was Tyreek Hill. Not sure why Hill is giving a motivational speech to a player on a rival team, but whatever.
Like last year, you'll first like Superstar mode before slowly getting sick of it. The weekly tasks, practices, and games make for a fun cycle. However, at a certain point, you seem to have less unique meetings, and more of the recycled meeting with coaches and staff, making the experience feel more repetitive. And with none of the management features from Franchise, it gets boring.
MaddenCast returns to Madden 25 Superstar. Throughout your career, you'll see new MaddenCast episodes that revolve around your player. I love the idea of a live-action Madden show in-game. However, I also feel it still does not hold a candle to either the Tony Bruno radio show (Madden 06-07) or the Extra Point Halftime show (Madden 10).
One thing I do not like in Superstar is how some of the weekly tasks hinder you more than they help you. One week, I was given one of three options to focus on during the week. One of these options would increase my QB's throw power by +5. However, it would reduce his medium accuracy by 5. What sense does that even make?
How does developing your throw power ruin your accuracy? If anything, wouldn't it make medium and deep throws more accurate, because of your power? Jokes aside, the point is you should not be forced to lower one stat to raise another.
Like Franchise, I hate the new player upgrade system that was introduced in previous Maddens. Instead of spending points on specific attributes, you need to spend skill points on a category that focuses on a group of skills. But what If I want to just focus on my accuracy as well as my throw power? I remember Madden 16 letting you just spend XP points on whatever attribute or trait you wanted to upgrade. Now, it feels like you're forced to upgrade things you do not want.
Lastly, Superstar only lets you choose from the same 5 positions as in previous years. If you wanted to play Safety, Tight End, or heck, even Defensive End, you're out of luck. Maybe it's because EA Sports would have to make more position-themed mini-games for practices, but I feel like you should be able to play at almost every position in the game. And with no player career in Franchise, this is your only option of playing as just one player.
Overall, Superstar is okay, but it feels so restrictive and boring. I got bored of it quickly because it felt like it received few changes. However, for those who want a player career mode, Superstar should scratch the itch for you, so long as you don't want to play:
- Safety (FS or SS)
- DE
- DT
- Tight End
- and more
Madden NFL 25 Review – Ultimate Team
Ultimate Team returns once again and is still the most controversial mode in the game. Out of all the modes in Madden 25, Ultimate Team is the one I spent the least amount of time with.
The idea of a trading card-like mode where you collect cards and make a team of legendary players sounds fun. However, it's been completely riddled with microtransactions which make it impossible for free-to-play players to make any significant progress. Just purchasing points in Ultimate Team costs you an arm and leg. 18,500 Madden points will cost you $149.99. You could buy both College Football 25 and Madden 25 together (via the MVP Bundle) with that money.
Overall, MUT is still MUT. If you're someone who likes it, I'm sure you'll like what's offered here. But I still find the mode responsible for the downfall of this series. Over the years, we've seen key features removed from the game while MUT continues to grow.
Instead of MUT, it'd be cooler to see more historical modes and classic teams. With all the new rule changes, especially to kicking, it'd be cool to have the option to play with rules from different eras of football. I'm not saying Madden 26 needs a mode similar to MyNBA from NBA 2K, but the game has changed so much that it'd be cool for new fans to experience what the league used to be like.
But MUT will never go away. It makes too much money for EA Sports and will stay put until people stop paying money for it. So to be fair, a lot of the blame goes to the consumers, who enable the continuation of this mode by purchasing packs and Madden Points.
To sum up Madden 25's Gameplay, it still feels wrong. If you did not like Madden 24's gameplay, then you likely will not like Madden 25. While not unplayable, it just feels too slow, too broken, and too arcade-like.
Madden NFL 25 Review – Graphics & UI
Visually, Madden 25 looks great on the surface. The stadiums, uniforms, and fans all look good. The little details, like rain on the helmets, or blades of grass flying in the air are nice touches.
But like Madden 24, many player models look rough when you're close to them. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue, but thanks to the new Dynamic Storylines in Franchise, you can't help but notice it. For example, I had to meet with Eagles FS' Reed Blankenship to congratulate him on earning his weekly target. Instead, I was met with an Asian-looking Blankenship who I for some reason scolded (although he met his weekly target). You can't make this stuff up.
All in all, I understand players like Zyon McCollum won't have a life-like player model. However, you'd think there'd at least be some similarity. At least get things like skin colors and other general appearance details correct.
Speaking of player models, they look fine until they make contact on the field. I've seen players' limbs bend in ways they shouldn't. I've seen players get up and dance before falling down to the ground with an injury. Sure, it's funny, but that's not an excuse for how wrong it all looks.
And a lot of that is due to the awkward animations and glitches I mentioned earlier. Madden 25 seems almost so focused on animations that it's completely forgotten about making a football game look realistic. I understand things won't be perfect, especially at launch, but this has been an issue that's plagued the series for years.
In terms of UI, Madden 25's menus are fine for the most part. Overall, everything feels pretty easy to navigate and there are a few drastic differences from last year's title. Franchise especially feels great to navigate through, as everything is neatly organized and where it should be.
Lastly, the scoreboards in Madden 25 look great. I appreciate how they put the scoreboard at the bottom of the screen. I feel as if it looks bigger too because of this, letting you see the information more easily. This is one change I hope stays for future titles.
Overall, Madden 25's graphics are good. I do not think Frostbite works well when it comes to sports video games and their gameplay, but it sure makes them look good. If there wasn't so much clunkiness with player animations that I mentioned earlier, I'd say it's one of the best-looking sports games on the market.
Madden NFL 25 Review – Audio
On the field, everything sounds as it should in Madden 25. From players crashing into each other to the sounds of the crowd, Madden 25's on-field audio does its job. There's not much more to say other than it hits all the checkmarks.
Now we come to the sounds off the field. Madden 25 features not one, not two, but three total announcing crews on Gameday. If you play Quick Play, you can decide who you want to commentate on your game. The three commentary teams in Madden 25 include:
- Mike Tirico & Greg Olsen
- Charles Davis & Brandon Gaudin
- Kate Scott & Brock Huard
Back in December last year, I wrote about how Mike Tirico and Greg Olsen would make for a good announcement team. And to nobody's surprise, they sound pretty good together. Tirico brings years of experience calling Football games, whereas Olsen brings the experience of being a former player. Together, they make for a great team.
Some of their commentary caught me by surprise at times, too. In my Franchise with the Eagles, they commented on my rookie RB, Will Shipley. They mentioned his rookie status and the college he went to, which I felt was a nice touch. Overall, the commentary feels more expansive across all three broadcast teams.
Charles Davis & Brandon Gaudin return and as expected, they're okay. If you were sick of them before, there's not much to make you un-sick of them here. Overall, they're not bad, but they were never among the best Madden commentators. That honor belongs to Gus Johnson.
Kate Scott & Brock Huard make up the final commentary team and I won't sugarcoat it – they're awful.
Scott is way too over-the-top and her commentary style does not fit with the game. She's constantly shouting and projecting her voice and it feels forced. These are the same criticisms I have of her as a 76ers fan. I appreciate the effort and energy she puts in, but it's too much.
Brock isn't any better. He's too low-energy, which just makes the team even less interesting. But to be fair, I barely hear Brock because, by the time he starts talking, I've already muted the TV to avoid Kate Scott's screaming. Jokes aside, he's okay, but not as memorable as Tirico or Olsen. And sadly, you can't change commentators before games in Franchise or MUT.
But at least Madden 25 gave us multiple options for commentators. I appreciate EA Sports wanting to improve the presentation and this is one area where I think they succeeded. So credit goes to them for expanding the commentary teams.
Lastly, we come to the soundtrack. I heard a song called “Yeah Glo!” upon starting up the game. After I instantly turned it off I realized that the game offers a decent variety of songs in terms of genres.
The developers brought back some songs from older titles like “Tick, Tick, Boom” from the Hives. They even included American Idiot by Green Day, and In Da Club by 50 Cent (an extremely censored version).
I'm not saying the soundtrack is full of bangers, but at least there's a little more variety in the music genre department. Instead of hearing constant high-hats all the time there's at least a break to the monotony. While I won't say it's an amazing soundtrack, it's fine considering you won't spend all your time on the menus.
In the end, Madden 25 does a pretty good job in the Audio department. Despite Kate Scott's screeching and the plethora of rap songs, EA Sports did a pretty good job of offering good sound quality.
Verdict: Is Madden NFL 25 Good? Is It Worth Your Time and Money?
Madden NFL 25 is more of a bust than a boom. While not the worst entry in the series, EA Sports continues to make the series more arcade-like while ignoring many of the series' biggest issues.
Overall, Madden 25 is an improvement over Madden 24, but maybe not one worth the $60-70 dollars it costs at launch. While some of the issues I had with Madden 24 have been slightly alleviated, the gameplay itself still feels too awkward. Between the glitches, awkward player movement, and limited presentation, Madden 25 fails to deliver the next best football experience.
That said, there are some general improvements this year that might make it worth your time and money. For example, the new Team Builder, albeit limited to online franchises, is a great way to break up the monotony. The new breakable records in franchise help give you something to achieve every week. And I also appreciate three commentary teams, as opposed to one.
But again, Madden 25's gameplay is the real problem. Players move too slowly, spins and jukes feel unpolished, and some of the arcade-like elements take me out of the immersion. And the glitches at launch are funny at first but become tiresome over time. When you have the exclusive license to make NFL games with real teams and rosters, you should prove that you deserve it by making the best game possible.
Madden 25 doesn't quite feel like the best football game ever made. But in all fairness, I also think EA Sports has done a better job of listening to fan feedback. I don't want to call it a step in the right direction, but it is a better game than Madden 24 in my opinion.
It's not my intention to constantly bash the current state of Madden. There's nothing I want to see more than to see a well-made Madden game from EA Sports. But it's hard to say in good faith that this is a great game. At the end of the day, it's okay, at best. If you see it on PS+ or on sale, then I actually wouldn't dissuade you from buying it.
But for now, take time to decide if this next game is really for you. That wraps up our Madden NFL 25 review.
TLDR: Get College Football 25 instead.
Score: 6/10
Editor’s Note: ClutchPoints received a PS5 review copy to allow us to cover this game. These copies did not, in any way, affect our EA Sports Madden 25 NFL Review score and verdict.
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