Madden NFL 23 Reviews
Building off the momentum of Madden 22; Madden NFL 23 brings fresh looks to both Franchise Mode and Face of the Franchise while keeping the train rolling with The Yard and MUT. While there are still some buggy moments, Madden NFL 23 is worth picking up especially for those who haven't played an installment in the series for a while.
As a result of the wide-ranging FieldSense additions, particularly the enhanced passing, Madden NFL 23 is the most fun American football game in years.
Madden NFL 23 takes a few good steps forward, but seems to forget other aspects that will hopefully be addressed in the future.
The foundation for an excellent entry to the Madden series is here. EA & Tiburon just need to patch up some glaring game breaking bugs. As it stands, Franchise Mode is practically unplayable and for me that is the essential component of Madden. Fans of Face of the Franchise, The Yard and Madden Ultimate Team may find some enjoyment, but it doesn't last long. Under the assumption that the issues get fixed in upcoming patches, Madden NFL 23 has potential to be the best entry in recent memory.
While other years have felt like a fumble, this feels like a solid first down, and we can only hope that they go for a successful Hail Mary the next time around. The spirit of Madden fills this entry in the franchise, and it feels that there is hope that it can reach its roots once more, and become the premier football simulator once more. Are you ready for some football? Because I know that I am.
After playing Madden NFL 23 I finally have a little optimism that the series is on the right path - maybe not an emphatic "Boom!", but clear forward progress for a series that so desperately needs it.
At the end of the day, Madden NFL 23 is a poor pro football simulator. It isn't even a fun arcade-style game. It feels somewhat aimless with the development team pulling the game in many different directions at the same time. The changes from Madden NFL 22 are minimal and the PS5/Xbox Series X/S exclusive features still do not address core gameplay problems.
I believe the problem is that the gameplay, at its core, just isn’t addictive. Can I have fun with Madden? Yes, and I probably will have some solid moments with the game this year, but not enough to make it elite.
I can’t, in good conscience, recommend this game to anyone playing on PC. Loyal fans of the Madden franchise probably already own Madden 22, and won’t be getting anything new, and those looking to make Madden 23 their first Madden game would probably be better off buying 22 instead. Console players should feel free to pick up 23 and experience all of its promised next-gen features, but PC players should wait until EA (hopefully) patches their promised updates into the game.
Madden NFL 23 is a step up from Madden NFL 22, which itself was a step up from its predecessor. This continues to show that EA Sports has found a groove for itself when it comes to updating the yearly sports title, and with some new changes to gameplay, Madden NFL 23 feels even more like a brand-new title than it has in perhaps a long time.
For anyone new to the series or returning, Madden NFL 23 is based around the NFL (National Football League) where you might hear some of the bigger names in news like Tom Brady, Guy Whimper, and many more. Like the titles before it, anyone that is a sports game fanatic would be straight into this game with being able to pick your plays, both offensive & defensive, which decide the end factor of the game.
Madden NFL 23 is the best entry in the franchise in the past 10 years, but with such a low bar to clear and EA effectively having no competition, it can feel too similar to prior games to warrant the hefty $69.99 price tag.
Madden NFL 23 is not the definitive football experience, but it is a substantial step up from the last edition thanks to the new gameplay features implemented by FieldSENSE. The general improvements are noticeable but not so revolutionary, while the graphical imperfections and the problems with the artificial intelligence continue to represent the Achilles heel of the franchise.
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Some fun improvements make this playable – yet Madden still features too much carryover. Not just from last year, but the last decade.
Madden NFL 23 continues to make improvements, and for those thinking it is just a roster update? Give it a go first and you’ll see that it’s a lot more. This is especially true of Franchise Mode, which is where I tend to spend the majority of my time. There’s still some rough edges here and there and room for improvement with some of the languishing modes, but by and large Madden NFL 23 is a great tribute to the series’ namesake and an entertaining game of football.
The Madden NFL series has long had a solid gameplay foundation, maintained by small improvements year over year. Madden NFL 23 is the first iteration in a long time that rebuilds that foundation, and that’s where this year's greatest success lies. Some slippery collisions aside, the more physics-based action is a good change, and the control over ball placement from Skill-Based passing is a welcome addition. This comes at the cost of only minor updates to the core gameplay modes, but it was ultimately the right call to make, and Madden is a better game for it.
On the field, Madden 23 is the best the series has been in a long time, but several of the surrounding pieces feel like they're on injured reserve.
Madden NFL 23 is a game that does quite a bit to make on-field play more fun than in years past. And even with its shortcomings, it’s finally starting to turn into the game fans have been hoping for some time.
If you are a seasonal fan of Madden, you will feel like Madden NFL 23 is a step in the right direction with new features to experience and updates to preexisting game modes and features. At the end of the day, this game is meant to appeal to football lovers who want to have the most realistic NFL experience.
Madden NFL 23 is the best of the last several entries, but by lacking the overhaul it really needs, it only achieves so much.