Madden 18: Top Reviews and Scores from Around the Web

The 2017 NFL season is right around the corner, but the quest for Super Bowl glory can start as early as Friday, August 25, when the 29th installment in the Madden NFL series, Madden 18, is released. 

People who pre-ordered the "G.O.A.T. Edition"—with a cover featuring, who else, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady—can start playing on August 22. 

Incidentally, like it did with Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski for Madden 17, EA Sports did not poll fans to select the athlete for the game's cover, but instead chose Brady.

On the whole, early reviews of the game—which is available for PS4 and Xbox One but, notably, not for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3—are positive, with critics especially complimentary of the game's new story mode, Long shot, and the quality of the visuals with the new Frostbite Engine. 

Long shot features an NFL quarterback prospect named Devin Wade from Mathis, Texas, who, together with his best friend, receiver Colt Cruise, moves through the steps of the process including the NFL combine and hoping to impress scouts enough to be drafted. 

More than a few reviewers lamented some of the cheesier elements of the storyline—perhaps to be expected from the franchise's first foray into storytelling—but agreed it enriched the experience of playing the game. 

Before we get into what the gaming world's heavy hitters thought of the newest installment, let's take a look at some quick takes.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller loved the clean graphics:

Pastapadre.com's Bryan Wiedey had high praise for Long shot:

And Dallas Cowboys wideout Dez Bryant doesn't even need to play Madden 18 to know he's going to excel at it: 

Let's take a look at what the top game reviewers thought of the story mode, as well as full reviews and scores for Madden 18. 

Note that IGN had not yet assigned a grade to Madden 18 as of Tuesday morning, so its review is not included below.

GameSpot: 9/10

Gamespot had high praise for the newest installment in the Madden franchise, giving it a near-perfect score. 

Reviewer Alex Newhouse acknowledged that fans have come to expect the bare minimum and moderately improved graphics from each new version of the game. 

"Madden NFL 18, however, is highlighted by one of the most significant additions in series history—a full story mode—and a new, much more graphically capable engine. And due in large part to the Long shot story, it is a marked improvement over the last several entries in the series."

Newhouse had high praise for Long shot, especially the importance it places on seemingly minor decisions, all of which have a weighty impact on the story's outcome. 

"Long shot is unexpectedly deep—it's a fully fledged, Telltale-style adventure game with multiple endings, broken up by short moments of playing football," wrote Newhouse. 

US Gamer: 4.5/5 

Kat Bailey of US Gamer also arrived at a near-perfect score for the 29th iteration of Madden, though she praised the development of a story mode in and of itself more than the actual execution of Long shot. 

Especially for players just picking up a controller to play Madden for the first time, Long shot serves as a welcome introduction, Bailey argued. 

"From the standpoint of a new player, Longshot makes Madden 18 one of the best entry points for the series since the beginning of the generation," wrote Bailey.

"It's indicative of a Madden that is the boldest and most confident it's been in a decade. We're a very long way from the rudderless, poorly conceived football sim of just a few years ago."

Bailey also thinks experienced players will be pleased with the graphics.

"It's also quite attractive thanks to its transition to the Frostbite Engine, which in my view is largely successful."

Game Informer: 8.25/10

In a slightly more measured evaluation than those of his peers, Game Informer's Matthew Kato found the game's new features somewhat bloated, but argued that underneath all of them is a solid football game that's rewarding to play. 

"Underneath what seems like a collection of thrown-together or even uninteresting features is a good game whose rewards are less readily apparent," Kato wrote. 

In particular, Kato found the appeal of the particulars of Ultimate Team mode, including "a leveling system, player upgrades and team tokens" a little "limited," but the target passing feature was enjoyable for him.

"Madden 18 is missing a host of fixes, wishlist staples and improvements, but it doesn't have to appease to have worth," Kato concluded.