Madden 19: Early Expert Reviews of Top Modes Ahead of Official Release Date

Like training camps across the NFL in early August, Madden 19 offers positivity and a wealth of upgrades on a well-built package fans of the series will want to experience. 

Based on our official review and the expert reviews rolling in, the team at EA Sports delivers in a big way. 

On the field, Real Player Motion delivers an even more realistic experience with player interaction at a noticeable all-time high for the series thanks to the new physics system, while users also have more control than ever thanks to an uptick in maneuverability options at their fingertips. 

Off the field, upgrades to various game modes are one of the biggest talking points and something expert reviews hit on in a big way. 

Dustin Toms, IGN

While franchise mode doesn't get a massive overhaul this year, there is enough new to bring users back to the tried-and-true experience. 

The upgrades mostly sit in the customization area, which is nothing but a good thing for users who want an experience ranging more in the simulation range. One of the big features is the ability to create draft classes and share them with the widespread Madden community online, meaning more longevity for the mode as a whole because somebody out there will be hard at work creating true-to-life collegiate draft classes for years to come. 

Other customization options come in the form of schematics. As Dustin Toms of IGN explains, scheme fit and specialists roles are now a thing: 

"A simple change from one scheme to another can drastically alter your team's play. In my Titans franchise, I swapped from a Tamp 2 (42% scheme fit) to a 46 (92%) without needing to alter my roster. Specialty positions such as slot cornerback and slot wide receiver are now included in your team's depth chart too, giving you more options for fine tuning."

Welcome additions, to say the least. Streamlining the scheme process is a handy way of helping users along. The percentage fit acts as a guide for users who want to add and drop players in pursuit of a certain scheme.

It should almost go without saying, but finally being able to list specialists like slot receivers and rush defensive tackles is a boon and it looks like a big part of the reason Toms assigned the game an 8.9 out of 10. 

Matthew Kato, Game Informer

Ultimate Team is once again a major selling point of Madden, so it isn't too much of a surprise to see the mode get some love here. 

One of the bigger additions this year builds upon the strong debut of MUT Squads by adding MUT Squads Challenges, a way for users to link up and earn experience together. 

But Madden NFL 19 doesn't ignore solo players either, with Solo Battles offering a way for, well, solo players to do the same. 

It's a high point for Game Informer's Matthew Kato: "Every coin counts, and the Solo Battles payout is a great early-game way to bank coins for those who don't want to pay real money for packs. It's another tool in a mode that does a good job of providing different paths to assembling your team."

Interestingly enough, Solo Challenge tournaments will change weekly and offer global leaderboards, as well as custom-made opponents by NFL players and celebrities themselves. 

Customization gets a boon in Ultimate Team as well, with skill points now unlockable and capable of modifying cards to improve a roster. Upgrades here and elsewhere resulted in Kato giving the game and eight out of 10. 

Eddie Makuch, GameSpot 

On the topic of solo players, Longshot: Homecoming serves as the sequel to last year's story-driven debut of a game mode critically acclaimed by most. 

Devin Wade and Colt Cruise return for another arc as they look to drive their careers in different directions. The former chases NFL aspirations throughout the new story, while the latter hasn't given up either but has to worry about bigger problems back home. 

One of the bigger changes to the mode this year is an uptick in gameplay itself, which is something developers have said was something they wanted to alter after user feedback. This means trimming down another area, with dynamic options going out the window, as Eddie Makuch noted in his review for GameSpot: 

"And in what is a surprising move, EA (almost) completely dropped the Telltale-style dialogue options from the first iteration. It was fun to make choices and steer the conversation in the original Longshot, even if the story never really branched, so it's a real shame that EA moved away from this in favour of a more traditionally structured story."

Still, dialing down user options to drive the narratives themselves was always going to happen the more Wade and Cruise's story progressed and they carved out set career paths. It is still an enjoyable experience with incredibly well-done voice acting and animation and isn't a tale users will soon forget. 

A continuation of an ambitious mode to begin with, there isn't a sophomore slump for Longshot: Homecoming, which plays into Makuch also giving the game an eight out of 10.