Madden 21 Revealed First Gameplay And Features For PS5 And Xbox Series X

The new and upcoming NFL game looks gorgeous on the new consoles, and it will use real-world player data in the game, which makes it alive!

EA Sports has released the gameplay footage of Madden NFL 21 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, It looks gorgeous and lifelike. The developer also released more details on how Madden NFL 21 will take benefit from the new console’s graphics.

EA says the next-gen game of Madden NFL 21 will give gamers a “new standard of realism and authenticity.” The game definitely looks amazing: player models, weather effects, and even the grass on the field look like the real thing. But what might be more interesting about the next-gen game editions of Madden 21 is how they’re using player data from the real league.

NFL players have been wearing RFID chips for years now, in their jerseys to get data about their performance, and now this is being shared with EA. The developer is using this player data to make the in-game character designs and their related animations look more life-like.

“This data, called Next Gen Stats, is fed into Madden NFL 21 to drive fluid animation selection based on how players actually move when running, cutting, and changing direction on the field creating the most realistic player movement in franchise history,” EA said. “Next Gen Player Movement comes to life on both sides of the ball, with elite route runners running their actual routes logged by Next Gen Stats and showcasing explosive first steps and direction changes, while elite defenders will react more realistically to opposing routes and runs.”

Madden 21 on next-gen consoles will also come with a new replay system that uses the player data to reveal things like how fast in seconds the quarterback delivered the ball or the length of a finished pass. The idea is that, with these more detailed numbers, players can make better choices in the future about play-calling.

And when talking about play-calling, there is a new play-calling menu in Madden 21 that seems to prioritize star plays and lets you more easily include them in key plays.

Madden 21 on the new-gen console will also boast faster loading times; EA said players can expect to get into games “in seconds,” while the developer said the environment of the game will load “with unprecedented speed.”

EA has also added the new “cloth animation” to make jerseys look more life-like with wrinkles that appear during games based on how players play on the field. There is also now location-based audio to make the game more real and feel as if the player is responding to the sound coming from whatever direction they are looking at.

On PS5, Madden 21 takes advantage of the DualSense controller to enable players to “feel the impact of passes, catches, tackles, hits, and kicks.”

Everyone who will buy or has already bought Madden 21 on Xbox One or PS4 can update to their next-gen edition within the same console family for free until the release of Madden NFL 22 in 2021. All progress will bring forward from the Madden Ultimate Team, The Yard, and Franchise modes.

EA is also selling a $70 “NXT LVL” edition of Madden 21, especially for Xbox Series X and PS5. This seems to be EA’s first game that carries a much steeper tag on next-gen. The game will bring the “additional high value” content for Ultimate Team.

Madden 21’s PS5 and Xbox Series X editions will release on December 4, which is the same day that FIFA 21 hits the next-gen consoles.