Madden NFL 15 won't be playable early unless you pay for EA Access

[Skiver Veteran]

EA's sports demos have always been consistent: You only get to play as two teams (usually the two teams that met in the previous year's championship) in one scenario in a specific stadium for a specific time. That requires work, and that requires not offering the full game unless you want to make changes to it, which again takes development resources.

 

Again, because you skipped over my thing, development resources that have always been there in the past, so what has changed? Audio pointed out that they've released demo's for years, Heck im pretty sure when I used to buy the old Xbox magazine that came with disk based demo's you still got games like Fifa or NBA each year.

 

If game prices have gone up, they've potentially found a new money earner in EA access, why stop doing something you have done for years?

[vcfan]

How did they manage to get a demo out for every other Madden title since 2005 without issue? Genuinely interested in your opinion. These are the facts, no issues with a demo until EA Access comes about and the only way to try Madden before release suddenly becomes put behind a paywall.

 

How have those poor developers done it for 9 years in a row?

they didn't. there was no demo last year for next gen consoles.

 

If companies are oh so crippled by having to branch off a specific demo portion of a game, just do a full download with a timer slapped on to the content of 20 mins.

that would be stupid for sport titles. ea sports trials will likely give you the full game, but you may only play a set number of games.

look at the dead rising 3 demo. you could only play 2 live for 20 minutes each per gamertag. people were ###### because its not like a demo when you can keep playing it as much as you want with restricted content.

this works for ea sports trials because its only for 5 days before the game is released. again, these are not traditional demos. they've said you get to play the full game before release.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

they didn't. there was no demo last year for next gen consoles.

 

that would be stupid for sport titles. ea sports trials will likely give you the full game, but you may only play a set number of games.

look at the dead rising 3 demo. you could only play 2 live for 20 minutes each per gamertag. people were ###### because its not like a demo when you can keep playing it as much as you want with restricted content.

this works for ea sports trials because its only for 5 days before the game is released.

 

I see you post this everywhere as if it really makes a difference. The game and it's demos released prior to the launch of the XB1 and PS4, that is a little disruptive to what would be the normal plan of everything coming out at once. Point is they still made the demo for the available platforms for the games launch.

 

I think when there is pressure to get a "port" out on a new platform you can cut a little slack for a demo - The game would be feature and content wise 99% the same as the PS3/360 demo. All you would really be getting is better graphics on the PS4/XB1. Everything is a bit messy around a console launch, but this is now a year on.

[vcfan]

I see you post this everywhere as if it really makes a difference. The game and it's demos released prior to the launch of the XB1 and PS4, that is a little disruptive to what would be the normal plan of everything coming out at once. Point is they still made the demo for the available platforms for the games launch.

I think when there is pressure to get a "port" out on a new platform you can cut a little slack for a demo - The game would be feature and content wise 99% the same as the PS3/360 demo. All you would really be getting is better graphics on the PS4/XB1. Everything is a bit messy around a console launch, but this is now a year on.

fifa 14 came out a month later than madden 25 on last gen consoles, yet there is a demo on next gen consoles.

[trooper11]

Come to think of it, this whole demo argument seems silly when you realize that the ps4 and x1 have had many fewer demos than last gen. MS' policy last gen resulted in many more demos, but it seems clear that without that mandate, most developers don't feel compelled to do it.

 

Even many of the precious indie developers are skipping the option to create a demo.

 

As vcfan pointed out, Madden didn't get a demo on either next gen platform for the current game, so the precedent is already set. There may have been an out cry for that, but I didn't hear it and it doesn't seem to have hurt the current Madden. So we will see how it matters going forward.

 

 

 

EA won't be thinking this is a niche service for a small % of their users, they want "everyone" who plays EA games subscribed. If they had it their way this would be on the PS4 right now if Sony hadn't blocked them. You can bet if they could angle it at PC games they will, but PC gamers aren't as gullible and quick to buy into marketing speak as console gamers historically are.

 

 

Wow, you aren't holding any punches back lol. I'm not sure of your empirical evidence regarding the gullibility of console gamers, but pc gamers have been duped a fair number of times over the years too.

 

Even today, programs like Steam's green light program, early access, and Kickstarter have resulted in gullible gamers getting screwed.

 

If EA's program is a bunch of crap, it will be exposed as such and forced to change or go away. We live in a connected world where people can quickly spread information and create a serious backlash for a group that goes too far.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

fifa 14 came out a month later than madden 25 on last gen consoles, yet there is a demo on next gen consoles.

 

FIFA 14 is the bigger franchise, it's global where as NFL is more exclusive to America. In other words FIFA 14 would have been more of a system seller for the XB1/PS4. I'd chalk it up to them not bothering with a Madden XB1/PS4 demo with the PS3/360 one already out.

 

I just noticed they even done a trailer, yes that's right, a trailer for the Madden NFL 25 demo

 

 

Hope the "YouTube voice over guys" didn't cost too many resources...  :rolleyes:

 

It's simple IMO, they know sports fans go crazy for their annual demo to check out the new roaster/gameplay prior to having to wait for the game to release, so they paywall it and people will sub to EA access even solely to get to play Madden early. Why release a free demo when they can lure in some more subs, even if just for one month?

[vcfan]

FIFA 14 is the bigger franchise, it's global where as NFL is more exclusive to America. In other words FIFA 14 would have been more of a system seller for the XB1/PS4.

so maybe that's your answer as to why there is no demo this year either.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

so maybe that's your answer as to why there is no demo this year either.

 

That answer was in relation to the launch of consoles AFTER the release of the game. That situation is not happening this year. There is no excuse. Last year they could have said we didn't have time for a demo due to the efforts of getting these games out for the consoles launch, you can still try on the PS3/360, and people would of been like "oh....okay".

 

This year there is no such issue with hardware, and again it's all about context - Put the ability to try Madden behind a paywall at the same time as not releasing a demo...

 

Some of you are VERY naive if you do not think this is trialing what they can get away with. If subs go through the roof for the Madden trial, FIFA will be next. EA released Dungeon Keeper, guys, perspective. They test the boundaries of how they can get gamers money all the time. I really am walking away from these discussions either thinking people are naive, or this is simply a case on Neowin of people not wanting a business decision with Microsoft to get any negative feedback, where ironically, the decision about this has nothing to do with Microsoft, it's all EA's own doing.

[trooper11]

It's simple IMO, they know sports fans go crazy for their annual demo to check out the new roaster/gameplay prior to having to wait for the game to release, so they paywall it and people will sub to EA access even solely to get to play Madden early. Why release a free demo when they can lure in some more subs, even if just for one month?

 

That's a big possibility for sure. We will see if gamers bite. Is the value of early access enough to get passed the lack of a normal demo.

 

Some of you are VERY naive if you do not think this is trialing what they can get away with. If subs go through the roof for the Madden trial, FIFA will be next. EA released Dungeon Keeper, guys, perspective. They test the boundaries of how they can get gamers money all the time. I really am walking away from these discussions either thinking people are naive, or this is simply a case on Neowin of people not wanting a business decision with Microsoft to get any negative feedback, where ironically, the decision about this has nothing to do with Microsoft, it's all EA's own doing.

Why even go there? This has nothing to do with MS and yet you are the one to bring it up. Way to derail the discussion.

Otherwise, I agree with your point that EA is clearly testing the limits of what gamers will accept. I want demos, so I'm not happy about the slippery slope we might be on. However, I'm not totally against a service like this. Outside of the demo issue, I could see myself paying $30 a year to get access to games from a publisher. I already pay MS and Sony $40-$60 a year for similar perks. EA could be successful here, they just need to be very careful and not do stupid things like make a point to say they will no longer offer traditional demos.

[Anthony Tosie Veteran]

Again, because you skipped over my thing, development resources that have always been there in the past, so what has changed? Audio pointed out that they've released demo's for years, Heck im pretty sure when I used to buy the old Xbox magazine that came with disk based demo's you still got games like Fifa or NBA each year.

 

If game prices have gone up, they've potentially found a new money earner in EA access, why stop doing something you have done for years?

I wasn't aware you were responding to me. I already addressed what you're referring to. The franchise has been getting consistently worse each year and pulling resources away from either its development or the development of the next entry in the franchise. That's simply a fact -- unless they hired a person whose task it is solely to make the demo, they're pulling resources from somewhere. They chose to no longer do that. As I already pointed out, developers and publishers have been steadily moving away from demos and have complained about the resources they take to develop literally for years.

 

Why stop doing something they've done for years? Because it's a waste of resources. I doubt it significantly improves sales in any meaningful way. I'm also, again, unsure of what EA Access has to do with this beyond what we've already discussed. This is about Madden and its developers. EA hasn't pulled the plug on every demo on every platform and said "if you want to play a representation of our games early, subscribe to EA Access," nor have their actions implied as much since this hits all platforms; why not, say, only release the demo on previous-generation consoles if it's truly what's being claimed and they're not releasing the game on Xbox One and PS4 because of EA Access on the former and the look of impropriety if it's offered on the latter and not the former?

 

Demos are awesome. I love demos. It's unfortunate there won't be a demo. But that doesn't mean the reason to not offer a demo is because of EA Access and trying to lure customers over to that service. As I already pointed out, if that's the point, then this is an absolutely terrible decision since the overwhelming majority of Madden gamers won't be able to subscribe to EA Access... and very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very few people are going to buy an Xbox One just to get EA Access; that would preclude the point of a demo, which is to get people to purchase the game who may not otherwise be inclined to do so. Is the logic that they're going to go out, buy an Xbox One for $400, then subscribe to EA Access for at least $5 a month, just to see if they want to buy a $60 game? EA would have to be full of the dumbest people ever if that was the business rationale for this move.

Some of you are VERY naive if you do not think this is trialing what they can get away with. If subs go through the roof for the Madden trial, FIFA will be next. EA released Dungeon Keeper, guys, perspective. They test the boundaries of how they can get gamers money all the time. I really am walking away from these discussions either thinking people are naive, or this is simply a case on Neowin of people not wanting a business decision with Microsoft to get any negative feedback, where ironically, the decision about this has nothing to do with Microsoft, it's all EA's own doing.

I could say the inverse of your argument applies as well.

[BajiRav]

That answer was in relation to the launch of consoles AFTER the release of the game. That situation is not happening this year. There is no excuse. Last year they could have said we didn't have time for a demo due to the efforts of getting these games out for the consoles launch, you can still try on the PS3/360, and people would of been like "oh....okay".

 

This year there is no such issue with hardware, and again it's all about context - Put the ability to try Madden behind a paywall at the same time as not releasing a demo...

 

Some of you are VERY naive if you do not think this is trialing what they can get away with. If subs go through the roof for the Madden trial, FIFA will be next. EA released Dungeon Keeper, guys, perspective. They test the boundaries of how they can get gamers money all the time. I really am walking away from these discussions either thinking people are naive, or this is simply a case on Neowin of people not wanting a business decision with Microsoft to get any negative feedback, where ironically, the decision about this has nothing to do with Microsoft, it's all EA's own doing.

Sony "trialed" with PS+ on PS3 and got away charging for online play with PS4 by dangling carrots of free games. Everyone does it all the time, EA is no different than Sony/MS/whoever else.

Regardless of development size, Demos are not free and putting "just" 4-5 people to create a demo is not free. It costs money and even if EA can afford it, why would they take a hit on profits just because they were doing it for x years?

Yes EA is evil and do it for money just like Sony "screws" people all the time although they are supposed to be #4thegamers.

This has nothing to do with Microsoft or Xbox but you are somehow making a leap to console wars here. Just stop.

On that note - Microsoft can't win, can they? They had strict requirements for demos and patches until recently. They were grilled for anti-developer policies and what not. Now that those restrictions are gone - they are blamed for moneyhatting developers blah blah.

[Skiver Veteran]

I wasn't aware you were responding to me. I already addressed what you're referring to. The franchise has been getting consistently worse each year and pulling resources away from either its development or the development of the next entry in the franchise. That's simply a fact -- unless they hired a person whose task it is solely to make the demo, they're pulling resources from somewhere. They chose to no longer do that. As I already pointed out, developers and publishers have been steadily moving away from demos and have complained about the resources they take to develop literally for years.

 

Why stop doing something they've done for years? Because it's a waste of resources. I doubt it significantly improves sales in any meaningful way. I'm also, again, unsure of what EA Access has to do with this beyond what we've already discussed. This is about Madden and its developers. EA hasn't pulled the plug on every demo on every platform and said "if you want to play a representation of our games early, subscribe to EA Access," nor have their actions implied as much since this hits all platforms; why not, say, only release the demo on previous-generation consoles if it's truly what's being claimed and they're not releasing the game on Xbox One and PS4 because of EA Access on the former and the look of impropriety if it's offered on the latter and not the former?

 

Demos are awesome. I love demos. It's unfortunate there won't be a demo. But that doesn't mean the reason to not offer a demo is because of EA Access and trying to lure customers over to that service. As I already pointed out, if that's the point, then this is an absolutely terrible decision since the overwhelming majority of Madden gamers won't be able to subscribe to EA Access... and very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very few people are going to buy an Xbox One just to get EA Access; that would preclude the point of a demo, which is to get people to purchase the game who may not otherwise be inclined to do so. Is the logic that they're going to go out, buy an Xbox One for $400, then subscribe to EA Access for at least $5 a month, just to see if they want to buy a $60 game? EA would have to be full of the dumbest people ever if that was the business rationale for this move.

I could say the inverse of your argument applies as well.

 

No worries, I thought i quoted you but that might have just been my imagination.

 

I don't really play any of the EA sports games so I can't comment on whether the quality is getting worse or better, however if they produced a decent game with a demo one year and it got slightly worse the next, what else changed? If you look at EA stocks, over the last 12 to 18 months it's only been growing. They posted 36% profit increase in FY 13, so again, they have the money to spend on the resources required. It just comes down to what has changed that means they don't have the man power to produce these demo's, because the price of games hasn't gone down, the gaming indistry is still pretty healthy and their profits are pretty decent too. I work very closely with a software development team so I understand to some extent the immensity of what goes into making a "product" and unless they are getting rid of staff for no good reason then there is no good reason to stop developing games.

 

I appreciate that publishers etc may not enjoy doing demo's but its what their customers want as I highlighted in an article earlier, it has been noticed that their are less demo's on the XB1 (can't speak for PS4) and people have been asking for it. Surely they should be doing what they can to entice the customers to buy the game and not taking away the try before you buy element and sticking things behind a paywall? Something Xbox Users have complained about for so long (Netflix, i Player etc etc).

 

Wasn't it just the other day EA released a string of Viral videos? something about the Chosen One? That takes time effort money and resources, and sure it gets hype but its Marketing and that IMO is what demo's are. If I can try a game before I buy a game I am much more likely to buy it. That IMO is much more a waste in resources, the producing a demo.

I have to admit I do have a bee in my bonnet when it comes to EA because of the crappy Customer Service I've recieved over twitter with a game that should never have been released when it was and has not had the focus it needed to get it working quicker. Like I've mentioned before, I work closely with a development team, and just this year when we had ONE (admittedly pretty big) customer that was hitting issues near enough every developer possible downed tools on whatever new project they were working on and clubbed together to fix the issue(s) for said customer. Clearly EA didn't do this or we wouldn't have a game like Hardline, which from videos I've seen is riddled with the exact same bugs that BF4 was.

 

IMO, EA need to take a step back and stop looking at what's best from a business point of view and start looking what it can do better with it's customers. Sometimes you have to spend a bit more money then you would ideally want to get the quality and the service that you're customers deserve. 

[vcfan]

madden 15 early access is out now.

[Showan]

Though I don't really care for Madden, I decided to give Madden 15 a try out through EA Access.

 

This is not a demo per se.  This is the full game as you have access to everything that the retail version has.  And you can save your data as well.

 

Quick play, Connected Franchise, etc all accessible.  You basically have 6hrs to do what you want when you want, before having to decide to purchase Madden15 or not.

 

If you are swift enough, you can start a franchise with others and play maybe 2-3 before time is up.   Which honestly isn't that bad.

 

But Madden hasn't been good in quite some time now.  I still prefer the decade old NFL2K5 over Madden from then till now.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

I really do not see how this thread has produced so much back and forth when it is really damn simple...

 

Madden games have always had a demo and especially fans of the series look forward to that demo.

It no longer has a demo because of EA Access, so many people view that as one needs to now pay for the demo, which while it is technically not correct, it is easy to see how and why they are taking that perspective.

 

So what EA could have done is still released the traditional demo, which if memory serves me correct has always been limited to two teams and shortened quarters, and still keep the EA Access version, which is the full game just with a time limit.

This way everyone wins. However they chose to just go with the EA Access route, which is their right to do so, but it could have been handled better I believe is the overall consensus.

[GotBored]

Sony "trialed" with PS+ on PS3 and got away charging for online play with PS4 by dangling carrots of free games. Everyone does it all the time.

Yes EA is evil and do it for money just like Sony "screws" people all the time although they are supposed to be #4thegamers.This has nothing to do with Microsoft or Xbox but you are somehow making a leap to console wars here.

Just stop.On that note - Microsoft can't win, can they? They had strict requirements for demos and patches until recently. They were grilled for anti-developer policies and what not. Now that those restrictions are gone - they are blamed for moneyhatting developers blah blah.

I'm not seeing where Audioboxer is making the leap to consoles wars discussion.. I think you are trying to with the comments above though and then finalizing with the standard Microsoft gets blamed for everything, everyone is out to get Microsoft comments.. Am I missing something? What part of Audio boxers post you quoted did you find infuriating and as an attack on Microsoft?

[soniqstylz]

This is EA, a 5 man indie team not having the time to branch off a demo, fine, EA have been creating demos for their games since most gamers were in diapers.

Fact remains a chunk of gameplay fit to be a demo* exists, it's going to be an EA access exclusive. Of course its not on PS4, they have no way to paywall it there (on their own terms, with PS+ Sony get a cut) meaning the internet would explode saying how unfair it was PS owners didn't need to pay for it.

*Early access is most likely going to be a timed amount of gameplay, aka a "demo".

 

TBH, is there that much difference between this and the PS+-exclusive one-hour demos they've been featuring for years?

[vcfan]

NHL 15 demo coming out tomorrow for xbox one/ps4. early access will also be available for ea access subs. why isn't this "demo" only exclusive to ea access?

 

and looks like theres a FIFA 15 demo too

 

from CHIP ( brand of big computer magazine in Europe)

http://www.chip.de/news/FIFA-15-Demo-Release-fuer-PC-PS4-und-Xbox-One_72188981.html

 

translated

Shortly before the official release of FIFA 15 is Electronic Arts (EA), a demo version of the football game available. Players can test the two game modes in FIFA Ultimate Team (FUT) and Kick-Off in advance.  

The FIFA 15 demo can be downloaded from 9 September for the above mentioned platforms on Origin.

[KeeperOfThePizza]

Wow.. Xbox and PlayStation games are expensive as is.. So 59.99 for the game and 5.99 to play it early..... Ridiculous.. EA needs to lose it's NFL contract. 

[trooper11]

I'm not seeing where Audioboxer is making the leap to consoles wars discussion.. I think you are trying to with the comments above though and then finalizing with the standard Microsoft gets blamed for everything, everyone is out to get Microsoft comments.. Am I missing something? What part of Audio boxers post you quoted did you find infuriating and as an attack on Microsoft?

He just lost himself a little bit and went off topic imo. He decided to make a remark at the end about people being naive or basically fanboys. Look at the part I quoted to see that.

He probably didn't mean it that way though. Still, its not helpful to any discussion.

 

 

Wow.. Xbox and PlayStation games are expensive as is.. So 59.99 for the game and 5.99 to play it early..... Ridiculous.. EA needs to lose it's NFL contract.

Keep in mind that EA access also give you a 10% discount on any digital purchase. So do the math. If you pay $30 for the year of service, your paying about $2.50 a month. That 59.99 game will only cost you $53.99 plus your paying to get early access to full games, not cut down demos.

I do agree that EA should still have done a cut down demo for Madden (as they are for FIFA 15 and NHL 15), but I just dont see how its a terrible deal, unless you aren't a sports game or EA fan to begin with.

[Anthony Tosie Veteran]

Madden games have always had a demo and especially fans of the series look forward to that demo.

It no longer has a demo because of EA Access ...

This keeps getting repeated, but no one saying that has provided any proof. EA's NHL franchise just got a demo, yet it's also on EA Access.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

This keeps getting repeated, but no one saying that has provided any proof. EA's NHL franchise just got a demo, yet it's also on EA Access.

What is this some kind of murder investigation? We need proof to establish why a video game demo was not released? History has no context?

It has had a demo every single year it could have demos.

It no longer has a demo the same year EA Access has been established.

Madden also happens to be the poster child for EA Access.

Madden is also the second top selling sports game for EA behind FIFA.

 

So while I do not think you are going to get official documents that state this is the definitive reason why there is no demo, I think it is a very, very safe assumption to make.

 

And the NHL game got a demo because they are trying to sell it.

Madden already sells itself.

 

Not much of a mystery there either.

[Anthony Tosie Veteran]

What is this some kind of murder investigation? We need proof to establish why a video game demo was not released? History has no context?

It has had a demo every single year it could have demos.

It no longer has a demo the same year EA Access has been established.

Madden also happens to be the poster child for EA Access.

Madden is also the second top selling sports game for EA behind FIFA.

 

So while I do not think you are going to get official documents that state this is the definitive reason why there is no demo, I think it is a very, very safe assumption to make.

 

And the NHL game got a demo because they are trying to sell it.

Madden already sells itself.

 

Not much of a mystery there either.

No, it's not a murder investigation, but typically if you're going to make a statement of fact it requires some sort of proof.

 

You're using logical fallacies, so I'm not even sure where to begin. I think it's an extremely inaccurate and unsafe assumption to make, given Madden's worsening history, which I already pointed out. Both the NHL and Madden franchise are annualized, and most of the purchases come from the same respective consumers.

[Showan]

I have given Madden 15 a whirl a couple of times now... I won't be purchasing the game at all, but I didn't even come close to using the 6hr allotted time. This is after playing 2 online games and fiddling around in menus. Maybe I should exhaust the full 6hrs to see if a time bomb goes off for something of that effect.

Should EA consider a traditional demo? Probably.

But 6hrs seems like enough time (this is my personal opinion) to determine if you are going to buy the game or not. Especially considering that, you have access to the full game.

[1337ish]

I cant believe people dont understand that games studios have had to create new teams for new consoles unlike previous years. Everyone believes EA access was the cause but couldn't the reason to stop simply be because there was an increased strain as there are now 2 additional consoles needing development resources and staff allocated/trained/hired reducing the ability to focus on knocking out demos, hell most 1st party who have Sony/MS helping dont knock out demo's before release if ever so EA stopping is nothing new but its obviously all a conspiracy...