Madden and Need for Speed Available at Wii Launch

Wii

September 28, 2006, 8:49 am EDT
Total comments: 16

EA announces that both titles will be in stores on November 19th.

EA’s Madden NFL 07 and Need for Speed Carbon Available for Nintendo’s Wii on Launch Day

Top EA Titles Drive Gameplay Innovation and Set a New Standard for Interactive Fun

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that Madden NFL 07, the EA SPORTS™ best-selling football franchise with the exclusive videogame license of the NFL and PLAYERS INC, and Need for Speed™ Carbon, the latest iteration in the world’s most popular street racing franchise will be available with the Wii launch on November 19, 2006.

“Both Madden NFL 07 and Need For Speed Carbon were able to really bring out the innovation in the new FreeMotion Controller on the Wii and will attract a whole new sector of gamers," said John Schappert, Senior Vice President and General Manager, EA Canada. “We are honored to be a part of the launch of this new exciting platform and are inspired by the new creative ideas it will let us explore."

With the launch on the Wii, Madden NFL 07 takes advantage of the revolutionary controller design and all-new Madden FreeMotion™ controls to create a new controller-focused experience, bringing Madden’s gameplay depth alive in a whole new and immersive way. Key Wii-only features for Madden NFL 07 include exclusive multiplayer mini games designed to support four player gameplay, new multiplayer enhancements including a multiplayer sprint, new play calling system designed for basic football fan knowledge, and Madden in-game tutorials that teach the users how to use new FreeMotion™ controls and allow users to practice within the game. Madden NFL 07 on Wii will also include the popular key features lead blocking control, NFL Superstar: Hall of Fame mode as well as all-new Highlight moves that allows you to run like the NFL players run.

In its 17th year and with more than 53 million copies sold life to date, Madden NFL Football continues to stand out as the most popular football videogame franchise of all time with a combination of innovative new features and the most authentic football gameplay. Madden NFL 07 for Wii is being developed by EA Canada and is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information check out www.madden07.com.

The battle starts on the streets of Palmont city, but is won in the canyons as Need for Speed™ Carbon immerses you in the world’s most dangerous and adrenaline-filled forms of street racing. Need for Speed™ Carbon and the Wii introduce the world to a whole new way to play Need for Speed. Offering the classic Need for Speed controls and immersive gameplay experience, with the addition of the Wii's unique Remote style controller scheme takes Need for Speed™ Carbon gameplay to levels previously not possible. A simple yet intuitive control scheme using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, the player will instantly recognize and feel the physics differences between the 50 plus Muscle, Exotic, and Tuner cars, as they use their crew to win Canyon races, customize their cars using Autosculpt™, and battle to take control of the streets of Palmont.

Talkback

CalibanSeptember 28, 2006

"customize their cars using Autosculpt™" > I've watched some footage showing this feature and it pushed me fom "I ain't ever getting this game" to "I might give it a chance, perhaps a rent". It's a pretty cool feature.

I'm getting Madden for sure, my very first Madden ever and quite possible the last one until Nintendo's next console.

couchmonkeySeptember 28, 2006

I'm pretty interested in Need for Speed, I love racing games, and the customization feature sounds neat.

TJ SpykeSeptember 28, 2006

Since I will likely only have enough money for 1 extra game at launch, and that will be Zelda, I won't get either of these. I might get Madden later though since it looks like it could be fun with the Wii Remote.

PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorSeptember 28, 2006

Is it really bad to say that I actually had enough fun with Madden at the Wii event that I'm considering it?

Oh sh-

KaironCarmine Red, Associate EditorSeptember 28, 2006

I'm getting Madden at launch. EA deserves SOME reward for being onboard with the Wii.

... and my dad would love to play with it ... and it'd be a good show-off title at Wii parties.

~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com

DAaaMan64September 28, 2006

Can we please have some video feed of this need for speed game already?

TrueNerdSeptember 28, 2006

I don't know if I will buy Madden outright, but I definitely want to try it.

Congrats to EA for turning my unfilterable hatred for this franchise into a temporary passing interest.

Ian SaneSeptember 28, 2006

"I'm getting Madden for sure, my very first Madden ever and quite possible the last one until Nintendo's next console."

If you're only getting one Madden for the Wii maybe you should until next year or later. This is their first attempt on the Wii so there's probably going to be some kinks that are fixed up in later releases. I own one Madden game: Madden '94. At that point the 2D Maddens had had a few years to get the formula down pat so the game is much more polished than the earlier titles. Of course this method would require a lot of patience. The ideal thing to do would be to wait until the end of the Wii's lifespan and then buy what is considered the best Madden. Though I doubt you would be willing to do that.

CalibanSeptember 28, 2006

"The ideal thing to do would be to wait until the end of the Wii's lifespan and then buy what is considered the best Madden. Though I doubt you would be willing to do that."

If I see that the improvements (gameplay wise) aren't of major change then I will keep my copy, however I can always trade it in, no big deal to me.

SvevanEvan Burchfield, Staff AlumnusSeptember 28, 2006

Or you could just never play Madden and have a better life for it.

PryopizmStan Ferguson, Staff AlumnusSeptember 28, 2006

I believe Evan is just begging for a foot to the head.

GoldenPhoenixSeptember 28, 2006

One thing I find most interesting about Madden for Wii is the visuals, from what IGN said it looks even better than the Xbox build. This shows that the Wii has a bit more power under the hood than originally thought, since EA never really had that much experience with GC (just rushed ports). If EA can pull better than Xbox visuals out of the Wii with their first madden, I have a feeling we could be seeing some impressive games graphically not only from EA but others as well down the line.