Madden 25 Deep Dive Confirms Switch Stick, Reveals Hot Defender Mechanic
By Brian Allen
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EA Sports gave us our most comprehensive look at Madden 25 today with a deep dive video hosted by Fox analyst Greg Olsen and a new blog post. Every year as I go through Madden's press materials, I'm reminded of the Saturday Night Live sketch in which Bruce Willis plays a cool guy on Wayne's World to reveal the new cool word everyone is supposed to use. This year's cool word for Madden NFL is Boom Tech, named for John Madden's signature exclamation. This has been in the works for two years. In this physics-based system, tackles have three components: pre-impact, impact, and post-impact.
Before impact, players will brace for the hit about to come. This is the window to change direction, try a special move, or tank the hit. EA hopes to eliminate the feeling of being sucked into a tackle animation. Boom Tech accounts for the combined momentum of players, the angle of the defensive player's attack, and player ratings. There could be hundreds of different outcomes as their factors interact.
A new physics-based toolset represents the onfield rushing characteristics of players. They gave the example of Derrick Henry hitting the hole (or the defender) much harder than Jahmyr Gibbs. On the defensive side of the ball, a smaller player or player with little momentum may bounce right off the ballcarrier. A bigger, stronger defender may be able to decleat a player even if he didn't have the best attack angle.
The hit stick celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, so there's no better time for it to evolve. Now timing matters a lot more, as does the angle of attack. An onscreen prompt will let players know if their attempt was early or late, much as NBA 2K's shot meter or WWE 2K's reversal attempts do.
All ballcarrier and tackling abilities have been revamped to work with Boom Tech, and it has informed the creation of new abilities. Both AI and human ballcarriers have new tools allowing them to avoid tackles or get skinny to manage shrinking running lanes. A mechanic called the Setup State will give ballcarriers a greater chance of a successful fake. Juke and spins can be stacked onto this state, giving more chances to leave a defender grasping at air.
Madden's pass-blocking has been much maligned, and EA has heard the complaints. There are now eight separate pre-snap adjustments and for the first time in the series' history, play arcs for linemen. A Hot Defender icon will mark any unblocked player, so coaches know to either fix their blocking assignments or at least know where the linebacker will be screaming in from. Hundreds of new blocking animations will also give linemen a fighting chance.
Receivers aren't left behind in this arms race. Brace yourselves, the spectacular catch button is actually getting a buff. It now has an even larger catch radius, but going for one increases the chance of a drop or a knockout. Also, players will now be able to change the type of catch they're going for in mid-animation.
Perhaps the biggest change in Madden NFL made its debut in College Football 25. The switch stick allows players to use the analog stick to change defenders, which is much faster than mashing buttons. This will hopefully help combat those one-play touchdowns that are the lifeblood of YouTube tutorials. Madden 25 launches on August 16, with early access beginning August 13.