Madden NFL 20 oddly satisfying given you don’t do a lot

Is NFL an ideal sport to play in a video game? Absolutely not. You press a couple of buttons and try to run really fast, or hurl yourself at the nearest excessively padded millionaire from the other team. But it’s still really satisfying.

Madden NFL 20 is still one of the better sports games out there, despite the lack of NFL appeal in Australia.

The best “enthusiastically pushing strong men over” simulator is back, and although it’s better than ever for diehards who understand the sport, finding the tutorial that makes this weird activity make sense was harder to find than other years.

It’s still an odd choice of game for a major publisher to make and market worldwide, given that it’s a sport only popular in one country, yet somehow Madden is still one of the better sports games out there.

Is NFL an ideal sport to play in a video game? Absolutely not. You don’t really do a lot.

As a quarterback you press a couple of buttons and then try to run really fast.

As a defender, you just hurl yourself at the nearest excessively padded millionaire.

After doing that one thing, you get a little rest and are allowed to choose a play that most of us won’t understand, but the circles and lines seem to know what they’re doing.

And yet, even though games take an extremely long time, yet require very little input from the player, it’s still really satisfying.

Oddly enough, the same thing that makes the sport seem utterly hilarious in a country with AFL and rugby, is what makes Madden so accessible to new comers: specialisation.

They have different teams for offence and defence, so you always know which role you’ll be expected to perform, unlike basketball where that can change on a dime.

Plus, the story actually made me care about this down-on-his-luck quarterback who went to the same uni as the characters from Buffy, and makes impractical promises to children who may or may not have cancer.

It tugged at all the heart strings, and went to the next level of American storytelling, and still was one of the better story modes in sports games.

Plus, there’s the usual fantasy football trading card stuff designed to part you from your cash, which is going to be less of a thing here than it is in America.

Bottom line: Madden manages to consistently be a good sports game for people who love the NFL, and those who just saw Friday Night Lights once and got the general gist.

MADDEN NFL 20

Overall: 4/5

Available now on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch

Price: $99.95

Reviewed on: Xbox One X

Out now.