All Articles: Madden NFL 16

Halo 5: Guardians was the best-selling game of October 2015 according to the NPD Group

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The Master Chief’s sales performance was masterful last month as players flocked to stores to purchase Halo 5: Guardians, making it the best-selling game in October 2015.

The fifth entry in Microsoft’s long-running shooter series wasn’t the only new release to rule the charts last month. Players also pushed their gaming dollars towards the newly available Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate (#3), WWE 2K16 (#5), Yoshi’s Woolly World (#8), and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection (#9). And the battle of the (plastic instrument) bands ended with Harmonix’s Rock Band 4 taking the #10 spot and Guitar Hero Live failing to chart. This month is also notable for another no-show as Minecraft was knocked out of the top ten for the first time in a long time. But it’ll surely climb the ranks again as the holiday season approaches.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, The NPD Group’s Liam Callahan confirmed that the game industry saw a year-over-year sales increase thanks to Halo 5 and the debut of Microsoft’s Xbox One Elite Controller: “Overall sales across physical software, hardware, and accessories experienced a modest 2% growth in October 2015 compared to October 2014. This was driven entirely by accessory sales, which grew by 18%, or just under $30 million.”

Halo 5 also helped sales of Microsoft’s Xbox One triumph over Sony’s PS4 on the monthly sales charts for the first time all year. Even more impressive, this happened after Sony officially dropped the price on the PS4.

The NPD Group’s complete top ten for October 2015 can be found after the break. (more…)

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NBA 2K16, Madden NFL 16 lead off September 2015’s top ten list of best-selling games

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Sports! Sports! Sports! Sports!
Sports! Sports! Sports! Sports!

With the Fall gaming rush off to a slow start, Electronic Arts and 2K Games more-or-less split the month with four sports titles in the NPD Group’s monthly top ten. NBA 2K16 slammed it home to take the #1 spot, while EA’s Madden NFL 16 slipped to #2 in its second month on the chart. Rounding out this month’s murderer’s row was FIFA 16, which bicycled kicked its way into the #4 spot; and NHL 16, which safely skated into the #9 spot.

While most of this Fall’s biggest games are still a few weeks away, new releases did take up the majority of the remaining slots. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain sent off Hideo Kojima in style with a #3 ranking, while Bungie’s Destiny: The Taken King expansion took the #5 spot. Nintendo’s Super Mario Maker was the only platform-exclusive title to break into the top ten and it did so at #6. A pair of licensed games, Disney Infinity: Star Wars at #7 and Mad Max at #8, claimed the next two spots.

Finally, Minecraft continues to hold on by claiming the #10 slot. Expect Mojang’s creation to rise as we get closer to the holiday shopping season.

September 2015’s top ten can be viewed in handy list format after the break. (more…)

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BOOM! Madden NFL 16 is the best-selling game of August 2015

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Whatever your opinion of Tom Brady and Deflategate (for the record, I agree with Tony Kornheiser, the suspension was “completely unjust”), it looks like nobody can take the air out of EA’s Madden NFL franchise. And don’t just take my word for it. The latest entry in the series, Madden NFL 16, topped the NPD Group’s newest monthly report and was declared the best-selling game of August 2015.

Madden NFL 16’s ascendance to the top of the list was a foregone conclusion, but August was an unusually quiet month for new releases. Just look at the three remakes/re-releases that broke into the top ten. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition chainsawed its way into the #3 spot, while the 30 games in the Rare Replay compilation collectively landed at #6. Finally, a Combo Pack containing Call of Duty: Black Ops + Call of Duty: Black Ops II claimed the #8 position (two spots ahead of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare at #10, I might add). The only other new release to crack the top ten was Sony’s Until Dawn at #7.

But the real story of the month might be that Minecraft continues to sell. Even though its been available on the PS4 and Xbox One since last year (and another year on the PS3 and Xbox 360), the game continues to sell month after month. Only Madden NFL 16 was able to outpace Mojang’s creation in August as Minecraft is sitting at #2 on the best-sellers list.

A complete look at August 2015’s top ten is available after the break. (more…)

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Xbox Store Today: Madden NFL 16, Gears of War Ultimate, Mega Man Legacy, more

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Microsoft’s Summer Spotlight comes to an end this week as the Xbox Games Store adds eight new titles to its digital shelves.

This week’s biggest release is definitely Madden NFL 16 for the Xbox One and Xbox 360. The latest rendition of EA’s popular football franchise focuses on the passing game and even features Odell Beckham’s wild catch on the cover. But a trio of classic games are also being re-released on the Xbox One this week and many gamers are no doubt looking forward to playing them again…

  • Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is a remake of one of the Xbox 360’s signature shooters and brings us back to the beginnings of the war with the Locust Horde.
  • Capcom’s Mega Man Legacy Collection compiles the first six Mega Man games into a single package alongside a brand new Challenge Mode and an extensive collection of trivia and concept art.
  • Finally, Dishonored: Definitive Edition upgrades Corvo’s stealthy mission of revenge while including all of the game’s downloadable content.

Information on all of these games and several other new releases (including Goat Simulator: Mmmore Goatz Edition and Don’t Starve: Giant Edition) can be found after the break. (more…)

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PS Store Today: Madden NFL 16, Until Dawn, Mega Man Legacy Collection, more

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Are you ready to run screaming into the woods, terrified for your life because some horrible creature is chasing you? Don’t worry, I’m sure you can bring your PS4 with you. And I don’t think blood will harm the disc drive. Thankfully, if that does happen, you can still play Sony’s slasher simulator, Until Dawn, as its available to download from the PlayStation Store today.

It’s joined this week by the release of…

  • Madden NFL 16 (PS3, PS4), EA’s latest pigskin package.
  • Mega Man Legacy Collection (PS4), a Capcom-published compilation of the first six Mega Man games.
  • Dishonored: Definitive Edition (PS4), a new-gen remake of the well-liked stealth game.
  • SteinsGate (PS3, Vita), a console/handheld rendition of the groundbreaking visual novel.
  • One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 (PS3, PS4, Vita), the latest game based on the popular anime from Bandai Namco.

More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. And don’t forget to visit the PlayStation Blog for a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts. (more…)

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Madden NFL 16 launch trailer is an insane action movie spoof that forever raises the bar

Do you hear that? That’s the sound of the bar for video game launch trailers being raised. And that sound can only be vocalized as “Hoo-Ah!”

The launch trailer in question belongs to Madden NFL 16, which has been refashioned by EA Sports into a Summer blockbuster known as Madden: The Movie. Taking more than a few cues from the Fast and the Furious franchise, Madden: The Movie features Dave Franco as Blade Johnson, a star of the underground Madden circuit. His girlfriend has been kidnapped and its up to him and his gang of “Playmakers” to bring her back. Thankfully, said Playmakers include Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Janet, Rob Gronkowski as Half Top, Julio Jones as Trick Montelban, Antonio Brown as Sticky Bun, Coach Rex Ryan as Lil Pepper, and Colin Kaepernick as Al Pacino from Scent of a Woman. In addition to its star-studded cast, Madden: The Movie has plenty of deception, intrigue, rampaging dinosaurs, and even a Bollywood-style dance number.

Madden NFL 16 will be released for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One tomorrow. Which means you have enough time between now and then to watch Madden: The Movie more than 100 times. You didn’t have anything better to do today, did you?

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New Releases: Madden NFL 16, Disney Infinity Star Wars, Until Dawn, More

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Do you feel that nip in the air? And surely you’ve noticed that kids are gearing up for “back to school” time. And that can mean only one thing… the Fall gaming rush is upon us! While these tell-tale signs of the Fall are out there, the Summer’s not over quite yet. It’s still pretty warm in most of the United States and a majority of kids get to enjoy a few more weeks of Summer vacation.

And even though it’s still August, I think the Fall gaming rush has officially begun…

Everything begins, as it always does this time of year, with the release of Madden NFL 16 (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One). The latest entry in EA’s long-running football simulation series features Odell Beckham on the cover and improved passing/receiver controls.

One of this Fall’s biggest “all ages” titles, Disney Infinity: Star Wars, will also be available this week. As the title says, Star Wars characters have been absorbed into the Disney Infinity universe for the first time. If you’ve already got a shelf of Disney’s popular figures, prepare to build a second one. And if you haven’t caught the Disney Infinity bug yet, you’re probably going to need a sturdy shelf to hold all your Star Wars figures.

On the complete opposite end of the age appropriateness spectrum is Sony’s Until Dawn. Available exclusively for the PS4, Until Dawn is one of the first games that attempts to recreate the horror (and excitement) of watching a slasher flick. Until Dawn’s star, Hayden Panettiere, even has plenty of experience running from crazed killers on screens both big (Scream 4) and small (Heroes).

Finally this week, a pair of remasters will give a new generation of players the chance to check out (or revisit) two PS3/Xbox 360 era classics. Dishonored: Definitive Edition brings its stealthy steampunk aesthetic to the PS4 and Xbox One, while Gears of War: Ultimate Edition upgrades the popular Xbox 360 shooter for the Xbox One. Microsoft will also release an Xbox One 500GB + Gears of War: Ultimate Edition Bundle if you haven’t picked up an Xbox One yet.

A complete list of all of this week’s new releases (which also includes the PS3/Vita debut of the SteinsGate visual novel) can be found after the break. (more…)

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New Releases: LBX Little Battlers Experience, Dungeon Travelers 2, Madden 16 Bundle, More

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Just three new releases will be available on store shelves this week before we ask if you’re ready for some football.

This week’s biggest new game is also, in many ways, its smallest. LBX: Little Battlers Experience was developed by Level-5 and will be published by Nintendo for the 3DS. Based on the popular manga and anime series also created by Level-5, LBX: Little Battlers Experience follows a group of kids who create tiny palm-sized robots that do battle in slightly less-tiny arenas.

Also available this week is Dungeon Travelers 2: The Royal Library & The Monster Seal, a turn-based RPG for the Vita from Atlus. Taking place entirely in a first-person view, players will delve deep into a series of dungeons to battle “monster girls.” Meanwhile, Helldivers: Super Earth Ultimate Edition is a disc-based release of the popular PS4 twin-stick shooter. The “Super Earth Ultimate Edition” will include download codes for the PS3 and Vita versions of the game as well as all 11 expansion packs, the Bonus Weapons pack, and other extra content.

Finally, the Xbox One-exclusive Madden NFL 16 1TB System Bundle will give brand new Xbox One owners the chance to play EA’s yearly football simulation a week earlier than everybody else and a year-long subscription to EA Access. I suppose current Xbox One owners could also partake in this deal, but they’d have to purchase a second Xbox One system to do it…

Actually, I think Microsoft would be completely OK with that.

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