The record snowfalls are behind us,  the cold air has moved out of many areas, and Memorial Day has passed, which can only mean one thing:  summer is unofficially upon us.  Summer means cookouts, barbeques, and vacations to many, but to die hard Madden fans, it means we are about to get some long awaited closer looks at Madden 11 until it hits the streets on August 10, 2010.

Madden 11 Preview: On the Cover

Drew Brees graces the cover this year, and rightfully so, as he led his team, the New Orleans Saints, to a decisive victory in Super Bowl XLIV against the awe-inspiring Indianapolis Colts.  Brees is a stand-up guy, having joined the Saints just one year after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  With a career threatening injury from which to recover and a city to rebuild, Brees worked harder than ever to earn the title of Champion.  It’s good to see a guy who succeeded on the field and off of the field on the cover this year.  Check out this article from Level Up News regarding the process that led up to choosing Drew Brees for the cover this year, as well as how fan participation played a large part in the selection process.

And yes, Redskins fans, McNabb is already suited up in his red and yellow.  The Redskins received a decent ratings boost this year, probably due to their new QB.

Will McNabb be the Savior of the Skins?

Madden 11 Preview: Improved Running Game

There are some improvements this year, one of them being a new locomotion system.  In previous years, the player running the ball had to stop sprinting to make a turn, and turning was not an option if sprinting through a hole.  In Madden 11, they have incorporated a new tech system that allows the runner to make a direction change while sprinting, based exclusively on the agility rating of the player.  For example, a player with an agility rating of 99 will lean and turn and slow down a bit automatically when making a direction change while running.  A player with a rating of 50 will slow down considerably more, putting him in more risk of getting hit.

The new system should be a bit more intuitive and one could literally run the player in circles this year if they so choose (although doing so will probably earn you a Ray Lewis body slam to the gridiron).

Acceleration was also rebuilt to better work with the new technology the Madden franchise is utilizing.  Madden 10 users were not able to accelerate through a hole like they used to be able to do in previous years, and EA Sports admitted that acceleration had to take a backseat with the new tech.  This year, they spent a considerable amount of time on this issue since they learned that most fans only care about speed when running the ball.

EA Sports game designers used a debugging mode they called Track and Field, and pitted players against one another in a 40 yard race.  Eventually, they were able to tune the acceleration system to work with this years offering, making the running game much improved.  This year, as a player runs down the field, they will pick up speed and lose speed depending on their ratings, but we will see a more clearly defined acceleration system in the game this year.

Current Team Rankings for Madden 11

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the team rankings for Madden 11 as they stand so far:

Top 5 Team Rankings for Madden 11

NFC East
Dallas Cowboys: 87
NY Giants: 81
Philadelphia Eagles: 80
Washington Redskins: 76

NFC North
Minnesota Vikings: 88
Green Bay Packers: 87
Chicago Bears: 77
Detroit Lions: 68

NFC South
New Orleans Saints: 92
Atlanta Falcons: 83
Carolina Panthers: 75
Tama Bay Buccaneers: 69

NFC West
Arizona Cardinals: 79
San Francisco 49ers: 79
Seattle Seahawks: 75
St. Louis Rams: 66

AFC East
NY Jets: 89
New England Patriots: 86
Miami Dolphins: 78
Buffalo Bills: 67

AFC North
Baltimore Ravens: 90
Cincinnati Bengals: 86
Pittsburgh Steelers: 84
Cleveland Browns: 70

AFC South
Indianapolis Colts: 91
Houston Texans: 78
Tennessee Titans: 77
Jacksonville Jaguars: 74

AFC West
San Diego Chargers: 85
Denver Broncos: 78
Kansas City Chiefs: 71
Oakland Raiders: 71

More to Come

As more news is released on this 20 year game franchise, Level Up News will be there to tell you everything you need to know about Madden 11.  For now, enjoy the trailer and the rankings, and be sure to contact us with any and all of your questions!  We will also begin discussing some of the issues that many Madden fans have had with the franchise in the past few years, because many previous fans of the series are desperately hoping for a new franchise to emerge that will be strong enough to obtain NFL licensing.  As of now, any other franchise has yet to dethrone Madden, but there are sources who insist that the license will be up for grabs if EA doesn’t get their act together.  This writer simply does not see the franchise going anywhere any time soon.  Backbreaker was released, and it was not nearly as polished as Madden.  But as time goes on, we will see if another developer can snatch the NFL licensing from EA Sports.

So, with Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker set to hit shelves soon, what April Fools Day fun is in store for fans this year? Take a look at what IGN posted this morning! (I’m having Assassin’s Creed flashbacks…)

Love it! (And anyone else notice the sidekick is named Rabbids?)

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker will be available for PSP on June 8th. Can’t wait!

Well, that was quick.  Sony’s new PSP Go hasn’t even been out a full month and China has already produced a lower-priced knock off version.  Hooray!

Bestowed the name PXP-2000 (pretty original, eh?), this knock off packs a punch and includes a plethora of features such as a built-in camera and built-in emulator

Did I mention that this little device will only cost around $85.  Huge difference between the $250 price tag of the real PSP Go.  Who cares about quality right? I just wish it was available in white…

[News tip via Kotaku.com]

Recent Articles:

• DJ Hero’s full setlist
• Gamestop holds midnight release for Uncharted 2 and Brutal Legend
• Keep your Xbox 360 running cool