Madden 25: Everything you need to know

It's finally arrived, the year Madden 25 is meant to release. The problem is that EA Sports already released Madden 25 back in 2013 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the franchise.

It was short-sighted, and finally we've reached the point of issue with that decision. So in the summer of 2024 a new Madden game will drop, but when? And what will it be called? Let's dive into it!

What will this year's Madden be called?

As enjoyable as it would be to watch EA just ignore the fact that they have already released a Madden 25 and run with that title. We suspect they will opt for Madden 2025 this year.

That is unconfirmed right now, but makes the most logical sense. They could always call it something different like Madden Legacy or Madden 25 Pt II, but a simple Madden 2025 would probably suffice. Of course they could always call it Madden 14, which is what the original Madden 25 was meant to be!

Madden 25 predicted release date

Madden games are traditionally released in August ahead of the new season. This is without a doubt a pattern EA will continue with this year's release.

The last few years have seen the game drop on the third Friday of the month, which means Madden 25 should release on 16 August 2024.

As is typical with sports games, there should also be three days of early access with a high edition version of the game. That would allow players to start their Super Bowl run on 13 August 2024.

Platforms & price

We are nearly four years into the Xbox Series X|S & PS5 era but sports games are still being released on the previous generation of consoles.

We don't expect EA to move away from the PS4 and Xbox One with Madden 25.

It will be disappointing to fans, who are longing for the game to get an overhaul, but given the size of the player base that is still using the previous generation, Madden 25 is expected to release on PS5 & Xbox Series X|S, PS 4 & Xbox One, and PC.

There is likely to be a Standard Edition on PS4 & Xbox One that comes in at a lower price, maybe £59.99/$59.99, and a cross-gen edition that provides access on both previous and current generations for £69.99/$69.99.

Finally, we are likely to get a Deluxe Edition of some sort at the £84.99/$84.99 price point that includes those three days of early access as well as some starter packs and uniforms for Ultimate Team.

New features

Every year fans have a wishlist for Madden, and most of the time it doesn't mesh with what EA puts in the game.

Last year's hype was around an upgrade to the player motion in the Frostbite engine, AI logic (especially in blocking), mini-games in Franchise Mode, and upgraded animations.

so what will EA pinpoint as the marketing buzz for Madden 25? It will likely be a similar story.

A refinement and improvement to blocking AI and defensive engagement is high on the community wishlist, and should be something EA has been working on.

There will likely be new animations and improvements to the presentation of the game but as with most sports games, the core gameplay will be eerily similar to last year.

There is a desire for more features in Franchise Mode to help bring the mode close to real life. Things like better CPU team logic for drafting, trades, and roster construction, a true coaching carousel in the offseasons, and deeper playbook customisation are all things fans want to see. We will have to wait to see if EA is ready to add them to the game.

Cover star

It's been six years since a non-quarterback was on the cover of a Madden game, but this might be the year that changes.

Following Kansas City's back-to-back Super Bowl success plus his highly-publicised relationship with Taylor Swift, this seems like the perfect time to make Travis Kelce the cover star of Madden 25.

If it isn't Kelce then there aren't many options that wouldn't be re-treds. Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen have all been cover stars in recent years. That leaves a handful of lesser or unproven QBs as the main options.

There is an outside chance that Micah Parsons or Justin Jefferson could get the cover this year, but it is likely to be a quarterback or Travis Kelce.