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Madden 21 XBOX Series X and PS5 Player Speed

An In-Depth Look At Speed In Madden 21 On Next Gen Vs. Current Gen Consoles

A big debate that has been taking place in the Madden community since the release of Madden 21 on the XBOX Series X|S and PlayStation 5 back in December has been over how slow the movement in the game feels.

Anyone who played Madden 21 on XBOX One or PlayStation 4 and then played on the next gen consoles immediately feels a huge difference and the game just feels slow.

Some of this could be explained by the fact that for the last 7 years on the XBOX One and PlayStation 4 player movement and speed has stayed relatively consistent so we’ve all gotten used to the way it was.

We’ve run tests before on the previous console generation and some players at the top end of the speed range ran a 40 yard dash in under 4 seconds. That surely isn’t realistic and it is likely that the tuning done to speed on next gen consoles was to bring the numbers more in line with reality.

Immediately after Madden 21 was released on the new consoles Clint Oldenburg, who leads Madden gameplay production, was asked about it.

From his response, it looks like they will be sticking with the slowed down movement although as someone who has played on the XBOX Series X|S and PlayStation 5 for the last 2 and a half months, to me it still seems incredibly slow.

The issue is a complicated one so we decided to dive into the Madden Lab and run a series of tests to get to the bottom of it.

Check it out below!

Madden 21 Current Gen Vs Next Gen Player Speed Test

Our findings show that on the XBOX Series X|S and Playstation 5 consoles player speed as measured by things like a 40 or 80 yard dash are now (on the surface) much more in line with their times in the actual NFL but the way in which it was accomplished doesn’t make a lot of sense.

In order to lay out our findings and explain what is happening better, I’m going to massively oversimplify a complicated subject.

On XBOX One and PS4, a 99 speed player like Tyreek Hill would run a 40 yard dash in somewhere around 3.89 seconds. That is undoubtedly much faster than he should.

A quick google search tells us that Tyreek Hill’s official 40 yard dash time was 4.29 seconds so on current gen consoles he was running the 40 yard dash .4 seconds too fast (or approximately 10%).

On the XBOX Series X|S and Playstation 5 consoles, Tyreek Hill’s 40 time is much more in line with a 4.29 second 40 time. Hurray, problem solved! Not.

It really isn’t that simple. The video above shows that basically all they did was keep speed the exact same but made the player not move/go backwards for the first .4 seconds. That is precisely what makes Madden 21 on next gen feel so incredibly slow and clunky.

Imagine a hypothetical video game where you can run a 100 meter dash with Olympic sprinters. The race is run and someone notices that the runners finish in about 8 seconds which is way too fast given that the world record set by Usian Bolt is 9.58 seconds. That is basically the situation that Madden 21 on XBOX One and PlayStation 4 is in.

The fix would be to do the hard work of tweaking the runners’ speed to reflect a natural acceleration and redistribution of how speed works.

Instead the fix that was implemented on the XBOX Series X|S and Playstation 5 consoles was to basically have the sprinters in our imaginary 100 meter dash video game stand around for the first 1.5 seconds and then run at the exact same speed as before. The result is a much more realistic 100 meter dash time but the implementation isn’t correct and feels silly.

To be fair, EA Sports is kind of backed into a corner. One of the big new features of Madden 21 on the new consoles is “Next Gen Stats” so they have to get the speeds in-game to match up to the speeds in the NFL.

Actually fixing the mechanics of speed in a game like Madden wouldn’t be nearly as easy as it sounds and it would undoubtedly be a very time consuming process.

A .4 second input delay in a 40 yard dash ran by Tyreek Hill might not seem like a very big deal but it absolutely is. Consider that every serious professional gamer in the world plays on a 1 millisecond (ms) response time monitor because playing on a typical monitor/tv might have a 10-20 ms response time. That difference is definitely notable to the trained eye.

.4 seconds is a 400 ms delay. It feels like you are stuck in mud when you are telling your player to go forward and that is what is causing the issue for most people.

The focus of this article was mostly on the speed issues but there is a lot more to it than speed. The way players round corners and make special ball carrier moves also needs work but those things are much harder to analyze.

Those of you who play Madden 21 on the new consoles? Is the slow movement/speed something you want to see fixed in Madden 22? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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Mike
Mike
3 years ago

Next Gen looks more realistic. It takes a moment to generate that power and momentum before getting up to full speed. Humans don’t just reach top speed in the blink of an eye.

Ric
Ric
3 years ago

Not sure this is a useful commentary unless you’re going to compare against real NFL player acceleration with splits. You’re saying next gen is unrealistic, but you haven’t evaluated reality as a benchmark.

Cory
Cory
3 years ago

As a runner and a cross country/track coach, I just want to point out that the next-Gen is more realistic. Ideally, you’re lined up to start your route with one foot forward and one foot back so you don’t have to step back but can push off with your back foot. Here they’re standing with their feet even and shoulder-width apart. You HAVE to step back before taking off or you get zero power with your first step. The current-Gen player model taking off that way isn’t realistic, so they’ve increased the realism in the next-Gen which I’m all for.

Greg
Greg
2 years ago

Nothing realistic about Madden. Come on guys. An entire CONSOLE LIFE SPAN and the game pretty much was a roster upgrade with continued fake improvements.

The game doesn’t handle acceleration very well at all and it manipulates the ratings for offline console play. a 66 SPEED DL should be run down an 80+ speed QB who has not been running.

Getting locked into an animations is ridiculous when playing against the console.
Big hole and out of no where your runner dips his head and suddenly he is tackled.

The same with physics.
Tired of full speed players running down the field getting caught in a tackle animation that stops him cold by a DB!!!!!!

And stop making the console TES into Desean Jackson against faster DB coverage. Seriously.

Fix resetting the play from a ZONE to Man audible and then reset to Zone in the Nickel.
I’ll call a Cover 3 Match. Audible to Cover 2 Man. If I back out to reset to Cover 3 Match the Slot Cornerback will flip his side of the field. Mind you… the PLAY IS NOT flipped.
Just the slot cornerback.

The same happens when BOTH cornerbacks flip assignments on the opposite side of the field. ?

Commentary is a joke. Just play a Super Bowl and play out that last play and tell me if it makes sense. The commentary is especially stupid in determining the END of the game and keeping up with the PACE of a game because the commentary doesn’t interrupt itself for the current big play. No AI there obviously.

Not to mention going up 17-14 should not trigger…
“And the [team name] just went backup 3 to nothing” ?

I don’t have the new system yet.

Here are some lab suggestions that I’ve covered since Madden 25
NO ULTIMATE TEAM!!! Use regular rosters.

Y Trips Bubble screen and WR screen is the weak side lone WR still off the line making it an illegal formation since Madden 25???????????????????????????????????????

Does anyone ever wonder why the TEs jump around so much on those 3TE Tight or Wing formations when you audible between them?

Go into any formation, especially 3 WR, and audible the plays.
Why do players move around unnecessarily?

Why does the blocking suck so bad for LEFT PA rollouts?
Even the PA READs are very bad.

Is the DOWN MARKER still wrong? Seems like a simple enough fix to me.
Any programmer reading this knows this is probably coming from having multiple functions or procedures that provide that down count because otherwise, the scoreboard would be wrong. SHARE THE SAME FUNCTION eliminates screwups like this.

How about Packages? We should have a package manager. I may do a youtube on this at some point. But fix the current packages to do what it says.

HB Spell should NOT also swap my WRs.?
Also, allow for MULTIPLE packages
So if I want to sub my TE I should be able to HB SPELL and TE SPELL or whatever.
I formations should have a TE for the FB option rather than the substitution menu.

In 2TE formations, the TE should have a FB package that puts them in as well.
THEN you can apply a TE SWAP to move the FB where you want because they would have multiple package options that you can execute as opposed to one.

The MIC is lame in my opinion.
It is not consistent just like the blocking in this game.

It would be nice if the OL play art represented the blocking assignments better.
If there is a double team already assigned then show it.
Since we as gamers on offense also take on OL assignment calls we should be able to see them.
The LOS calls are long overdue for an overhaul and it is embarrassing that an ex OL is part of Madden and doesn’t address this.

Shade in on man to man. Does nothing for the slants and drags and it should.
Don’t give me meaningless commands that get written off later in the year as a false promise of the next version fix. We’ve been getting this since Madden 25 folks.

Here is a really good one to try.
You now how to get a DB smacked from the back to drop a curl route?

Set it up so that an S is somewhere nearby. Then an LB. Then a DL in a zone.
Watch the SAME animation playout to INT the ball.
Because it is a locked-in animation they all execute it at the SAME SPEED!!!!
It doesn’t change to the set ratings until after they start running with the ball.
I noticed this when a 66 DL did a Rambo roll to be in position as fast as a Deion Sanders to INT the ball.

Then try some crossing routes.
During games, the console has a method of slowing down your receiver to sack your QB.
Not legitimately, mind you.

And if your receiver gets by the LB and you throw it to avoid the sack the LB will suddenly MATCH SPEED of the WR and put both in an unnecessary dive drop animation.

This is a good one too.
Get the console backed up on the goal line. When it calls for a 1 RB 3 TE 1 WR or 2 RB 2 TE 1 WR set run GOAL LINE DEFENSE against it.

See if it audibles to a play it should not be able to audible too such as a Shotgun TREY or Shotgun Trips or Shotgun Trio formation. Personnel rules… this should not be possible.
WE can’t do it so why is it the console CAN? ?

My list is HUGE, so I will leave you with just this.

Madden offline is a script.
If you don’t manipulate your defense manually you will see it.
No hot routes on offense or defense.
No manually positioning or motions.
4th downs must be a Punt or FG unless behind and inside 2 mins.

Everything is audible-based.
You’ll get that blow-out win.
Then the scripts start to kick in.

Play the Bucs. I always play the Super Bowl team because every player gets inflated capabilities. The only exception would be the kickers.

You’ll notice your sacks drop. Your running totals drop. Your turnovers increase.
Your red zone decreases or results in turnovers.

Suddenly that 21 point quarter is no longer.

8 min quarters. This gives you time to see the script.
4 min quarters you won’t because it probably doesn’t involve multiple possessions in the quarter.

The game fake AI can’t handle the hot routes and manually moving people around.
We’ve known this since the 05 versions when the competition was still around.

Madden 22 will still have a broken run and pass block, no man-to-man slant coverage, Zones still breaking especially in the end zone because they don’t adjust this for the smaller space. (?)

There needs to be an adjustment as well for DEEP Zones as well.
Protect the sticks needs to split out to protect the zone when a 1st down can at the 5 yd line.

Change the location of coaching adjustments.
The placement there is too cumbersome.

Play art needs to be fixed for C Routes and some deep IN routes like for Salem plays…
the play art is too deep by 5-10 yards. It wasn’t this way prior to Madden 21, but if it shows up in Madden 22 the Pandemic excuse is out the window. ?

Anyway… it is almost YouTube HYPE SEASON again.
Like the rapper said… “Don’t believe the hype”. ?

NOTE: Everything I state can be proven.

Greg
Greg
2 years ago

I didn’t mean to be so long, but please take the time to read it and try it out.
I’ve been studying and running labs from Madden 25 XBOX 360 to the present.

I’ve got videos to prove everything I state.
I don’t expect any major changes. Why?
They wasted time on an arcade version because of the 2k deal they knew was coming out.

As always the work will be done for MUT.

The only way to get a half-decent game is competition even if it means generic.

It takes money.
I have a plan that I think would blow Madden out of the water and gamers away from it including Madden lovers who require recognized proven names for their players.

Levels would be so different.
No sliders. No need.
The game would truly represent what you see with injuries (out for the: season, game, play) as well as playing injured, referees (will those return or are they still going to use that fake memory issue as an excuse), way more penalties including those people never thought of, franchise, Draft which will be entirely new and never thought of before, presentation of commentary, sidelines, fans, much of what depends on the team’s performance, practice options like never before, etc…

Oh… and online gaming head-to-head rosters would be affected by injury with the exception of out for the season since it isn’t a season. So intelligent substitution will come into play as opposed to running up scores. You never know.

Packages would be better so you can package in a 2nd string unit to remove your stars from the game so they are safe for your next head-to-head game.

All being worked out on paper for now.
Once presented to possible investors then we will see where it goes.

Then people will rightfully earn the title Pro gamer.
Right now it is simply game exploitation of a poor product that is poorly coded.

Like I said the HYPE season is approaching.

Anything claimed DO NOT BELIEVE until it is demonstrated.
Remember how they demonstrated the RPO system?

If they claim better zones, blocking, man to man, then they must demonstrate it.
Don’t keep giving these people likes and they are just profiting from lying to you.
They claim to represent you and yet every year they hype the game for likes.
You buy into it and it all falls flat after 1-2 weeks of messing around with it.
Then they will start dogging it in October.

Never did get those live playbooks either did you. ?

DEMAND MORE from these profiting hypers of the game.
Seriously.

Think of it this way.
Imagine buying a new car. Hyped gas mileage, speed, acceleration, and safety features.
How many times do you keep believing the hype when year after year they never meet their metrics????

Make them prove it.
They did it with RPOs, all though some Fake Jets and Reverses still execute poorly because the game lacks TRUE AI.