A month after having released the first trailer for Madden NFL 26, EA Sports has now revealed more details about the upcoming title with a long deep dive on a couple of aspects of the game – presentation and authenticity. Among the subjects discussed in the post are the gameday experience, field art, stadiums, equipment, and the team builder.
Madden NFL 26 goes above and beyond in some of the smaller aspects of the typical match that, while not directly affecting gameplay, do quite a bit to make the game feel more immersive. This means that Madden NFL 26 will include 18 different team mascots at launch, from Billy Buffalo representing the Bills to the Eagles’ mascot Swoop.
Stadiums will also have authentic motion graphics for 26 different teams. EA Sports has confirmed that more mascots and motion graphics will also be added to the game with future updates. There has also been quite a bit of emphasis put on making stadiums sound authentic on gameday thanks to specific sound effects offered by various NFL teams.
According to one of the examples, Minnesota’s Gjallarhorn sounds for specific events are all represented, be it the special higher pitched sound that plays on the first down, to the lower pitched, menacing version that plays when the team is on defense for a third down. Out of date sound effects are also leaving, with EA Sports’ partnership with NFL teams giving them access to newer effects like the authentic recordings of Cincinnati’s “Who Dey” and New Oreleans’ “Who Dat” chants.
Pre-game traditions featuring some of the legends of the sport are also returning. Depending on the team and stadium playing, players will get to see, for example, Charles Woodson lighting the Al Davis Memorial Torch in Las Vegas, or Rob Gronkowski ringing the bell in New England as the Keeper of the Light.
Adding further personality to each of the stadiums in Madden NFL 26, the title will include more than 40 licensed songs from artists like Beastie Boys, Chappel Roan, Flo Rida, and Lil Uzi Vert. Players will also be given more options to customise their listening environment between headphones, TV speakers, soundbar, and surround sound setups.
The gameplay side of things has also seen minor additions added to make playing Madden NFL 26 more feel more authentic. For example, the day of the week when you play the title changes which song plays in the menus. Playing on a Thursday, for instance, will have the Thursday Night Primetime theme song playing in the menus.
EA Sports has also confirmed that Madden NFL 26 will feature more than 30 licensed song from different genres and artists on top of the 40+ songs that have been licensed for stadium music. This means that, when the game is out, there will be at least 70 different licensed music tracks from across various artists and genres playing in the menus of the game.
Madden NFL 26 is coming to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on August 14. For more details, check out the previous deep dive about the game’s new quarterback DNA and coach features.
