Electronic Arts took to the stage today for EA Play and confirmed a big change for fans of Madden NFL 19: the series is making its return to the PC platform after a decade of absence. In addition to the franchise's return to the PC fold, Electronic Arts also provided fans with their first real look at Madden NFL 19 itself, which will release in just a few month's time.
As expected, the title will come with a standard edition and a Hall of Fame edition, with the latter featuring Terrell Owens on the cover. Fans who pre-order the game will receive five Gold Team fantasy picks for one-time use and an Elite Player from the team of their choice. Those who opt-in for a Hall of Fame edition pre-order will also be able to play the game three days early, though members of EA Access will also be able to utilize a four day preview ahead of the official release on August 10, 2018.
Gamers can take a look at the official Madden NFL 19 trailer below:
The Madden franchise was pulled from the PC platform back in 2008, with EA's only somewhat consistent computer-based release for the last 10 years stemming from the FIFA franchise. With longterm PC-based games like Football Manager finally making the switch to consoles, it seems like the opposite is now true for Madden NFL.
Nintendo fans will have to wait to hear if the Madden series will make an appearance on the portable console, but history doesn't bode well in that regard: Madden NFL 18 skipped the Switch entirely, and it's looking like that Madden NFL 19 may continue in the same vein.
Electronic Arts has revealed that the focus of improvement in this year's iteration of the football franchise is its "real motion technology," which should make the players on the field move and react to situations in a much more lifelike manner. As expected, the game will be powered by the Frostbite engine, which is also utilized in other Electronic Arts powerhouse sports franchises like FIFA.
Now that the official trailer has provided the world with its first glimpse into Madden NFL 19, it's expected that more news will come to light over the next week as E3 2018 takes place.
Madden NFL 19 will release on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on August 10, 2018. Fans who pre-order the Hall of Fame edition can access the title on August 7, 2018.