Madden NFL 18 is now out- the newest installment in EA Sports’ American football series continues to iterate on the series’ beloved gameplay, now transitioning over to the Frostbite Engine, with all the perks and benefits that that offers.
There’s a lot of meat to the bone of Madden NFL 18– so much that if you are a newcomer, or haven’t played the games for a while, you might actually feel overwhelmed by it all. That’s where we come in- in this guide, we’ll walk you through the game and its various mechanics and modes. From farming coins in Ultimate Team, leveling up in Ultimate Team, upgrading players in Ultimate Team, general tips and tricks for Ultimate Team, knowing which teams to rebuild in Franchise Mode, and listing the best players across all types, this guide covers everything. So let’s get started.
MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM: GENERAL TIPS AND TRICKS
Madden Ultimate Team is a lot like the Ultimate Team in Madden’s sister series, FIFA. Ultimate Team is the most popular mode in these games, and is basically a huge metagame that involves you managing a team, and managing individual players.
The best way to truly understand the mode is to play it for yourself- but here are some basic tips and suggestions for you nonetheless:
- Try to maximize your Coins- these are used to buy packs
- Don’t quick sell- instead, you can put those cards in different sets, and get stacked upgrades that you otherwise would not
- When you start playing, play Solos- these will give you huge XP boosts
- Don’t get attached to your team composition- upgrade your players, replace them with new and better ones, and try to get the overall rating for your squad up as high as possible
MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM: FARMING COINS
As mentioned above, coins are the primary currency in Madden Ultimate Team- you use these to buy packs containing new players and upgrades. And while, sure, you can always just buy these coins with real world money, there are ways to maximize your net gain in game, too. Here are some basic tips:
- Participate in tournaments
- Leverage the auction house. The auction house primarily relies on popularity and trends- if you have a popular player going for a higher price, sell that player, then put up the proceeds from that sale towards buying a player who is less popular, but equivalently skilled. As mentioned before, prices are determined by popularity, not skill- so you can totally find a similarly skilled, but less popular, player for cheaper
- Complete the Solo Challenges
- Play in the Weekend Leagues- you can earn as many as 250,000 coins (though this is hugely unlikely)
- Play games online
MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM: UPGRADING PLAYERS
- Silver Tokens can be earned by turning five(60-64) players and 5 (65-69) players into a set.
- Once you have the Silver Token, turn it in alongside the player to upgrade his rank
- You can upgrade existing players by essentially cashing out other players on your team. To upgrade players, you need Silver Tokens
MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM: LEVELING UP
Madden Ultimate Team’s other core component is leveling up, which you do via XP… except, you can’t get XP by buying or opening packs, or completing Sets or Objectives. You need to play an MUT mode to earn XP. You get XP for playing matches, and your total XP tally is broken down at the end of each game mode. You want to level up, because doing so unlocks more perks, opportunities, and deals for you within MUT.
XP is awarded for the following actions:
- Margin of victory
- Margin of defeat
- Offensive yards gained
- Total team tackles
- Sacks and interceptions
- First H2H win of the day
- First solo challenge win of the day
- How many quarters you completed
The level cap at launch is 30- but that may be raised later.
FRANCHISE MODE: BEST TEAMS TO REBUILD
In Franchise Mode, you rebuild teams- but not all teams are equal, and some are far better to rebuild than the others are. The four ones we think are the best are:
- LA Chargers
- Chicago Bears
- San Francisco 49ers
- Cleveland Brows
FRANCHISE MODE: RELOCATING TEAMS
Franchise Mode is basically a full fledged business simulation within Madden– and you need to not only do well on the pitch, but also off it. Sometimes, that necessitates changing cities, and relocating your team. In this section, we discuss how to relocate:
- Only owners can relocate- so make sure you are playing Franchise Mode as an owner
- Go to Stadium, and select Relocate
And that’s it- your application will get approved (if it isn’t, let your stadium fall into more disrepair), and you select a new name, brand, uniform, and start the following season with a fresh, rebranded team.
MADDEN TOP PLAYERS
Kickers and Punters:
- Justin Tucker (Baltimore Ravens): 87
- Johnny Hekker (Los Angeles Rams): 85
- Matt Bryant (Atlanta Falcons): 85
- Bryan Anger (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): 85
- Marquette King (Oakland Raiders): 85
Fullbacks:
- Kyle Juszczyk (San Francisco 49ers): 91
- James Develin (New England Patriots); 84
- Patrick DiMarco (Buffalo Bills): 84
- Aaron Ripkowski (Green Bay Packers): 83
- Andy Janovich (Denver Broncos): 82
Safeties:
- Kam Chancellor (Seattle Seahawks): 95
- Eric Berry (Kansas City Chiefs): 94
- Earl Thomas III (Seattle Seahawks): 94
- Harrison Smith (Minnesota Vikings): 93
- Eric Weddle (Baltimore Ravens): 93
Defensive Ends:
- Aaron Donald (Los Angeles Rams): 99
- J.J. Watt (Houston Texans): 98
- Brandon Graham (Philadelphia Eagles): 95
- Cameron Jordan (New Orleans Saints): 92
- Calais Campbell (Jacksonville Jaguars): 91
Tight Ends:
- Rob Gronkowski (New England Patriots): 98
- Travis Kelce (Kansas City Chiefs): 94
- Jimmy Graham (Seattle Seahawks): 93
- Delanie Walker (Tennessee Titans): 93
- Greg Olsen (Carolina Panthers): 92
Middle Linebackers:
- Luke Kuechly (Carolina Panthers): 98
- Bobby Wagner (Seattle Seahawks): 93
- Dont’a Hightower (New England Patriots): 89
- C.J. Mosley (Baltimore Ravens): 89
- NaVorro Bowman (San Francisco 49ers): 88
Outside Linebackers:
- Von Miller (Denver Broncos): 99
- Khalil Mack (Oakland Raiders): 97
- Justin Houston (Kansas City Chiefs): 93
- Sean Lee (Dallas Cowboys): 91
- Chandler Jones (Arizona Cardinals): 88
Cornerbacks:
- Chris Harris Jr. (Denver Broncos): 94
- Aqib Talib (Denver Broncos): 94
- Malcolm Butler (New England Patriots): 92
- Patrick Peterson (Arizona Cardinals): 91
- Josh Norman (Washington Redskins): 90
Quarterbacks:
- Tom Brady (New England Patriots): 99
- Aaron Donald (Los Angeles Rams): 99
- Von Miller (Denver Broncos): 99
- Rob Gronkowski (New England Patriots): 98
- Julio Jones (Washington Redskins): 98