Until Microsoft has premier exclusives to show off the Xbox One X with, it will have to rely on third party games, specifically multiplatform games, looking the best on its hardware to push it. And that’s indeed what it has been doing.

One of the biggest multiplatform games of the year, especially in the United States, is Madden. And a new commercial for Madden NFL 18 is now out, proudly proclaiming that the game is “best on the Xbox One X”. Microsoft’s advertising is pretty much on point for the Xbox One X- at least in the United States. It will be hugely interesting to see whether or not that marketing ends up pushing the $500 system to the mass market beyond its initial launch.

Madden NFL 18 launched last year on PS4 and Xbox One, while the Xbox One X itself launched on November 7. Check out the new commercial for the console for yourself below.

NFL Playoffs are capturing the attention of football fans right now, but if you still find some time between to toss around the pigskin in Madden NFL 18, a new update should make things a little easier to enjoy.

Oulined within an EA blog post, the update focuses on minor gameplay tweaks, but finally tackles an issues where AI running backs wouldn’t perform properly, and changes how often you’re able to get faked out on the defence with either a human or AI-controlled defender using a special move. In addition, the exploit where you could force kick-returners back to within their own five yard line is gone.

Nothing has been announced for it yet, but EA will typically come out with a lower priced Super Bowl edition of its Madden games around this time, so if you’re interested in trying this one, perhaps see where things sit in a few weeks.

Patch Notes:

• Substantial reduction to fake-outs for user controlled defenders when defending ball carrier special moves
• Slight reduction to fake-outs for AI controlled defenders when defending ball carrier special moves
• Addressed an issue that was causing some AI controlled ball carriers to move slowly and/or not perform special moves
• Tuned to decrease range of width on kickoffs to address the kickoff exploit that could force returners out of bounds inside their own five-yard line

There have been a lot of games that are getting enhanced for the Xbox One X. Madden NFL 18 is one of these and in an interview with Xbox Wire, Seth Christie, the technical director on the game spoke more about what enhancements this game would be getting.

The main emphasis for this game on the Xbox One X is that it will run at 4K resolution and at 60 FPS. He spoke of how the increased visual detail allows for a smooth transition from gameplay to cinematic moments. When asked about how these enhancements would affect the gaming experience itself, he responded, “When you combine 4K Ultra HD, constant 60 fps with additional enhancements such as an increased level of camera detail, you’ll immediately notice and feel a difference in the immersion. This means that elements such as the player’s helmet and faces become more realistic –giving you the feeling that you are right there in the stadium.”

He then goes on talk about how Xbox One X has allowed the game to look more like real-life broadcasts of the sport.  Christie also stated that the team at EA Tiburon will continue taking advantage of such technology to bring realistic experiences to players.

Madden NFL 18 was released back in August for the PS4 and Xbox One. You can also check out the trailer below which shows off the enhanced version of the game for the Xbox One X.

The Nintendo Switch has consistently managed to top sales charts ever since its release- and that continued this last month, with the Switch managing to be the top selling console for the month, in spite of no major new release in the tracking period, and in spite of the PS4 getting Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.

“The Nintendo Switch was August’s best-selling hardware platform,” NPD analyst Mat Piscatella said to VentureBeat. “The Nintendo Switch has been the best-selling platform in four of the six months since launching in March 2017.”

What about those other two months? Those were taken by Sony with the PS4. “Sony’s PlayStation 4 was the best-selling platform in both May and June,” said Piscatella. “Sony’s PlayStation 4 continues to be the best-selling hardware platform year to date.”

The Switch is the highest selling console in North America since its launch in March; that said, the PS4 is still the highest selling console of the year, thanks to an additional two months of sales.

Over on the games front, Madden NFL 18 topped sales charts, with GTA5 in second place, Uncharted in third place, Splatoon 2 in fourth place, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild rounding out the top five. Note that the Switch exclusive Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle was not in the tracking period, so it won’t show up in August charts (and will instead show up in September charts instead).

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:

1. Justin Tucker (Baltimore Ravens): 87
2. Johnny Hekker (Los Angeles Rams): 85
3. Matt Bryant (Atlanta Falcons): 85
4. Bryan Anger (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): 85
5. Marquette King (Oakland Raiders): 85

Fullbacks:

1. Kyle Juszczyk (San Francisco 49ers): 91
2. James Develin (New England Patriots); 84
3. Patrick DiMarco (Buffalo Bills): 84
4. Aaron Ripkowski (Green Bay Packers): 83
5. Andy Janovich (Denver Broncos): 82

Safeties:

1. Kam Chancellor (Seattle Seahawks): 95
2. Eric Berry (Kansas City Chiefs): 94
3. Earl Thomas III (Seattle Seahawks): 94
4. Harrison Smith (Minnesota Vikings): 93
5. Eric Weddle (Baltimore Ravens): 93

Defensive Ends:

1. Aaron Donald (Los Angeles Rams): 99
2. J.J. Watt (Houston Texans): 98
3. Brandon Graham (Philadelphia Eagles): 95
4. Cameron Jordan (New Orleans Saints): 92
5. Calais Campbell (Jacksonville Jaguars): 91

Tight Ends:

1. Rob Gronkowski (New England Patriots): 98
2. Travis Kelce (Kansas City Chiefs): 94
3. Jimmy Graham (Seattle Seahawks): 93
4. Delanie Walker (Tennessee Titans): 93
5. Greg Olsen (Carolina Panthers): 92

Middle Linebackers:

1. Luke Kuechly (Carolina Panthers): 98
2. Bobby Wagner (Seattle Seahawks): 93
3. Dont’a Hightower (New England Patriots): 89
4. C.J. Mosley (Baltimore Ravens): 89
5. NaVorro Bowman (San Francisco 49ers): 88

Outside Linebackers:

1. Von Miller (Denver Broncos): 99
2. Khalil Mack (Oakland Raiders): 97
3. Justin Houston (Kansas City Chiefs): 93
4. Sean Lee (Dallas Cowboys): 91
5. Chandler Jones (Arizona Cardinals): 88

Cornerbacks:

1. Chris Harris Jr. (Denver Broncos): 94
2. Aqib Talib (Denver Broncos): 94
3. Malcolm Butler (New England Patriots): 92
4. Patrick Peterson (Arizona Cardinals): 91
5. Josh Norman (Washington Redskins): 90

Quarterbacks:

1. Tom Brady (New England Patriots): 99
2. Aaron Donald (Los Angeles Rams): 99
3. Von Miller (Denver Broncos): 99
4. Rob Gronkowski (New England Patriots): 98
5. Julio Jones (Washington Redskins): 98

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy has finally been overthrown from the top of UK charts thanks to Naughty Dog’s Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Which is kind of fitting since Naughty Dog created the original three Crash Bandicoot games.

However, according to Gfk Chart-Track, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy’s first week sales haven’t been as lucrative as Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. It sold less than half of that but considering that the data only represents physical sales and it’s available at a lower price, The Lost Legacy could end up doing pretty well in the long run.

F1 2017 debuted in second place with Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy falling to third place. Madden NFL 18 was another new entry and unfortunately, Agents of Mayhem fell from fourth to 13th place with sales dropping 28 percent.

It was followed by Grand Theft Auto 5, Fallout 4, Dishonored 2, Forza Horizon 3, Rainbow Six: Siege and Mario Kart 8: Deluxe. Overall, software sales at UK retail were up 67 percent week on week with over 316,000 units sold.

The standard suite of options opens before you immediately after you start the game, with the standout new addition being Longshot, Madden’s take on the single player story mode trend started by FIFA. Devin Wade is the big dreamer with aspirations to being drafted in the NFL. Following Wade from the childhood days of playing football with his dad to him and his friend road tripping to the NFL Combine to try and catch the eyes of the scouts and beyond can be a surprisingly engaging experience just off the backs of the characters and cast.

"Leaning on the characters developing and their journey was a smart idea, because the mode doesn’t have you playing a ton of football."

The cast is what carries Longshot the most, with the performances spot on and some great moments to define what kind of player and person Wade is. The mode leans a little heavily on some rote cliches of the sports movies: the entire premise of a tragic kid from Memphis making his dreams come true and redeeming himself with grit and a pick up truck is hollowly familiar, but this does highlight the performances as creating something special out of a premise that really has no right being as engaging as it is.

Leaning on the characters developing and their journey was a smart idea, because the mode doesn’t have you playing a ton of football. Rather it progresses in a fashion almost like a Telltale game, allowing you to tailor your responses to situations that can either help or hinder the draft chances for Wade or those around him, with some mini-games and QTE sequences of varying quality worked into the narrative well, just to make sure you’re paying attention.

Perhaps you’ll feel stopping to take a quick selfie before getting into the combine registration is harmless, but the omnipresent scouting report will catch it and dock you for spending too much time on social media. Repeating back a play to coach in practice should be simple, but get it wrong and the confident Wade shrivels into an unsure mess, mumbling back the incorrect command. To its credit, Longshot at least had the (foot)balls to allow for failure by including a few different outcomes, usually affecting those around Wade, but there is that looming failure state if you don’t grow with Wade and made the wrong choices.

"Allowing such a range to enjoy Madden your way or the way that friends will get the most out of is a huge plus to the game"

Outside of Longshot, many of the standard sports modes are present and accounted for without much to say about them. You can drop in for a quick game with your preselected favourite NFL franchise, go on a longer season exhibition, or maybe a truncated version of the season that has you snap to a few pivotal moments in each game, and an Ultimate Team mode which houses the co-op component, the strategy and team building of fantasy football that will hook the NFL faithful and the microtransactions that nag you to better your team.

Regardless of mode, I was rather surprised at how modular the options are and how accessible the game could become as a result. Fitting in with my self confessed football virgin status I elected to stick to the arcade mode, simplifying a lot of the decisions with play suggestions and allowing for more big action intuitive for a pick up game with friends, and scaling all the way up to a hardcore NFL simulation that demands you be quick on the sticks and inputs for success. Allowing such a range to enjoy Madden your way or the way that friends will get the most out of is a huge plus to the game and allowed me to really get into the action quicker with basic knowledge of a run play against a pass play and how to catch the ball.

Within arcade mode, almost everything is sped along to remove the fluff while still giving the player lots of leeway to play in an interesting fashion. Plays can be auto suggested to the player and always offer decisions to be made within split seconds that can define the game, and allow the player a few precious moments to react and create their own plan. And the feeling of nailing that 50 yard touchdown after spotting the open receiver, just perfect.

"For someone who was ostensibly a new player to the series, I really appreciated the scalability of the whole thing"

Tutorial mode also contains a pretty robust toolset to dive deeper into the mechanics and help players who want to grow with the game figure out how to play smartly. While through in what it covers, the game doesn’t really stop to be sure you’ve nailed down a concept or understand a mechanic, pushing onwards regardless of how you preformed in most situations.

Was Madden 18 a good time? For someone who was ostensibly a new player to the series, I really appreciated the scalability of the whole thing, allowing me to enjoy the game with a basic knowledge when in the past it felt like I required an encyclopedia on my lap to decipher plays. Longshot while being full of cliches really comes together in a great way to make a story mode that has no business being as interesting as it is and mechanically, this is a great way to get in some gridiron action.

This game was reviewed on Playstation 4.

We’ve already talked about EA Sports’ Madden NFL 18 and the addition of Longshot mode, a cinematic campaign that will follow in the footsteps of FIFA 17’s The Journey. In a new video, the developer has gone behind the scenes with actor Mahershala and NFL icon Dan Marino to detail the making of Longshot mode.

The story essentially focuses on high school quarterback Devin Wade who has moved away from the sport following various real-life issues. The mode will see him come back to play and try to make it to the NFL, working from the ground up and overcoming his obstacles. Along with Mahershala , Scott Porter of Friday Night Lights fame will also play a key role. Longshot mode will feature cinematic cutscenes and conversations akin to The Journey.

Madden NFL 18 is out on August 25th but those with EA Access on Xbox One can start playing a 10 hour trial of the game right now (which includes Longshot’s first chapter). The G.O.A.T. Edition will allow for access to the full game on August 22nd which is also a compelling deal.

Though it was earlier revealed that EA Sports’ Madden NFL 18 would require a future update to run at 4K with HDR on the PS4 Pro, that too without any details about when said update would arrive, the company has since clarified that this isn’t the case.

Issuing a statement to GameSpot, EA Sports noted that both 4K and 1080p resolutions would be possible on the PS4 Pro without any update being required. The game will also run at 60 FPS though HDR support is still up in the air.

EA Sports also made sure to clarify that running the game at 1080p would result in an improved framerate in “certain areas” but that core gameplay would remain 60 FPS regardless of the resolution. As for HDR, it remains to be seen whether this will be confirmed when the Xbox One X arrives in November.

Madden NFL 18 is out on August 25th for PS4 and Xbox One with EA Access subscribers able to access it on August 17th.

EA Sports’ Madden NFL 18 arrives for PS4 and Xbox One in roughly 10 days and will bring quite a few new features to the franchise. However, despite supporting PS4 Pro, it will not have 4K or HDR without an update. According to series creative director Rex Dickson while speaking to USGamer, PS4 Pro support will be coming through a “future update”.

Now this doesn’t mean that the update won’t be available at launch. Regardless, it won’t be included with the game itself so you’ll have to download it, whether it’s at launch or in the future. What about the game’s Xbox One X support though? Will it be available at the console’s launch? EA Sports hasn’t exactly clarified the matter.

Along with a jump over to the Frostbite Engine and promising the most significant graphical update yet, Madden NFL 18 will also deliver the first ever story campaign for a Madden title with Longshot Mode. Much like FIFA 17’s The Journey, players can take control of a predefined character and work their way up from the college football level. It’s out on August 25th for Xbox One and PS4 but those with EA Access can play a limited trial on August 17th.