Madden NFL 23 has revealed its first gameplay trailer for this year and on top of revamped visuals, Franchise Mode changes, and other quality-of-life improvements, it will introduce new game physics that aim to shake up the gameplay mechanics and player reaction to contact. The FieldSENSE mechanics are being advertised as giving the player more movement variety using its "physics-informed mechanics." FieldSENSE will apply to all players on the team and all Madden NFL 23 modes. Asterisk on "all" as this new feature will be missing for a sizable portion of Madden fans.
The FieldSENSE feature will only be available for players on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. This isn't the first time EA has withheld features from the older console generation. This is similar to what happened with the new movement features introduced in FIFA 22. The HyperMotion feature was touted as an evolution of FIFA animations, giving the players on the pitch a sense of personality and dynamic movement. But those features were also restricted to the new generation consoles.
It's unfortunate that all players can get access to new features and mechanics, but such is the balancing act that developers have to go through while still in that transition time between console generations. As this transition cycle has extended longer than usual, developers are still thinking about serving as many players as possible with their newest title. Sometimes it means compromising the game in some areas but not making them feel drastically different.
Gamers can understand that the older consoles on 8 plus-year-old hardware don't have the capability of efficiently running new functions and tricks developers come up with to make their games look and play more impressively with each iteration. However, it still causes a disconnect in the Madden player base.
Madden NFL 23 honors the late Hall of Fame Coach, announcer, and namesake John Madden, who died late last year. As the first iteration of Madden since his passing, Electronic Arts honors his legacy in-game with 3 variants of the Madden NFL 23 cover art as well as dedicating a new football field on EA's Redwood City, California campus. It's the hope of EA that the new FieldSENSE game physics are revolutionary enough to keep the legacy of the game and by extension, John Madden going for years to come.
Madden NFL 23 is in development and is set for release on August 19, 2022.
Source: EA Sports
