Madden NFL 07
By Chris Jozefowicz,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Not much new, but sure to be a big hit with kids.
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this game.
Where to Play
Community Reviews
Based on 1 parent review
A Realistic Portrayal Of The NFL
Report this review
What’s It About?
Players who have tackled a Madden game before, such as the 05 or 04 versions, will find themselves on familiar ground. As in previous years, MADDEN NFL 07 does a nice job of translating the big, complex, and messy world of professional football: real players, real stadiums, big hits, injuries, commercial sponsorships, some showboating, and plenty of play-calling strategy. Although Madden 07 has a pick-up-and-play, single game option, for serious players the heart of the game will be one of the season-spanning modes, which have only minor tweaks over previous entries in the series.
Is It Any Good?
Despite some innovations and small changes that allow players a finer degree of control over maneuvers, Madden 07 still has some problems. Corporate sponsorship of things like drive summaries and player-of-the-game awards are familiar from real football, but come off as gratuitous in the game. Likewise, the EA-staple of a background soundtrack of punkish and hip-hop songs, complete with pop-ups identifying the song and artist, feels awkwardly tacked on.
Yet the biggest complaint many gamers might have is that they've seen the basic Madden football game before. This latest iteration will hold most appeal to football fans and those players eager to delve into the up-to-the-minute online community for contests against real humans.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what makes football interesting. Do flashy plays and show-business elements make the game exciting or is it the play-calling strategy? Families can also discuss the advertisements that are wrapped up in the game. Is this commercialism distracting -- or does it make gameplay more authentic? Finally, families should discuss proper online behavior.
Game Details
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PSP, Nintendo DS, Windows, PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Xbox
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Electronic Arts
- Release date: August 28, 2006
- Genre: Sports
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts
- ESRB rating: E
- Last updated: November 4, 2015
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Play
Our Editors Recommend
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate