EA Sports' Madden NFL series has been around since the Apple IIGS was the apex of home computing, and the seemingly indestructible franchise found its way to the iPad last summer with Madden NFL 11 (reviewed here), which delivered a pretty capable pro football simulation. With a fairly complete version of the sport on the tablet for the first time, it was easy to overlook the jagged play models and janky animations, as well as the lack of a true franchise mode and online play.
But another year has passed, and while Madden's still the only real football option for iPad owners, I expected more than a visual bump and updated rosters. Madden NFL 12 does look quite a bit better than its predecessor on the iPad 2, with the angular players thankfully smoothed out, alongside better onscreen textures. Granted, the animations can still be horribly awkward -- especially during collisions and tackles -- but they can be forgiven in the grand scheme of things, considering how much of the core Madden experience is replicated on a touchscreen.
Otherwise, Madden NFL 12 arrives without notable upgrades from last year, with only three core play options -- exhibition, season, and playoffs -- present, but no multiplayer or Vintage Voltage minigame available as of version 1.0.2. Worse yet, the play-calling interface is more complicated this time around, making it difficult to find varied plays without digging through numerous menus.
Offering up a feature-light Madden might have made sense last year, when it was new and the waters were untested, but essentially cutting-and-pasting the previous experience into Madden NFL 12 without much-needed franchise or online play options comes across as careless -- and worse yet, lazy. It remains a solid portable game of football, but EA shouldn't be commended for taking the easy route the second time around.
The bottom line. Madden NFL 12 takes over as the top football game on iPad, but without notable non-visual tweaks, the remaining issues and weaknesses shine much brighter this time around.
of 6
iPad running iOS 3.2 or later
Pretty complete and playable game of professional football. Looks slicker than last year's game on iPad 2.
Few meaningful upgrades since last year's bare-bones iteration. Lacking multiplayer and franchise modes. Play-calling screens are a hassle.
