Madden NFL 13

Did You Know?

• The game uses an original orchestrated score composed by Colin O'Malley instead of licensed songs, a move that was criticized by fans and critics.
• The original orchestrated score was later added back in Madden NFL 18 and was available in Madden NFL 19 and Madden NFL 20.
• The game sold more than 1.6 million copies.

New features

The game features the NFL on CBS commentary crew of Jim Nantz and Phil Simms as announcers, who appear in an in-booth cutscene before each game with stadium-specific backgrounds. Over 200 new cutscenes were added between plays and games, inspired by different TV presentations and overhauled for dramatic effect. No halftime show is included; instead, a stats overlay is shown. All new Nike home and away uniforms, including alternates, are on the disc, with additional uniforms unlockable by code as they were released in real life.

Lighting changes based on the time of day now occur per play rather than only at quarter breaks. The game incorporates the improved high dynamic range lighting and motion blur from NCAA Football 13. Ray Lewis appears in the introduction, featuring his real-life moments and in-game shots. Passing controls were improved via the left-analog stick, allowing placement of the ball on a receiver's back shoulder or toward the sideline where only the receiver can catch it.

New pass trajectories and ball speeds open up more areas of the field, and new pass animations speed up how quickly quarterbacks release the ball, including a shovel pass and specific setups for throws on the run. Pump fakes are now directed toward specific receivers, occur faster, and have specific animations when performed outside the pocket. More than 20 new quarterback dropbacks are included, covering 1/3/5/7-step variations, screens, and plays with auto-pump fake dropbacks.

Over 430 new catch animations were added, partly fueled by changes to the left-analog passing stick, and user catches are made easier by slowing down players when a receiver is selected. Quarterbacks have new moves for avoiding the pass rush, with a slowed pocket speed giving more control to avoid sacks. Play-action was tweaked to include an abort command that cancels the animation when a defender is barreling in unabated, and play-action unravels faster overall.

Running backs are improved in blocking after the fake and in releasing for passes, while defenders are faked out more by play-action.

SportsNation cover vote tournament

EA Sports again teamed up with ESPN's fan polling show SportsNation for the cover vote tournament, following the success of the Madden NFL 12 cover vote. The tournament began with a 64-player vote-in round where fans selected from two players representing each NFL team, with the winners advancing to a 32-player bracket. Due to offseason player movement, the New York Jets and New England Patriots started the tournament with two players each, while the Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams were unrepresented.

This occurred because Tim Tebow was traded from the Broncos to the Jets after Denver acquired Peyton Manning, and Brandon Lloyd left the Rams to sign with the Patriots; both Tebow and Lloyd were eliminated in the first round. The initial bracket included three players who had previously appeared on a Madden cover: Drew Brees (Madden NFL 11), Troy Polamalu (Madden NFL 10), and Larry Fitzgerald (who appeared with Polamalu on the cover of Madden NFL 10).

Fitzgerald eliminated Polamalu in the first round, while Brees was eliminated by Ray Rice in the second round. Of the eight defensive players in the initial bracket, only Patrick Willis, Darrelle Revis, and Jared Allen advanced to the second round. Only Willis advanced to the third round, as Revis was eliminated by Victor Cruz and Allen by Rob Gronkowski. No offensive linemen made the initial bracket; only one appeared in the 64-player vote-in round (Joe Thomas, beaten by Joe Haden).

Punter Shane Lechler and kicker Sebastian Janikowski were the only special teams players in the tournament; Janikowski advanced to the 32-player bracket but was eliminated by Maurice Jones-Drew.