Impressions of Madden Ultimate Team in Madden NFL 20

MUT has a very loyal and vocal fanbase within the Madden community. And although more times than not, gamers spend additional money to buy packs and other MUT items, it still remains the reason many continue to buy the game each and every year. So who can blame EA for its devotion to a game mode that brings in millions each and every year. And whether you just like to build your team or you’re a dedicated gamer chasing the ever-elusive Madden championship, MUT is probably for you.

Thankfully, EA hasn’t become stagnant with the highly popular game mode, and have made a substantial amount of changes in this year’s installment.

Here are my early impressions of Madden Ultimate Team in Madden 20.

What I Like

• The hardest thing for me over the last few years with MUT is trying to navigate the different windows. But this year EA has introduced a much more seamless interface. And it’s something you can’t help but miss the second you boot up the game. In fact, not only is the interface far more user friendly and breaks down the step-by-step process of getting a player-specific card, it also does a great job of allowing gamers the opportunity to continue playing without having to go through two or three screens. Both refinements go a long way in making MUT more user friendly. And for someone who may have struggled in the past, this is a welcomed addition in 2020.
• One thing no one can ever fault EA for is the variety of cards released throughout the season. Every week new cards are released, and as we’ve seen throughout the first week of Madden’s release, 2020 appears to be bigger and better than ever. So whether you’re grinding daily to achieve your Madden Ultimate Team legends, Theme Builders or hope to get one of the latest Flashbacks, there’s plenty of diverse options in this year’s game.
• Much like the diverse number of cards mentioned above, EA continues to excel at making MUT the polar opposite of stagnant. And as we learned in a previous EA blog, there’s lots of different and unique game modes that partner with your team. So whether you’re playing Solo Battles, daily challenges, head to head or MUT Draft, you will find countless ways to earn coins and other valuables. Now, choosing which packs and players to spend your hard-earned coins on may be the toughest decision you’ll have to make in this year’s installment of Madden.
• Although it’s not necessarily a new feature, Madden continues to build upon the foundation that was already built by once again having some of the better objectives and achievements in all of sports gaming. For example, despite having to win a full game to unlock Raiders’ punter Ray Guy, you also have the opportunity to earn bonus coins along the way. One of those objectives in that game is to punt the ball three times in one game.

What I Don’t Like

• The biggest new addition to Madden 20 is Superstar X-Factors. And for those who were able to spend time with the beta, you understand just how chaotic the game can be when everyone on the field possesses a superstar ability. And although a lot has been done to assure that things won’t be overpowered in this year’s game, it can still remain an issue at times. All of this occurs despite EA limiting each team to six Superstar X-Factors (three offense, three defense). Perhaps this is something EA will change in a future release, but for now Superstar X-Factors comes off as more of a gimmick and could make the divide among the MUT community even greater this season.
• No matter how much you enjoy playing MUT, it is often difficult to keep up with the latest cards and new additions. And like so many in the Madden community, you may feel inclined to spend money in order to acquire a certain player or item. Of course, all cards can be obtained by simply playing through each and every challenge, but not everyone has that type of time and patience. Unfortunately, this leads to users spending real currency. Although it’s highly unlikely, I would like to see EA implement a way for users to realistically achieve some of these cards without microtransaction after microtransaction.

Conclusion

In the end, Madden Ultimate Team remains EA’s golden ticket. And for as much time and money that has been invested into the highly popular game mode, I wouldn’t expect it any other way. Additionally, where MUT fell short in the past, the developers have more than made up for it with improvements this year. It may not be perfect, but EA delivers its best representation of the popular game mode. And whether you’re a MUT novice or a newbie trying to break into the competitive gaming world, Madden Ultimate Team will keep users coming back again and again.