Does it have flaws? Yes, but this is still by far the best version of Madden this generation, and worth buying.
Madden is a love-hate type of game. The past couple of years have been serious hate years as I was a huge fan of NFL 2K5 and Madden simply didn't cut it. There have been years I absolutely love the game (94, 2000, 2005) and there have been years that I absolutely hate the game (2006, 2007). I would argue that this is the best version of Madden in HD because the frame rate, animations, and overall speed of the game have finally been balanced.
I found that the past versions of Madden have played "slow" compared to their Standard Def brethren. Maybe this has something to do with the game running at 60 FPS...maybe the guys at Tiburon have begun to figure out how to program the game properly for the PS3...either way, this game "feels right".
Gone are the constant fumbles or instant interceptions found in past versions of the game. Yes, players will maddeningly run out of bounds on simple screen passes sometimes, but the overall feel of a football simulation is present.
The graphics, from the player models to the stadiums, in Madden 2009 are excellent all-round. The grass in particular, looks incredibly realistic. Gang tackles are present and highlight stick moves look really cool.
I mainly play Franchise mode and play online with friends once and a while. There are a bevy of different modes and features, the most noteworthy of which is Superstar Mode. Simply put, Madden has something for everyone to do. Online leagues are a cool feature, but they're not really online leagues. They're more like online tournaments. I would like to see this high potential feature further fleshed out in future releases. I will probably skip Madden for a couple of years until true online leagues are present. Overall though, there's a lot to do.
I like how the game adapts to your play style in this year's game. It makes the game more challenging. Do yourself a favor by skipping the initial IQ test because it's a joke. Start playing the game and it will adjust itself to you.
I mentioned before that the game looks great. Sound effects are pretty good and the soundtrack is decent. I don't pay much attention to the commentary, but there's nothing there that really bothers me.
My one pet peeve against this game is how difficult it is to defend the pass on higher difficulty settings. Seriously...it is really freaking hard to stop the computer on third down in this game. I'm no expert at Madden, but I don't suck either. It really annoys me how difficult it is to stop the computer on 3rd and 5...which brings me to my next point: instant replay.
I don't like to "cheat" when I play, but sometimes the computer gets so brutally efficient that I use the instant replay feature to take a 2nd crack at stopping the computer on 3rd down. By pressing the square button after a play, you have the option of replaying the play. This is a feature that can be turned on or off so it shouldn't affect normal game play. I think it's a good feature to have when the computer feels like spamming you to death.
EA Sports is touting a new feature that automatically updates players' stats during the season in their NBA Live and FIFA games. I would like to see this implemented in Madden (for free of course). Right now, I have to go and download roster updates by playing an online game and then quitting out. The first time I updated, it took me a while to figure it out. I would like to see this feature more easily accessible to the casual player.
Enough harping about the finer points of the game though...Madden is the same game that you have come to either love or hate over the past 20 years. Madden 2009, even with its flaws, is a solid football simulator. Is it the best game ever? No. But is it a horrible game that should be scored any lower than a 7? Absolutely not.
Madden is good video game; this year's version has improvements that allow it to have some moments that make it a very good video game. There's no doubt this game is way better than the garbage we've seen in the past few years. The most important thing about this game is that it is fun to play with friends. There are no flaws (well...once you download the patch to fix a freezing problem. I have yet to encounter any problems) that break the game.
All in all...a rock solid 8 that is worth any NFL fan's time and money.