Madden 21 launch date announced for PS5 and Xbox Series X
Electronic Arts has finally announced when football fans can take to the gridiron on next-gen consoles with Madden 21.
The next-generation version of Madden 21 is set to launch in December, Electronic Arts announced today. The confirmation comes just shortly after we were speculating as to whether or not it would be a launch title for the PS5 or Xbox Series X, both of which hit shelves in November.
But alas, when these new consoles arrive, football fans will have to wait at least a little bit longer before experiencing the future of the series. Madden 21 will officially be available for PlayStation 5 and Xbox SEries X on December 4, less than a month after the consoles arrive.
EA didn’t make a huge deal about the announcement. There was no splashy trailer or specific blog post or anything. We did learn some specifics as to what the next-gen version of Madden 21 will entail:
"“…blazing fast load times, the most realistic, fluid player movement ever in EA SPORTS titles, authentic game day experiences inside stadiums and new player detail unlocked by deferred rendering and lighting.”"
Additionally, EA confirmed that the game will make use of the PlayStation 5 DualSense controller’s haptic technologies.
To date, we haven’t seen or heard much of the next-gen version of Madden 21. A brief trailer highlight next-gen gameplay was shared in May but not much since them.
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Honestly, I wouldn’t expect too much from this initial version of Madden 21, especially since EA had to split its time working on the current-gen version. While it will undoubtedly benefit from the improved hardware of the new consoles, I don’t think we’ll see major gameplay and graphical leaps until the first full year with the game on these new consoles.
As previously explained, Madden 21 will make use of EA’s Dual Entitlement program. Anyone who purchased Madden 21 on Xbox One and/or PlayStation 4 will automatically receive the Xbox Series X/S and/or PlayStation 5 version of the game for free when it becomes available in December. If you buy Madden 21 on current-gen systems with no plan to buy a new console immediately, you have until the release of Madden 22 — likely August 2021 — to take advantage of the offer.