Madden 22: What’s new in Face of the Franchise?

Much of Madden 22‘s reveal thus far has been focused on the revamped Franchise mode. And probably for good reason, given the massive backlash EA faced from it last year. But Madden 22 has other modes as well, including Face of the Franchise, a story-driven, RPG-like mode in which you navigate your career as a professional athlete.

Madden 22 brings some new features to Face of the Franchise: United We Rise — including a new position to play — but mostly improves and builds upon what is already there.

You’ll begin your career as a generational prospect in the 2021 NFL Draft. You’ll train with other NFL players at Nike Headquarters and participate in other activities that will ultimately impact your draft stock, such as the College Football Playoff, NFL team interviews, and private workouts. While these situations are necessarily new to the mode, they are presented in a way in which you’ll be forced to make some choices that could impact your career long term.

At times, you’ll have to make decisions that will affect your draft status, including having to choose between attending a Hawai’ian charity game or the Nike-sponsored exhibition match in New York City. Not only will your decision result in a different gameplay experience, but you’ll receive different rewards and opportunities as a result of your choice.

Also new to Face of the Franchise is the Class Progression System. This is a more streamlined approach to customizing your player.

As a reminder, there are now four positions to choose from in Face of the Franchise; QB, WR, HB and for the first time ever, a defensive position as Linebacker. Each position has multiple Classes associated with it, and within these Classes are three Superstar Abilities and one X-Factor ability for you to unlock as you level up in that Class. As you progress throughout your career, you can equip Superstar and X-Factor Abilities you’ve earned from other Classes if you’ve managed to unlock them, allowing you to mix-and-match for full customization.

The Season Engine will provide provide purpose, introducing weekly storylines that help setup new challenges and gameplay moments. Different challenges will be presented based on how you and your team perform throughout each season, and there are at least a dozen scenarios that can trigger based on your position, team and weekly performance. Narrating your performance are 70-plus Podcast segments that include interviews and opinions with story beats based on your career. This reminds me of the narrative podcasts that were introduced with MLB The Show 21 this year.

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There are also side activities to further customize your player. Each week, there will be three different opportunities to earn a unique buff or reward, providing short term temporary ratings buffs or longer term improvement with smaller but permanent buffs. Or you can earn REP or CRED.

Side Activities are divided into four main categories: Mental Focus, Physical Recovery, Team Bonding and My Brand. Side Activities will be random and no two weeks will offer the same set, which means you’ll have to choose carefully as you may not be presented with that same opportunity in the future. Additionally, some Side Activities are more rare than others, resulting in a greater reward.

The last big feature for Face of the Franchise is Pressure Moments, unique scenarios that drop you into challenging situations that are intended to offer a more immersive experience. On next-gen consoles, Pressure Moments will feel even more intense with the added feature of Dynamic Gameday integration.