The New York Times has recently posted graphs showing what teams Madden 11 players were using in online play. As could be expected, each playoff teams usage went up as they advanced, with over 10% of players using the Green Bay Packers after their Super Bowl XLV victory.
This got me to thinking about “front runners”, mainly because I’m sure next year I will be called one, even though it’s not entirely accurate. I’ve used the Packers in online and offline franchises for the passed few years now, essentially because they play the style of game I like to play. They pass heavy, and run every now and then as shown by their 11 rushing attempts during the Super Bowl.
Since I’m more a fan of Madden‘s version of football than the actual game, in the past I could easily have been considered a front runner in the past. I was always using the top teams in the NFL because I didn’t know better. Some examples of teams I used were the Buffalo Bills in Super Tecmo Bowl, the San Francisco 49er and Dallas Cowboys in NFL GameDay time, and the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL 2Ks.
As I’ve become more nuanced in the game of video game football, I’ve learned my strenghts (passing) and weaknesses (running) and use teams that do that successfully. That is the main reason why the Packers have been such a good team for me in recent years.
Next year I’ll be making the switch from purchasing Madden on the PS3 to the Xbox 360 after the sad realization that I bought NCAA Football 11 on Xbox 360, and obviosuly couldn’t bring over my Draft Class to Madden 11 on PS3. I can’t wait to hear all the 13 year olds on Xbox Live call me a “front runner” when I smoke them with Aaron Rodgers and the Pack.
I just can’t wait to win a game on a Rodgers to Greg Jennings TD and yell “f&ck you Gumby” after I win.
Graph courtesy of NY Times.