OK, this is a dumn question... but I haven't really found an answer, so figured I'd post it here so that those of you who have been XBOX fans for a while and know their systems can chime in.

I've been hearing people say stuff about patches. For example, Madden 2007 for the 360 has some glaring omissions in gameplay and features. On some forums, some of the replies have simply been... "It's EA... wait for the patch"... or something along those lines.

Is this the case? Can features/items be added via patches to games?

 

Yup, if you game has an available patch/update, when you start the game the 360 will prompt you and it is your choice on if you want to download it or not, once downloaded the Xbox automatically applies the patch/fix. Pretty cool actually

 

yes

 

Indeed they CAN, but i kinda doubt ea WILL.

Just last month I think. Bizzarre added new game modes and features to pgr 3.

 

^ Just going based on the amount of times I've seen people reply with "It's EA... wait for the patch", I'm hoping there's a chance. For Madden 2007... I can deal with the "radio" commentary... just give me defensive hot-routes!

Thanks all for the replies . This is good to know!!

 

I gotta get back into that game

 

I would not expect much for the 360 version. More than likely, the people who were saying wait for a patch were the PC Madden players. That would be awesome if they did offer a patch to fix the game , but they didn't do anything for the 06 Madden on the 360. There is just too much wrong with the 360 version for a patch to fix. At least to get it to our liking.

 

True and good point since the topic was a general Madden 2007 one and not console or PC specific. Damn... oh well. Looks like I'm keeping mine anyway. Still not 100%, but need to make a decision today as it's the 7th day. Need to see what everyone else is doing so I can make sure I have the version everyone else has for online purposes.

 

They patch many games on the 360. There are actually 3 types:

1. Bug Fixes: These are generally invisible, but in a recent update for Oblivion, they improved the framerate in outside areas and fixed some random crashes

2. New Features: These are less common but free. Kameo for example released an online co-op feature a few months after release. PGR3 released new cars and new game modes over Live.

3. Microtransactions: Sometimes publishers will charge a fee for new features. Ghost Recon and COD2 had packs that contained a bunch of new maps and co-op missions for $5-10. I think this is where EA would provide updates as they never seem to give anything away for free.

In regards to Madden missing some features, welcome to next-gen and the fact EA has a monopoly on Football. They are able to cut features from their next-gen games and then have crap to add year over year.

 

^ Thanks for the reply.

Guess it really doesn't matter anymore since yesterday I swapped my 360 Madden for the PS2 version. I'm finally happy since that's the way Madden should be. While I'll miss the HD graphics of the 360, graphics don't make the game... so I'll take my average graphics and spot on gameplay of the PS2 and enjoy it

 

Oh and just as a PS... EA has a monopoly on NFL football on every console... but the XBOX 360 is the only version they fucked up....