10 Biggest Madden NFL 25 Franchise Mode Changes & Differences From Madden 24 (2024)

Madden NFL 25 is making some serious changes to Franchise Mode. Although each game in the annual football franchise is scarcely different from the last, Madden 25 has a lot of surprises in store for returning players. Besides Madden 25's changes to Superstar Mode, it's also tackling a lot of stagnant or outdated features in its Franchise Mode for team management.

Unlike Madden's other game modes, Franchise Mode is less about actual on-the-field play, and more about assembling the most effective team possible. Players largely do so through pivotal decisions on recruitment, coaching, and management. But the decisions they'll have available to them, and the ways in which they'll make them, will look entirely different in Madden 25.

1 Dynamic Storylines Increase Player Agency

Christian McCaffrey Will Remember That

One of the biggest changes coming to Madden 25 is the introduction of over 70 "dynamic storylines" in Franchise Mode. While Franchise veterans are no stranger to player desires, dynamic storylines are much longer, and may last the entire football season. They'll also adapt to the player's decisions - if they promise to make a big showing at the draft, for example, the press and their team will expect them to keep it later. If they don't, they can expect negative coverage and poor morale. Each player will also have a unique personality, making them more receptive to certain types of coaching than others.

Players can also choose different paths in these dynamic storylines, leading to a variety of different outcomes. For example, say an athlete points out a weakness in the other team's defense. As the coach, the player might have the opportunity to decide whether to wait for an opening, or to attack that weakness aggressively. High risk might lead to a greater reward, but could also backfire.

2 Madden 25 Has Increased Coaching Variability

Molding The Perfect Player

Those new dynamic storylines go hand-in-hand with wider changes to how coaching works in Madden 25. Players now have many more options when it comes to coaching their team, and their choices can be much more impactful throughout an entire season. They can motivate their players during training to increase their gains - but if they say the wrong thing, they may wind up even more out of shape than they started. During the season, they'll receive a variety of text messages from their players and coordinators alike. How they respond will determine their team's focus and direction going forward.

These coaching decisions will often attempt to replicate real-life football success stories. For example, players can work for an entire season to develop a quarterback like Patrick Mahomes, or see a player randomly break out mid-season like Isiah Pacheco. Ultimately, all these changes are geared at making Franchise Mode seem much more realistic, as if the player is actually running a real, human team.

3 Draft Night Just Got More Realistic

Real-Time Updates

Madden 25 also completely revamps Draft Night in ways that go beyond just aesthetics - although there's plenty of that, too. First of all, this marks the first appearance of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in a Madden game since 2017. His introduction to Draft Night is an important piece of ceremony that increases the overall realism of the affair. Players will also take the stage in suits, not uniforms, just as they do during the real thing.

There's also an all-new Draft Board, which reflects the overall increase in accuracy and makes it much easier to pick new recruits. The Draft Board updates in real time as teams make their choices, allowing for quick responses. Prospects are listed in a clear, helpful format that makes selections a snap. And after picking, players are awarded draft grades that advise them on the wisdom of their picks, ideally guiding their decisions the following year.

4 Madden 25 Has Variable Breakout Stories

Multiple Paths, Multiple Endings

Breakout storylines have also been rebuilt from the ground up in Madden 25, allowing for greater player freedom through choice. Each breakout story will begin with a choice: when a player breaks out, the manager can select their goals for the week, be it to get a certain number of touches, score a certain number of points, et cetera. Depending on whether the player meets their weekly goals, these storylines can last a single game or an entire season. If they do manage to reach the threshold set for them, the player can capitalize on their success, gaining large amounts of XP or permanent attribute increases.

Breakout stories also have a wide variety of rewards, which depend on the player's performance within them. If they do well, they may receive multiple attribute increases and development upgrades, or something far rarer and more interesting. Ultimately, it's up to the player to determine what's realistic for their team, and strive for them to accomplish as many goals as possible in order to develop athletes over time.

5 Breakout Stories Also Have Double-Or-Nothing Opportunities

A Rare Chance With Big Rewards

There's also a rare chance, at the end of certain breakout stories, for a random double-or-nothing event to be activated. These may occur whether the player met their goal or not, and extend the ongoing plot by at least an additional week. Exactly how these work varies by storyline, but they may give the subject player an extra week to reach a tough goal, or to stretch them even further. These may be even harder to achieve than base weekly goals, but should offer greater rewards.

These double-or-nothing goals are an extension of the general increase in dynamism that seems to span the entirety of Madden 25's Franchise Mode. They may be impacted by players' differing personalities. They may also offer further choices for their goals, which can help players capitalize on an athlete's drive to succeed. These events are rarely triggered, and it's up to players to discover exactly how they work.

6 Players Can Now Choose The Difficulty Of Athlete Goals In Breakout Stories

An Incremental Increase, Or A Race To The Top?

During Franchise Mode meetings, Madden players will frequently have opportunities to set goals for the athletes on their team. These have always been a major part of training - the more goals a player sets and meets, the more attribute increases they'll see. But these goals will be more variable than ever in Madden 25. Players can now set the exact difficulty of their athletes' goals. High-risk goals return better rewards, but have greater chances of and penalties for failure. Low-risk goals are easier to meet, but their rewards aren't as desirable.

Much like the other Franchise Mode changes, these make the team feel real. Depending on their variable personalities, some players may respond better to nigh-impossible targets than others. This creates a dynamic relationship between player and coach, which is only helped by the players' lasting memory of earlier decisions and their longer-lasting storylines. Players will feel more connected to their teams, and well-coached athletes will show incredible results.

7 Madden 25 Has A New-And-Improved Prospect Hub

Simple Spreadsheet Format

When it comes to recruiting, in previous versions of Madden, players were forced to navigate through a series of menus, all the way to each individual player card, just to see their stats. This was a huge waste of time and made comparison difficult, ultimately complicating the process and making it easier to choose the wrong recruit. Madden 25 fixes this with an updated Prospect Hub menu, which displays a variety of players' stats in an easy-to-read spreadsheet format. All their stats are rated, and they're given archetypes that explain their playstyles. Players can also sort the spreadsheet by multiple different factors.

The new Prospect Hub also provides stats to aid in scouting, displaying each player's scouting percentage alongside their athletic stats. This makes it much easier to find and court the perfect player, whether it's in the middle of the season or ahead of the new-and-improved splendor of Draft Night.

8 ...And A Redesigned Franchise Central

All Your Info At A Glance

In a similar vein, Madden 25 utilizes a new UI feature called Franchise Central, the homepage for all things Franchise Mode. This is the player's new launchpad, a place for them to see all the basic information they need and activate any mechanics they want to move their team forward. Franchise Central uses a layered structure to present a wide range of information and options at a glance: there's a central menu of options, and players can open different windows on top of it to check in on various aspects of team management.

Franchise Central displays things like team rankings, recommended draft projects, top news stories in the league, and long-term goals. Players can return to it between games and coaching sessions to check their stats and move time forward. Team and league creation also work much more smoothly due to the overall UI redesign. Players can now assemble their rosters, recruit players, and check their upcoming schedules more quickly, and get into the meat of Franchise Mode with fewer delays.

9 Madden 25 Has A New Message System

Players Receive Curated Advice & Recommendations

Also part of the new Franchise Central menu is a message system, in which players will frequently receive texts from their team members and fellow executives. These may come in a wide variety of contexts: tutorials, important reminders, updates on goals or injuries, et cetera. It increases the player's overall connection to their team, and also works as a kind of reminder system to keep track of long-term developments in a Franchise Mode storyline.

The most important function of the message system, though, is its ability to send personalized, up-to-the-minute recommendations to Franchise Mode managers. The personal message system may detect that the player's team is missing a good running back, find a good one who's open to scouting, and recommend that the player look into recruiting them. It'll also ensure that they're constantly updated on their players' most important goings-on, and can respond accordingly to goals met or injuries recovered from.

10 Madden 25 Offers Increased Team Customization

Madden's Team Builder Explained

Madden 25 finally introduces a long-awaited suite of customization options in a mechanic it calls Team Builder. This is an external website that players can access from their computers or mobile devices. They can use a bit of simple, in-browser image editing software to upload or create their own team logos. They can customize the appearance of their team's helmets, stadium, and on-field logos. They can even create every single member of their Franchise Mode teams from scratch, and assemble a roster of entirely custom players from the website. This is all integrated directly with the game, and players can import their custom visuals by merging accounts.

Customization options have been pretty stagnant in recent Madden entries, so the Team Builder might just be the biggest change for Franchise Mode fans. A fully kitted-out, customized team just feels more like the player's own creation, instead of simply a pre-existing franchise they took over. As the standards for customization in video games have increased, players have been demanding the addition of a feature like this for years. Madden NFL 25 finally delivers on that desire, along with many others that increase the overall realism and ease of the game's Franchise Mode.

Madden NFL 25

Celebrating 25 years of the iconic series, Madden NFL 25 introduces groundbreaking gameplay enhancements. Featuring the new "Run Free" mechanic and a revamped physics engine, players experience unparalleled control and realism. Take command of your favorite NFL team, navigating enhanced Franchise and Ultimate Team modes to dominate the field and achieve gridiron glory​.

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OpenCritic Reviews

Top Critic Rating:75/100 Critics Recommend:60%

Franchise

Madden NFL

Platform(s)

PlayStation 5 , PlayStation 4 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Xbox One , PC

Released

August 16, 2024

Developer(s)

EA Tiburon

Publisher(s)

EA

Multiplayer

Online Multiplayer , Local Multiplayer , Online Co-Op , Local Co-Op

Engine

Frostbite

ESRB

Everyone

X|S Enhanced

No

Steam Deck Compatibility

Unknown