EA has dropped details on this year's celebration for the release of Madden NFL 09, annoyingly titled Maddenpalooza. Mentioned during Leigh's interview with Steve Schnur earlier this month, Maddenpalooza is a music festival featuring bands from current and past Madden soundtracks that will take place at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California on August 11th. Fans can snag tickets through local radio stations or at the Rose Bowl on event day, which entitle them to a day filled with music, NFL star signings, and various other bits of marketing, all leading up to 9PM when the stadium's pop-up Wal-Mart will sell the first copies of the game.

Artists scheduled to appear include headliners Good Charlotte, Busta Rhymes, Rev Theory, Airbourne, From First to Last and Young Dre The Truth. Sounds like a worthy successor to the traditional Maddenoliday, more than enough to hold us until they add the word Madden to the front of some new festive term.
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Electronic Arts Inc today unveiled the music track listing for Madden NFL 09, set to release August 12, 2008. The new soundtrack features 26 songs from a multi-genre roster of superstar acts and soon-to-breakthrough artists, including Franz Ferdinand, Good Charlotte, Airbourne, From First To Last, The All-American Rejects, Rev Theory, K'Naan, and Kidz In The Hall.
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So what's new in Madden NFL 09 that would make you want to buy it over the previous iteration? The 20th anniversary of the franchise brings lots of new features and Madden moments.
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Are you ready for some football? Madden NFL 09, the first ever sports game that adapts to you, has gone gold and will be available nationwide on August 12, 2008. Every year, it's the hottest item of the summer for sports fans and this year Madden NFL 09 delivers a whole host of new features in the 20th anniversary of the award-winning and best-selling franchise.
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Sports video games are a huge business -- and for many years, it was an extremely competitive space. I remember a few years back trying to wade through half a dozen different baseball video game titles to figure out which one was worth buying. However, a few years back, video game giant EA started signing "exclusive" deals with a variety of sporting leagues, including the NFL. These "exclusive" deals supposedly meant that only EA could produce games with the names and stats of real players -- a huge selling point among most fans. And, of course, in gaining exclusivity, EA has completely cashed in. However, a bunch of angry video gamers are now suing the company for anticompetitive conduct, noting that these exclusive deals killed off all the competition, allowing EA to drastically raise its prices.
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Electronic Arts has been hit with a lawsuit for what the plaintiffs describe as the publisher's "blatantly anticompetitive conduct" in the football gaming genre.

According to the San Jose Business Journal, EA's move to tie up exclusive licenses with US football associations for games based on the sport is at the heart of the case.

The plaintiffs point out that competition from rival publisher Take-Two, which sold more than ...

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How has Madden NFL's visuals improved over the course of a year? Electronic Arts released a comparison video showing the visual differences between Madden NFL 08 and the upcoming Madden NFL 09. See screenshots and a video.
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On Friday, May 16th, over 30 NFL rookies gathered in the Arcadia Ballroom at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel for the EA Sports 2008 Rookie Madden Bowl. The second annual Rookie Madden Bowl brought together top NFL rookies to compete on Madden NFL 08 to see who would be crowned the 2008 EA Sports Rookie Madden Bowl Champion. The eight-man tournament included New England Patriots quarterback Kevin O'Connell, Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brian Brohm, Washington Redskins wide receiver Devin Thomas, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall, New York Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham and Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Dexter Jackson. Devin Thomas came out victorious, proudly taking home the 2008 Rookie Madden Bowl trophy.
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While speculation might suggest Eli Manning or Adrian Peterson, EA has gone with longtime Packers star Brett Favre. The announcement is expected tonight on Letterman.

According to the Facebook site for Madden NFL 09, the cover athlete is expected to be announced on April 25. Moreover, a quick check of the CBS schedule for Late Show with David Letterman shows that Favre is going to appear as one of Dave's guests tonight (April 24). For the past few years, EA has used late-night shows to announce the Madden cover. Last year Jimmy Kimmel's show was used to announce Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young for Madden 08.
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Steve Wysowski from XboxFocus.com writes:

"Even though I hate the players that perform them (T.O., I'm looking at you) I have to admit, seeing a good TD celebration in an NFL game always brings a smile. Well for those love them like myself, you're in for a treat. According to the Gamespot blog, the upcoming Madden 2009, players will be able to control their players after touchdowns to create their own dance routines and celebration. While it's not much of an addition, and information hasn't been released in regards to the actual controls the feature will possess, it is something to look foward to. Let's hope Madden 2009 will bring improvements to the gameplay we really care about though: the game played on the field."
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