GamesRadar - PS2 News

Madagascar holds no.1 (Madagascar)

Aug 9, 2005

Official ELSPA Entertainment Top 20 Software Chart (all prices) - week ending 6 August1 (2) Madagascar(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, PC, GBA, DS)2 (5) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory(PS2, Xbox, PC)3 (1) Brian Lara International Cricket 2005(PS2, Xbox, PC)4 (3) Fantastic 4(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, PC, GBA)5 (6) Destroy All Humans(PS2, Xbox)6 (4) Medal of Honor European Assault(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube)7 (7) Cricket 2005(PS2, Xbox, PC)8 (10) Lego Star Wars(PS2, Xbox, PC, GBA)9 (8) Juiced(PS2, Xbox, PC)10 (9) ...

Madagascar holds no.1 (Madagascar)

Jul 27, 2005

Official ELSPA Entertainment Top 20 Software Chart (all prices) - week ending 23 July1 (1) Madagascar(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, PC, GBA, DS)2 (NE) Brian Lara International Cricket 2005(PS2, Xbox, PC)3 (8) Fantastic 4(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, PC, GBA)4 (4) Medal of Honor European Assault(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube)5 (2) Destroy All Humans(PS2, Xbox)6 (6) Cricket 2005(PS2, Xbox, PC)7 (3) Juiced(PS2, Xbox, PC)8 (7) Grand Theft Auto San Andreas(PS2, Xbox, PC)9 (9) Lego Star Wars(PS2, Xbox, PC, GBA)10 (5) God of ...

Madagascar migrates to the top (Madagascar)

Jul 19, 2005

Official ELSPA Entertainment Top 20 Software Chart (all prices) - week ending 16 July1 (6) Madagascar(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube)2 (3) Destroy All Humans(PS2, Xbox)3 (1) Juiced(PS2, Xbox, PC)4 (2) Medal of Honor European Assault(PS2, Xbox, PC)5 (5) God Of War (PS2)6 (4) Cricket 2005(PS2, Xbox, PC)7 (7) Grand Theft Auto San Andreas(PS2, PC, Xbox)8 (NE) Fantastic 4(PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, GBA)9 (8) Lego Star Wars(PS2, Xbox, PC, GBA)10 (9) Star Wars Episode III Revenge of the Sith (PS2, Xbox, PC, GBA, ...

Economist: EA's Madden Monopoly Cost Gamers Up To $926 Million (Madden NFL 06)

Jul 15, 2009

The high-profile court case against EA Sport's "monopoly" in the NFL market took an interesting turn this week, with an economist brought in to show how much the demise of 2K's competing NFL franchise has cost sports gamers.

Despite admitting his report is based on incomplete data, University of Michigan economics professor Dr. Jeffrey Mackie-Mason has told the the U.S. District Court in San Francisco that EA's domination of the NFL video games market has cost gamers between $701 million and $926 million since 2K's NFL2K series was blocked from competing with EA.

Federal Judge: Madden Monopoly Suit May Proceed Against EA (Madden NFL 06)

Jun 10, 2009

EA had previously requested that Judge Vaughn Walker dismiss claims by Geoffrey Pecover and Jeffrey Lawrence. The two Madden buyers, serving as named plaintiffs in the class-action suit, alleged that by eliminating competition for NFL-licensed games EA had acted in a monopolistic fashion and unjustly enriched itself at the expense of consumers. On Friday Judge Walker issued a ruling denying EA's motion. The Judge did, however, rule that only claims in California and Washington, D.C. would go forward since that is where the two named plaintiffs in the case reside.

Video Gamers Sue EA Over Exclusive Sports Games (Madden NFL 06)

Jun 16, 2008

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.

'Voice of God' heir battles NFL Films over Madden program (Madden NFL 06)

Jun 9, 2008

If you're a football fan, you've surely heard the voice of the late John Facenda. Facenda, a beloved Philadelphia newscaster from 1948-1973, gained national recognition for his voice-over work with NFL Films in the latter part of his career.

However, a lawsuit filed by Facenda's son alleges that the NFL allowed Electronic Arts to use the announcer's voice to promote Madden 2006 in violation of a contract Facenda signed before his death.

EA chops online for 06 games (Madden NFL 06)

Aug 3, 2007

If you never see the point of buying every yearly update of EA's sports titles, EA's about to give you one: from September 1 it will begin shutting down the online servers for most of its 2006-edition sports titles. As of that date, the online gameplay options on games like FIFA World Cup 2006, NBA Live 06, Madden 06 and Tiger Woods 06 will be rendered useless on all formats including PC. This means you'll have to purchase the newer editions of the games to continue the fight via the web, or ...

Economist: EA's Madden Monopoly Cost Gamers Up To $926 Million (Madden NFL 07)

Jul 15, 2009

Federal Judge: Madden Monopoly Suit May Proceed Against EA (Madden NFL 07)

Jun 10, 2009

Video Gamers Sue EA Over Exclusive Sports Games (Madden NFL 07)

Jun 16, 2008

GTA Rules NPD All-Time U.S. Top 10 (Madden NFL 07)

Jun 5, 2008

Next-Gen.Biz writes: "The NPD Group has revealed the top 10 selling games of all time in the U.S. market.

Forbes reported earlier this week NPD Group's up-to-date top ten U.S. videogame sales figures by units, revealing a list dominated by the Grand Theft Auto and Madden NFL franchises.

As seen below, GTA: San Andreas from 2004 is the top-selling game in the U.S. with 9.43 million units sold. The franchise shows up on the top 10 three times, while Madden appears four times.

Activision had two 2007 titles already break the top 10 (Guitar Hero III and Call of Duty 4), while EA had one 2007 title on the list in the form of Madden NFL 08."

EA launches music label (Madden NFL 07)

Mar 27, 2007

Music has been a focal point of many of EA's titles for years, and now the publishing giant has gone a step further by forming its own music label. In a joint venture with Nettwerk One Music, the new LA-based Artwerk record label will sign both new and established artists, the first of which will be Junkie XL, who worked on music for Madden, SSX Blur and Need for Speed Carbon games. EA will use its games as a worldwide marketing tool to promote its artists. "For the past five years, EA has ...

Could EA buy 2k Sports? (Madden NFL 07)

Feb 19, 2007

Electronic Arts would be wise to buy 2K Sports, or so says industry analyst Michael Pachter for Wedbush Morgan Securities. The suggestion came amid the move from Wedbush downgrading Take-Two Interactive's stock from "hold" to "sell" Friday. Take-Two Interactive owns 2K Sports as a subsiderary.

"It is clear to us that Take-Two's sports business would have tremendous value to EA, as it would give EA a monopoly on football, basketball, baseball, and hockey," Pachter said. His analysis concluded that EA might purchase 2K Sports for as much as $200 million dollars, but he noted, "It is arguable that EA would benefit by as much as $1 billion if it were to obtain an exclusive; this does not mean that it is willing to pay $1 billion."

Latest Famitsu Review Scores (Madden NFL 07)

Dec 13, 2006

Here is the list of the latest review scores from Famitsu.

The complete list:

Motorstorm (PS3, Sony): 8 / 8 / 8 / 6 - (30/40)
Sonic The Hedgehog (PS3, Sega): 8 / 7 / 7 / 7 - (29/40)
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Xbox 360, Capcom): 9 / 9 / 9 / 9 - (36/40)
Sonic The Hedgehog (Xbox 360, Sega): 8 / 7 / 7 / 8 - (30/40)
Seiken Densetsu 4 (PS2, Square Enix): 7 / 8 / 8 / 7 - (30/40)
Madden NFL 07 (PS2, EA): 7 / 8 / 7 / 5 - (27/40)
Monster 4X4: World Circuit (Wii, Ubisoft): 7 / 6 / 7 / 8 - (28/40)
A Ressha de Ikou HX (Xbox 360, Artdink): 7 / 6 / 7 / 7 - (27/40)
Metal Gear Portable Ops (PSP, Konami): 9 / 10 / 9 / 9 - (37/40)
Tales of The World: Radiant Mythology (PSP, Bandai Namco): 8 / 7 / 8 / 7 - (30/40)
Nounai Aesthe: IQ Suppli DS (NDS, Spike): 7 / 7 / 6 / 6 - (26/40)
Heisei Kyouiku Iinkai DS (NDS, Bandai Namco): 6 / 9 / 7 / 6 - (28/40)
Need for Speed Carbon (PS2, EA): 8 / 8 / 7 / 7 - (30/40)
Need for Speed Carbon (PS3/Xbox 360, EA): 9 / 9 / 8 / 8 - (34/40)
Need for Speed Carbon (Wii, EA): 8 / 7 / 6 / 7 - (28/40)
Need for Speed Carbon (PSP, EA): 8 / 8 / 7 / 8 - (31/40)
School Love! (PS2, Views): 6 / 6 / 6 / 6 - (24/40)
Intelligent License 2 (PSP, Now Production): 7 / 9 / 7 / 8 - (31/40)
NBA Live 07 (PSP, EA): 7 / 8 / 7 / 7 - (29/40)
Hamster to Kurasou (NDS, Interchannel): 6 / 6 / 5 / 5 - (22/40)

Fan-fueled extras for Madden 07 (Madden NFL 07)

Jul 14, 2006

The lone NFL juggernaut Madden NFL 07 is stiff-arming its way into retail end-zones next month with a Hall of Fame edition for the PS2 and Xbox 360. This special version of gridiron legend John Madden's eponymous game will include a trove of exclusive ESPN footage. A career retrospective of his days at the helm of the Oakland Raiders will be included in addition to an extended highlight reel of his most famous calls from the broadcast booth. Exclusive to the PS2 Hall of Fame version, footage ...

Economist: EA's Madden Monopoly Cost Gamers Up To $926 Million (Madden NFL 08)

Jul 15, 2009

Federal Judge: Madden Monopoly Suit May Proceed Against EA (Madden NFL 08)

Jun 10, 2009

$28 Million NFLPA Verdict Reveals Details of EA's Madden Monopoly (Madden NFL 08)

Nov 18, 2008

GamePolitics writes: "I've been complaining (some might say whining) since 2005 that EA's exclusive arrangement with the NFL is, at best, a bad deal for gamers.

At worst, it's a monopoly.

Ultimately, the Federal Trade Commission, looked at the Madden issue in relation to EA's merger dance with Take-Two Interactive. But, inasmuch as the FTC pre-approved the EA-T2 deal, its regulators apparently came down against the monopoly view."

Video Gamers Sue EA Over Exclusive Sports Games (Madden NFL 08)

Jun 16, 2008