EA has responded to the outburst of complaints against the "inferior" PlayStation 3 version of Madden 08, the most prominent of which came from USA Today, who called the PS3 version "sluggish in comparison" to the Xbox 360 equivalent.

"It was out [sic] intent to put out the best possible with Madden across 10 platforms," said an EA technical team member in a statement.

"In the case of the next-generation consoles, many publishers have been developing titles for the Xbox 360 for over 3 1/2 years while everyone who publishes now for the PlayStation 3 with the exception of Sony has been developing for the PlayStation 3 for only a little over one full year."

The differences in the overall knowledge of hardware is "vastly different" for both consoles, the statement continues, "and, as is the case with newer technology, it is very difficult to get it right the first time." Sounds like a fair statement to us.

The USA Today review of Madden tore into the "sluggish" PS3 version, complaining that "action stutters far too often, particularly on injuries, penalties and turnovers. There's also a half-second delay between pressing the hike button and receiving the ball in your hands. Even close-ups between play look dull when lined up against the 360's sleeker cut scenes."

Two years extra hardware experience is bound to provide a more solid framerate on the Xbox 360 version, but it isn't really an excuse for stuttering and pauses on PS3, is it?

August 15, 2007