Madden 26 review: "The finest entry in a decade by some margin"

They finally fixed franchise. EA. Finally. Fixed. Franchise. Long before the advent of Ultimate Team, the majesty of Madden was being able to control a single team and steer it to Super Bowl glory. In the noughties, it was the series' marquee mode. However, for the last decade, it's been an afterthought. That changes with Madden 26. A wealth of welcome improvements finally render franchise mode essential again – and you're going to play it until the real season's end, and beyond.

The first major step forwards comes in presentation. We hyped the new half-time show in our Madden 26 preview, and it's exactly as hoped, triumphantly emulating the iconic ESPN NFL 2K5 highlights package. Scott Hanson provides key plays from three matches around the league, and repeats the trick in a post-game round up. It's beautifully presented, and fleshes out the world around you – sparking intrigue in your rivals' results, from Week 1 all the way through to January's play-off games. The tiny details raise a smile, too. I had no idea Andrei Iosivas was nicknamed 'Yoshi' until Hanson dropped this trivia nugget to accompany a Cincinnati touchdown.

It's not only highlights that keep you hooked week-to-week. Madden 26's four new broadcast packages are outstanding. Sunday afternoon games get a basic all-white feel, while the energy and effects get switched up for Thursday, Sunday, and Monday Prime Time match-ups. Throw in progressive lighting – both in-game [for late-afternoon matches – let's hope it's patched for 1pm fixtures soon] and across the season, with sunny August games turning into dim December ones – and the sense of a real-life campaign unfolding is strong. As the Bears, I loved advancing from sunny Soldier Field afternoons to wintry snow games, with a particularly electric atmosphere in a key Monday-nighter against the Lions. Three commentary combos enhance that variety further.

Lock and loadout

If these upgrades sound passive, rest assured that a. They don't feel that way, and b. There's plenty to keep your brain engaged in-between matches. DIY player upgrades based on XP earned in-game are a sublime touch, enabling you to mold individuals in your image. I've enjoyed having Caleb Williams at QB but don't scramble much, so enhancing his pocket presence is gradually paying off. If that sounds too complex, get the AI to do the upgrading.

Similarly ingenious is your weekly loadout, customizing tactics for each opponent, and even adding temporary playsheets to your armor. I felt quick passes out wide might work against the Lions' aggressive D, so dialled up a Screen-based playsheet on my loadout – and Rome Odunze took one to the house on the second play from scrimmage. It felt unique, and spectacular.

There's more. Loads more. The Wear & Tear system we loved in our College Football 26 review debuts in its sibling game, and keeps you monitoring players' health at all times – aided by the ability to quickly sub in at the line. EA needs to patch fatigue build-up across a season, with key players struggling in weeks 16 and 17, but overall it's an upgrade.

Coaching trees are out and replaced by archetypes. Improve your stats – and your co-ordinators' – to unlock new skills, and other abilities for those weekly loadouts. Scouts are more intelligent at unearthing draft talent. Pre-snap coach suggestions on both offence and defense fit well with a team's real-life ethos, and generally match the current game situation. It's all great. A total transformation for a mode that long ago lost its way.

Critically, these franchise upgrades deliver because gameplay is much-improved too. The fun of College Football 26 isn't quite emulated, but that's in part because of the differences between pro and amateur ball. This is an official NFL product, so packing it with endless RPOs and gadget plays would be inauthentic. But between the tackles it's solid, with a stellar running game, explosive passing plays, and competent defense too – although videogame football is always likely to be higher scoring than authentic Gridiron.

Much of the high-scoring comes through Madden 26 QB Traits. New throwing motions, running animations, and individual characteristics mean Mahomes, Allen, Jackson, Rodgers and so on really do feel special. Everything is also a touch quicker and snappier – whether it's an RB making a swift cut through a gap in the line, or an edge rusher evading his opponent to pressure the QB. Tacklers understand context better, trying to hold the ball carrier back from the line of gain, or end zone. WRs make acrobatic, intelligent tip-toeing catches. Blockers… well, blocking is always going to be fallible, but I've had fewer egregious 'WFT dude!' moments from my O-line thus far than in the early days of Madden 25.

Short-cardage situation

While Ultimate Team might be a pair of dirty words to some, it's really likeable in Madden 26. As ever, that comes with our caveat not to spend real money, as it encourages publishers to focus on pack-opening modes (to the point that MyFaction is ruining WWE 2K25, six months after a wonderfully positive release) – and all your progress will start over in a year's time anyway. Plus the fun is surely in the grind and the earning of new packs and cards, rather than using pay-to-win shortcuts. Right? Hmmmm. Don't make that face.

Away from a marketplace packed with cash-shedding temptations, MUT is super intuitive and easy to sink hours into. Challenges break up the need for real matches, and can be breezed through without jumping back into menu screens – please take note, EA FC 26 – in order to hoover up coins and packs. A transformative addition is seeing how each card compares to your current line-up as soon as you earn it, from whence a tap of R2 installs it into your starting roster. Clever. There's a new single-player element called Solo Champions too, for those keen to avoid the endless deep passes that mar online contests.

Indeed, there's so much to enjoy in the base game that splashing cash just feels unnecessary, and a little grotesque. You won't play Superstar mode for as long as franchise, but fleshing out the folks in your 'Sphere of Influence' – from your agent, to tattoo artists – adds a neat off-field wrinkle, where every decision has a degree of consequence. Even exhibition games offer myriad variety, with sliders delivering near-limitless customisation, and weather effects so well-implemented that those aforementioned snow games make completing one intermediate pass feel triumphant. It's going to get stick – because it's EA, and it's the NFL, and those Premium Pass unlocks in MUT are a little naughty – but Madden 26 is, by some margin, the series' finest entry in over a decade.

Check out our best sports games if you fancy more plays!