Madden keeping EA rich in '06
EA's Madden NFL 07 is the year's top money-maker, accounting for more than five millions units sold across ten platforms since its release in August. The cult of Madden would not let poor Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 showings disgrace its beloved franchise, blindly shelling out for the lackluster efforts, which failed to best the deeper (and cheaper) PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions.
But Madden's success does not depend on rapidly evolving gameplay. Seventeen years in the football sim business has taught EA that to follow success's formula one must simply eliminate competition (i.e., own exclusive NFL gaming rights) and update rosters.
