Post #3195158

Good morning, everyone. If you have not yet done so, I invite you to follow my new account: @Vol4life8657@mastodon.stickbear.me. I have reached a decision regarding a series I have produced for nearly ten years: The Daily Blitz. When this series began, its purpose was to help newcomers engage with Madden NFL. It prioritized accessibility and introduced new mechanics whenever possible. With the release of EA Sports College Football 25, the series broadened in scope—but this expansion has also brought certain complications. As some of you know, our financial circumstances have made it increasingly difficult to justify purchasing what is known as the MVP bundle. This bundle provides early access to both games, which is when I create my videos. Furthermore, EA has introduced an annual subscription that not only grants access to both games, but also includes beta access, enabling us to determine well in advance whether the games have made improvements in accessibility. Subscribers also receive early access four days before the official release. Another challenge is EA’s track record in sports games with respect to accessibility. I will attempt to be objective—not negative—when I say that their record is not strong. For example, when EA Sports released Madden 24, a patch disrupted the icon reading during pass throws. Although I reported the issue to EA, it was not resolved in Madden 25. In Madden 25, they also disabled the reading of categories in playbooks: formations, concepts, and other features did not read aloud. For instance, “By Formation” or “By Concept” would not be announced; the only way to navigate the concepts or formations was to select “Quick Pass” and then press the right bumper to scroll through concepts within that category. In College Football 25, a completely new kicking system was introduced that makes it nearly impossible to attempt extra points and field goals—essential components of American football. Currently, Madden 26 allows players to use the kicking system introduced in Madden 17. However, given EA’s track record, I fear this option may be removed in the future. Another issue appears in EA Sports College Football: between versions 25 and 26, playbooks only read one side. For example, if you are in Coach Suggestions, you hear only the first play; attempting to read additional plays results in an error message stating that the option is set to “undefined.” All of this leads to the following conclusion: unless I receive a substantial financial windfall or observe truly significant improvements, I will shelve the series for this year. Coziest Koala and I have loved producing it. We did not produce it last year because College Football 26 brought no meaningful improvements, and although Madden had some minor enhancements in reading elements, nothing in that category was groundbreaking. It has been a pleasure doing this series, and I am deeply grateful for all the encouragement and support over the years.