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Will There Be A Madden Game Next Year?
Football might be the most popular sport in America, but that doesn't mean the NFL players and owners aren't arguing over money. How does this affect Madden NFL 12 and beyond?
When the NFL owners opted out of the current collective bargaining agreement with the NFL player's union in 2008, it set the stage for a showdown between the two that is still unresolved. Owners want a rookie wage scale and in general feel that too much of their money is going towards the players. The player's union, meanwhile, wants the owners to open their books to prove that they're as financially hard-up as they claim, and are also resisting a rookie wage scale. The upshot is that there is no salary cap for teams this year, and should the situation continue into next season, the owners have said they'd lockout the players and instead field a bunch of replacement players.
This could have a big effect on Madden NFL 12 and possibly beyond. After all, one of the strengths of the series is its official license with both the league and the players – which goes through 2012. We talked to Rob Semsey, director of public relations at Madden developer EA Tiburon, who told us in a statement: "We are working hard with out NFL and NFLPA partners to develop contingency plans so that we may continue to enable fans to enjoy interactive NFL experiences during any lockout."
Semsey declined to elaborate on EA's contingency plans, but it seems like not putting out a Madden game is at the bottom of the company's list. Would the rosters remain static? Would that year's rookies be allowed in the game? Would the NFL prefer that a game didn't come out in a season marred with such strife? If there were replacement players, would EA Tiburon try to put them in the game? Would this affect Madden NFL 12's release date? In some ways, Madden NFL 11 is already dealing with the league's owner/labor problems by letting gamers currently play without a salary cap, but this is a situation that could clearly be dangerous for all sides involved, including us.
