Madden NFL 2004 - Strategy Guide (Page 04)

Below are the cheat codes, hints and help for Madden NFL 2004 - Strategy Guide (Page 04).

- Your pick is the same each round (unless you trade it away). You can have more
than 7 draft picks if you trade for them.

- Players are assorted by default according to "Projected Round."

- Projected Round is a rough rating of their abilities. Usually, the higher OVR
of the player is based on the Projected Round as well. There are some "hidden"
gems, and draft busts purposely included in the draft.

- All of the scout times and tests are displayed in columns after the Projected
Round. Press Y to sort them accordingly, so you can see who the best at each
category is. Right click the joystick to see your custom scouting report of each
player. If you did scout each player during the Scouting session, the notes and
details will be accurately displayed.

*After you select a player, a sound will play off based on how the crowd feels
on your pick. You'll hear a "Boo!", for bad picks (according to the fans),
clapping for a solid pick, and silence for a neutral pick. Don't listen to the
crowd though, you're the true manager.

<-> Contrary to last year's version, you CANNOT view any attributes of a drafted
player UNTIL you draft them. Thus, it's risky to sign every pick nowadays.

Sign Draft Picks
----------------------------
Once you're finished drafting the future phenoms of the NFL, it's time to make
your financial decisions. Madden 2003 allowed any player to view how their draft
pick was rated. This year's version is brilliant as you CANNOT see what their
ratings are until you sign them. Prepare for some risky transactions.

- Once you're finished drafting, you'll then move to a Sign Draft Picks screen.
Picks are signed much like any player to contracts based on TOTAL salary.

- Rookies can be purchased extremely cheap, so try to sign them for low prices
(200k-500k per year). Remember, rookies make huge progression only if they get
playing time and stats. Don't sign every rookie to 7 years if they're rated like
snobby backups.

- Keep signing bonuses to a minimum. While they're excellent incentive, rookies
simply don't "die" out after 4 years. Keep signing bonuses to a minimum, and
just keep the salaries straight.

*All attributes of a draft pick can be viewed after you sign them.

Free Agent Signing Period
----------------------------
Finally, one of the most influential periods in all of the off-season is the
ability to sign free agents. Free agents are basically players whose contracts
ran out, and the teams cut them due to personal, financial, or just silly
problems. The process works in a simple manner. The period lasts 30 days, in
which time you must offer contracts to various players around the league. In the
meantime, other NFL teams also offer contracts to these superstars. Thus, it's
almost like an interactive eBay auction. You're practically bidding on players,
at which point, they make a decision on which contract to accept.

All decisions are made by the end of the 30 day period. A message will notify
you if your current offer is declined, beaten by another team, or accepted by
the player.

- Free Agency can be very expensive for a team. Unlike rookies, most free agents
are veterans who have proven their worthiness in the field. Thus, expect to pay
a lot more rather than a simple minimum wage contract.

- Once you offer a contract to a player, you cannot pull it back.

- Free agents are normally sorted by their OVR rating. The CPU tends to offer
contracts based on OVR, rather than a specific SPD or what not. Most free agents
tend to enjoy lower contracts (1-2 years) unless they're an older veteran.

***** Cheap Way of Purchasing Veterans  (thanks to Bengal1985) *****

- In order to sign a veteran for a cheap price, make exclusive use of the
signing bonus feature.

- Offer any veteran a cheaper Total Salary Contract, for a longer amount of year
(4+).
-- However, increase the signing bonus to an outrageous amount (preferably 1.5M
or higher).
--- Once this is done, you'll notice that in the contract's detailing, it now
shows the signing bonus being added on to the LAST 2 years of his contract. This
means that you can get someone for a cheap price, because he'll retire before
the last 2 years of his contract. Here's an example:

Let's say we want to sign Kurt Warner. Unfortunately, his hefty cost requests
around 5.0M per year (since he has an awesome arm and AWR). Offer Warner a 4
year contract for 10.0M per year (2.5M per year). Now, add a signing bonus of
2.00M to the contract, and watch his eyes fluster. In case you didn't notice,
the last portion of his contract will drastically increase, meaning you'll only
have to pay the low 2.5M per year before he retires.

By the time Warner reaches the 3rd or 4th year of his contract, he'll probably
be retiring or out of his prime. This way, when he retires, you'll gain back the
extra 10.0M. This effectively allows you to get aging veterans near the end of
their prime, yet only have to pay about half the cost.

*****

 _______________
/The Big Finale/
----------------------------
Once you've accomplished all the tasks of an off-season, you should feel proud.
Effectively managing an off-season means that you bring in a balance of
experience veterans, phenom rookies, yet still manage to balance the salary cap.
All you have to do is:

- Reorder your depth charts for the preseason/new season
- Prepare for the following year

This procedure repeats for 30 seasons, so expect to get plenty of playing time
out of Madden 2004.

-<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>-

============================
- 8) Common Questions      -
============================

)) Troubleshooting ((
----------------------------

<< How do I know if I have a defective disk (only the X-BOX versions), and what
can I do about it? >>

- Unfortunately, there's a small defect in certain Madden disks for the X-BOX
console. The glitch is that you cannot import NCAA 2004 Draft Classes. Madden
2004 for some odd reason does not recognize the saved format on the hard-drive,
and you'll see a ?? if you try to import the draft classes at the end of the
season. To combat this, you must do the following. This is what most EA Tech
Support people say:

"Thank you for contacting us about Madden NFL 2004 for the Xbox. We are
aware of the problem relative to the importing a draft class from NCAA
Football 2004 for the Xbox and want to rectify this problem as soon as
possible. In order to do so, please send us page 43 & 44 from your
Madden NFL 2004 Xbox manual with your complete shipping address written
on this page. Send original, do not send a photo copy. After Labor
day, a new disc will be sent to the address on this page (it takes this
much time to manufacture replacement product). This new disc will
resolve the problem. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you
for your time and understanding."

Send to:

Warranty
Electronic Arts
209 Redwood Shores Parkway
Redwood City, CA 94065

*It usually takes 4-6 weeks to get your new copy, so wait patiently. DO NOT
assume your disk is defective unless you actually tried to import the features.
Most new copies of 2004 arrive in a sealed white envelope, no fancy box or EA
Sports case.

<< I really suck at Madden. How can I improve my skills? >>

- If anything, try the Football 101 mode first. That'll give you a basic
understanding of the game. Next, read my brief strategies section. It's
essential to utilize all new features of Madden 2004 - especially the Playmakers
feature. You will get dominated on certain difficulties by the offense, unless
you use the defensive Playmaker features.

)) Gameplay ((
----------------------------

<< What are some of the worst teams in the game? >>

- The definite, and most likely worst team in the game is the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears come in a close second.

<< Are there any key differences between the PS2 and X-BOX versions? What about
the Gamecube? >>

- First off, the X-BOX version and PS2 version have key differences. Only the
PS2 version has an exclusive online mode which can be played against other real-
time players. You can receive rankings, participate in tournaments, and just
kick bootay over the internet. Unfortunately, neither the X-BOX or Gamecube
versions have these features. Why? The X-BOX doesn't have it because of
conflicts between EA Sports and Microsoft not wanting to split profits. The
Gamecube simply wasn't involved in the matter.

- The X-BOX is graphically the best out of all versions, although the
differences are minute. Most include better framerates over the PS2 version, and
slightly better graphical effects on field (sun shining on a helmet).
Unfortunately, the X-BOX version seems more like a port, than an exclusive
title.

- The X-BOX version can save everything to the harddrive, meaning it's probably
the best choice for single player franchises. You don't have to worry about
pesky limited memory cards, and most saving times are extremely quick.
Unfortunately, the only downfall is whether or not you own a glitched copy of
the game.

<< Would you recommend this over ESPN NFL Football? >>

- Quite frankly, no. ESPN NFL Football, while a certain competitor of Madden
simply doesn't compare with franchise or online options. Gameplay is a tad more
realistic in Madden (as unbelievable as that sounds), and simulations simply
relate more realistically. Exclusively, the X-BOX version of ESPN NFL Football
is the very best, but probably not enough to slide over Madden 2004.

<< Why are my backups playing during the preseason? >>

- All starters are benched after the 1st quarter during preseason games. The CPU
automatically does this to avoid injury to your starters, and also give playing
time to backups. The preseason is basically the battle of the depth chart.

<< How do I get real college players into my NFL Draft? >>

- This can be a somewhat costy process, but is well worth the reward when
accomplished. Go out, and buy an Action Replay accessory for the X-BOX Console.
The Action Replay is similar to the Gameshark, as it allows you to hack games
with various codes. There's a small accessory wire included (a USB wire) that
connects to your computer. Plug it in, search the internet for pre-made draft
classes, and download them. Basically, you transfer the pre-made draft classes
onto a memory card, and then using the Action Replay, transfer the draft classes
onto the X-BOX harddrive. From there, you can use those draft classes which
include all real life college players.

<< What does it mean when a player status is HOLDOUT, and how do I fix it? >>

- Holdouts occur when players in the NFL decide that they're worth more than
their current contract, and want an improved deal over the previous one. In most
cases, popular/decently good players will hold out for more money if they had a
Pro-Bowl year, or simply are a rising talent. In Madden 2004, most Holdouts
occur after a player has a Pro-Bowl year, or increases in a large amount of OVR.
When a player decides to do so, they BECOME an inactive spot on your roster. To
fix this, go to the Re-Sign players menu under Rosters, and offer the player a
new contract. Expect to pay much more than you originally did. If you decide to
not fix their contract, the player will not PLAY during the entire season. Be
aware of your cap space before offering a new contrat.

<< What custom team names do the announcers say? >>

- Believe it or not, the announcers in Madden 2004 will actually say team names
that currently aren't in the NFL. PLEASE give credit to Joel Glenn
(jglenn@myfirstlink.net) for coming up with this extensive list, as it takes a
lot of effort to come up with these sorts of details. Teams with a * next to
them are NFL Europe, while the others are simply pure guesses.

Admirals*
Bandits (Al says ?)
Breakers
Bruisers
Bombers (Al says Viecho?)
Bulldogs
Bulls
Cavaliers
Centurions
Claymores*
Comets
Commandos
Copperheads
Cougars
Desperadoes
Dragons*
Fire*
Galaxy*
Generals
Green Wave
Hawks
Knights
Lightning
Marshals
Miners
Monsters
Mummies
Pioneers
Piranhas
Rhinos
Scorpions
Sharks
Sugar Buzz
Stallions
Stingers
Tigers
Thunder*
Warthogs
Wasps
Wildcats
Vipers
-<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>-

============================
- 9) Special Features      -
============================
 _____________
/Madden Cards/
----------------------------
One of the more memorable features in the past few years has been the Madden
Cards. Similar to collecting sports cards, Madden 2004 allows you to collect in-
game Madden cards which can be played as temporary boosts for your players.
Types range from skill boosters to in-game elements that affect how the game
plays out.

- You can access your own collection of Madden Cards by entering Gameplay
Settings. From there, click the Madden Cards tab, and explore.

- Cards are bought in packs, which cost 100 tokens. In case you didn't know,
you're rewarded tokens quite frequently throughout Madden. These tokens go onto
your profile, similar to cashing in a gift certificate. A pack consists of 15
cards, each which are completely random. Most cards range from bronze, silver,
to gold, and each have a stronger effect based on the medal. Historic teams,
special features, and game situations can be unlocked based on what you receive.

*If you want a detailed list, check out one of the in-depth Madden Cards FAQs.

 ______________
/EA Sports Bio/
----------------------------
A new way for gamers to keep track of their progress with all EA Sports games is
the EA Sports Bio. It's a practical way of seeing how much time we spend on
these addicting video games throughout our life. The Bio rewards the player for
spending more time with Madden by presenting cards, unlocking situations, and
simply enthralling the player.

- Your current EA Sports Bio level stays the same until you meet a certain time
requirement for the next.

- It keeps track of total EA Sports titles played.

- An exact time measure of playing time is kept track of (days, hours, minutes,
seconds).

- Additional accomplishments such as returning a touchdown on the defense, or
scoring a huge touchdown pass is jotted down. These can be viewed in the Product
Summary.
 ___________________
/Custom Soundtracks/
----------------------------
Finally, one of the rewards with the X-BOX version is that you can assign custom
soundtracks during Madden. Rather than listening to those rapper-hacked songs,
you can replace them with your own X-BOX saved music. By inserting a music CD,
and copying the tunes to your X-BOX harddrive, you can then reassign them into
Madden NFL 2004 as the background music.

- Songs can be turned on or off. In total, you have about 20 songs you can keep
active at one time.

- Songs from various soundtracks can be played, rather than just songs from one
soundtrack at a time.

- Tunes must be saved directly to the X-BOX harddrive, otherwise, you can only
listen to the default music.
 ________
/Sliders/
----------------------------
For the past few years now, the Madden series has included "exclusive" features
that allow the gamer to customize his/her own game. Players can now control how
well blocking schemes work, the accuracy of your quarterback, and even the rate
of interceptions. While sliders are partially tricky to get use to, their
benefits can help make Madden 2004 an even more realistic experience.

Here's a short list of each slider, and what it affects. Make the sliders to the
left if you want less of that effect, or to the right if you want more of that
effect. In the custom sliders section, +2 or a -3 for example means to move the
slider that many clicks from the default center. So if you saw, QB Accuracy
(+2), this means you should move the clicker to the right two spaces. Oh, and
sliders are set for both the CPU and Human players.

Offense
----------------------------
<>
- affects how close a thrown pass is to its intended target
<>
- affects how much protection you get in the pocket by your offensive linemen
<>
- affects how many dropped passes occur during a game, and whether a ball will
be catched automatically
<>
- affects the attributes of a runningback (higher will increase his speed,
agility, etc..., lower decreases them)
<>
- affects how far your linemen will push oncoming defenders, and pancake them

Defense
----------------------------
<>
- affects the mental reaction of each player on the field (whether to fall back
to cover, and how fast to react to a rushing play)
<>
- affects how many tipped, blocked, or incomplete passes during a game
<>
- affects the chance of intercepting the ball
<>
- affects the chance of breaking an offensive linemen's block
<>
- affects how well a player will tackle

Special Teams
----------------------------
<>
- affects the length of field goals (changes KPW)
<>
- affects the accuracy of field goals (changes KPA)
<>
- affects the length of punts (changes KPW)
<>
- affects the accuracy of punts (changes KPA)
<>
- affects the length of kickoffs (changes KPW)

----------------------------
CUSTOM SLIDERS
----------------------------

n/a - I'll post All-Pro and All-Madden sliders soon once I get permission.

-<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>-

======================================================
- 10) Copyright/Distribution/Reproduction Guidelines -
======================================================

This FAQ/Strategy Guide/Walkthrough is my own published work, and copyrighted by
Christopher Zawada. Whatever you do, DO NOT edit this FAQ in any way. DO NOT
steal anything from this FAQ. If you want to use some information in your own
guide, simply ask me. If you want to place this guide on your website, either
link to GameFAQs, or download the file and place it on your own web server.
Basically, you can post this on your website as long as its in ORIGINAL form,
and not linking directly to GameFAQs. Aside from that, all proper credit is due
when necessary. Also, don't even think about selling FAQs. Trying to prosper off
of other people's work will get you in big time trouble (coming from an eBay
seller myself).

============================
- 11) Proper Credit        -
============================

I'd like to thank the following people for their help in making this FAQ
possible:

)) EA Sports (( for producing a true gem in Madden NFL 2004. While you may not
be the biggest fans of the Microsoft X-BOX, at least you allowed us to play it
on our expansive system.

)) CJayC (( for constantly updating GameFAQs, and dedicating his entire life to
it. Takes a lot of effort to keep a site going this long.

)) Madden Mania Forums (( for teaching me the basics of Madden football back in
the day. I learned a ton of strategies, hidden information, and elements that
the typical gamer doesn't know.

)) GameFAQs Madden Boards (( for inspiring me to write this FAQ. Certain people
asked questions, and I hope this can answer them.

)) JLawson's Rookie Scouting FAQ (( for giving me permission to use his
extremely helpful rookie scouting ratings. You can check out his Rookie Scouting
FAQ as well on GameFAQs in the Madden 2004 section.

)) Bengals1985 (( for coming up with a truly innovative way of signing veterans
for "el cheapo" prices.

)) Joel Glenn - jglenn@myfirstlink.net - (( for coming up with the list of
custom team names said during the game. As strange as it sounds, our favorite
football announcers do pronounce teams currently not in the NFL.

)) FAQ Contributors Board (( for teaching me how to write guides both
diligently, and effectively.

*** Finally, I'd like to give a Shabooyah out to my Bengals, who had an amazing
year. Go Bengals! ***