2008 Kids’ Choice Awards [Nickelodeon]

Further driving the Latino appeal home is new cover athlete Luis Castillo of the San Diego Chargers, pictured prancing about above.

No information on whether perfect translations for Maddenisms like “Boom!”, “Where’d that truck come from?!” or “That was a perfect pass” but we’ll know for sure when Madden NFL 08 en Español ships to North and Latin America later this year on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360.

Alright, let’s get that conversation going, folks.

Most Grade I or Grade II strains begin to feel better within a few days. In most cases, symptoms are either totally gone, or very much improved, within 8 to 10 weeks. Symptoms of a Grade III strain may last until the torn muscle is repaired surgically.

A little more research suggested 10 days as a minimum for recovery, so at the very least Young will miss one game. Perhaps next year players will finally wise up and the Madden cover will just have a picture of a football on it, causing footballs everywhere to explode.

Young leaves Titans loss to Bucs with strained quadriceps [Yahoo! Sports - Thanks Brandon]

Annnnnyway, I did manage to throw the games producer, David Ortiz, off his game for a second when I suggested that maybe it’s time for Electronic Arts to turn Madden into an episodic game. They could just keep a general build available on shelves for people who don’t own the game and then every year sell a huge downloadable pack that adds in a bit of gameplay and new elements for the franchise. Every three to five years they could sell a new in-store version with a different engine or major overhaul. It’s essentially what EA seems to be doing already, but for the full price.

Ortiz wasn’t exactly clear with his answer to the question.

“That’s something we may explore in the future . . . or maybe we won’t,” he said. “What’s important to us is having enough time to deliver something relevant to our fan base. Right now we tie in nicely with the football season. It kinda works out nice. In addition, it gives us enough time to devote to coming up with these innovative ideas.”

So I guess $60 a pop retail games win out over $20 to $30 episodic versions every time.

Power game [Rocky Mountain News]

Apple stock was up 5.01 (4.28%) on news that probably had nothing to do with this at all. Full press release after the jump.EA SHIPS FOUR GAMES FOR THE MAC

First EA-Published Titles Ever for Mac OS X

Redwood Shores, Calif., – August 17, 2007 – Electronic Arts Inc., (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced that Battlefield 2142TM, Need for SpeedTM Carbon, Harry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixTM and Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium WarsTM are now available to order for Mac users. These are the first games ever published by EA for Mac OS X, Apple’s advanced operating system. Users can go to the Apple Store (www.apple.com) to purchase the games today.

All games will also be available at Apple’s retail stores nationwide. Need for Speed Carbon and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be available on Tuesday, August 21, and Battlefield 2142 and Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars will be available on Tuesday, August 28.

The first games from EA for the Mac are:

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, licensed by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Harry’s fifth year at Hogwarts is shaping up to be his most exciting yet. Fearing that Hogwarts’ venerable Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, is lying about the return of Voldemort in order to undermine his power, Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge appoints a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher to keep watch over Dumbledore and the students. But Professor Dolores Umbridge’s ministry-approved course leaves the young wizards woefully unprepared, so Hermione, Ron and Harry form “Dumbledore’s Army” with the goal of preparing themselves and other courageous young wizards for the extraordinary battle that looms against VoldemortTM and his Death Eaters.

Need for Speed Carbon – What starts in the city is settled in the canyons as Need for Speed Carbon immerses you in the world’s most dangerous and adrenaline-filled form of street racing. You and your crew must race in an all-out war for the city, risking everything to take over your rivals’ neighbourhoods one block at a time. As the police turn up the heat, the battle ultimately shifts to Carbon Canyon, where territories and reputations can be lost on every perilous curve.

Battlefield 2142 – Earth, 2142. As a new ice age depletes the planet’s resources, two massive multinational coalitions wage a brutal war for the only cause that matters – survival. Armed with a devastating arsenal of futuristic weaponry and gear, including active camouflage, EMP grenades, and sentry guns, plus Battle Walkers and vast airborne bases called Titans, you must coordinate the efforts of your teammates to win the war for Earth’s last fragile pieces of livable land. With extensive improvements to the groundbreaking Battlefield 2TM ranking and upgrade system and the new Titan gameplay mode, Battlefield 2142 brings the franchise’s award-winning online warfare into a harsh and desperate future.

Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars – The year is 2047. A massive nuclear fireball explodes high in the night sky, marking the dramatic beginning of the Third Tiberium War and the long-awaited return of the most groundbreaking Real-Time Strategy franchise of all time. Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars unveils the future of RTS gaming by bringing you back to where it all began: the Tiberium Universe. With the corrupt substance Tiberium blanketing most of the Earth, the infamous Kane is back to lead his Brotherhood of Nod in a massive global assault on the Global Defense Initiative (GDI) and the few remaining livable Blue Zones left on the planet. Only you can stop him. Featuring state-of-the-art next-generation graphics, an epic story, and truly innovative features such as the ability to transform online battles into a spectator sport, Command & Conquer is about to reinvent RTS gaming … again. Welcome back, Commander.

Further rounding out EA’s portfolio of Mac games is the release of Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 08 and Madden NFL 08 in the September/October window.

In addition to these games, other EA titles available for Mac include The SimsTM 2, The Sims 2 Open for Business, The Sims 2 Pets, The Sims 2 Nightlife, The Sims 2 University, The Sims 2 Family Fun Stuff, The Sims 2 Seasons, The Sims 2 Life Stories and more.

Screenshots from the games can be found at http://www.info.ea.com.

Madden 2008 for the Xbox 360 has taken a huge leap in quality of generations of yore. Hit the jump for the full story in our Frankenreview: your life gifted back to you, from Kotaku. It’s that freaking efficient.
IGN
The biggest and most notable improvement this year is in the animation and tackling system. Gone are the majority of pre-canned animations. Just because you see Ray Lewis wrapping his meaty arms around Shaun Alexander doesn’t mean the same overused tackle animation is about to kick in. The new branching animation system works in tandem with some new, more realistic football physics…Depending on a player’s skill, positioning, and momentum, a large variety of animations become possible. The end result is some of the most varied tackling ever seen in a football game.

1UP
The new “weapons” feature has a two-pronged effect. First, these onfield icons make it supereasy to identify a team’s key players and their strengths. And more importantly, these classifications bring some much-needed variety to each position. So running the pigskin with elusive Saints running back Reggie Bush feels way different than using Chiefs power back Larry Johnson.

Gamespot
These new weapon designations even go beyond basic techniques…After a single play or coverage scheme has been called four times, a quarterback like Peyton Manning or Tom Brady can actually see exactly what the defence is going to do, whereas a smart defender can get a glimpse of where the offensive play is going to go.

Game Informer
Fans have lamented the drop in features in past Maddens, but 08 pulls things back up to speed with extensive scouting/draft options and pre-game training for improving players. Overall, there are more draft tools at your disposal – including being able to manually rearrange your entire draft board, although the process itself of scouting and drafting is a little cumbersome.

Sportable
Something that is a lot more difficult about this game is Superstar mode. In years past, your “Superstar” would collect achievements based on randomised genes from parents…Instead of a randomisation, you have to compete in several drills including the 40 yard dash, running back drills, catch and cover drills, and a bench press. If you don’t do well in the events, your ratings will take a definite hit.

It sounds like Xbox 360 owners have finally gotten their taste of a “next-gen” Madden title. Kudos to EA for getting it right…on the 360.

Sony v. Microsoft (With Helmets) [New York Times]

You’ve heard the excuses, now here’s the comparison. EA says the PS3 Madden looks cruddy compared to the Xbox 360 version, because the company has more experience developing 360 games. I say: This is proof why companies shouldn’t try to port games from the 360 to the PS3. If you are going to release two versions, then develop two totally separate versions! It’s that simple. And that expensive.

Thanks, Steven!