Two days ago Madden NFL 21 launched on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. To say the reception to Electronic Arts' newest edition of the annual franchise has been mixed would be an understatement. What is surprising, though, is that Madden NFL 21 players took two more days to take their frustrations to Twitter. Those Madden fans have launched the hashtag #NFLdropEA into the Global Trending list on Twitter this Sunday.
The goal of the trending hashtag should be apparent. Critics are asking the NFL to no longer offer Electronic Arts the exclusive use of NFL players in their games, the insinuation being that the quality of Madden games doesn't live up to what NFL fans want from such a football game. To argue their point, Madden players are sharing gifs recorded from Madden NFL 21's various bugs and technical issues, as well as similar issues from previous Madden games.
Unfortunately for those hoping for the NFL to drop EA's exclusivity, the two are currently early on in a lengthy contract. EA and the NFL signed a 5-year contract for exclusive rights just this year, lasting from 2021 through 2026. There's even an option for a sixth year depending on game sales. It cost EA $1.5 billion with $1 billion to the league and $500 million for players. EA probably makes that back with ease given Madden's always-impressive sales.
The Twitter trend isn't the only way that its critics are trying to make their frustrations with the Madden franchise known. Madden NFL 21 is being review bombed on Metacritic. The new game's User Score has already plummeted to just .4 out of 10, with 1177 ratings submitted. Many of the ratings are accompanied by reviews, with 835 reviews having a negative slant. 15 reviews are described as positive. Needless to say, there's a very angry minority of players making their voices heard.
And it needs to be repeated that while getting a hashtag trending globally is significant, it's still a minority of Madden players. Each annual Madden release tends to top the sales of its launch month and then goes on to perform very well all the way through the holiday season.
What's unclear is if the #NFLdropEA hashtag trending will lead to any sort of official comment. A review bomb is easy to dismiss, but a social media trend less so. The situation hearkens back to the Star Wars: Battlefront 2 controversy that provoked Disney to intervene behind the scenes. The action apparently played a role in EA making significant changes to Battlefront 2's monetization and progression schemes. The NFL doing something similar would be unprecedented given the popularity of the Madden franchise, but anything is possible.
Madden NFL 21 is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with plans for PS5, Stadia, and Xbox Series X support later this year.