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Details on the final regular season roster update for Madden NFL 20
EA Sports has released the last roster update for Madden NFL 20 of the regular season. The weekly updates will continue but primarily reflect performances from the teams in the postseason until the final update of the Madden 20 campaign which will follow the Super Bowl.
The record-breaking season for Michael Thomas has moved him into the 99 Club. Thomas began the season at 95 Overall but didn’t begin moving up until week 9. He has taken the place of DeAndre Hopkins who fell from 99 to 98 Overall in this update.
Other notables on the move include Lamar Jackson (+1 to 93), Keenan Allen (+1 to 92), Amari Cooper (-1 to 91), Chandler Jones (+2 to 89), Aaron Rodgers (-1 to 89), Za’Darius Smith (+2 to 88), Mark Andrews (+1 to 84), Melvin Gordon (-1 to 84), Philip Rivers (-1 to 84), Carson Wentz (+1 to 83) and Kirk Cousins (-1 to 82). Check out the complete spreadsheet on the official website for the current ratings and all changes across the league.
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The Best Sports Games of the Decade
A decade that saw the sports video game genre shrink and evolve into primarily digital revenue generators is coming to a close. Plenty of debate could be had on what games deserve recognition for having been among the best of the 2010-2019 stretch.
Certainly several entries in the NBA 2K, FIFA, PES and MLB The Show franchises could easily be justified at or near the top of the rankings. Others like Madden NFL 17, Super Mega Baseball and Out of the Park Baseball could have made any list.
In the Press Row Podcast episode last month we went down our picks for the top five sports video games of the decade. Now on Sporting News you can read through the justification for each selection on my list.
The criteria involved which games were the most complete and out-of the-box ready, received strong support after release, influenced other games to come with innovations, and were especially high on fun-factor. The final selections ended up being MLB 13 The Show, NCAA Football 14, 2010 FIFA World Cup, Rocket League, and NBA 2K16.
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The Line Drive for December 22
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦Register to participate in the upcoming closed beta being held for MLB The Show 20.
♦Ratings changes made in the latest roster update released for Madden NFL 20.
♦Drew Brees went up 6 points to 99 for just this week after his record setting game.
♦Details on the Zero Chill program for Ultimate Team underway in Madden NFL 20.
♦2K Sports released another roster update with ratings changes for NBA 2K20.
♦Luka Doncic continues meteoric rise getting another 3 points and now is 96 Overall.
♦More work being done improving connectivity and responsiveness online in FIFA 20.
♦Details on a major patch that recently released for the troubled WWE 2K20.
♦Details on a very minor patch that recently released for MLB The Show 19.
♦Big Ant released the PC tools to begin work on creations for upcoming AO Tennis 2.
♦Out of the Park Baseball 20 is currently on sale at an all-time low of just $5.
♦Also on sale is Franchise Hockey Manager 6 for 50% off now down to $20.
♦PlayStation Store holiday sale includes a number of sports games among game deals.
♦Sony revealed a new back button controller attachment for PS4 DualShock controllers.
♦Releasing digital video this week are The Addams Family and Zombieland Double Tap. -
The Line Drive for December 15
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦MLB The Show going multi-platform will end drought on Xbox and Nintendo.
♦Just two years ago the official MLB The Show Twitter said this would never happen.
♦Details on the ratings changes in the latest roster update for Madden NFL 20.
♦PES 2020 is now one of the games included with Xbox Game Pass subscription.
♦2K Sports released vague details on a minor patch that went out for NBA 2K20.
♦2K Sports has added some new songs to the soundtrack for NBA 2K20.
♦Details on the FUTMAS program coming to Ultimate Team in FIFA 20.
♦New Battle Royale mode as 72 cars compete has been added to Forza Horizon 4.
♦Football Manager 2020 Touch has released on Nintendo Switch at $40 price.
♦Nintendo announced Sports Story for Switch as successor to the popular Golf Story.
♦EA Sports announced Fight Night Round 4 servers will be closed on March 9th.
♦Microsoft revealed the official name and design for the coming Xbox Series X.
♦While not as cheap as earlier some deals on NBA 2K20 and FIFA 20 at Amazon.
♦Digital deals on many PS4 titles are available to celebrate The Game Awards.
♦Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled (?) won Best Sports/Racing at The Game Awards.
♦Blu-ray releases this week headlined by Abominable and Ad Astra. -
New patch delivers significant playbook update and more for Madden NFL 20
EA Sports has released another patch for Madden NFL 20 with this one providing notable additions to playbooks and changes to Superstar X-Factor players. Read more
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MLB The Show expanding to other consoles beginning in 2021
In an extremely unusual late night announcement Major League Baseball has made massive gaming news as Sony’s MLB The Show series is going multi-platform beginning in 2021.
Based on reaction already made publicly by Microsoft and Nintendo it seems it’ll will make its way onto Xbox and Switch and likely PC too with the release of MLB The Show 21. Read more
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Limited free-to-play version of Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 now available
For a fifth straight year Konami is offering a free slimmed down version of Pro Evolution Soccer on consoles and PC. The F2P editions have generally included a few teams for exhibition matches, the training mode, and either MyClub team building mode or PES League which acts as the online competitive mode.
PES 2020 Lite can now be downloaded on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam for PC. Available in this version of the game are offline exhibition matches, training mode, edit mode and online MyClub, Matchday, and eFootball. 13 clubs are included: FC Barcelona, Manchester United, FC Bayern, Juventus, Arsenal, Palmeiras, Flamengo, São Paulo, Corinthians, Vasco da Gama, Boca Juniors, River Plate, Colo-Colo.
PES 2020 LITE maintains the high-quality, authentic gameplay of the full game whilst expanding its audience to those who are yet to experience the latest game. PES 2020 LITE boasts all the full version’s gameplay improvements, such as Spanish midfielder Andrés Iniesta’s ‘Finesse Dribble’ technique, alongside the beautiful, industry-leading graphics that keep players immersed in the action.
Players will be able to participate in myClub and Matchday, as well as play real-time online matches against owners of the full version. Players will be able to enter time-limited competitive events and enjoy some of the very best high-intensity esports gameplay.
The full version of PES 2019 is currently available for those with an Xbox Game Pass subscription. PES 2020 could follow soon given that last year’s game was added to the service right around this time in December.
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The Line Drive for December 8
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦All the ratings changes made in a new roster update out for NBA 2K20.
♦Details on the changes made to Salary Cap mode with update for Madden NFL 20.
♦Details on the latest patch with numerous adjustments made for FIFA 20.
♦Details on the latest patch with gameplay changes and more out now for NHL 20.
♦For some reason Snoop Dogg has been added as a commentator in NHL 20.
♦Sony will make reveals including new games at State of Play event Tuesday morn.
♦The Game Awards broadcast airs Thursday night through multiple streaming platforms.
♦Not as cheap as Black Friday but NBA 2K20 currently sits at $40 through Amazon.
♦The free edition of PES 2020 has been announced to release next week.
♦Konami has released paid DLC for seven different clubs in Pro Evolution Soccer 2020.
♦Latest patch includes upgrades to stadiums and player faces out now for PES 2020.
♦Not as cheap as Black Friday but PES 2020 currently sits at $36 through Amazon.
♦IGN posted extended video featuring gameplay footage from the upcoming AO Tennis 2.
♦Details on the latest patch released with multiple fixes for Football Manager 2020.
♦Sequel to the 90’s arcade game Wrestlefest is coming to consoles in 2020.
♦Blu-ray releases this week Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and It: Chapter Two.
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