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Placing odds on who will get the cover of Madden NFL 17
The cover athlete for Madden NFL 17 has been described as a “phenom” by EA Sports and will be announced on Thursday. Given that the company has specifically chosen the individual this year, instead of putting it to a fan vote as was the case with the previous six editions in the series, that in itself could provide a hint at who the player will be.
Cam Newton should still be considered the favorite, and with public opinion having turned against him following the Super Bowl that would be one explanation why EA may have felt it necessary to avoid the vote. Other possibilities would include recently retired legends or someone representing an inspirational story.
Check out the full list of primary candidates for the cover of Madden NFL 17, and the odds that I’ve placed on them, in the piece over on Sporting News today!
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Cover athlete announcement and first trailer for Madden NFL 17 coming later this week
For the first time since 2009 the cover of Madden will not be determined via fan vote. EA Sports has selected a cover athlete for Madden NFL 17 and the announcement will be made on the 6PM ET/3PM PT SportsCenter this Thursday, May 12.
The favorite for the cover would still be league MVP Cam Newton, which could explain why EA would pass on a cover vote as he’d be unlikely to win one given the backlash towards him since the Super Bowl. He’s also already lost the cover vote twice before. Von Miller is another possibility, but he would be a risky choice given past off-the-field issues and being just one drug test away from a full year-long suspension.
The first gameplay trailer for Madden 17 will also debut during the broadcast, however not much should be expected out of that besides probably some flashy highlights of the cover athlete in question. More substance will be coming in the lead-up to E3 next month. Madden NFL 17 will release on August 23 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.
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The Line Drive for May 8
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦Looking at the additional incoming rookies that have been added to Madden NFL 16.
♦Winners and losers coming out of the NFL Draft for Madden NFL 17.
♦Bryce Harper is now the third 99 Overall Rated player in MLB The Show 16.
♦EA Sports put out an infographic showing the rise in popularity of Leicester City in FIFA.
♦It looks like Forza 6 will be getting a Nascar expansion in the near future.
♦A fourth trailer with gameplay footage for Dangerous Golf has gone out.
♦The latest patch for NBA 2K16 that went out on PS4 has also now gone out on Xbox One.
♦The new issues created with the latest patch in MLB The Show 16 have yet to be fixed.
♦Rory McIlroy PGA Tour may be getting another new course as early as this week.
♦NBA Live 16 will be going into the EA Access Vault on May 25.
♦For the first time since 2009 this year’s Madden cover won’t be determined by vote.
♦Details on the fifth patch to have gone out for Out of the Park Baseball 17.
♦Amazon Prime members can still pre-order either edition of NBA 2K17 for 20% off.
♦Blu-ray releases this week are headlined by Deadpool. -
New pack in MLB The Show 16 celebrates the best players of April
The third special pack to release during the regular season is now available for a limited time in MLB The Show 16. For 3,000 Coins it contains six player cards with an “increased chance” at the top performers from April plus Gold and Diamond cards.
As with the first two packs it’s very questionable whether anyone should risk their coins on these given the nature of the supposed increased odds, not having the two item cards found in standard packs, and being three times the price. If this pack was priced more reasonably say around 2,000 it would probably be worth the gamble. However the smarter move likely remains buying more of the standard packs instead or just spending directly on cards in the Marketplace.
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MLB The Show 16 roster update shifts more player ratings
A second roster update this week for MLB The Show 16 went out earlier today and again includes some significant ratings changes.
Three players have moved up to 96 Overall. Nolan Arenado (+3), Jose Altuve (+2), and Manny Machado (+2).
Other notables include Ryan Braun (+4 to 90), Sonny Gray (-3 to 89), Dallas Keuchel (-3 to 88), Starling Marte (+2 to 88), Xander Bogaerts (+3 to 87), Taijuan Walker (+4 to 85), Adam Jones (-3 to 83), Gregory Polanco (+5 to 81), Kendrys Morales (-5 to 78), Corey Dickerson (-4 to 78), and Brandon Drury (+12 to 75).
The biggest new rookie added to the game is Tigers’ starting pitcher Michael Fulmer, who comes in rated 68 Overall with A Potential.
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Forza Motorsport: Apex now available for free on Windows 10 PCs
The open beta for Forza Motorsport 6: Apex launched earlier today for Windows 10 PCs. The game is free and comes in at 18.8 GB. It can be downloaded here from the Windows Store.
Forza Motorsport 6: Apex delivers a focused and curated single-player tour of Forza Motorsport’s best content, including authentic wheel-to-wheel action, unique automotive experiences, and constant rewards, all running on DirectX 12 at resolutions up to 4K. In the game, players will be able to dive into a new career mode anchored by a 12-event “Showcase Tour”, where players will race thrilling cars on circuits from across the globe. In addition, Apex’s new “Spotlight Series” events will challenge players with unique automotive events that will be updated on a regular basis. Along with a new set of Xbox Live achievements to earn worth 1000 gamerscore points, Apex players will find new mechanics to explore, including an all-new Race Points system that dares you to turn off the assists, develop your skills, and take on greater challenges.
There are 20 track configurations across six locations with both night racing and wet weather variants. Given that this is being framed as a beta, the game is continually going to be updated, with improvements and additions going forward. Wheel support is one feature that is not currently in place but said to be coming in the near future.
MINIMUM SPECS – OS: 64 bit Windows 10 (v. 1511); CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 @ 3.7Ghz; Memory: 8 GB RAM (2 GB VRAM), GPU: Radeon R7 250X / GeForce GT 740 or equivalent; HD Space: 30 GB; DirectX 12
RECOMMENDED SPECSÂ – (1080P @ 60FPS): Intel Core i7-3820 @ 3.6Ghz; Memory: 12 GB RAM (4 GB VRAM); GPU: Radeon R9 290X / GeForce 970; HD Space: 30 GB; DirectX 12; Microsoft Xbox One Controller
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More incoming rookies have been added to Madden NFL 16 Ultimate Team
On the first night of the 2016 NFL Draft, EA Sports added in the 31 first round selections to Madden NFL 16’s Ultimate Team. You can check out all the details on those players here.
Today they’ve introduced even more incoming rookies to the popular team-building mode. Rather than just adding in all the second rounders (there are still 10 missing) they’ve also mixed in some seemingly random selections from the third and fourth rounds. Read more
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Dangerous Golf release date and trailers
One of the more unique video game spins being put on a sport this year is with Dangerous Golf, which has drawn obvious comparisons to the Crash Mode from the Burnout series. New studio Three Fields Entertainment was formed by the original founders of Criterion Games. Dangerous Golf is all about creating the most destruction with a golf ball in a number of unique locations.
The release date for Dangerous Golf of June 3 has just been revealed but a price has yet to be announced. It’ll be coming digitally to Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. Read more
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