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California makes first move allowing college athletes to be paid for name and likeness
Today California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Fair Pay to Play Act that was previously passed unanimously by the state senate. The bill allows for college athletes to be paid by outside parties for use of their name and likeness rather than having to do with schools paying them directly. That would include the ability to sign a deal to appear in a video game.
Those who think this means the return of an EA Sports college football game is now imminent will be disappointed however as the process still has a long ways to go. Read more
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The Line Drive for September 29
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦EA Sports has responded to various issues raised with FIFA 20 since its release.
♦Developer blog goes into the controller customization available in FIFA 20.
♦The first Event called Fantasy Hockey is now active in NHL 20 Ultimate Team.
♦Latest patch for Madden NFL 20 makes gameplay adjustment related to Enforcers.
♦Details on the latest content released into the Madden Mobile game.
♦Details on the latest content added to Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show 19.
♦Two minor patches – details on the first and the second – for MLB The Show 19.
♦Some big ratings movement in the new roster update for MLB The Show 19.
♦Franchise Hockey Manager 6 is now available for pre-order with a 10% discount.
♦Golf Story is on sale down to $9.89 digitally for the Nintendo Switch.
♦The 2019 season for F2 has been added along with more in patch for F1 2019.
♦New customization items available to those with Twitch Prime for Rocket League.
♦Blu-ray this week headlined by Spider-Man: Far from Home and digital Toy Story 4. -
Madden NFL 20 week three roster update
Only 20 starts into his career and Patrick Mahomes has reached 99 Overall in Madden. Last year’s MVP, who through three games is putting up numbers that exceed what he did last season, has become the fifth player in Madden NFL 20 with a 99 rating.
The other significant change with the latest roster update is the release of Antonio Brown. He has not been removed from the game like some others who have faced off-the-field accusations but instead he sits in the free agent pool with his 96 Overall rating.
Others of note on the move include Tom Brady (+1 to 98), Zack Martin (+1 to 97), Keenan Allen (+2 to 94), Calais Campbell (+1 to 93), Davante Adams (-1 to 93), Philip Rivers (-1 to 93), Myles Garrett (+1 to 92), Alvin Kamara (+1 to 92), Christian McCaffrey (+1 to 92), Drew Brees (-1 to 92), Stefon Diggs (-1 to 92), Zach Ertz (-1 to 92), Saquon Barkley (-1 to 91), Le’Veon Bell (-1 to 91), Jaire Alexander (+3 to 88), Aaron Rodgers (-2 to 88), Evan Engram (+2 to 87), Chris Carson (-2 to 85), Adrian Peterson (-2 to 81), and Trumaine Johnson (-3 to 75). For all the changes check out the sortable spreadsheet on the official website.
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MLB The Show 19 goes free in October
MLB The Show tends to be the sports series most rigid in its pricing with significant discounts typically not coming until after the season is complete. MLB The Show 19 however is getting the unusual treatment of being a featured game given out to PlayStation Plus members and it’s happening in the month when excitement around the sport is at its peak.
From October 1st through November 4th those with a PS+ subscription will be able to download the game and keep it for good as long as the membership remains active.
It’s a big month for the service on PlayStation 4 as MLB The Show 19 is joined by The Last of Us Remastered. With the highly-anticipated sequel scheduled to release next February, followed a few weeks later by MLB The Show 20, Sony is using PS+ as a means to promote the currently-available games and in turn generate even more interest for what is to come.
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The Line Drive for September 22
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦Details on the latest patch affecting gameplay and more for Madden NFL 20.
♦Salary Cap mode is being updated with new parameters in Madden NFL 20.
♦Amazon has FIFA 20 standard pre-orders with price guarantee for just $50.94.
♦Developer blog goes into the D-Pad tactics available to utilize in FIFA 20.
♦Developer blog goes into the FUT Icons that will be found in FIFA 20.
♦The mobile companion app for iOS and Android has gone live for FIFA 20.
♦Complete list of all the official licensed and generic stadiums featured in FIFA 20.
♦Developers for PES 2020 responded to gameplay complaints with a lengthy posting.
♦Developers are seeking feedback on the balancing of badges in NBA 2K20.
♦Details on the latest content added to Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show 19.
♦Out of the Park Baseball 20 now available in the base subscription of Origin Access.
♦Blu-ray this week headlined by Child’s Play and digital gets Midsommar. -
Madden NFL 20 week two roster update details
The second in-season roster update for Madden NFL 20 is available now across all platforms. Changes include the trade of Minkah Fitzpatrick (-1 to 78) to the Pittsburgh Steelers and injuries to Drew Brees and Ben Roethlisberger.
Last season’s MVP Patrick Mahomes is well on his way to making a case for the award in back-to-back years and his rating has risen to 98 Overall. A few more dazzling performances could break him into the exclusive 99 club which currently consists of four players. Also near the top we find Odell Beckham Jr. and Tom Brady who have gone up a point with both moving to 97 Overall while Todd Gurley has fallen a point down to 96.
Among the other movers of note this week are Russell Wilson (+1 to 92), Saquon Barkley (+1 to 92), George Kittle (+1 to 91), Kenny Clark (+1 to 91), Christian McCaffrey (-1 to 91), Jaire Alexander (+2 to 85), David Johnson (-3 to 85), Dak Prescott (+2 to 84), Michael Crabtree (-2 to 80), Marquise Brown (+1 to 79) and D.K. Metcalf (+1 to 78). Check out the full sortable ratings form at the official website for all the changes.
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10 hour trial for FIFA 20 now available through EA Access
FIFA 20 can now be downloaded as a timed trial with EA Access on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Additionally the trial is available on Origin Access for PC while the entire game with no restrictions has been granted to those with Origin Access Premier.
Subscribers to the base service will get 10 hours of playtime after which it will expire requiring the purchased game to continue or a second EA Access account for 10 more hours. The timer is ticking down whenever the game is loaded regardless of whether it is being played, menus are being navigated through, or if there is any activity taking place at all. Because of that make sure to exit out and close the application from the respective home screens when not in use.
The 10 hours are there to play immediately but can continue to be used even beyond release. Any progress made in the various modes and online results will carry over if a full copy is purchased. The complete game is available during the trial period.
EA Access launched July 2014 on Xbox One and last year was joined by Origin Access on PC. After being prevented by Sony from releasing the service on PS4 it was finally cleared to launch on the system last month. EA Access includes the “Vault†which offers unlimited play with nearly every game from the company’s catalog this generation, 10% off all digital purchases, and the ability to play games up to five days before they release with a limited timed trial. EA Access is $30 for a full year or $5 month-to-month.
FIFA 20 officially releases Fri. Sept 27 for the standard edition which Amazon has for just $50.94. The pricier Deluxe and Ultimate Editions with bonus content come out three days earlier.
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The Line Drive for September 15
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦The first patch for NBA 2K20 addressed some of the early issues with the game.
♦Review of NBA 2K20 which will be a very good game at some point in the future.
♦The reasons behind NBA 2K20’s unprecedented Trending at #1 on Twitter last week.
♦NBA 2K20 is currently the second worst reviewed game of all-time on Steam.
♦NBA 2K20 also stands as worst-reviewed 2K on Metacritic in its 20-year history.
♦New patch for Madden NFL 20 includes new superstar abilities and an important fix.
♦Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo lead the list of top 100 rated players in FIFA 20.
♦EA Sports revealed the two full soundtracks that are featured in FIFA 20.
♦Amazon has FIFA 20 pre-orders with price guarantee listed for just $50.94.
♦Long way to go but California bill could be catalyst for college football game return.
♦Details on new Diamond Dynasty content and roster update for MLB The Show 19.
♦Details on a very minor patch that released last week for MLB The Show 19.
♦Roster update applying summer transfer window movement is live in PES 2020.
♦Doug Flutie’s Maximum Football has a release date of Sept. 27 digitally for $30.
♦Blu-ray release of X-Men: Dark Phoenix and digital Spider-Man: Far from Home.
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