THE MADDEN EFFECT
A BRIEF LOOK AT JOHN MADDEN HIMSELF
John Madden has given his name to the NFL videogame series ever since EA founder Trip Hawkins approached the legendary commentator in the Eighties. But this was no superficial tie-in, with the software firm drafting in the former Oakland Raiders coach to make the games as realistic as possible and to help with the player rankings from John Madden Football 92. The reason John was able to spend so much hands-on time was because he was scared of flying, making him available to speak to the developers on his regular train rides around the US when travelling to commentate on ball games. The first meeting took place on an Amtrak train in 1984 with Madden 1988 game producers Joe Ybarra, Robin Antonick and Trip Hawkins discussing how the first game would take shape. “They had John’s relatively undivided attention,” says Richard Hilleman. “And he wasn’t distracted by other things so it was good for the project. The only artefact that came out of that meeting that I saw was the Oakland Raiders playbook.”