David Ortiz, the lead producer of Electronic Arts' popular Madden 08 for the Xbox 360, Wii, PSP, DS, PC and PS3 has left EA Tiburon. EA Tiburon producer Phil Frazier will head development on future Madden iterations. This may come as a surprise to most people considering the success of the recent game. To find out more on why Ortiz left EA, head on over to the full article.

Following the NPD Group's report for September, Deutsche Bank analyst Jeetil Patel believes that it may be the beginning of the end for Sony's PlayStation 2. According to the report, software sales for the console fell at a faster rate than was first seen last month.

Patel describes the PS2's decline as inevitable but it's unclear whether the decline (which came sooner than expected) was due to "consumer transition to next-gen software or weak spending patterns amongst the low-end consumer." This may be a wrench in the gears for Sony which plans to commit to the console's 10-year lifespan.

"Needless to say, with tougher comps ahead for PS2 software sales, we think that the PS2 may finally be on its way out of the industry for good" says Patel. Although software sales may be down it remains that the PS2 console continues to sell, and continues to be one of the most played consoles despite the presence of the next-gens.

The decline in software sales may be explained partially by the lack of backwards compatibility for the new PlayStation 3 consoles, which was once explained to also boost PS3 games by limiting the console to only play that format. Perhaps the backlash of the absence of backwards compatibility is that sales for PS2 games suffered.

Patel also observes the underperformance of two of Electronic Arts' franchises: NCAA 08 (PS3, Xbox 360, PS2) and Madden 08 (PC, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, PSP, Nintendo Wii, and DS). He believes that - in the light of a very "competitive environment" with competition such as Activision, Ubisoft, Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo during the holidays - EA may introduce a price cut in November if the games continue to underperform.

Looks like Michael Pachter was right as August's results for console sales report that the Xbox 360 has surged, selling almost 100,000 more units than it did last July, over than what Pachter predicted. The NPD group also reports that the Wii still dominates the charts, and the Nintendo DS is still the more popular handheld.

All in all, the industry is bulking up. Last July console and software sales reached US$ 925.5 million, and this month it rose to US$ 933 million. A bit more and it truly will be a billion dollar industry. It's up 43% from August last year, when the industry was already strong at US$ 669 billion.

PS3 and PSP sales declined this month. PS3 sales slipped about 29,000 units in sales from last month. The PSP slipped more than 50,000 units in sales, but this is most likely in anticipation for the PSP Slim. The Wii and DS also declined a bit this month even though they're still on top.

NPD Analyst Anita Frazier describes Sony's current situation as "concerning, and the window for [Sony] turning the story around is certainly getting narrower." Here's a complete list of hardware sales this month:

• Nintendo Wii - 403,600 (4.0 million)
• Nintendo DS - 383,300 (12.7 million)
• Xbox 360 - 276,700 (6.3 million)
• PlayStation 2 - 202,000 (39.1 million)
• PlayStation Portable - 151,200 (8.3 million)
• PlayStation 3 - 130,600 (1.75 million)

Software sales are up 21% from last year, raising the bar to US$ 2.8 billion. Madden 08 ruled last August as the most popular game on both the Xbox 360 and the PS2, while the PS3 version is on fourth place. Bioshock sits comfortably on third place while Wii Play is on fifth. No DS games on Top 10 for August though.

A lot of us are Electronic Arts fans who religiously follow every installment in their annual sports franchises. Even that much loyalty though, is not enough to appease an angry gamer after spending US$ 60 to get a copy of Madden NFL '08 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PSP, DS, PC) only to find out how glitchy it is.

Someone going by the name of PSYK0MANT1S on YouTube was very excited to get home from work to play his new copy of Madden. To his disappointment, two games were enough for the glaring glitches to appear. A lengthy post on his bitter feelings accompanied a video he uploaded . Taken from his rant:

...EA needs to STOP releasing beta builds of their games. EA needs to STOP releasing a game that needs a patch the next day. EA needs to STOP letting us the consumer/gamer pay for a buggy product. EA needs to get their act together and get some REAL Quality Assurance going on.

Here are the glitches he was able to record using the game's replay feature. Oh, and before you click on that play button, be warned that the guy is enraged. So expect to hear a lot of... er... unpleasant-sounding rants.

It's that time of the year again, the time to hog your system and play Madden NFL '08 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PSP, DS, PC). Before anyone gets nitpicky, we'll say it: this installment isn't the same as last year's. Aside from updated rosters and beefed up graphics, gameplay changed significantly for the better. The folks over at Gametrailers got themselves past the lines into EA Sports' office to squeeze out more info about the latest Madden.

Among many other features, the devs were pretty proud of improved twitch controls. With more intuitive and responsive sticks, players now have a better hold of everyone on the field. Games are now tighter than ever, thanks to the controls being tweaked near perfection.

NFL stars with special abilities called Weapons are now at the player's disposal. Animations also received major enhancements, making Madden a much more realistic and dynamic experience. For more on what to expect from the game, find Gametrailers' exclusive by clicking on the Read link below.

Today's the big day out for EA Sports' Madden NFL 08 as it busts out of stores and into a multiplatform launch for just about every console and handheld out there.

The Madden franchise is now seeing its 18th year in the market and it's stronger than ever with its next-generation graphics and features which will change the landscape of cyber sports.

The star of this year's show are new elements such as Read and React, Weapons for players and a more advanced AI than ever. EA claims that this will make for the most realistic gridiron experience ever seen in gaming.

Read and React allows gamers to quickly identify unfamiliar jerseys and find out just what they're capable of. Weapons, on the other hand, will give your team's stars the uncanny abilities that they have in real life. The system makes for explosive plays and the ability to read formations to better react against opponent strategies.

EA Sports Tiburon has been developing the franchise for almost two decades now and they're promising deeper customization features which will extend the franchise to new heights. Madden NFL is the only series today licensed by the league.

Madden NFL 08 is now available in stores everywhere for the Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS and the PC.

Buy: [Madden NFL 08 (PS3)]
Buy: [Madden NFL 08 (Xbox 360)]
Buy: [Madden NFL 08 (Wii)]
Buy: [Madden NFL 08 (PSP)]
Buy: [Madden NFL 08 (DS)]

EA Sports is taking its Madden NFL series off the cyber grass and into the real world with its "Ring of a Champion" promo in cooperation with Minnesota jeweler Jostens to award elite players a chance to get tokens that will show off their accomplishments.

Jostens has created roughly half the championship rings given out in the history of the Super Bowl. Now, players of the video game version can have the honor of wearing a ring from the same maker by accomplishing virtual achievements of cyber-athleticism. That and a little sum for the piece, of course.

Users will have to pass through three skill levels to prove that they've got game in them. Once the challenges are conquered, a code is given in order to unlock the Madden "Ring of a Champion" promo on the Jostens website. You can then choose a design you want and decide whether you want it in white or yellow gold. Those go for US$ 495, while the ones with real diamonds sell for a higher, undisclosed amount. Basic ones go for US$ 149.

Madden NFL 08 ships on August 11 for a wide array of platforms that include the Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS, and PC.