Madden NFL 12 Walkthrough Primer

Create New Plays on the Fly

Hot routes have been in Madden for many years. A hot route is when you tell your receiver at the line of scrimmage to run a different route than originally called. In Madden 12, it's not just hot routes that you're going to need to know how to perform. EA Sports has added "Smart Routes" to this year's game. A smart route tells the receiver to make sure their route goes just past the first down marker. For instance, it's 3rd down and 10 and your receiver is running a seven-yard curl. What good is a seven-yard curl on 3rd down and 10? By calling for a smart route, the receiver will now run a 10-yard curl-much more useful in the situation!

Now that you know what hot and smart routes are, let's take a look at the different options to use them and even combine them if needed. For all of these examples, we've kept everyone back to block, simply to keep those players out of the way. That is everyone except for Indianapolis Colts' wide receiver Reggie Wayne. Let's go over the different routes you can perform.

• Push "Y" then the receiver icon (for instance, "X") then up on the left analog stick: the receiver performs a streak route. That's "Y" (trigger hot route) + X (receiver icon) + up (left analog stick).
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + down (left analog stick) = a curl route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + left (left analog stick) = an out route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + right (left analog stick) = an in route. Note that the in and out routes are dependent on which side of the field you're currently on. So if Reggie Wayne is on the right side of the field, this button sequence would make Wayne do the same route but instead it's considered an out route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + up (right analog stick) = fade route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + left (right analog stick) = slant out route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + right (right analog stick) = slant in route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + down (right analog stick) = drag route.

Now here's where things get a little trick yet very interesting. We're going to combine hot routes and smart routes to show you how powerful these can be. In this example, first call for a slant out route: "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + left (right analog stick). Then call for a smart route: "Y" (trigger hot routes) + "X" (receiver icon) + click on the right analog stick. The result is a deeper version of the slant out! Here are some examples:

• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + right (right analog stick) = slant inside + "Y" + "X" + click on the right analog stick = deep slant inside.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + down (left analog stick) = curl route + "Y" + "X" + click on the right analog stick = deep curl route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + left (left analog stick) = in route + "Y" + "X" + click on the right analog stick = deep in route.
• "Y" (trigger hot route) + "X" (receiver icon) + right (left analog stick) = out route + "Y" + "X" + click on the right analog stick = deep out route.

As you can see, there are several options when it comes to changing routes at the line of scrimmage. The addition of the smart route gives you more control over what happens on the field. You must remember that when it comes to smart routes, the route will change depending on the first down marker. If it's 2nd down and 16, the smart route will be deeper than a 3rd down and three play. Experiment with smart routes and hot routes in practice mode and make sure you understand how to use them. You never know when the game is going to come down to converting a 4th and 12!

Audible to Create Mismatches

Audibles have always been a part of Madden. Sometimes, audibles can put player in positions they don't traditionally play and often this leads to quite an advantage for the offense. Some gamers will call this a Madden 12 cheat, but it's just the nature of the Madden gameplay. Let's take a look at how you can use a strategic audible to place intense pressure on the defense.

The New England Patriot offense comes out in a Goal Line formation with Randy Moss lined up as the outside tight end. Accomplish this with the "WR Wing" package. The defense has countered by calling a Goal Line formation and Jam Cover 1 defense.

Tom Brady recognizes the potential mismatch and audibles to a Gun formation. To do this, simply hit the X button and then call your audible. You need to make sure this play is set in your audibles before the play. Now let's see what happens to dynamic receiver Randy Moss. He is still lined up as a tight end and has a linebacker guarding him! Most defensive backs can't keep up with Randy Moss, so it's obvious that no linebacker is going to run with Moss downfield.

The key to utilizing your audibles is to know what you want to accomplish on offense and know how to attack different kinds of defense. In this example, we came out in a Goal Line play then audibled to the Gun formation. If the defense comes out in a passing defense, simply run the ball out of Goal Line. If the defense comes out in a heavy run stopping defense, audible to Gun. As a good offensive Madden gamer, you need to dictate the flow of play to the defense. Audibles are a great way to accomplish this.