EA Sports has already revealed the cover athletes for Madden 22 ahead of its release date, along with plenty of other information on what fans can expect from the football video game.
Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady grace the cover as dual athletes, making Madden history as the only players to reappear on the cover. They make the cover for the three different editions of Madden 22, which we break down in more detail below.
EA Sports has promised plenty of updates to this year's Madden, most notably to franchise mode. Over the past several years, franchise mode has seen less and less updates, and last year fans hit a boiling point with their frustration. So EA Sports said it listened, and added in some new features to this year's franchise mode that will hopefully, for their sake, make fans happy.
With Madden 22's release date nearing, we break down everything you need to know about the upcoming video game.
Jump to:
- Madden 22 release date
- How much does each edition cost?
- Madden 22 player ratings
- New features
- Cover star
- What consoles is Madden 22 available on?
- How to play Madden 22 early
Madden 22 release date
- Friday, August 20
Madden 22 comes out worldwide on Friday, August 20th. However, if you pre-order the game, you can play three days early on Tuesday, August 17. In addition to early play access, you also get plenty of other features with your pre-order, which we explain below.
Madden 22 price
- Dynasty Edition: $99.99
- MVP Edition: $79.99
- Standard Edition: $59.99
There are three editions of Madden 22 available to purchase: Dynasty, MVP and Standard. You get additional perks with each upgraded edition, hence the more expensive price points. We'll go over just what you get in each edition below (all benefits are only with pre-order).
If you want a simple version of the editions here you go: If you don't play Madden Ultimate Team (MUT), just get the Standard Edition. While there are some minor franchise bonuses in the upgraded editions, only MUT players will really see a benefit to the upgraded editions.
Dynasty Edition
- 3-day Early Access to Madden NFL 22
- Dual Entitlement
- 100 Staff Points
- 1 Tom Brady Player Class Level 10 Progression
- 1 Cover Athlete Capsule, with Tom Brady Inspired Gear
- 1 Legend Athlete Capsule
- Your choice of a Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes Elite Item
- Your Choice of a Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes Curated Legends Pack
- 22 Madden Ultimate Team Gold (MUT) Gold Team Fantasy Packs
- 1 Elite Madden Mobile Starter Pack
MVP Edition
- 3-day Early Access to Madden NFL 22
- Dual Entitlement
- 60 Staff Points
- 1 Tom Brady Player Class Level 10 Progression
- 1 Cover Athlete Capsule, with Tom Brady Inspired Gear
- Your choice of 1 out of 32 NFL Stars in Madden Ultimate Team
- Your choice of Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes Elite Item
- 11 Madden Ultimate Team Gold (MUT) Gold Team Fantasy Packs
Standard Edition
- 20 Staff Points
- 1 Tom Brady Player Class Level 10 Progression
- 1 Cover Athlete Capsule, with Tom Brady Inspired Gear
- Your choice of 1 out of 32 NFL Star in Madden Ultimate Team
For more details on everything included you can visit EA Sports.
Madden 22 player ratings
EA Sports will be releasing Madden 22 ratings throughout the week of July 25.
Madden 22 new features
Franchise Mode
After fans reached a breaking point last year with the lack of updates to franchise mode, EA Sports finally listened and made some changes. EA Sports promises "more detailed staff management and skill tree progression systems, with comprehensive weekly game strategy that integrates into your gameplan" in franchise mode for Madden 22. EA Sports also promises "live service updates," meaning franchise mode will be improved throughout the year. They already have one scheduled to release in September with an update to player scouting.
The Yard
The Yard was introduced last year in Madden 21 and it'll be back this year with a few upgrades. This year's version will have new locations in addition to a new ranked mode.
Face of the Franchise
EA Sports has enhanced what used to be known as Superstar Mode into Face of the Franchise. I was personally let down with Madden 21's Face of the Franchise, but EA Sports promises "more customization" in this year's version, which could enhance it.
For a while, Face of the Franchise was a quarterback-driven mode, but EA Sports is allowing users to be a quarterback, wide receiver, running back, or a linebacker in Madden 22. You'll have flashbacks to college moments, attend the NFL Draft, and then play every game in your rookie season.
EA Sports also included an "all-new Player Class and progression system also lets you choose your skills, ratings, and unique attributes with even more customization options to realistically craft your avatar."
Full Face of the Franchise details can be viewed here.
Superstar KO
Superstar KO was introduced midway through Madden 20 and became a fan favorite, so it stayed in Madden 21. This year, Superstar KO will have a co-op eliminator mode.
Madden 22 cover
This is just the second Madden cover ever to feature dual athletes. The first was for Madden 10"and it featured Troy Polamalu and Larry Fitzgerald, both stars in the previous Super Bowl. Again we see two stars from the previous Super Bowl, but we also see duplicated cover athletes — the first time in Madden history we've seen that. Tom Brady first made the cover in Madden 18 and Patrick Mahomes made the cover just a couple of years ago on Madden 20.
What consoles are Madden 22 on?
- Xbox One
- Xbox Series X/S
- PlayStation 4
- PlayStation 5
- PC
- Steam
- Stadia
If you pre-order Madden 22, you'll be eligible for Dual Entitlement. This allows you to upgrade your copy of Madden NFL 22 from PlayStation 4 to PlayStation 5, or from Xbox One to Xbox Series X|S at no additional cost. You can not upgrade across consoles. So if you buy Madden 22 on PlayStation 4, you can't upgrade to Xbox Series X/S.
Full Dual Entitlement details can be read here.
How to play Madden 22 early
All you have to do to play Madden 22 early is pre-order it. This will allow you to get a three day head start on others.