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'Madden 20' Ratings: 99-Overall Club Has Been A Hit For EA On Social Media

Brian Mazique
Contributor
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.
I cover video games and combat sports.
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This article is more than 4 years old.

Credit: EA Sports

We're only weeks away from the release of EA Madden NFL 20, and with all of the features on the game revealed weeks ago, the release of player ratings is dominating the conversation on social media about the game.

Specifically, fans and athletes are talking about the unveiling of the 99-Overall club. The Seattle Seahawks' Bobby Wagner is one of only four players to receive the top overall rating in the upcoming game. The others are Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, Chicago Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack and Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

Wagner tweeted about the honor of being given a 99-overall rating, and his post received nearly 20,000 responses, almost 3,000 retweets and just under 30,000 likes.

As Tracy David of ListenFirst, a social media analytics firm confirmed, this kind of interaction with athletes is a spectacular way to raise awareness about the game.

"With the release of Madden 20 just a couple of weeks away, the focus on social media has largely been around beta codes and player ratings," said Tracy David, Chief Marketing Officer at ListenFirst. "That NFL players play sports video games themselves and are so invested in their own player ratings, whether it's Bobby Wagner saying getting a 99 rating is a childhood dream or David Blough making fun of his own dismal rating, is a huge promotional tool. It can only raise fan anticipation around the August 2nd launch."
EA has used this kind of approach with its ratings in the past, and the stock that NFL players put into the ratings only helps maintain the legitimacy of the ratings and continue the game's overall popularity. Here are some other numbers ListenFirst provided in regard to the conversation around Madden over the past month. As you'll notice, ratings talks is as big of a deal now as they have ever been.
  • Between June 10 - July 10, 2019 there were 109K Tweets mentioning the Twitter handle @EAMaddenNFL with 63.6K Tweets using the hashtag #Madden20.
  • The most prominent Tweet around Madden NFL between June 10 - July 10, 2019 was an announcement from the official @EAMaddenNFL handle that EA Sports is establishing and contributing $1 million dollars to Jacksonville Tribute fund for the victims of Jacksonville Landing mass shooting which occurred at a Madden NFL 19 tournament. That Tweet generated 25,962 responses.
  • The second highest performing Madden related Tweet between June 10 - July 10, 2019 was from Cleveland Browns QB David Blough who generated 12,346 responses ‏when basking in his own low 48 Madden NFL rating, offered $250 to the first person who can win League MVP with him as the QB. Meanwhile the @Muthead account generated 9,999 Responses with a Tweet advertising a chance to win Madden 20 beta codes for people who follow and Retweet.
  • The top performing video from EA Sports between June 10 - July 10, 2019 has been a video where NFL Rookies are talking about their Madden ratings, which generating 205K Interactions on YouTube.
  • Seahawk Bobby Wagner generated 19.7K Responses after Tweeting about receiving a 99 overall rating in the game and joked about not having to edit it to that number anymore. Likewise Aaron Donald generated 1,119 responses on Twitter for a video trailer showing him in Madden 20. Wagner and Donald were only two of four players awarded a 99 overall rating in the game.

The level of interest and seriousness around the ratings explains why EA invests manpower and financial resources in analytics and experts whose job is to scout and grade players on a weekly basis. As long as players and fans still hold the ratings in high regard, EA will likely continue to invest in tech that makes them all the more realistic.

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Brian Mazique
Brian Mazique