Madden NFL 13 PlayStation Vita Review

When EA announced that Madden NFL 13 on the PlayStation Vita wouldn’t be able to take your PlayStation 3 Madden NFL 13 save back and forth between systems (a la MLB 12: The Show), expectations were set fairly low. Madden Vita hasn’t exceeded those expectations. The portable version of the NFL sim isn’t bad, but it’s nothing more than a serviceable version of handheld football.

Packing an offline-only franchise mode, online head-to-head, create a superstar and Madden Moments, Madden NFL 13 on the PlayStation Vita boils the NFL down to a basic experience. All the teams are here along with the new commentary of Phil Simms and Jim Nantz, but there’s little flair. Stadiums seem barren, players blocky, and the framerate can chug during replays and the TV-style cutaways. In fact, the framerate drops while you cycle through the playbook.