Finding the right Play is essential to winning, however it is just as crucial to be able to actually execute the Play of your choosing. Unpredictability is key to winning in this game so if you want to succeed you need to be open to changing it up mid-match against your opponent. With every Play picked, you will need to complete the specific number of Plays intended for it. Because of this, you want to change up your pass, run, routes and make some substitutions so that your opposition cannot figure out what your next move is. In this game of American Football, we are really all just playing Chess. This is Vincent’s guide on how to understand Formations in Madden 24 for beginners.
What are Formations in Madden 24?
When deciding on what Play to pick at the beginning, middle or towards the end of a match, you will have noticed that there are a lot of choices and not much time to make a decision. Your Play can be filtered by category which can further be sorted into highly specific plays catered specifically towards passing, running or positioning. Whatever you choose, this will be your decision for the total number of Plays that are outlined in the Play Type’s overview. But for those who do not want to memorize all of their favorite team’s Playbook, you will find that a lot of success can actually be found inside the Formation section when picking your next Play.
Whilst you have the option of Play between Formation, Concept, Play Type, and Personnel, these are all helpful in different ways but the most versatile and adaptable pick is the Formation. This is because the other Play Types look at picking a Play catered around a certain player, pass, run or formation. When it comes to be unpredictable, you will want to use the Formation section rather than any of the other options. Your Formation can be filtered further by choosing the specific run or pass you want to execute, whilst having more choices in switching out players that are better under different circumstances that the field calls for (Packages) or re-routing their running path to confuse the opponent (Hot Routes).
Related: How to Use Practice Mode – Madden 24 Beginner’s Guide.
Some of the most popular Formations to use are 3-4/4-3 but not all teams offer this in their Playbook. Because of this, it is best to start from your chosen team (be it your favorite or one that suits your playstyle the most) and go from there. Each Formation will dictate where your players are on the field and from there, you can select the specific Play you wish to execute from the QB pass to the route you want each Receiver to make. The versatility of the Formation comes from the beginning of the play where you can use Preplay Tactics to adjust the Audibles and Hot Routes of your Receivers. It is when you hike the ball that the Play truly starts as you make that crucial throw through weighing your options based on the Defenders covering your Receivers or the run a man is making. Formations give you that time to change your Play, unlike other Play Types in the game.
How to Learn Formations
As suggested above, it is best to start with finding your perfect team fit to your playstyle. You may find that you prefer looking for those precise deeper passes, or find flaws in the defence that allow you to run through holes in the Defender’s line. Regardless of whether or not you have a favorite team before picking Madden 24 up, we recommend that you find a team that suits what you are looking for. Each team have their own Superstars that house X-Factor Abilities which can be game-changers for the match so keep this in mind also when picking your team. When it comes to learning Formations, we recommend finding two-three that you can stick to as your basics and make the appropriate adjustments based primarily on the Hot Routes of your Receivers based on their Formation or changing the pass/run based on how far away you are from scoring a touchdown.
There are far too many Formations to learn in Madden 24. Even if you were to stick to one team only, having to learn all aspects of the Playbook is impossible for newcomers. Because of this, we recommend focussing on the few Plays that work for you based on trial and error when it comes to either PvE or PvP. Stick to the basics and figure out where you want your Receivers to be, whether it be spread beyond the numbers or in a tighter formation in the centre. From here, you can decide which pass or run you want to look for and adjust to keep your opposition on their toes at all times.
That was our beginner’s guide on understanding Formation in Madden 24. We hope this helped you in getting started on this game. For more on the latest video game releases, be sure to see all of the newest GJ written articles here. Thanks for reading this guide.
Published: Aug 22, 2023 11:48 am