Electronic Arts announced that Madden NFL 07, the EA SPORTS best-selling football franchise with the exclusive videogame license of the NFL and PLAYERS INC, has sold more than five million copies to consumers on a total of ten game platforms. EA believes, based on its own internal data as well as industry sources, that across all game platforms, Madden NFL 07 will finish as North America's most popular game of 2006.
Since its launch in August, Madden NFL 07 has had a record-breaking season, with first week retail sales of more than two million copies.
In November, Madden NFL 07 launched on the PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system and the Nintendo Wii. Innovative use of the Wii Remote created a whole new experience and made Madden NFL 07 one of the most innovative and popular games on the Wii. Madden NFL 07 is also one of the top titles on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system. In the first week on that system, players unlocked more than 600,000 achievements and recorded more than two million hours of online game play on Xbox Live.
For 2006, through November, Madden NFL 07 retail sales are currently ranked in the top ten on six platforms and is the top-selling game on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is also one of the top selling games for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 and Wii(1).
"Madden NFL 07 is the must-have game for players to realize the full power of the new systems like the Wii, PLAYSTATION3 and Xbox 360," said Todd Sitrin, VP of Marketing for the EA SPORTS brand. "EA's Tiburon Studio has once again set the bar for innovation and consumers have responded. This has been an amazing holiday season for Madden NFL 07."
Madden NFL Football has become a cultural phenomenon with the launch day coined Maddenoliday, becoming a highly anticipated event and holiday for many avid fans. Not only has the franchise become a cultural phenomenon, but Madden NFL 07 has also become the must-have game for many athletes, including the NFL players. The 12th Annual EA SPORTS Madden Bowl will be hosted in Miami, Florida on February 1, 2007 and will showcase NFL players battling it out to earn the highly coveted title of Madden Bowl champion.
Adding to the Madden Phenomenon is the Madden Challenge and Madden Nation, for the most loyal of the Madden fans. The 2006 EA SPORTS Madden Challenge, the fifth annual and only official EA Madden tournament, will crown the best player of Madden NFL 07 and award a check for $100,000 on February 8 in Hawaii. Winners will come from 31 regional competitions. And for the second year, ESPN and EA have teamed up for Madden Nation, a reality show centered around Madden NFL 07. The eight-episode series pits the nation's top 13 Madden NFL 07 gamers along with real-life NFL player sponsors against each other in elimination-style tournaments on a 12-city bus tour. The Madden Nation winner will also win a $100,000 prize.
In its 17th year and with more than two billion in retail sales life to date, Madden NFL Football continues to stand out as the most popular football videogame franchise of all time with a combination of innovative new features and the most authentic football gameplay. Developed in Orlando, FL by EA Tiburon, Madden NFL 07 is available PLAYSTATION 3, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360 , the PlayStation 2, the Xbox video game system from Microsoft, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS, PC, PSP (PlayStation Portable) handheld entertainment system and Game Boy Advance. Madden NFL 07 is rated "E" (Everyone) by the ESRB.
