Madden 2009 marks the 20th anniversary of the coveted Madden franchise. Since its humble beginning in the late ’80s, the Madden franchise has grown from obscurity into the juggernaut of football games.

Madden ’09 features a lot of new advancements in this year’s game compared to past Madden games. This year’s Madden includes the first adaptive difficulty engine that allows the game to adapt to how good or how bad of a player you are.

The game opens with a virtual trainer that takes you through offensive and defensive drills that gauge your level of talent. From there, you are constantly graded on how well you’re playing. The difficulty engine allows for new and old gamers to get a feel of where they are at with their Madden skills. For example, if it is fourth down and 26, the average Madden addict would punt the ball away, but for those of you that think you can get gutsy, the difficulty system penalizes your overall performance if you go for it and don’t get the first down.

Madden ’09’s game play is much smoother than that of years past. The tackles and blocks are much more realistic than last year, with there being constant gang tackles and jaw-shattering big hits. There is also the all-new “Action Camera” which allows the player to always have an excellent view of the football field so you don’t throw a costly, drive-killing, fourth quarter interception. Other advancements include bobbled catches, field goal returns and user-controlled touchdown celebrations.

Madden ’09 also has a new announcing combination fronted by Tom Hammond and Cris Collinsworth.

Sorry folks, John Madden and Al Michael didn’t make the cut. But don’t worry; Madden is still in the game as an adviser to you in the virtual trainer mode. While on the subject of commentary, I must admit that Madden ’09’s musical playlist is much more tolerable than years past. New songs from Busta Rhymes, Franz Ferdinand, Gym Class Heroes and From First to Last are all featured on this years playlist.

One of my favorite in-game improvements is the element of weather. In years past, the weather rarely played a factor in game planning or in the outcome of the games, but this year’s version breaks the mold. Rain and snow can wreak havoc on both sides of the ball. During a rainy game, you can actually see the field turn into a muddy mess as well as being able to watch the players’ jerseys become caked in mud. The games in snow are equally interesting, as you can see the snow begin to accumulate and the players gradually begin seeing their breath more and more in the cold air.

Without question, Madden ’09 has stepped up its game play where years past have fallen off. Madden ’09 gives the gamer the most in-depth football experience possible and leaves the rest of the sports gaming competitors scrambling to catch up.