Madden NFL 15 Release Date, Price: Already Available to Download on Xbox 360, Xbox One; Where to Purchase, Xbox One Bundle

EA will be releasing the next title to their football game franchise, Madden NFL 15 tomorrow Aug. 26 in the U.S. and on Aug. 29 in Europe.

Madden NFL 15 will be the 26th title in the franchise made by Electronic Arts. Madden is much like the FIFA game franchise being based on the sport itself with its many player and clubs. While FIFA takes its teams from various football leagues like Barclay's Premier League or La Liga, Madden takes it teams from the American National Football League.

The game will be released on the Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Xbox 360, and the Xbox One. The game is now available for purchase in various retailers like Gamestop, Amazon, and Best Buy.

EA's title is priced at $59.99 for all platforms and is already available for download for the Xbox 360, and Xbox One. The game cannot be played, however, until it release at 12:01 a.m. PDT / 3:01 a.m. EST on Aug. 26.

Microsoft is also introducing a bundle for the Xbox One which includes the football game. Consumers can now buy the Xbox One console for $399 inclusive of the Madden NFL 15 title. Essentially, users save the $60 they would otherwise pay for the game.

The cover box art features Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman. The decision was made after a 16-player bracket vote that comprised of both offensive and defensive players. Other players included in the bracket were Jimmy Graham, Luke Keuchly, Nick Foles, Cam Newton, and Alfred Morris among others.

Rumor: PES 2015 Releasing For The Wii U

EA might not be releasing FIFA 15 for the Wii U, but football fans are still covered as it appears PES 2015 might be released for the console instead.

As reported by Nintendo Everything, some French websites have mentioned PES 2015 will be making its way to the Wii U. This will come as good news for football fans that own a Wii U console. As aforementioned, FIFA 15 is skipping the Wii U this year.

JeuxVideo wrote that PES 2015 will be released for the PS3, 360, PS4, One and Wii U. The other French website Nintendo-town noted something similar on their report for the game. They mentioned PES 2015 “arrives on the Wii U”. They noted Konami took advantage of the lack of competition therefore decided to release PES 2015 for the Wii U. The website says the Wii U version of the game will be released at the same time as the other versions of the game.

If this is true, this will come as good news for Wii U owners. There isn’t many third-party sports games for the console with EA snubbing the Wii U altogether in 2014. Not even 2K Sports has plans to release NBA 2K15 or WWE 2K15 for the Wii U. Hopefully Konami confirms PES 2015′s existence for Wii U later this week during Gamescom.

EA Access On Xbox One Is a "Game-Changer," Microsoft Says

EA Access, the recently announced Xbox One subscription program from Battlefield and Mass Effect publisher Electronic Arts, is a "game-changer," according to Microsoft.

"That was announced last week as well and is very much a game-changer," senior Xbox evangelist Jeff Rubenstein said during Major Nelson's latest podcast.

An EA Access subscription is $5/month or $30/year and lets you play any game in "The Vault" for as long as your subscription is active. You also get a 10 percent discount on EA digital games and content, as well as access to upcoming games five days before they are released. Rubenstein also shed some additional light on this last point during the podcast, saying that early access to upcoming EA games will offer "at least two hours" of gameplay. In addition, he said he thinks "pretty much every [upcoming EA] game" will be available to play ahead of time if you're a subscriber.

According to the official EA Access FAQ, early access for upcoming EA games will vary by game. For some games, you'll be able to play one mode for a limited time, while other games will allow you to play a full version for a limited time. In all cases, if you decide to buy the game when it is released, your progress will be saved, allowing you to pick up where you left off.

When asked for greater clarity on the limitations for EA Access trial games, an EA representative told GameSpot, "Each EA Access trial will be different and the amount of time you have with each free trial will differ depending on the game."

EA Access is currently in beta on Xbox One, with a public release date to be announced soon. As for why EA Access is only available on Xbox One and not PlayStation 4, Sony said last week that it did not think the service offered the kind of value PlayStation fans have come to expect.

The first four games confirmed for The Vault are FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, Peggle 2, and Battlefield 4. More will be added in the future, and might includes titles like EA Sports UFC, Need for Speed Rivals, and Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare, if box art featured on the EA Access is anything to go on. Earlier this week, EA COO Peter Moore promised that the company will not remove games from The Vault.

You won't need an Xbox Live Gold subscription to use EA Access

EA Access, the upcoming Xbox One-exclusive subscription plan for a selection of Electronic Arts titles, will not require customers to maintain an active Xbox Live Gold membership, an EA representative confirmed to Polygon today.

"EA Access doesn't require an Xbox Live Gold subscription," said the EA spokesperson. "However, in order to use multiplayer functionality for games in the vault or EA games on Xbox One you'll need a Gold subscription per usual."

Under the EA Access plan, which will be available for $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year, subscribers would get unlimited access to a library of EA titles as well as other benefits, such as up to five days' worth of pre-release play for titles like Dragon Age: Inquisition. Games with multiplayer functionality that are currently available in the EA Access vault include Battlefield 4 and FIFA 14. An Xbox Live Gold membership costs $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year.

EA partnered with Microsoft to put together EA Access. The program will not be available at this time on PlayStation 4; a Sony representative said in a statement that the company "decided that [EA Access] does not bring the kind of value PlayStation customers have come to expect."

For more on EA Access, check out our opinion pieces discussing the differences between the initiative and a subscription like Netflix, and what the plan means for game ownership.

EA delays 'Battlefield,' 'Dragon Age'

The heavy October video game slate just got a little lighter.

Electronic Arts revealed it will push two of its big releases -- Battlefield: Hardline and Dragon Age: Inquisition -- out of October. Hardline will launch in 2015, while Dragon Age arrives on November 18.

In a statement released on the official Battlefield blog, Karl Magnus Troedsson, vice president and group general manager of studio DICE, said the delay was fueled by player feedback off a beta testing period for Hardline that launched during June's Electronic Entertainment Expo.

"The more we thought about these ideas, the more we knew we had to get them into the game you will all be playing," said Troedsson. "However, there was only one problem. We would need more time. Time that we didn't have if we decided to move forward with launching in just a couple of months."

Hardline is being developed by Dead Space studio Visceral Games in a collaboration with DICE. The games steps away from the traditional military battlefield in favor of urban warfare between cops and crooks. A multiplayer game mode showcased at E3 featured Heists, where robbers and police battle over stolen loot.

As for Dragon Age, executive producer Mark Darrah said in a statement the game was pushed back by a month to further polish the experience.

"I'm privileged to be a part of a team that has been working very hard to surpass every measure they've set for themselves," says Darrah. "That has meant completing huge amounts of game content, fixing bugs both big and small, and improving the overall experience."

Inquisition takes place during a war between mages and templars, and players and their party of allies must restore order.

The delays move both titles away from an increasingly packed October video game schedule. Among the games launching that month: Alien: Isolation, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, NBA 2K15, The Evil Within, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, Assassin's Creed: Unity and Evolve.

Why Nintendo Is Bringing Exclusive Third-Party 3DS Titles to Japan

Last Friday, Nintendo unveiled several exclusive third-party titles for the 3DS at its annual Nintendo Direct conference in Japan.

The new 3DS games include Square Enix's Final Fantasy Explorers and Dragon Quest X,Capcom's Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, and Marvelous AQL's Forbidden Magna. OnlyMonster Hunter 4 Ultimate has a confirmed North American release date, which is surprising considering how well-known the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest series are in the United States.

Final Fantasy Explorers. Source: Square Enix.

Meanwhile, Nintendo's 3DS LL remains the most popular console in Japan, coming in first with sales of 21,914 units for the week ending on July 6, according to Media Create. Sony's PS Vita came in second, with sales of 18,438 units, while the Wii U came in third with sales of 10,653 units. Sony's PS4 and PS3 respectively came in fourth and fifth. Of the top 10 Japanese games of the week, three were 3DS titles, but only one title -- Pokemon Art Academy -- has been released in the U.S.

Understanding Nintendo's Japanese marketWhen we analyze Nintendo's Japanese sales alone, the company appears to be an unstoppable beast.

But U.S. and European sales tell a different tale. In North America, Microsoft's Xbox One was the top selling console for the week ending on July 5, according to Vgchartz. In Europe, the 3DS claimed the top spot. But when we compare the weight of the Japanese market on overall sales of Nintendo and Sony's consoles, a clear split between East and West emerges.

Console	3DS	PS Vita	Wii U	PS4
Global weekly sales	126,388	35,497	62,668	98,406
Percentage of sales from Japan	21.6%	59.2%	14.2%	7.7%

Source: Vgchartz, weekly sales data ending on July 5.

Japan is heavily fixated on handheld games, as opposed to mobile games or home console ones. Meanwhile, the strength of the 3DS in Japan means that Nintendo must pump out a steady stream of role playing, monster collecting, and simulation titles designed for Japanese gamers while appeasing international gamers with strong first-party titles like Super Smash Bros.

Why Nintendo needs third-party developersNintendo's answer to this dilemma is to bring in more third-party publishers to develop 3DS titles. But when Nintendo discusses third-party publishers, it focuses on Japanese ones like Square Enix and Capcom, instead of Western ones like Electronic Arts ,Activision Blizzard, and Ubisoft .

Since Nintendo only exports a small percentage of its third-party Japanese titles to North America and Europe, these domestic partnerships don't make much of an impact on overall worldwide sales.

Out of the top 10 best-selling 3DS titles of all time, only one -- Capcom's Monster Hunter 4 -- is a third-party title. We see the same problem with the Wii U -- Ubisoft's ZombiU was the only third-party title among the top 10 best-sellers. By comparison, Sony only published three top 10 titles for the PS4 and three more for the PS Vita.

Therefore, when Nintendo hinted that it would unveil more third-party titles at Nintendo Direct, investors perked up. But the titles that Nintendo unveiled were clearly not aimed at Western audiences, and therefore have limited appeal outside of Japan. Investors and gamers looking for handheld variants of Call of Duty or Assassin's Creed would still be better off with a PS Vita instead.

Assassin's Creed III: Liberation for the PS Vita. Source: Ubisoft.

How Nintendo intends to win back third-party publishersTherefore, Nintendo's strength in Japan is a double-edged sword. Japan's booming gaming market boosts Nintendo's global sales figures, but it also distorts Nintendo's perceptions of the global video game industry.

Last month, Nintendo of America Senior Director of Communication Charlie Scibetta told Ars Technica that by "driving the installed base through first-party software, like Mario Kart 8, likeSuper Smash Bros., then the third-party developers will follow." It's a confident strategy that might work, considering that Mario Kart 8 has already sold 1.9 million units since launching in late May.

Mario Kart 8. Source: Nintendo.

Yet there are two distinct flaws with that idea. First, the 3DS has a huge installed base with 45 million units, but North American publishers have only launched a handful of games -- like EA's FIFA and Madden titles, and Activision's Skylanders -- for the handheld console. Second, the 3DS and Wii U have different control schemes and graphical abilities than standard home consoles or PCs.

Many publishers simply aren't willing to spend extra time making optimized games for the 3DS' 3D screen or the Wii U's GamePad. For example, Square Enix's Dragon Quest X is simply aport of its mobile version, and does not support stereoscopic 3D on the 3DS' top screen.

The Foolish takeawayIn conclusion, Nintendo's heyday during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras was characterized by an abundance of third-party publishers pumping out endless games.

Nintendo still makes amazing first-party titles, but in the long run, it needs more dedicated third-party publishers to level the playing field against Sony and Microsoft. Since Nintendo's third-party support in Japan is much stronger, it should focus on bringing cross-cultural 3DS games like Final Fantasy Explorers to North American gamers as well, instead of viewing both markets separately.