Five Weeks of MUT 24 and Feeling Like a Second-Class Madden Gamer

I must have enjoyed MUT 24, right? I mean, I must have played it for 100 hours by now. Maybe not that many. But too many. I've managed to log on every day, and so I've more or less maxed out on any progress I could make apart from Head-to-Head. And since it's really uncertain whether EA intends to finish this next week by giving non-online players a path to finishing some of the season passes, I did what anyone would do when looking for a few extra XP: Try my hand at a couple House Rules Super Plays. Actually, four. I lost -- no -- I got smoked in all four.

I could summarize my experience this way: I played against teams that moved on the field like All-Madden players, while my 85 OVR team felt like it was running through mud. Although I managed an interception in three of the four games, and overall felt like I coached good games and played with skill, I couldn't consistently move the ball on offense. I lacked a competitive rushing attack for online purposes, and my quarterback was constantly under immediate pressure from four-man rushes. I couldn't stomach a fifth game.

Two weeks ago I took a shot at the College Overtime House Rules games, and I actually split my attempts. At the time, it felt like my team still matched evenly against my opponents', and that skill and coaching decided the results. Not anymore. Maybe it was the time of day I played these games, and I suppose I should expect that Saturday Night Gamers would be a different breed. But it was astonishing to think that there could be that much of a gap in skill between so many opponents. I felt like I was playing a different game tonight, and with one hand tied behind my back, perhaps against gamers who manipulate gaming AI far better than they know football. Perhaps. (A tip I did pick up: If you get an interception in Super Plays but can't move the ball on offense, don't punt if the opponent will take possession without the opportunity to score the full 15 points; you're guaranteed another possession and a chance to win with a touchdown. Too bad I could never move the ball but in fits and starts.)

The reality is that my competitive gaming days are 25 years behind me, and I'm not interested in pretending I could compete at that level today. Still, this is all to add context to the fact that while I have enjoyed MUT 24 for the most part, I am effectively shut out of access to some of the shiny toys that the top-tier and/or top-spending players enjoy. George Pickens is out of reach, and even if he wouldn't be on my team three months from now, it would have been nice to have access to him, or to the second Legend pack available through Competitive XP.  Without additional objectives, I won't be able to finish the Campus Heroes or Headliners field passes, and I'll barely manage to get Jalen Ramsey upgraded to 89 OVR.

I'm going to get some sleep, and I'll enjoy MUT 24 more tomorrow, but as a non-competitive, offline MUT 24 gamer, I'd appreciate some assurances that I won't be treated as a second-class gamer. I thought that the two classes of Competitive Pass players was a brilliant idea to give the online gamer a trophy to chase, and I'm all for that. As an offline grinder, I actually like the concept of unlocking the Gridiron Guardians challenges by collecting player items, and while this hasn't been well-received by many gamers, there's tremendous positive potential for the concept. I just don't like how the current setup has tended to funnel offline players into modes the casual MUT player simply cannot enjoy.

Have a great day, everyone.

What i usually do is focus on one pass at a time, mostly the promo passes since Season and Comp pass are different. When a promo comes out, i usually knock out all the solos but first, check the objectives. if you need x amount of promo players in your lineup and you need to get touchdowns, tackles, etc, set all that up before you do the solos that way you knock out the objectives and the solos all at once. 
 

Then check the h2h stats, house rules and all that. Knock out the house rules and get to whatever level you want on that pass depending on the rewards.

Solo Battles are key this year. Play on rookie and you can knock out promo objectives, comp pass daily objective and the season daily objectives in 2-3 games, maybe less if you run the score up. Pay attention to what you need and use Solo Battles for those things. Rushing yards, passing TDs, etc. 

H2H Champs is a huge part of MUT this year. The more you play h2h, the more you'll get used to it

Not trying to be toxic, but if you don't play the 'competitive modes', you won't be able to finish the 'competitive pass'. Your other opinions are valid tho

I don’t know man, it sounds more like franchise mode would be more of your style…because as far as mut goes… you are forced to participate in dog fights/ sweat fest with other player to try and win H2h and champs games in order to progress.

I am like you where i feel old and feel like my competitive gaming day are back when i was in my teens and early 20s, I’m now 29 and don’t feel like putting in so much effort in a game especially after comin home from 11 hour shifts…but it feels like you have to put in the effort in order to get better and win online against these sweaty players out here

I hear you on them forcing offline players online. A lot of people have similar concerns about that. I agree that offline players should at least be able to finish the different program passes.

Respectfully, I disagree with your take on gridiron guardians challenges that require players. I'm curious where you see potential in the idea.

Aside from the lackluster rewards, my main concern is today they lock optional challenges behind having certain plays, tomorrow it's one of the program champs is required to do any solos. Hopefully, we never go down that dark road. But, unfortunately, I think it's a possibility.

I appreciate the early comments. Some quick responses:

SportsPerson94 said: The more you play h2h, the more you'll get used to it

I know my initial post was lengthy, so I'm sorry my objection wasn't clearer. The biggest shock for me was going from competitive to food-for-the-dogs in the passing of about three weeks. I hadn't been able to keep up in the arms race without the benefit of competitive play and was outclassed by my opponents' rosters, and I didn't have ready answers for the exploits that they employed. The fact that I managed several interceptions in both cases suggests I was doing something right (and, perhaps, that I had invested more heavily in my defense). I wouldn't have even bothered with the head-to-head modes were it not for the fact that the Solo Battles allowed only limited access to the Competitive Pass rewards.

SteelersFan19 said: Not trying to be toxic, but if you don't play the 'competitive modes', you won't be able to finish the 'competitive pass'.

I'm not sure what your experience has been with Solo Battles this week; I'm seeing several teams with OVR's above 80 and X-factor players. From day one I've played these games on MVP mode, and while they're not often a true challenge, there have been a few games where my heart rate elevated, the same response I would get in a tight head-to-head mode. I suppose you conclude that "competitive" requires human competition; I'm not sure why that must be the case, especially when the teams generated reflect what my peers are fielding. Regardless, in MUT 23 (from at least Season 4 onward, when I started), there were Competitive Pass rewards accessible only to Champs players, but all of the Season Pass XP rewards and Competitive Pass player items could be earned by winning 27 Solo Battles each week. There's a clear difference in experience for the offline player going from MUT 23 to MUT 24.

On the MUT 23 Solo Battles objectives, you had to win a certain number of games on the harder modes to progress. Having the opportunity to earn better rewards by playing MVP or Legend mode instead of Rookie mode on MUT 24 Solo Battles would be both awesome, and appropriate. 

Besides, it takes more than 'playing' the head-to-head modes to make progress on the passes. You have to win, too. For an NMS player without the additional time to watch Twitch channels or YouTube videos for all of the latest exploits and how to respond to them, that's a tall order.

rudyoverlace said: I don’t know man, it sounds more like franchise mode would be more of your style

That's actually why I bought Madden 23. (The last time I purchased a Madden title, Peyton Hillis was on the cover.) Then I got sick one day, and missed a bunch of work. I decided to fire up MUT to see what all of the talk was about, and I got hooked. Once Season 5 ended, I realized that I wanted to give a full year of MUT a shot. Probably not exactly the greatest chemistry with my OCD tendencies and numerous real-life responsibilities, but so far things remain stable.

Breakluna said: Respectfully, I disagree with your take on gridiron guardians challenges that require players. I'm curious where you see potential in the idea.

In a way, the Citizens in Distress challenges are little more than a subset of the already pervasive 'With X Program player in your lineup...' objectives. I would agree with your take that there should be a better payoff for going through all the trouble you must to get the various qualifying players, and that's something for EA to address in future programs.

Thanks again for reading!

Hey OP... thanks for the time it took to write all of that.  I understand and appreciate your sentiments.  

EA has been on some quest the past few years to force players into H2H gaming .  That's how they get people hooked into spending more and more money on the game.  I wish they would have left things like they were in previous years where solo players could still grind out decent rewards but now solo battles are essentially useless other than to get your comp pass stats done.  It's sad because (as you have experienced)... unless you put BOTH time and money into the game... you will eventually become cannon fodder for the more hard core players.

And with the ELO based system... when you actually get better you're largely matched up with better (maybe I should say more highly rated) players... so you're paradoxically a victim of your own success!  

Time and reps are the real key.  You can have the best God Squad that money can buy... but that only gets you so far.  If you haven't learned how to stop all the various OP schemes (eg, Gun Tight, Gun Trips TE, Gun Bunch TE, Gun Wing Flex Wk, etc)... you're gonna get thrashed.   On offense you need to be able to beat Cover 0, Cover 1, and Cover 2 Man schemes... plus the various zone schemes like Cover 2, Cover 3, and Cover 4 Drop... plus the various match schemes... and you need to be able to handle both heavy pressure and guys that drop eight into coverage.  Not to mention the players that disguise their coverages by coming out in say Cover 2 but convert it to a Cover 3.  It's really quite complicated.

phatalerror said:

I appreciate the early comments. Some quick responses:

SportsPerson94 said: The more you play h2h, the more you'll get used to it

I know my initial post was lengthy, so I'm sorry my objection wasn't clearer. The biggest shock for me was going from competitive to food-for-the-dogs in the passing of about three weeks. I hadn't been able to keep up in the arms race without the benefit of competitive play and was outclassed by my opponents' rosters, and I didn't have ready answers for the exploits that they employed. The fact that I managed several interceptions in both cases suggests I was doing something right (and, perhaps, that I had invested more heavily in my defense). I wouldn't have even bothered with the head-to-head modes were it not for the fact that the Solo Battles allowed only limited access to the Competitive Pass rewards.

SteelersFan19 said: Not trying to be toxic, but if you don't play the 'competitive modes', you won't be able to finish the 'competitive pass'.

I'm not sure what your experience has been with Solo Battles this week; I'm seeing several teams with OVR's above 80 and X-factor players. From day one I've played these games on MVP mode, and while they're not often a true challenge, there have been a few games where my heart rate elevated, the same response I would get in a tight head-to-head mode. I suppose you conclude that "competitive" requires human competition; I'm not sure why that must be the case, especially when the teams generated reflect what my peers are fielding. Regardless, in MUT 23 (from at least Season 4 onward, when I started), there were Competitive Pass rewards accessible only to Champs players, but all of the Season Pass XP rewards and Competitive Pass player items could be earned by winning 27 Solo Battles each week. There's a clear difference in experience for the offline player going from MUT 23 to MUT 24.

On the MUT 23 Solo Battles objectives, you had to win a certain number of games on the harder modes to progress. Having the opportunity to earn better rewards by playing MVP or Legend mode instead of Rookie mode on MUT 24 Solo Battles would be both awesome, and appropriate. 

Besides, it takes more than 'playing' the head-to-head modes to make progress on the passes. You have to win, too. For an NMS player without the additional time to watch Twitch channels or YouTube videos for all of the latest exploits and how to respond to them, that's a tall order.

rudyoverlace said: I don’t know man, it sounds more like franchise mode would be more of your style

That's actually why I bought Madden 23. (The last time I purchased a Madden title, Peyton Hillis was on the cover.) Then I got sick one day, and missed a bunch of work. I decided to fire up MUT to see what all of the talk was about, and I got hooked. Once Season 5 ended, I realized that I wanted to give a full year of MUT a shot. Probably not exactly the greatest chemistry with my OCD tendencies and numerous real-life responsibilities, but so far things remain stable.

Breakluna said: Respectfully, I disagree with your take on gridiron guardians challenges that require players. I'm curious where you see potential in the idea.

In a way, the Citizens in Distress challenges are little more than a subset of the already pervasive 'With X Program player in your lineup...' objectives. I would agree with your take that there should be a better payoff for going through all the trouble you must to get the various qualifying players, and that's something for EA to address in future programs.

Thanks again for reading!

I understand where you're coming from. In the past, everyone can get the rewards by just playing, whether you were playing solos, gauntlet, house rules, etc. MUT is probably the worst Ultimate Team mode in all sports games. Before i got back into Madden this year, i was playing MLB The Show Diamond Dynasty heavy. Completely different game and it's impossible to fall behind. I suck at MLB but you never feel like you're outmatched since pretty much all of the cards are available to everyone if you're willing to play the game. 
 

I wish MUT was more like Diamond Dynasty. The promos last long and you complete them at your own pace. You never feel pressured or feel like you can't compete. If you are a baseball fan and haven't tried Diamond Dynasty yet, seriously try it. 
 

Best advice for MUT is to keep playing. Learn the h2h basics. If you don't spend money, build the best budget teams and figure out a scheme. Grind everything you can. I get my ass kicked by people with lower overall teams sometimes and then sometimes i'll destroy people with the best cards in the game. It all depends on the player but i suggest you keep working at it because even with all the bullshit, i'm enjoying it this year but i took a lot of time off which helps.