TheMadden NFLseries has brought in more than $3 billion in revenue for EA over the last three decades.

Madden to most people these days is not a legendary head coach and color commentator but a video game.

Even John Madden himself admitted as much way back in 2002 inan article in theLos Angeles Times.

Everyone else in the room pointed to the then Fox commentator.

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No, not that Madden, the player said.

I want the game.

All Aboard

Its well established that John Madden has afear of flying.

EA founder Hawkins, an avidStrat-O-Maticfootball player, had long wanted to make a realistic football game for computers.

But to truly achieve a realistic game, Hawkins wanted a football mind on his team.

He wanted John Madden.

Hawkins and Ybarra laid out their game plan.

They wanted to make the most realistic game possible.

Real playbooks and formations with maybe seven players on each side…

Madden called timeout immediately.

If its not 11 on 11, he said.

Its not real football.

When that didnt pan out, the companies parted ways and EA releasedJohn Madden Footballon its own in 1988. read more: Remembering Flash Gordons Football Career

In hindsight, the result was to be expected.

And that was no accident.

The strange rivalry and sales success of both titles helped the 16-bit era of gaming take off.

Nintendo had first party titles that Segas franchises couldnt keep up with on the sales charts.

Future editions ofJoe Montana Footballwere made at another developer, freeing up EA to concentrate on onlyMadden.

Real uniforms, stadiums, and logos leftMaddenin the dust.

It took a while, but the truly realistic game first envisioned by Hawkins was now a reality.

The first 32-bitMaddenwas actually onthe 3DO, a doomed and short-lived console launched by Hawkins after he left EA.

But the game served as a test drive that prepared EA for later years.

The game featured life-like graphics and full motion video of the players.

Madden NFL 96is a notorious title in franchise history.

The following year,Maddenstepped up its AI complexity, only to watch asGameDaymoved to full 3D ahead ofMadden.

There was no love lost between the two competitors.

1998 saw the release of the Sega Dreamcast, the first console of the new generation.

The first game on Dreamcast was a huge success, and upstagedMadden NFL 2000.

Even after it was out of the console race, Sega refused to give up.

The companysNFL 2Kseries would live on, releasing againstMaddenon PlayStation 2, Microsofts Xbox, and Nintendos Gamecube.

The ESPN license allowed Visual Concepts to create a TV-style presentation that was beloved by gamers.

Unfortunately for Sega,Maddens developers continued to push the envelope.

EA signed an exclusive deal with the NFL that essentially madeMaddenthe only legitimate game in town.

With no other companies allowed to use the official NFL logos or uniforms, theNFL 2Kseries shut down.

Status SymbolAs Madden became more realistic with each passing year.

First in the 16-bit era and then beyond, the game became a staple in NFL locker rooms.

Players began to openly campaign for a better player ranking fromMaddenand EA.

Dude, how can Carson Palmer be faster than me?

Leftwich asked several times.

The Madden Bowl takes place over Super Bowl weekend in the host city.

EA also releases a full summary of the game like its a news report from the Super Bowl.

Superstition surroundingMaddendoesnt stop here.

Another superstition surrounding the game that has quite a negative history is that of theMaddencover curse.

But for the 1999 PAL version of the game, EA used an image of NFL player Garrison Hearst.

After making the cover, Hearst broke his ankle and missed the next two seasons.

Tomlinson eventually declined the offer, though supposedly just for contract reasons.

Jason Gallagher is a freelance contributor.

Read more of his workhere.