Before 1988, John Madden was already a NFL legend as a head coach and a TV broadcaster. But following the release of John Madden Football, Madden became a video game icon as well. The Madden franchise has endured for almost four decades, including the most recent game, Madden NFL 25. Later this month, Prime Video is exploring the history of the blockbuster series with a new documentary, It’s In the Game: Madden NFL. Now, the first trailer has arrived and revisited an era before the Madden games became events unto themselves.
During the first game’s development, Madden was adamant that the title that shared his name be a true representation of football. That meant 11 players for each team on the field, which was difficult to pull off at the time. Over the decades that followed, each video game generation has allowed Madden NFL to come closer and closer to a realistic portrayal of football.
Madden NFL has become so ubiquitous that it’s got its own mythology in the form of “the Madden curse.” Several athletes, including Madden NFL 25’s Christian McCaffrey, have gone on to be injured after appearing on the cover for Madden NFL. This is more likely due to the punishing physical nature of football itself, rather than any curse. But it still comes up to this day.