To be a player for a professional sports team is a rare opportunity—and to be featured in a video game bought by millions of people is too. But when it’s finally released and the players don’t look a thing like in real life, something has to change. In the video game Madden, NFL players often come out looking like completely different people.
For example, former tight end Greg Olsen in the 2020 release of Madden had people questioning who the guy even was. According to SBNation, Olsen elected not to get scanned for the video game and because “there are over 1,000 players on NFL rosters… it isn’t financially feasible to accurately scan and model every single player.” However, because Olsen started in the league in 2007 and was a team captain, Electronic Arts Sports (EA Sports) has no excuse for not knowing what he looks like. They can Google a picture of him at least.
Although this just seems like a silly mistake by the designers, this has happened to countless other players as well. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a well-known quarterback or a defensive player on the sideline—players deserve to be portrayed properly. Their likeness is an important aspect of why fans want to play the game. If you want to play Madden as Greg Olsen, you should be able to play as Greg Olsen, not some generic guy. The most important thing a person can have is their identity and as a professional player building a brand they deserve to have an accurate depiction of themself.
Another key aspect of why professional sports video games like Madden need to design player graphics accurately is that players often get a cut of the money that the game makes. NFL fans are passionate about their favorite teams and players. They may want to play Madden as their favorite player, but if the player has no resemblance to them in real-life fans may be less inclined to buy the video game. According to Sportsmanist, active NFL players got paid $17,662 in 2017 for being in the video game. The players make the game what it is with their likeness and because they are stakeholders the game should be made as realistic as possible. If EA wants to prove they are committed to making an authentic game that the players and fans will love they need to prove it with better player graphics.