STARTING A GAME (PLAY NOW)

A Play Now exhibition game gets you on the field quick and easy. To begin a PLAY NOW game: Highlight PLAY NOW from the Main menu using the Directional Control Pad and press the A Button to select it. To select a team for the upcoming game, press the Directional Control Pad Up/Down from the Team Select menu and highlight a team logo. Press the Directional Control Pad Left/Right to toggle Home and Visitor. Press the A Button to advance to the Game Rules screen. To change a game rule, highlight a game rule by pressing the Control Pad Up/Down. Press the Directional Control Pad Left/Right to change the rule. Once the rules are set, press the A Button to advance to the Controller Setup screen. For more information, see Game Rules To choose which team to control, press the Directional Control Pad Left/Right in the Controller Setup screen. The mobile device icon under the logo of the team of your choice will change to say “1”. If the mobile device icon says “CPU”, it indicates that team will be controlled by the device. Press the A Button to advance to the Team Matchup screen. Press the A Button again to advance to the Pre-Game Show.
NOTE: To watch a self running demonstration, move the football icon so that it is positioned above the “vs.” and both mobile icons say “CPU”.
GAME RULES Change the Game Rules for Madden NFL 2005 to best fit your playing style.
NOTE:The Location and Weather options only appear in Play Now (exhibition) mode. The Injuries option only appears in Season mode.
NOTE: Default settings in this manual appear in bold type
QUARTERS | Set the length for game quarters to 3, 5, 10, or 15 minutes.
LOCATION | Select the location of the game. You can play at any stadium in the league.
WEATHER | Select the weather conditions for your game to FAIR, WINDY, RAINING, SNOWING, NIGHT, or VARIABLE. Dome stadiums are excluded from this option. Depending on your selection, game play will be affected accordingly, although signs of weather will not be apparent on the field. For example, if snowing, you cannot pass the ball long distances and players will slip around a bit on field, but you will not see any snow on the field.
NOTE:The weather condition default and options are based on the location chosen.
ENDURANCE | Play your game with player Endurance ON or OFF. When ON, players fatigue during gameplay.
INJURIES | Turn the Injuries option ON and running backs feel the results of those 350-pound linemen (Season mode only).
ROSTERS | Choose between ORIGINAL or MODIFIED rosters. Modified rosters include trades and substitutions.
TEAM MATCHUP SCREEN See how the competing teams matchup comparing Overall, Quarterbacks, Running Backs, Receivers, Offensive Line, Defensive Line, Linebackers, Secondary, Kicker, and Punter. The more checkmarks a team has in a particular category, the better that team is rated for that category given its player roster. PRE-GAME SHOW MENU Make your last-minute adjustments from the Pre-Game Show menu. When you're ready, send your captains out to mid-field for the coin toss.

START GAME | To begin the game, highlight START GAME and press the A Button to reach the field. For more information, see On the Field
GAME PLAY OPTIONS | Adjust your Pre-Game options: SET SKILL LEVEL: Set the skill level to PRO if you're a rookie or ALL MADDEN if you're ready for a bigger challenge. PASS CATCH MODE: When set to MANUAL, you take control of the receiver while the ball is still in the air. When set to AUTO, the CPU runs the route for the receiver but you can take control after a pass completion. PASSING MODE: In SINGLE RECEIVER mode, only one receiver is available to catch a pass. In FOUR RECEIVER MODE up to four receivers are available. QUICK PASS MODE: When set to ON, the passing icons automatically appear beneath your receivers. When set to OFF, you must press the B Button to call up the icons. SET AUDIBLES: Select the audibles available to your offense and defense during a game. To set an audible, highlight OFFENSE or DEFENSE and press the A Button. The SET AUDIBLE screen appears. Select the desired audible button that you wish to set and press the A Button again. Select a Formation, Set, and Play to select the new audible. If you want to change a selection while setting an audible, press the B Button to return to the previous screen. SET PENALTY LEVELS: Select the frequency at which penalties are called. When the sliders are high, with red bars, penalties are called more often during a game. When the sliders are low, with green bars, penalties are called less often during a game. INJURY MODE: Set Injuries ON/OFF (Season mode only).
SUBS | Rearrange your starting lineups and depth charts for both offensive and defensive play set formations. To make a substitution: Select OFFENSE, DEFENSE, GLOBAL OFFENSE, OR GLOBAL DEFENSE and press the A Button. Select a formation and press the A Button again. Select a position that you want to sub and press the A Button. Press the Directional Control Pad Up/Down and highlight a player to sub out of the Active Players starting lineup and press the A Button. Highlight the new player in the Available Players column and press the A Button. Press the C Button to toggle between the players' names and their positions. Press the Directional Control Pad Left/Right to toggle the attribute column. The players involved are now reshuffled in the depth chart.
NOTE: When making subs for Global Offense or Global Defense, all formations are affected.
CREDITS | Review game credits for Madden NFL 2005
END GAME NOW | Exits the current game, returning you to the Madden NFL 2005 Main menu

Setup | Table of Contents | On the Field