Madden NFL Arcade is the antithesis of the realistic, complex Madden NFL series. EA Sports' latest effort is more like a throwback to the glory days of arcade-style football games.

Madden Arcade brings back the wild touchdown passes, spine-crushing tackles, and high-speed gameplay of NFL Blitz and NFL Street in glorious HD. Unfortunately, the game's lack of depth and slim selection of game modes are issues to consider before laying down the download price of $15/1200 Microsoft Points.

Is Madden Arcade's revival of Blitz-style football worth its spot on the EA Sports bench?

Hit the jump and read our full review.

Madden Arcade is so simple that it is more difficult to describe in text than it is to just play a game yourself. Basically, it's 5-on-5 football with no rules, injuries, special teams, time-outs...actually, there isn't much to think about, and there are only four offensive and defensive plays. Each game is played on a 60-yard field, and the first team to score 30 points wins the game. Every offensive possession is limited to one set of downs, so the intensity is cranked up a lot on 3rd and 4th down.

The arcade-style gameplay is brought back from the graves of NFL Blitz and NFL Street (there isn't a grave for NFL Tour...I think it's rotting somewhere in a forest). If you have had any experience with those games, you will be familiar with the fast game speeds (the players are seriously flying on that field), the huge hits, and the simple passing interface. Some of the complex moves from Madden 10 are featured in Madden Arcade, but they're simple to do – in fact, most of them are done with the A button. This really seems limiting if you're used to pulling off specific moves with different buttons, but there is another control option for more advanced players.

The random power-ups are a major part of the game and they often have a huge impact on each drive. They are balanced decently well, and sometimes you can be more strategic with the items than the play-calling. For example, the “Extra Down” item is great because it gives you another chance to score on any drive. If you save it until after a touchdown, you can use it for an extra chance at the 2-point conversion. This actually made the difference in a lot of multiplayer games against my buddies, and even ranked Xbox Live matches. Some are pretty easy to understand – there's a Turbo, a slow-down (“Molasses”), and items that cause fumbles (“Fumblitis”). “Frostbite” freezes a player in his tracks, and “Entourage” brings out all 11 players for the current play.

Unfortunately, as fun as it is to play Madden Arcade, it can be tough to overlook a couple of issues that aren't even related to playing the game. Honestly, this is a very fun game to play. I recommend that you download the trial version immediately just to see what it's all about...but that's just the problem. The free trial version of Madden Arcade on Xbox Live offers one of the game's two modes (“Play Now”, the full version unlocks Xbox Live ranked/unranked matches), so you can actually play full games against the CPU or a friend with no other restrictions. If you don't care about online multiplayer, Achievements, or Trophies...there really isn't a reason to spend $15 on this game. EA Sports usually puts a lot more depth into their football games (seriously, there's a reason Madden is so successful...just admit it, already). There are no Season or Franchise modes. If you enjoy tracking stats – even the stats of a single game – you will be disappointed to hear that they are nowhere to be found in Madden Arcade. In fact, the only stats are your online W/L/DNF% (did not finish percentage...there are a lot of quitters online) and your Achievement/Trophy progress.

Although my experience wasn't ruined by them, Madden Arcade is sometimes affected by small, game-related issues. I could write a book about my problems with switching to the proper player in Madden 10, and the problem returns in Madden Arcade. When there are only 5 players on the field, it is even more irritating to switch to a lineman when the ball is flying 20 yards down the field and you were trying to deflect the game-winning TD pass with your only safety. The power-ups can be obnoxiously frequent at times, and strangely absent at others. Some people will really hate the power-ups, but I enjoyed most of them. There was only one that gave me any trouble, and it is the most infrequent power-up, but it was always so damn irritating that it needs to be mentioned specifically. “Flip-Flop” should forever be known as your nemesis if you're playing Madden Arcade. Why? It immediately reverses the score. Sounds great if you're on the winning side of that deal, eh?

Well, imagine this situation: you have played an absolutely perfect game against an opponent on Xbox Live. You're up 16-0 after scoring two touchdowns and converting both 2-point attempts. You've completely shut down the opposition on defense – in fact, you might have gotten a turnover or two (they happen a lot in this game). You go on to score another TD, and add the 2-point salt in their wound. Sometimes you're surprised that the other guy hasn't quit, but this is exactly why you should always play to the end: on his next possession (doesn't matter if it's 1st, 2nd, or 3rd down), Madden Arcade decides to hate you. It gives you the proverbial virtual finger by giving that poor sap a Flip Flop, which he immediately uses to steal your 22-0 lead like your freakin' hard-earned paycheck. While you're recovering from disbelief (or picking up the pieces of a shattered controller), he throws the game-winning TD and ends the game. You add another “L” to your ranked record simply because Madden Arcade said so. I've dealt with the computer “hating you” in video games – hell, Madden 10 is guilty of the same crime – but the Flip Flop is definitely the most god-awful power-up in any video game since the chaotic shenanigans of Mario Kart's blue turtle shells.

Why not just make a power-up called “Equalizer” that averages out the points instead? That would have been far less frustrating to deal with.

I hate to end this critique on such a sour note, because Madden Arcade is definitely fun to play. It is even more entertaining against friends. Personally, it quickly replaced Madden 10 amongst my roommates and friends as the “house football game of choice”. Still, I won't sugarcoat the fact that I'm upset about blowing 1200 Microsoft Points to unlock some Achievements and play against quitters on Xbox Live. I downloaded the trial version weeks before buying the game and didn't realize that I had already experienced most of what it had to offer. EA Sports needs to seriously reconsider the next release of Madden Arcade unless they add a lot to the package, or at least lower the price to $5 or $10. An even better idea would be to feature it in Madden 11 or Madden 12 as a bonus feature, particularly if they didn't add much to the formula. If you're interested in arcade football games, you should certainly download the trial version and play a couple rounds against your friends. Just seriously consider the benefits of downloading the full version if that is what you have in mind.