Next month, Maximum Football 25 is set to receive some competition. Maximum Football, a free sports simulation game, will be released. It may not have the official NFL branding, but Maximum Football emphasizes a physics-based approach to gameplay that is designed to make everything from throws to tackles look more realistic than Madden, which often relies on more pre-made animations. Speaking to Digital Trends before the release of Maximum Football, game director Mica Brown confirmed that the game will stand out by focusing on physics-based gameplay and emerging moments that appear more realistic for a football simulation.
My discussion with Brown explains why the development team at Maximum Entertainment chose this physics-based approach for the gameplay, the challenges associated with doing so, the inclusion of a “Physics Mode” option in its settings, and how Unreal Engine 5 supports it all. We also touched on how the game has evolved since its trial release during the summer and why it will be free to play upon release. It’s a insightful conversation that suggests Maximum Football may be the rising player that the veteran Madden team needs to watch out for in the next game day.
Digital Trends: What aspects of previous Maximum Football games did the development team want to improve upon with this entry?
Mica Brown: Pretty much everything. The original Maximum Football was a great game, especially given that most of it was created by a single developer. With a larger development team now, we have improved every aspect. Customization, Dynasty mode, gameplay, online play, graphics, physics, commentary, stadiums – and everything else. While our goals remain the same, it’s an entirely new game.
How does Maximum Football’s physics-based gameplay differ from other football video games on the market like Madden NFL 25?
Our goal from the beginning was to create a solid physics foundation that we could build upon as we continue to develop. I believe we have accomplished that. There are still many improvements we need to make to our physics systems. Our long-term goal is to develop a physics system similar to what Backbreaker achieved, but for now, it is primarily used to ensure the ball’s trajectory is correct and that our players are in the right place to catch it.
The major difference between our game and others is the way we handle our game around these core physics calculations. This means that the gameplay is not predetermined, which means the outcome of each play is emergent. We take into account player speed, weight, direction, and traits to determine the animations that will be triggered. We then use physics again to dynamically adjust those animations when players collide with each other and the ground. This adds a layer of realism that sets us apart from other games.
What unique challenges did Maximum Football’s physics-based gameplay presentation create?
Making the physics look realistic is difficult. There is a fine line between great-looking physics collisions and goofy ragdoll jumps. We have to run collision checks on dozens of players at once, all of whom must look athletic when colliding at high speeds. The main issue in all of this is that performance is very heavy – even on advanced devices like the PS5! You’ll get a hint of this as we are working on it from the “Physics Mode” option in the settings menu. This leads to turning on and off our deeper gameplay actions on devices that can handle it.
Unreal Engine 5 is not usually associated with sports games, so why did the team choose it as the game engine for Maximum Football?
Unreal Engine 5 has lighting tools, animations, and amazing gameplay tools that accelerate the development process and make the game look better than any other engine. The combination of animations alone makes Unreal Engine 5 worth all the trouble. Additionally, there is a large number of developers around the world who have experience using Unreal Engine. This makes it easy to attract new developers and artists compared to using other engines.
What key insights did the development team glean from the summer trial release of MaxiFootball? How has the game changed since then?
We learned from the trial version that people loved the core of the game. They enjoyed playing on the field and customizing their players and teams. However, they wanted bugs fixed, a smoother gameplay and animations, and more impactful physics. Since then, we have improved the physics, although it has not reached Backbreaker levels yet. We have made significant improvements to gameplay and animations, and we will continue to improve them post-launch. This is the great thing about delivering the game as a service – we can release updates continuously throughout the year as we work on them.
Why was the decision made for Maximum Football to be a free-to-play game rather than a premium release?
Offering the game for free allows us to continue updating it throughout the years following its release. We do not need to conform to NFL seasons or NCAA seasons or release a new game every year. Instead, we can work on features as long as needed and release updates when they are fully completed and we are happy with them. Many sports games end up being just “menu updates” each year because they have to rush the game before polishing the new features completely. Over time, these games become a mess of incomplete features that never look as good as promised. We decided to do things differently.
As a smaller and smarter development team, we can make quick changes to the game for our users while working on long-term standout projects. This means that players who want to be part of our vibrant community can already have a material impact on what we do next by participating in our active Discord discussions. Our game does not need menu updates, as we don’t need to do that due to the absence of official seasons, allowing us to expand and develop the game over the coming years to make it the ultimate football world where players can do mostly what they like. Making the game free and a live service gives us the ability to do that, a capability we would not have if we had to release yearly versions.
Maximum Football will enter early access on PC via Steam on November 7. It is also in development for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.
