History was made before the Super Bowl even started as a trio of college players defeated NFL rookies in Madden Bowl XIX.
Taking out the reigning Madden Bowl champions -- and Super Bowl XLVI winners -- was no easy feat, said Barner.
"That first game was a little more stressful," he said, referring to the 21-20 contest that came down to the wire. "It really felt like a real game. You just weren't getting hit."
The Young Guns Team featuring Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Doug Martin, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green and Cleveland Browns running back Trent Richardson eliminated the NFL All-Stars Team, made up of Houston Texans running back Arian Foster, New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz and New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, to reach the finals.
"Madden is so popular among NFL players," said Martin. "I tell some of my teammates, 'Guys, you play the real game. Why do you want to play the video game?' But they live and breathe it."
Millions of football fans across the country do as well. The market researchers NPD Group said Electronic Arts sold over 5 million copies of Madden NFL 13 in 2012, second only to Activision's Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The new edition Madden NFL 25 will be released in August, marking the 25th anniversary of the series.
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson hopes EA Sports adds more Kinect functionality to the new game.
