14 DAY TRIAL // The XLIV edition of the Super Bowl took place on Sunday and was won by the New Orleans Saints, who managed to beat the Indiana Colts by 31 points to 17. The outcome was predicted during the previous week by Electronic Arts, with the publisher running a simulation of the game using its Madden NFL 10 videogame release to see how the game would turn out.
The publisher run simulation predicted that the Saints would win 35 to 31. Before the Super Bowl began, most sports commentators and betting outfits had the Indiana Colts as the main favorites for the title.
The eerie similarities between the simulation run using Madden NFL 10 and the real world game continue with the Most Valuable Player title. Peyton Manning, the New Orleans born player on the roster of the Colts, was set to become the MVP by most people, based on his performance during the playoffs and the regular season.
Both the actual game and the simulation awarded that title to Drew Brees, the Saints quarterback who managed to throw 32 successful passes out of a possible 39 and launched two touchdowns in the game played on the stadium of the Miami Dolphins.
Here’s what Drew Brees commented on the event, “Coming to New Orleans and having that opportunity there was definitely a calling. It was an opportunity that not many get in their entire life, to come to a city that had just been devastated by a natural disaster.” The player is also in the run to become the image of the upcoming Madden NFL 11 and appear on the game cover. His performance in the Super Bowl will probably strengthen his bid.
It's interesting to see the Madden series coming so close to the real game that it can predict games better than people who are actually paid for that. Maybe in the future, players will not even take to the pitch any more, choosing to resolve games via the Madden NFL series.