Electronic Arts announced the release of Madden NFL 09 today, the 20 ^th installment of the Madden NFL video game franchise, and the release of the special Madden NFL 09 20 ^th Anniversary Collector's Edition . This year's installment gives a whole new meaning to progressive gameplay, as EA is calling it the “first sports game that adapts to you”. Whether this is your first time playing Madden or you're a seasoned pro, the game constantly assesses your skill level and adjusts to keep the gameplay experience both fun and challenging.

As EA SPORTS sports simulation games often take a number of cues from the professional sports they are modeled after, Madden NFL 09 includes an updated broadcast presentation system featuring Cris Collinsworth and Tom Hammond. Some versions also includes online leagues, but all versions includes the most realistic graphics in the franchises' 20 year history.

You can really see the cold

There are a total of 85 enhancements in Madden NFL 09 over last year's installment, including the Virtual Training Center, an interactive tutorial mode that teaches players football strategy, how to play the game and tests their skill with a number of drills to set the initial difficulty level. Once players complete the drills, they are given a Madden IQ score and the game automatically adjusts their “My Skills” difficulty settings to fit their strengths and weaknesses. During their Madden NFL 09 career, players will continually be challenged by the game as its Adaptive Difficulty Engine constantly tailors the difficulty settings to their changing Madden IQ score.

EA also made some last minute changes to the game because of cover athlete, Brett Favre's return to the NFL, and his subsequent trade to the New York Jets. EA has made new packaging available for the Xbox 360, Playstation 2, Playstation 3 and PSP versions of the game, featuring Favre in a Jets uniform. You can find and download the new packaging here, but finding the glossy paper to print it on is up to you. There is also a roster updated available for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, PSP and Wii versions of the game, which puts Favre in the starting quarterback position for the Jets. Users who do not download the update will find Favre on an all-time greats team in the final packaged version of the game and can place him on whichever team they choose.

Favre as a Jet

For those of you who were paying specifically close attention, you did read correctly, Madden NFL 09 is available for the original Xbox. Though Madden NFL 08 was thought to be the last title that would ever appear on that console, it was so popular that EA made 09 for it too.

In related news, Sony released its latest PSP Entertainment Pack today, the Madden NFL 09 PSP Entertainment Pack. Included in the pack is a “Metallic Blue” PSP-2000 system, Madden NFL 09 , NFL: In Just One Play UMD video, a Playstation Network voucher for Beats , a new music player game, and a 1GB Memory Stick Pro Duo.

The Madden NFL 09 PSP Entertainment Pack is available across North America now for $199.99 USD/CAD. Madden NFL 09 is available for Xbox, Xbox 360, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, PSP, Nintendo DS, Wii and the mobile platform and is rated E for Everyone. Prices vary by version. The Madden NFL 09 20 ^th Anniversary Collector's Edition is available for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 for $89.99 USD/CAD.