TNT713: We wanted to get into the gist of what it is to be a Madden player, but let’s start with a little background. How long have you been playing Madden?

ZFarls: I’ve been playing since Madden ’94. I used to roll with the Dallas Cowboys. Charles Haley. I’d play with the defensive end. Obviously I don’t play with the D-End anymore but I’d always do unrealistic football. I’d bring him out wide and try to rush in as fast as possible. So I started out there and it’s just taken off ever since then.

I switched over the college football games. I was huge on those in like ’97 and in early gen 2003-2004 it was college football and then ’04, ’05, 06 I was [playing] Madden that I can remember. I’ve played all the games, but specifically those versions. 

TNT713: When you first started, how good were you? Did it take a while to get acclimated to the game?

ZFarls: I remember playing the computer in the 90’s and then around 98 I remember playing my dad on a specific version of college football. He’s not really a gamer, but I remember him kicking my butt with this one play and being super frustrated like I was still young and being totally upset at the game. 

Then in high school everyone thought they were the best at Madden, so I had a tournament at my house one Saturday. We had 16 guys come over and we ran a 16 man tournament. I got to the finals and lost in the finals. That was Madden ’03. We kept having them and it exploded. It was all kids from my high school. We ended up having 8 tournaments from ’03 to ’05.

I had never won a tournament, but I was always good. Always placed, but could never with the big one. Then finally I won at Madden tournament 8 and I was the champion and we stopped having them. But it was great.

The recollection of his early days of becoming a Madden player reminded me of my own struggles to grasp the game. With a lengthy stint as a Madden player, I wondered if ZFarls began as a phenom or if his journey to become a championship caliber player was littered with the same lessons as my own.

TNT713: What was the progression like from initially starting to play the game to winning a championship?

ZFarls: I used to always just play for simulation. It was a great way to learn the game, learn the formations, and learn the players. When I started playing competitively with my friends is was all about the best plays to win and bragging routes around school like: “Oh yeah, I beat that guy.”
One big step for me was learning how to use a mobile quarterback. I remember playing with Kordell Stewart with the Steelers in a couple of tournaments. I’d play with the Raiders because Gannon could move a little bit. That was my first tournament. But I remember winning it with the Falcons.

Starting out I used to play Franchise when I was younger and I loved building up my own team. I was always thinking, what is my team doing wrong and how you can fix them and what players to sign. Those games were a little easier to always win because I wasn’t playing the game on All-Madden. 

People say they are scoring like it’s a video game. And we’d play like it was a video game. That’s how we used to always play Madden. You always thought you were the best because you were just demolished the computer. Then you realize that all your friends were doing their thing too and you’ve got to start playing them. Then Madden ’03 was the first year to play online with it. I’d go online with buddies and it was a totally different challenge. Once you mastered the game offline, it was like now my friends want to play and I can play online… And I hate losing at anything so that provided enough for me to keep playing.

ZFarls shares a common trait amongst Madden players that pursue the game seriously. Our hatred of losing drives us to improve. Winning is nice, but losing feels worse than winning feels good. Losses aren't only devastating to our pride, but can also damage the joy of the game when we don't learn from our mistakes. In an environment where winning is OK, but losing is horrible, battles can get heated with exciting roller-coaster matches that exemplify the beauty of the game and its competitors.

TNT713: You know that’s probably the most common thread between anyone that considers themselves a die-hard Madden fan; they all hate losing. 

ZFarls: Gotta hate losing. I mean, we were at Community day and the games are getting super competitive. Just the yelling at a big play or, ya know, getting legitimately mad whenever you screw up. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen. It’s not like real sports. In real sports you have the energy and time to yell if you make a bad shot or make a bad play or if you make a good play but the computer guys drops the ball. You feel like you should have been rewarded. That’s gets guys so angry.

TNT713: I remember scaring kids at a tournament after yelling “CATCH THE BALL” after a dropped pass.

Our conversation carried us to those outside influences that make competing at the highest level a little more difficult. Stresses like family, work, and social lives tend to reseed our Madden priorities to a lesser status. We wanted to know how ZFarls coped with 'distractions' of daily life over the past few years of his Madden development.

TNT713: How old are you?

ZFarls: I’m 23

TNT713: Still single?

ZFarls: I have a girlfriend. 

TNT713: How does she feel about you playing Madden?

ZFarls: When she started going out, obviously I lost the habit for a little while. But the more you play, you know: “What are you doing?” Well, I’m not just watching TV, I’m playing this game. And when you’re talking on the phone, and not paying attention. Now that we’ve been together for a while, she’s like “Are you playing Madden?” I’m like “NO” and she’s like “YES YOU ARE.” 

She’s actually come to a couple of tournaments. She came to MLG Orlando with me and my buddy and his girlfriend. It was good to see the culture and see that we’re not quite as crazy as some of the people that play. We definitely take it serious, but we also do other things besides only play the game.

TNT713: So she’s pretty supportive?

ZFarls: She knows that we work hard on it beyond playing it, not working, and sitting in our underwear in our mom’s basement. That’s not our style. Sometimes we get a bad rap for that, but…

TNT713: I’ve been through a lot of different girlfriends in my Madden career, so I understand. So when do you get on since you don’t face the same challenges that a married guy with five kids might have?

ZFarls: In college the biggest thing was I moved down the hall from one of my buddy, SGibbs. And we played a lot of Madden. We’d stay up till about at least 3 in the morning playing Madden, playing online. Finding the best people and trying to beat them. Then we lived together again and were staying up all senior year playing Madden super late. You know weeknights; classes weren’t until late in the morning in college. When you were a kid you could stay up late, but now that I’m an adult and gotta go to work in the morning so I play my last game about 11PM. I won’t start a game after 10:30...

It can be hard because if you lose, you have to make that decision to not play till the next day. I still play. On Sunday’s I love to play. I love to play if I have time on weekends. I usually try to get a game or two in during the week. 

Again, I reminisced about the days when life's worries were distant thoughts and Madden occupied much of my recreational time. We wanted to know what competitive arenas, if any, ZFarls thought most directly contributed to the development of his skills and whether he expected Madden 12 of continuing the tradition of an improved product for fans.

TNT713: Are you involved in any leagues?

ZFarls: I used to play in the Football Outsiders league. It was fun. They were more SIM style. I was one of the more competitive styled guys in the league. I used to play in the EAFL in Madden 10, but just couldn’t keep up with the pace. It was a great league, and now my buddy plays in Compete4ever. I may get in on that for Madden 12, but right now I’m focused on Madden 12 and I don’t want to go back to Madden 11.

TNT713: I believe Madden has made quantum leaps every year since Madden ’09. 10 was so much better than ’09. 11 was so much better than 10. Do you think Madden 12 will be leaps and bounds above Madden 11?

ZFarls: Yes. From the game play I got to go with, the game play was definitely a lot better. They made improvements on so many things. I think it’s going to be easily the best thing going. I think the biggest thing about them is that, I loved Madden ’08. But when you go back and play it, you remember it fondly, then you come back and play 11 you realize. I went back and played ’08 like last month. When you actually go back. Play a lot of ’08 then come back and play ’09 and you’re right, it is quantum leaps ahead. From 10 to 11 I don’t feel like it changed too much. I mean, they fixed the flats pretty nicely. But the game still plays the same. 

I think 12, the game play is just going to be totally different. I think it’s a lot more fun. A lot more balanced and a lot more competitive. And that’s all the great things about Madden.

Often, we hear about the diminished role Madden gaming plays in the lives of its most passionate fans. While the love of the game may fall away for normal fans, it can be even truer of those who straddle the lines between work and play. We wanted to know how the burden of servicing the Madden community altered the joy of continued play.

TNT713: So now that you’ve been playing Madden for almost 16 years, what is it that is going to keep you playing through that 17th?

ZFarls: Just the friendships I’ve made. The people I’ve met in the community. Helping out some of the younger guys and seeing that part of the game is probably the biggest thing. That’s why I play the game. I’ll have those games where you’ve taught a guy something before and he beats you with your own stuff. That’s always a lot of fun. It’s the competition, man. When you’re sitting there playing the game, screaming “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” 

What else gets you excited like that? I mean, I’ve played hockey. I’ve played golf. I’ve played basketball, but Madden is the only game where I want to beat people. Just getting the win, making a big play on defense, user skills, there’s nothing that gets those emotions going. I’ve been in tournaments where my palms are sweating and I don’t know of anything else that can do that…
I mean high school and college sports can do that… But now I just play sports for fun. I like to win like everyone else, but I can’t get into sports like I used to. I’m getting old. 

ZFarls is unmistakably a Madden fan, complete with the same competitive drive that fuels athletes of all walks of life. His love of the game is not only displayed through his dedication to hone his own skills, but also to his dedication to lift and instruct others in the ways of video game football. His efforts have improved the experiences of countless Madden fans. We'd like to thank ZFarls for all he does to enhance our enjoyment and for being a valued member of the Madden community.

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