Madden 25: Boom Tech Hit Stick, Explained

One of Madden's most famous design innovations across its decades-long run has been the hit stick. Originally introduced in 2005's iteration, the hit stick served as a way to deliver additional punishment to ballcarriers in the hopes of forcing a fumble.

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To celebrate twenty years of the mechanic, EA has opted to retool the way players inflict hard hits in Madden 25. You must now consider various factors when attempting to lay opponents out, forcing defensive gameplay to not rely solely on athletes' hit power. The result is a system that incentivizes thoughtful timing with devastating blows and punishes wanton abuse of the stick with broken tackles.

Boom Tech, Explained

Madden 25 introduces a physics-based system called Boom Tech, an expansion of their next-gen Field Sense gameplay architecture. Boom Tech takes into account a smattering of variables to create a more realistic tackling experience, like comparing players' weight, speed, and hit timing to determine the proper outcome of on-field collisions.

How The Hit Stick Works

Timing is where the hit stick comes into play. In order to use the hit stick, flick up on the Right Stick while tackling, causing your defender to barrel into the ballcarrier with extra force. Using this technique can trigger pass breakups and even create costly turnovers.

Whereas in previous Maddens you could flick the stick within a generous window and still crush opposing players, Madden 25 asks you to time your hit in order to flatten opponents. Missing a hit stick has always been a gamble, causing you to stumble and lose balance, but now inputting at the wrong time can have running backs bouncing off you like a pinball.

Try to time your hit stick as your player collides with the ballcarrier to deliver the maximum impact! The game will tell you whether you were early, late, or just right; perfect timing will cause your player's reticle to light up green.

The skill-based tackling system, when combined with Boom Tech, aims to create an authentic on-field simulacrum, accurately reflecting the weight and speed difference of NFL athletes. For example, a power back is capable of shaking off improperly-timed tackles from a skinny corner, but a linebacker can ruin a receiver's season with a perfect hit across the middle.

The best players will be able to discern when to use the hit stick and when to make a safe, wrap-up tackle.

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