Not that anyone really noticed, but I skipped out on Madden last year. Nothing against the series, but as a more casual football fan (I know players and teams, but blank on formations), the series has slowly developed into something my less-than-fanatic skills can handle. Games are slow, complicated and a bit boring.

This year I trudged into my Madden NFL 11 play session expecting another layer of complicated mechanics, eventually leading to public embarrassment right there on the show floor. Boy was I in for a surprise. Apparently EA is fully aware of players like, well… me and is working to make this year’s football game more accessible.

Throughout the session, EA reps emphasized that “accessible” does not equal “easy.” It got to the point where they were avoiding the word entirely just to make sure to avoid confusion. For the hardcore Madden players, Madden NFL 11 is every bit as complex and deep as last year’s game. At the same time, the new Gameflow feature is around to help casual players keep up and enjoy the game.

Gameflow is the development team’s effort to speed up playtime by cutting out all the fluff. Rather than presenting players with a playbook full of useless plays when you don’t need them, you’re handed plays that are relevant to the situation. In other words, it’s a little closer to real world play calling than past iterations.

When activated, Gameflow allows the game to take over play calling by choosing from a set of pre-selected plays. Before each game, you’ll game plan the plays you want to use. During the game, plays from this list are called based on what’s happening on the field. You aren’t required to use Gameflow – it’s an optional mode – but it’s a really cool mode that veterans shouldn’t immediately write-off.

Besides streamlining play (thus reducing the time it takes for a full game), Gameflow lets players focus on controlling players rather than having to worry about coaching decisions. At the start of each play, you’ll hear audio of the coach explaining what play was called and, more importantly, why it works in the situation. As in the real world, plays won’t always work, so anyone harboring visions of game-assisted routs can put those aside.

As an added bonus, connecting a headset to your system will pipe the play calling audio through the headset rather than your speakers.

Game planning is a feature of Gameflow even hardcore veteran fans should be able to get behind. While in the planning menu, you can assign plays based on situations. Think about it, of the 300 plays in the playbook, how many do you actually use in an average game? With the game planning feature, you’re able to quickly jump to plays based on the situation rather than scrolling though multiple pages just to find the one play you’re looking for. If you happen to find a game plan that really works for your squad, you can save it and make tweaks as necessary.

Just to add a little more to the system, you can also rate plays – ensuring certain ones will show up first in the list – and use your custom Gameflow plans while online. You can also set defensive game plans for certain situations.

While casual fans will flip over Gameflow, hardcore series followers will go crazy over the new 3-on-3 team multiplayer. Multiplayer was introduced last year, but apparently didn’t go over that well. This year EA is taking another shot by integrating ideas from its other sports properties.

Up to six players can face off in multiplayer. Before each game, players choose which position they want to play on the field. On offense you can choose from quarterback, running back or wide receiver while on defense you control the defensive backs, defensive line or linebackers. For groups that can’t decide, there’s a random “Any” option for both.

Once on the field, each player is responsible for their position. Quarterbacks are in charge of calling plays and making in-game adjustments. Receivers manage hot routes and running backs make sure lanes are clear. Though not the best explanation of the system, think of it as each player taking on the role of position coach and coordinator.

The system gives everyone an important role on the field and also places emphasis on team coordination. Players who excel at a position will earn persistent bonuses that carry over between games. If a running back earns an excessive number of yards in one game, he’ll earn an ability bonus. This adds another twist to selecting who plays which position.

I wasn’t expecting it, but I am genuinely excited to play Madden NFL 11. Gameflow is a game saver for less experienced players while 3-on-3 online is just plain fun.

Madden NFL 11 hits store shelves August 10.