Former head coach and broadcaster John Madden, whom the game was named after, is the cover star in honor of his death in December 2021.

[1] The game also features player-locked touchdown camera views, additional player silhouettes body types, and improved stadium details.

The cover of the next-gen version is a picture of Madden celebrating his victory as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders at Super Bowl XI.

The All-Madden Edition is based on the cover of the series' first game, John Madden Football, made by Chuck Styles.

[4][5][6] In its 7.0/10 review, IGN wrote: "Madden NFL 23, though, provides a glimpse of a light at the end of the tunnel with a handful of smart enhancements to animations, AI, and passing mechanics that make subtle but meaningful improvements to the moment-to-moment football on the field… After playing Madden NFL 23 I finally have a little optimism that the series is on the right path — maybe not an emphatic 'Boom!

[14] EA was able to recover 40% of save files corrupted as a result of server issues, but many players reported that their developed franchises were suddenly gone.