The Dallas Cowboys, the New England Patriots and the Green Bay Packers were a 3-way tie for the best offense with a perfect score of 100.

There is also a 3-way tie for the best defense in the game between the San Francisco 49ers, the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers with a score of 97.

[6] The PlayStation version of the game is playable in the collectors edition of Madden NFL 2005 with updated rosters.

[12] Madden NFL 98 was positively received, with the overwhelming majority of critics agreeing that the new "liquid AI" had eliminated the longstanding Madden NFL series problem of "money plays" that could be used to successfully run the ball in any situation, making the game more challenging and the final scores more comparable to those of real football games.

"[18] Next Generation dissented with the majority, contending that while the AI was improved from the previous installment of the series, they had managed to find some "money plays".

[13][17][18][22] Next Generation in particular felt that the Madden series had unequivocally been dethroned by its failure to beat NFL GameDay to fully polygonal graphics, concluding that "despite some problems, at least the gameplay is solid – a distinct improvement over last year.

"[17] GameSpot countered that "Although some might scoff at Madden 98 not using polygons like its chief competitor GameDay 98, these player sprites are well animated and detailed.

[15] Arguing that the excellent gameplay and AI outweigh the graphical shortcomings, Kujawa deemed Madden NFL 98 "the best PlayStation football game", while his co-reviewer Dean Hager, like Next Generation, held that GameDay 98 had edged it out with its polygonal players.