I’m pretty sure they got this picture right.

The newest edition of the EA Sports Madden NFL video game, Madden ’13, came out on Tuesday. Generally football fans, gamers, and players alike are over-the-top excited about the release of new editions of Madden (treating it like it’s an unofficial annual holiday) but there’s one player who is downright angry about it.

Meet defensive tackle Marcus Thomas. He is entering his sixth season in the NFL, joining the New York Giants after five seasons with the Denver Broncos.

However, when when a gamer wants to use him in a game…

The data is right, but the picture is wrong. This picture is of another Marcus Thomas, a running back who only played a couple seasons in the league.

The still-playing (actual?) Marcus Thomas isn’t particularly pleased that after five seasons he’s (still) not pictured correctly in the Madden series.

*I say “still” because the article suggests but doesn’t confirm that this has occurred in the past but was never corrected. I’m not a Madden player (or even a video game player) so I can’t conveniently verify this.*

Well he vented on Twitter:

I been in the nfl going on 6years and y’all still hav another mans face for my pic on madden i hate y’all hate is very strong but I do

And the folks at EA Sports listened and responded via Twitter as well:

@Donny_Moore: @MarcusThomas_79 Sincere apologies Mr. Thomas, we will have this picture removed for next update…It is the UTEP Marcus Thomas.

For those who are unaware, Madden facilitates player updates online throughout the season, so the profile change can be  made easily by any gamers performing the updates on their systems.

I’m not sure how EA Sports acquires photos for its players – NFL Players Association or the NFL teams? – but this error probably could have been prevented. That being said, Twitter has provided a solid feedback loop between customer service issues and the suppliers. This isn’t the first time customers (or entities) had complained online and had their issues rectified. If the problem can’t be eradicated and prevented in the first place, it certainly helps to have a simple communication process to get it right with as low of a cost as possible.