Franchises will be the name of the games through at least summer. Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto, Metal Gear Solid and Ninja Gaiden are just some of the blockbusters expected soon, but few franchises capitalize on mass market popularity the way Madden NFL does.

Like some other popular EA properties, Madden NFL games are typically released on every platform possible. That won’t be the case for this upcoming year’s entry for the world’s most popular (American) football game, however, as Madden NFL 09 will not be appearing on the PC.

Suspiciously left out from the original announcement of Madden NFL 09, which will hit Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, Wii, Nintendo DS and PSP, the PC version is now confirmed by EA Sports president Peter Moore as non-existent.

“We knew that our decision to not develop this year’s Madden for the PC would be an unpopular decision in some circles,” Moore wrote on his corporate blog. “We are committed to shipping a limited number of our games on the PC this year, but we’ve also had to cut a few of our games from the platform.”

Moore added that the shift of gaming from PC to console is one of the reasons behind Madden’s couch-only experience for its 2009 iteration. “The PC presents some very serious business challenges to us in the sports category, particularly because so many of you all are playing your favorite sports games on the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii,” said Moore.

“We do have ideas for how to revitalize the PC for sports games and the types of games that are best suited to the platform, and we’ll continue to explore those,” added the EA Sports president.

There is no word yet on whether or not EA Sports’ other franchises, particularly those that are far less popular than Madden, will hit the PC for the 09 series.