The rhetoric around EA Sports football games is, ironically, the same year after year. People who don’t really get it wonder why the seemingly minor modifications couldn’t have been added in an update, while die-hards, importing their tribalistic fan culture from real-life football perhaps, agonise over each new face and feature.
I am definitely one of those people who’s been locked into the peaks and troughs of FIFA and EA Sports FC for more than 20 years (a devastating revelation), but it feels like, through a mix inconsistent and unsatisfying gameplay, an increasing push towards more-and-more expensive Ultimate Team packs and a fossilisation of every other game mode at Ultimate Team’s expense, that anger within the community is turning to apathy – particularly with competition from FIFA and 2K games reportedly on the horizon.u4gm.com
EA Sports FC 25 looks to address this head on by modernising fundamental parts of its gameplay, adding more social and casual spaces to re-emphasise fun instead of a constant grind and by creating a more holistic experience that updates long-underserved modes.
The first of these updates is what EA’s calling FC IQ, a full rework of the underlying tactics system controlling your players’ behaviour on the pitch, which aims to bring a new level of realistic tactical flexibility to EA Sports FC 25.
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While there have obviously been improvements in the back end, the interface for tactics in EA Sports games has been the same for a very, very long time. I can remember telling strikers to “Get in Behind” and setting a DM to “Stay Back While Attacking” when I was literally a child.
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As football fans generally have become more knowledgeable about in-depth analysis in the xG era, the tools FIFA and then EA Sports FC 24 gave you to emulate Liverpool’s high press, a Guardiola-like 5-5 split in possession, or whatever Spurs are doing when the left-backs play up-front, were nowhere near up to the task – particularly compared to its suit, tie and spreadsheets cousin, Football Manager.
After setting their position, players now choose from one of more than 50 new roles, including things like “false-back” (where a defender steps into midfield in possession like Trent Alexander-Arnold) or “half-winger” (where a central midfielder wanders out wide to make use of their crossing ability, à la Kevin De Bruyne for Man City).
The murky high, medium and low work rates are gone, and you now set a player’s “Focus” to attack, roam or defend on the new Activity Map where you can see how they’ll play out their position and Player Role. Players also have different proficiencies in each role, with a “+” if they know what they’re doing or a “++” if they’re world-class at that job. EA has said that it’s more about the best players excelling at their Roles rather than unfamiliar players being bad when they’re thrown onto the pitch out of position, but it’s all done with the aim of giving players greater personality, as well as making the gameplay feel more involved and less robotic as a whole.
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It’s available on iOS and Android in Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand right now, with a global release soon.
You can also independently set tactics for when you’re with and without possession, in what is a genuinely impressive-looking shake-up. Whether this renewed tactical focus can break the old reliances on cut-back goals, pace abuse and exploiting overpowered mechanics is a tough question, but EA has said there will be more viable tactical styles than ever, rather than everyone just being able to copy the same ultra-defensive meta。
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