FC 25 Review – HAS IT CHANGED ENOUGH?

Alrighty, ladies and gentlemen, the end of September. There’s one event we’ve been waiting for, all year round. It’s… the AFL Grand Final! *BEEP!* I mean, FIFA! *BEEP!* I mean, FC! There we go! Man, I’m still not used to saying that. But anyway, brief intro aside, how does FC 25 compare to last year’s entry? Well, there’s honestly a fair bit to cover.

Where Have I Seen This Before?

Regarding regular 11-vs-11 matches, FC 25 is largely a rehash of last year, besides a few new skill moves and the ability to professionally foul. Oh, yeah! Though don’t fret if you’re on the fence about this one; FC 24’s traditional gameplay was arguably one of the best iterations of the formula to date. While FC 25’s gameplay is just as good, it’s clearly opting for extra realism—and this isn’t some bogus marketing spiel.

Trying to pass while a player’s back is turned or kicking from an awkward position will most likely result in a turnover. Whereas shielding, which was consistent enough that you could casually stroll up the pitch, no problemo in FC 24, has now become more RNG dependent. So it’s best used sparingly. Even with powerful forwards like Harry Kane, defenders will find ways to get a touch or just Terminator-morph right through you. Classic.

On that note, the usual FIFA jank is here too, though maybe a tad less than before. Keepers will forget that they’re actually supposed to save goals, or they’ll pick up the ball and then kick it straight out of bounds because… why not? The menus on PC have their moments too. Sometimes they’d appear blank for no reason or hard crash when I tried to restart a match. Thankfully, these incidents were few and far between, but it doesn’t make them any less annoying, especially since the game can take a ridiculously long time to boot on PC. But I digress—before I go insane.

Feel The Rush

What I did enjoy was the new 5-vs-5 Rush mode. This small court showdown can be a tonne of fun and is the perfect replacement for Volta. While it had its charms, Volta ultimately ended up being an off-kilter, mishmash of street and normal football that didn’t quite commit to one direction or the other. In contrast, Rush is all about intense, end-to-end offence that keeps the basic core mechanics of FC 25 intact. Maybe they could’ve added in a couple of Mystery Ball elements or some other wacky shenanigans, but I still think it’s fantastic overall.

At the start of a Rush match, the ball is literally launched out of a cannon while you and an opposing team member run full steam ahead to gain possession, often tripping over each other in the most hilarious manner possible. It definitely lives up to its name, that’s for sure.

There are still offsides in Rush, which neatly appear as tiny flags above players’ heads in offence, but only past the final third. Another change is how bookings work. Anytime a player makes a big enough goof, they won’t be sent off; only sin-binned for a minute with a blue card. And like a standard game of football, when players are fouled in the box, they’ll receive a penalty. Except in Rush, players get to 1-vs-1 the keeper from the attacking third and make them look like a silly sausage. I just wish the commentator would stop repeating the same sentences over and over. I know the usual commentators start looping their lines after a while, but it’s so repetitive in Rush mode that it’s almost lazy. On a more positive note, despite EA saying that Volta won’t be returning for FC 25, it’s still clinging on for dear life in the 3-vs-3s. So at least Volta fans haven’t been fully forgotten yet, I suppose.

Want Customisation? You Got It!

What’s also cool about Rush is how it’s implemented into Manager Career. When you decide to develop your youth academy, 5 players can participate in mini youth tournaments. This is a brilliant way to shake up the usual practice drills, all while testing out potential first-team material. Two birds with one stone, as they say. Plus, the youth players actually look like kiddos this time around. Not 14-year-olds with fully-grown beards.

But before you even think of starting Manager Career, there are several components that you can tinker around with upon pressing the mode’s name. From transfer embargoes to being unsackable, manager nerds can go buck-wild here. You can even actively switch between the men’s and women’s leagues within the same career, and now answer press conference questions based on tactical choices, the opponent’s setup and certain match statistics.

In a similar vein, one of the best new additions I loved messing around with was Player Roles. This feature lets you specify which sub-position each player takes, determining where and how they’ll operate and the pros & cons of doing so. It may take some good ol’ trial & error, though you’ll eventually find the setup that suits your style of foot-meets-ball. The Manager Career interface is also notably more streamlined than before, with a social media and comments feed replacing the newsreel, alongside a bold, suggested task list that’s much easier on the eyeballs. I just can’t understand why EA won’t let us play this mode online! What gives? I’ll have to find Aladdin’s lamp at this rate. Sheesh!

Lacklustre Legends

But speaking of wishful thinking, FC 25 lets fans step into the shoes of some of the game’s greatest footballers in Player Career. Icons including the likes of Zidane, Beckham and Henry can be slotted into any team, kicking all sorts of modern butt once they arrive. However, it’s practically redundant straight out of the gate. Since they’re megastars in their own right, it inherently removes that gradual, rise-to-glory progression you’d expect from Player Career. And while Live Start Points will be arriving at a later date—a mode that lets you experience famous football moments—there isn’t much of an incentive to hang out here at launch.

Back on the gameplay side of things, one aspect I haven’t mentioned yet is how the new FC IQ system will suggest different D-pad tactics as a match continues. Depending on how you’re playing, it’ll try to recommend the most appropriate formation, along with a strategy like ‘Kick & Rush’ to get the ball forward or ‘Park the Bus’ to go all vintage José Mourinho. I tended not to alter my attacking or defensive strategies in past entries, as I wasn’t sure if it would mess up my team. Albeit, in FC 25, I felt a lot more confident doing so. Since it highlights which players it affects the most and you can instinctively feel a relevant shift in momentum afterwards. Oh, and don’t be alarmed, but EA has removed the Ultra Attacking & Defending slider… Still with me? Okay. Well, it’s only one side or the other this time. No extremes. Honestly though, who ever used Ultra Attacking and didn’t get absolutely wrecked on the counter? I’ve gots to know!

In terms of PC and online performance, the game runs quite smoothly, even with cross-play enabled. While Australia is notorious for its shoddy, koala-paced internet, I was still able to pull off some elaborate Messi dribbles into the box. Obviously, it’s not the same as yelling at each other on the couch, though the online latency isn’t super noticeable. That being said, my brain struggled to handle the new Highlighter Replay system. Yes, you can chop up and add little effects and such to create cool highlight videos, but you might need to take a few deep TLC breaths as you’re doing it… You’ll see for yourself when you try it.

Decision

FC 25 turned out to be a pretty solid package. Even if it’s mostly the same gameplay-wise as last year, the focus on more realistic football in both traditional 11-vs-11s and Rush makes swapping between both modes a breeze. However, that typical FIFA jank still looms in the background, with some seriously strange goalkeeper behaviours and consecutive tackles that all too conveniently just happen to set up goals. The new Player Roles system adds depth and specialised strategy into the mix, though the inclusion of Player Icons seems less impactful at launch, considering that the Live Start Points feature isn’t available yet. The game does run steadily on PC, both online and off. Although, a couple of weird menu glitches and crashing issues can occur at times. While there are several welcome innovations, much of FC 25 feels like smaller steps rather than a major evolution, but it’s still a mega-fun football sim nevertheless.

By Anthony Culinas – Reviewed on PC

Great

Despite FC 25 introducing a host of few new features, it still mostly feels like a retread of last year’s entry. That being said, the gameplay remains incredibly solid both online and off, with added realism to make passing and shielding truer to real life. Albeit, you will occasionally stumble upon issues like erratic goalkeeper behaviour and glitching/crashing on PC.

This game was reviewed using a download code provided by EA. The Beta Network uses affiliate partnerships, however, this does not influence reviews or any other content published. The Beta Network may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links that are on the website.