Apart from Rush mode, welcome but largely incremental improvements play it a bit too safe.
By Robert AndersonUpdated: Oct 3, 2024 12:03 amPosted: Sep 27, 2024 5:08 am
Every year, I start FIFA—sorry, EA Sports FC—with the same overly optimistic questions: What has actually changed this time around? Is it really new, or just the same old game with a fresh coat of paint? There’s always a laundry list of flashy new marketing terms designed to grab attention: Hypermotion V, FC IQ, BallTouch, Rush, and so on (okay, one of those is made up). Yet, even with all the buzzwords, there’s often a lingering feeling that these changes are merely surface-level, and this year is no different in that regard. A series of incremental improvements and adjustments do add to the fun through their novelty if nothing else, but they’re hardly a sweeping revolution. While an exciting new mode like Rush can add an interesting twist, it’s not enough to mask the fact that this is still very much a familiar experience, and for long-time fans like myself, the excitement is starting to wear pretty thin.
Let’s start with the new futsal-inspired mode, Rush, as it’s the freshest thing about FC 25. Although it’s technically a five-a-side mode, it’s built with four outfield players in mind, with the goalkeeper controlled by the AI. It’s available across all four core parts of FC 25—Kick Off, Ultimate Team, Career, and Clubs—making it perfect for people who don’t always have a full squad but still want to jump into the action. For example, in Career Mode it’s used in the introduction of youth tournaments, giving you a chance to test your wunderkinds in high-pressure scenarios throughout the season. It’s a cool, fast-paced break from the standard matches and adds some much-needed variety to the often-repetitive nature of Career seasons.
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Whether you’re teaming up with friends or diving in solo, Rush brings a level of accessibility that’s hard to resist. I found myself spending most of my time with it in Ultimate Team, using one of my stars alongside random teammates online. While there’s no target beyond Rush points, and no league to climb, the mode still pulled me in emphatically.
Rush uses unique rules that inject a welcome dose of chaos. Kick-offs are reimagined, with players racing toward the center of the pitch as the ball is launched into play—reminiscent of Rocket League. Matches are fast-paced and concise, lasting just seven minutes followed by a short golden goal period if the scores are level at the end, with a tense, up-close penalty shootout afterward if still no one finds the net. The offside rule only applies in the final third, giving you more freedom in how you approach the goal. Red cards are replaced with blue cards, sending players to a one-minute sin bin for serious fouls—though their time can be cut by 15 seconds for each goal the opposition scores while they’re sidelined. There are also restrictions on the players you can use at the time of writing (Max 79-rated, untradeable), with this expected to be shaken up every so often.The new Rush mode is a fast and often high-scoring spectacle.“
All these adjustments make the new mode a fast and often high-scoring spectacle, with players darting across the sleek (and sponsored) Nike Air Zoom Arena. The neon-gilded stadium, modeled after Nike’s Mercurial football boots, looks fantastic and the energetic atmosphere elevates the entire experience. The commentator, Fernando Palomo, is exceptional. While his insistence on screaming “GOAAAAAL!” 10 to 15 times a game will probably grate by the end of the season, I still love that the excitement is palpable from the first whistle. “There’s the ball, go get it!” sets the tone for each match, and the hyperbolic passion for every opportunity keeps the energy alive. Plus, witnessing my tap-ins get hyped up and enshrined as a work of art never gets ；
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While Rush is best played at a relentless pace, if you’re willing to slow things down and focus on defending, you can find immense satisfaction in marking up and shutting down attacks. Ironically, defending in Rush feels more rewarding than in traditional 11v11 modes. The smaller pitch creates a sense of openness that encourages tactical play and, overall, the mode feels more relaxed and enjoyable. My biggest question when playing is always “Will my teammates actually bother to defend?” Playing defensively in Rush feels like choosing to be a Medic in Battlefield—it’s not glamorous, but it’s honest work. And when it clicks, it can make all the difference.
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Right now, Rush stands out as the most innovative part of the Ultimate Team experience as well, especially in a year without major overhauls. While there are minor tweaks—like the ability to stash up to 100 untradeable duplicates for squad-building challenges, and a more relaxed FUT Rivals friendlies mode decoupled from hardcore matchmaking—the addition of Rush feels the most significant. Despite its simplicity, Rush is the mode I keep coming back to after a long day. It’s pure fun, and ultimately, that’s what matters most.
Despite the lack of long-term objectives, I couldn’t stop playing. It’s compelling in all the right ways, and probably the best thing EA has added to the series in years. It’s a seriously good time, and I hope it continues to get new content and attention to keep it fresh and thriving.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Graphically, EA Sports FC is once again a hot pot of good and bad, shining on the pitch while appearing neglected off it. During matches, the presentation is particularly sharp—especially in Premier League games, where the new scoreboards, broadcast-style overlays, and team-specific on-screen graphics packages really stand out. A nice surprise is the option to re-enable team walkouts in the pre-match build-up after the feature was suddenly removed in FC 25.
Unfortunately, the user interface is a different story. What’s most infuriating is how the menus feel like they were designed for a touchscreen—soft edges, clunky to navigate, and far from intuitive with a controller. Worse, they seem to provide less information than ever before. Despite the ever-increasing bloat of the menu items directly in front of you, key information is buried behind layers of tabs that disappear if you scroll too far, leaving you hunting for crucial options.
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For a game that actively encourages you to slow down, tweak tactics, and customise player roles, the new menu system that plagues every game mode feels like it’s chugging two steps behind my inputs, making what should be an enjoyable experience feel like a chore. This was especially notable in menu-heavy modes like Career which, while it has had several cool additions, is now aggravating to try and navigate through.
There’s also the new ‘Cranium’ system, which aims to make players without facial scans appear more natural alongside top-tier talent from the likes of the Premier League, La Liga, and beyond. It’s nice to see a greater range of “generic” faces now, and even unscanned players look a little like their real-life counterparts. Likewise, it’s neat that there’s a greater level of customization in the personal player or manager models as well. However, the results are inconsistent: Under ideal conditions and lighting, some players look significantly better than in previous entries, but these conditions are rare, and more often than not everyone in FC 25 looks like they’ve been pulled from a waxy, uncanny valley hell.\Speaking of jank, expect some of the typical weirdness in FC 25.“
Speaking of the jank, expect some of the typical weirdness in FC 25. Commentary is still often disconnected from the action on the pitch, Ultimate Team still likes to freeze on me at every opportunity, and cutscenes still glitch out in the most bizarre ways. For those of us who’ve been around the FIFA/FC block, these graphical quirks are nothing new, but that doesn’t make them any less annoying.
Unfortunately, it’s a similar story across many annual sports titles. In Madden, bizarre animation bugs still see players warping or phasing through each other, while NBA 2K has its own share of uncanny character models and awkward animations. It feels like these issues are simply glossed over with each new installment. In fact, they’re becoming increasingly indefensible as the same problems resurface year after year.
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