EA Sports FC 26 looks to appease everyone by breaking the gameplay into two modes

A lot was made of 25's gameplay and there was a decent grumble in the FIFA EA FC community. I generally liked it and noted that in my review, but the longer I played the more some cracks started to appear. I found Career Mode to suffer more than other, less sim-like play modes like Ultimate Team; but still found a way to put in way too many hours in over the course of the year. Well EA Sports FC 26 promises more changes and tweaks to gameplay, an "overhaul" in their words and are happy to share those with you.

The video below goes into some detail, but the highlights:

• Gameplay is now separated into two presets: competitive (basically a more arcade-style for multiplayer modes like Ultimate Team) and authentic (a more realistic style for simulation modes like Career)
• The fundamentals of pace, power, tackling, shooting, etc. have been adjusted across the board to player feedback
• Updates to playstyles and roles that dictate the non-controlled player movements and decisions on the pitch

I think the separation of the gameplay presets is probably the biggest news. The fact is Career Mode players and Ultimate Team players are after different things from the game, and this change could benefit both, rather that trying in vain for some middle ground that ends up being ideal for neither. 

Even more details on the gameplay deep dive can be found in EA's 'Pitch' Notes. EA Sports FC 26 releases September 26th for PC, PS4 and PS5, Xbox One and Series X|S, and Switch. Pre-orders get early access to the game and can hop in on September 19th.