In addition to yesterday's gameplay livestream (video embedded below), there has been a significant influx of detailed news about EA Sports FC 26. Closed Beta feedback, a PC-specific deep dive, and a launch update have all dropped over in the "Pitch Notes" of the official site in the last week and half. The most interesting for me is the launch update, which has a ton of info all stacked into neat bullet points. My personal highlights:
"Companion and Web App: Web app launches September 17. Companion App refresh goes live on September 18." - so we can get started on our Ultimate Teams.
Speaking of Ultimate Team (FUT), EA is promising to flatten the power curve significantly this year. What happens in a typical FUT season is the base cards are quickly out-paced by special cards that drop with higher attributes who in turn are soon replaced with the next special event. There is a constant arms race that is rather artificially created to maintain engagement and keep the microtransactions pouring in as players try to keep up with the Jonses. This year, however, special cards, weekly campaigns, and rewards are intended to be better balanced so that the base cards, with SBC and upgrades, will be able to keep pace. The idea seems to be to allow you to carry a player through rather than ripping and replacing parts of your team every week allowing your squad to feel much less like the ship of Theseus.
Chemistry styles are getting rebalanced to make pace less of the king.
Silver icons are returning! - I love my silver teams.
Changes to rewards and progression - hopefully not burying me this year into a Rivals level that I just could not win from, could not get demoted out of, and spoiled all the fun of the mode for me last year.
Matchmaking delays for Rush quitters.
Rewards changes, gameplay changes, Career Mode changes, and even more.
It's a pretty lengthy post and worth perusing. I'm excited about the incoming changes and think the intent is on point. Now just waiting on the game's release to see the execution of that intent. EA Sports FC 26 releases next Friday, September 26th. Pre-orders provide early access starting this Friday, September 19th.
