Why EA Sports FC 27 Could Finally Reward Genuine Skill

I know what you’re thinking when you see a new EA Sports FC game. Because I usually think the same thing. “Oh, this again?” Now, I’m sure the development team puts in the effort for changes, improvements, new features and whatnot, but when the result doesn’t feel like a polished product, I don’t know how to feel. Look at EA Sports FC 26. Playstyles and Roles are essentially the be-all, end-all when it comes to gameplay, and that’s before delving into all the lackadaisical changes made to other modes at launch.

So it was once again with EA Sports FC 27. The legendary Kylian Mbappé returns as an Ultimate Edition cover athlete – technically his debut in the current franchise, with his last being on the Standard Edition for FIFA 23. The usual glitz and glamor with the reveal trailer, and the announcement of an even more expensive edition in Ultimate Plus that’s also time-limited, making for a uniquely gross kind of FOMO? Off to a rough start already, lads.

But then the development team introduced the latest range of changes and so-called improvements in a new deep dive. Call me a repeat recipient of the “fool me twice” award, but I’m cautiously optimistic. Interested, even, at what FC 27 is cooking.

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The most prominent – which is probably why it’s the first mentioned – is the revamp to AI defenders in competitive play. The emphasis this time is providing more control for the player and returning the focus to manual defending, instead of the AI hogging the limelight. Say what you will about a sports game, whether it’s FIFA, FC, NBA, or whatnot. Striking a balance between being a superstar and a team player is undoubtedly important. But I also want to play the damn game.

To that end, AI defenders will still attempt possession, especially if a dribbler barrels towards their general direction, but they won’t be tackling at every possible turn. Their reach is also reduced compared to a manual defender, which means they’re trying to set you up for success rather than stealing the show.

Of course, with so much on your shoulders, you’re going to need to get more active. Increased jockey speed is a start, but now, manually-triggered stand tackles have more range. As bizarre as it sounds for a franchise with a decades-long pedigree of compelling gameplay to emphasize actually considering your positioning, switching to a defender at the right moment and focusing on tackling – “so actually playing the game?” as I remarked – at least it’s a step in the right direction.

Further encouraging you to actually control the players in the game you spent $70 minimum on is Avoidance. It essentially adds some evasion while executing corner kicks, because lest a match turn into too much jockeying back and forth for supremacy, you have options to actually wait and plan the next attack.

Which is good, because FC 27 will seemingly punish you for mistakes. No, don’t do a double-take. I’m serious. You’re no longer immediately in the best position when entering the box; manually controlled runs now only go for a limited distance, so you need to be more active; and crossing is as reliant on aiming as it is power. Somehow, we’ve reached the stage where considering the team’s actual position rather than relying on planned trajectories is essential. Even curved runs get a facelift of sorts with new Triggered Curve Runs, offering up more ways to weave through defenders, but also taking longer.

There’s a lot more to break down, from ground and Dinked Passes also focusing more on your own skill, or being able to continue dribbling, even when knocked off balance (provided you have the stats to sustain it). But the two things that give me some hope for FC 27 are the changes to PlayStyles.

Technical Dribbler, Finesse Shot, Intercept, Pinged Pass, Jockey, Precision Header – almost everything has received a balancing pass. You would think they’re being made less effective, but the emphasis is instead on scaling with your Attributes while reducing the gap between PlayStyle and PlayStyle+ tiers. Because when you don’t have to always rely on the better option, it creates incentives for trying others. Granted, it’s a fine balance – Rapid PlayStyle and PlayStyle+ providing more speed to dribbling animations is now gone, while the overall animation speed with those who don’t have the PlayStyle is still the same. A clearly worse option compared to last year, but if it was that good, maybe it needed to be knocked down a peg or two.

Of course, as much as I appreciate the increased control and adjustments to make you an active participant in the actual gameplay, there are some concerns (and no, not because it’s still EA). The lowered amount of assistance means that the mechanics need to feel rewarding, in terms of responsiveness, animations, collisions, smoothness of control, movement, the whole works. And considering how EA Sports FC 26 was dragged for its various bugs, it feels like an overall lack of polish this year could drag everything down, despite the best intentions.

There’s also the part about off-balance dribbling. Simply put, what if the attacker survives when it feels like they shouldn’t have? Conversely, what do you do about a player who puts so much stake in their off-balance dribbling that losing feels like a near impossibility (and makes it feel unrealistic when it does happen)? These are the kinds of things that you can only fine-tune so much internally, and where getting it in the hands of players for feedback is essential. Which is great because the more expensive editions provide seven days of early access! Perfect for testing, right?

There are still many areas that EA Sports FC 27 needs to improve over last year, especially when it comes to Player Career and Manager Career. The temptation to ensure Ultimate Team isn’t rewarding enough, seemingly pushing the largest number of players there ever will be at launch to spend money, is one that I don’t think Electronic Arts will shy away from. This is one of those “fool me once” situations which even I’m not stupid enough to give the benefit of the doubt to. And as always, locking certain game-changing features to current-gen versions – like off-balance dribbling – remains as questionable as ever.

But the gameplay still sounds enticing, simply because it’s harkening back to a time where skill took priority over comfort. Where planning and outplaying your opponent actually meant something, and which the actual gameplay managed to back up. Sure, it could sometimes err on the side of feeling too punishing – not everyone wants to work like crazy in every match, especially when sitting down for a few casual games. Yet with how much EA Sports FC 26 went in the other direction, it was only a matter of time before some course-correction was required.

The question now is whether the development team can deliver on all these promises in a way that actually results in enjoyable gameplay. Which is the goal of every game, let’s be real, so seeing a franchise like this mess up on so many occasions without fail makes it all the more baffling.

Still, I’m cautiously optimistic heading into its release on September 25th. I’d say the plan is set, and all that’s left is to not mess anything up, but really, that’s a given at this point.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.