EA SPORTS FC 26

oldbox said:
In my opinion, only cloudy weather without shadows can looked "not bad". But a match at night time or sunny weather without shadows looks bad. When i tested FC26, i played on the lowest graphics settings without shadows of players and using only cloudy weather in matches, because my PC can gave stable 60fps only on low graphics, or 10-15 fps on ultra settings in Full HD, i used it just for screenshots.
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Yes overcast always looks better. I am on PS5.
 
have played 4 hours of trial.

2 with Paul's mod and a broadcast camera mod. Thank you to both evo web modders.

One issue on pc is that optimisation is so poor that framerate is all over the place and there are delays in input.

With mod, it's a fun enough game. Paul has already done a great job. World class feels too hard as ive barely played fifa or any football game the last 4 years. But pro is too easy.

Had fantastic fun playing with barca at Madrid. Real fun. But that was one of my first modded games so im not sure if if was novelty... It has lost a little lustre now.

My overall problem is that the movement of players so rarely approximates reality that im too often reminding myself how to play fifa, rather than how to play football. Efootball has so many problems but there is at least a general 1:1 correlation between reality and game, albeit limited by a lack of tech. I can barely play that game more than 20 mins however!

The result is...I don't feel properly connected to the game and after a while it feels hollow and distanced from me. That feeling of immediacy is just so important to me, ive realised. It's why ps2 pes was so amazing and why even some of the ps3 pes were still fun despite being technologically diabolical.

Fifa 16 probably has that immediacy best, and then 20.

But all fifa and now fc 26 feel like they're being played behind a window, or within a slightly parallel dimension to me and my controller. And I end up feeling existentially disconnected from it consequently.

There is so much going on under the hood re player movement that you feel like youre fighting or running after the game at times.

I have another 6 hours left of the trial. But I stopped 30 mins into a match just now because I have the creeping feeling of hollowness mixed with dread within, which comes on when I know im playing a football game I dont want to play at that moment...and im wondering if I'll want to go back now, despite the incredible modding work.

I also, as a secondary point, find fc games absolutely horrible to navigate. It feels like work.
 
Played against my cousin had a couple of surprisingly good and close games with authentic gameplay + some more realistic sliders.
1-0 (after ET)
2-0
5-0 (mostly due to some horrendous errors when passing around the box)
0-1
2-0

All games were relatively tight and it felt like every mistake made actually mattered. Can't remember the last time so few goals were scored when playing offline against any of my friends.
 
FShas said:
My overall problem is that the movement of players so rarely approximates reality that im too often reminding myself how to play fifa, rather than how to play football.

The result is...I don't feel properly connected to the game and after a while it feels hollow and distanced from me. That feeling of immediacy is just so important to me, ive realised. It's why ps2 pes was so amazing and why even some of the ps3 pes were still fun despite being technologically diabolical.
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This really resonates with me.

I like to call it the “suspension of disbelief.” You are not actually playing real football - you are staring at a screen hitting buttons. When the actions on the pitch and the button presses correspond to real football, it is quite easy for your brain to keep suspending this notion that you’re not really playing football. But when players don’t move off the ball or defend like they should, it takes so much mental energy to suppress this. This is why playing FC26 feels like work.
 
Ezequiel Vanzin said:
Interesting, I was playing without the weather effects turned on, I think you lose a lot with them turned off, I play with @Matt10 sliders, let's see what he thinks too, it would be interesting to introduce them in the sliders!
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In my eyes, it’s just another variable that would make it harder to nail down the „perfect“ slider set.
Why would I through that into the mix?!
 
Slight nostalgia trip for me today after going down a Reddit rabbithole.

Remember how the World Cup 2014 game had a "radio station" that sounded fairly realistic? Between games you'd get score updates, but also some general chat about players, and I really loved that feature.

Well I just found out that Madden 07 had a similar feature, and I love it.

It tells you what fixtures are coming up, what the big news headlines are, who the "players of the week" are, and even has interviews:



I'm not someone who's happy playing the old games, and certainly not someone who thinks "everything was better back then" - I just need to see real innovation with the technology we have now before I can love football games again - but this is something I'd love to see come back.

How cool would it be to have something like this in Career Mode (or a more "broadcast" feel in general, it really seems to have gone downhill in that regard since the new commentary teams came in)?

Completely off-topic sidenote... It's my ultimate fantasy to be able to export Football Manager save data into some AI and have a "podcast" generated about all the week's news in my league (fronted by a virtual James Richardson) so I can hear about all the transfers, players in form, manager sackings, details of good goals and unfortunate slip-ups, news about the upcoming fixtures, injuries... Truly a dream.

(Plus an online Manager Mode where you make decisions using a connected app while you're out and about, including transfer offers etc. coming in while you're in the middle of the supermarket, or player agents complaining / offering you players while you're brushing your teeth...)

All of the missed potential for some real revolution (in gameplay and in the off-pitch stuff) really makes football games feel so stale right now, I think.
 
Chris Davies said:
Slight nostalgia trip for me today after going down a Reddit rabbithole.



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I don't want to de-rail the thread but now that you mention it, I have to shout out to NFL 2k5 and its halftime show and week recap showing highlights from different games played by the AI, showing injuries. Full with highlights, halftime heroes, stats, big plays, ESPN license and Chris Berman making his recognizable play-by-play sounds. 20 years later this game still is the best NFL game (even movement back then seemed better than current Madden sliding). Again, not want to make an NFL/Madden post but your reminiscing got me thinking about this and how it added so much. It's not usually "it was better back then" but in this case it was.

Halftime show

Week's season updates from around the league
 
Chris Davies said:
I'm not someone who's happy playing the old games, and certainly not someone who thinks "everything was better back then" - I just need to see real innovation with the technology we have now before I can love football games again - but this is something I'd love to see come back.
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NFL 2K was essentially so good, EA had to buy the NFL license in order to eliminate their competition. Look at what 2K was doing in the early to mid aughts. Like el niche said, not only is NFL 2K5 one of, if not the greatest American football games of all time, it's one of the best sports games of all time.


Their half-time show:




Sports Center Weekly Recap:

 
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I remember when FIFA Devs in interviews would say about working with Sky Sports to replicate the real broadcast feel in-game (FIFA 14/15 I think) I remember thinking in so many years time, we would have a game that was really really immersive, I swear the old commentators Martin Tyler/Alan Smith kept getting new lines, and it felt like they were building more and more, and then little I played of FC lately, and it's gone backwards.
 
HeWillKnockFourTimes said:
I remember when FIFA Devs in interviews would say about working with Sky Sports to replicate the real broadcast feel in-game (FIFA 14/15 I think) I remember thinking in so many years time, we would have a game that was really really immersive, I swear the old commentators Martin Tyler/Alan Smith kept getting new lines, and it felt like they were building more and more, and then little I played of FC lately, and it's gone backwards.
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Commentary is very much a budget affair these days.

Derek and Stuart are bland beyond belief. Absolutely no heft at all.

I wonder sometimes if the whole game is made on a budget, despite how large the team may appear to be.

At this point, without mods, it feels like a mainstream game that became an indie project. Except indie developers have far more integrity of course.
 
FShas said:
Commentary is very much a budget affair these days.

Derek and Stuart are bland beyond belief. Absolutely no heft at all.

I wonder sometimes if the whole game is made on a budget, despite how large the team may appear to be.

At this point, without mods, it feels like a mainstream game that became an indie project. Except indie developers have far more integrity of course.
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Well they are like the Glazers, why spend money on new comms when they can just sit on what they have and watch the money roll in? The Guy Mowbray and Sue Smith comms is honestly like PS1 level.
 
Currently playing the 10 hour trial, game is not bad but what's really pissing me off is that the game refuses to save my graphic settings

I'm playing with a combination of medium and low settings and I'm trying to set the cloth and ambient occlusion from medium to low. I set both to low and apply but then when I start a kick off game and go into the graphic settings they are both back to medium. I was able to set hair strand to low without any issue. Trying to change the settings during a game doesn't work either.

It mainly plays ok in terms of smoothness but it almost slows down in places where i think the AO at medium is causing it to lag

Am I doing something wrong or is it a bug as I'm pulling my hair out with this. I seem to recall previous Fifa's having issues with saving certain settings
 
Slippytoad said:
Currently playing the 10 hour trial, game is not bad but what's really pissing me off is that the game refuses to save my graphic settings

I'm playing with a combination of medium and low settings and I'm trying to set the cloth and ambient occlusion from medium to low. I set both to low and apply but then when I start a kick off game and go into the graphic settings they are both back to medium. I was able to set hair strand to low without any issue. Trying to change the settings during a game doesn't work either.

It mainly plays ok in terms of smoothness but it almost slows down in places where i think the AO at medium is causing it to lag

Am I doing something wrong or is it a bug as I'm pulling my hair out with this. I seem to recall previous Fifa's having issues with saving certain settings
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Some settings require a restart of game to take effect. Not sure if they are some of those settings...?
 
thanks - I don't think changing cloth or AO requires a restart - I think some settings give you a warning that they do require a restart to to effect but I'll try it anyway since nothing else seems to work
 
Just checked out the latest update. It is fascinating how detailed the changelog is and how much attention EA pays to little improvements - while having no clue that it is completely irrelevant to the AI when you do a chill walk to their box on ultimate level.

I finally deleted the game with more than 8 hours left on the trial clock. Going back to PES21 felt like having hands on future alien technology.

See ya next year, guys!
 
philla said:
Just checked out the latest update. It is fascinating how detailed the changelog is and how much attention EA pays to little improvements - while having no clue that it is completely irrelevant to the AI when you do a chill walk to their box on ultimate level.

I finally deleted the game with more than 8 hours left on the trial clock. Going back to PES21 felt like having hands on future alien technology.

See ya next year, guys!
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I pray for aliens sakes that they have better shooting technology. I love PES21 as much as the next guy but that game is looking tired in places now.
 
Slippytoad said:
thanks - I don't think changing cloth or AO requires a restart - I think some settings give you a warning that they do require a restart to to effect but I'll try it anyway since nothing else seems to work
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Seems like it's a confirmed issue on pc. Steam update from.developers refers to it.
 
Redhat said:
NFL 2K was essentially so good, EA had to buy the NFL license in order to eliminate their competition. Look at what 2K was doing in the early to mid aughts. Like el niche said, not only is NFL 2K5 one of, if not the greatest American football games of all time, it's one of the best sports games of all time.


Their half-time show:




Sports Center Weekly Recap:

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And on top of being a great game and all-time classic: the retail price was 19,99$! Which probably was a reason, the NFL gave it's exclusive license to EA, because they saw that price as too cheap for the product NFL. But this shows only one thing regarding the (sports) game industry. Back then the most important aspect was to put all creativity and knowledge into making the best game possible. It was not about making the most profit with the least amount of effort. Of course it was also about making money back then, but in some way the developers tried to earn it with good games.

I wish the whole industry could get back to this kind of mentality. Combine the creativity and passion from back then with the technological advancements, and we probably could have even so much better sports games nowadays...
 

title update 1.1​

​

Gameplay​


Defending​


  • [Competitive Gameplay] Increased aggressiveness of man marking that only applies to the defensive side’s AI players around kick-off.
  • Slightly increased Sprint Jockey speed for user controlled players.
  • Moderately increased Jockey and Sprint Jockey responsiveness for user controlled players.
  • When taking the ball from the attacker without tackling, the attacker could have sometimes incorrectly won the ball back.
  • Blocking a pass could have sometimes resulted in the passer unintentionally getting the ball back.
  • Improved animation selection for Standing Tackles.
  • Increased amount of players that stay back to defend when taking corners.
  • Sometimes, a requested tackle could result in two tackle attempts.
  • Addressed instances of tackles from behind incorrectly winning the ball.
  • Addressed cases of tackle animations ending too early.

Passing​


  • Ground and Lofted Through Passes are now more respectful of your aim input and are less assisted.
  • Ground Through Passes were sometimes not being hit to the intended receiver.
  • Ground Through Passes were not leading enough at times.
  • Lobbed Through Passes could have been affected by weather conditions even if there weren’t any in Authentic gameplay.
  • First time Through Pass requests could have sometimes resulted in the player trapping the ball instead of passing it.
  • Requested low crosses could have sometimes resulted in regular crosses being performed.
  • In some cases, a requested clearance took too long to be performed.
  • Improved responsiveness of first time passes when the ball is coming towards the passer at medium height.
  • When requesting a pass near the touchline, players could have incorrectly taken the ball out of play.
  • Sometimes, a requested headed pass would not occur.
  • Lowered headed lobbed through pass and cross accuracy.
  • Improved instances of Animation Start Pass Receiver Lock Setting not functioning as intended.
  • Addressed instances of passing animations playing out incorrectly.
  • Pass requests were sometimes ignored by the CPU AI during goal kicks.
  • Addressed cases of attacking passing headers applying too much power and speed to the ball.

Movement and Positioning​


  • Moderately reduced speed of Controlled Sprint Dribble.
  • When attempting a Controlled Sprint Dribble, sometimes the player could have lost track of the ball.
  • Directed runs can now be triggered during Controlled Sprint Dribble.
  • Improved AI teammate attacking run logic when assessing potential offside runs.
  • Improved AI teammate attacking run logic to avoid clashing with teammates.
  • During corners, players on the post could have been incorrectly positioned inside their own goal.
  • Attackers could have sometimes ended their runs unexpectedly.
  • Addressed cases of AI teammates standing behind defenders instead of looking for open space.
  • Addressed cases of AI players unintentionally stumbling after colliding with each other.
  • In some cases, a player could have incorrectly slowed down when attempting to avoid a slide tackle.

Goalkeeping​


  • Improved goalkeeper logic during corner kicks to address situations where players could too easily score from short corners that resulted in far post crosses.
  • Improved goalkeeper reactions to near post shots.
  • Improved cases of goalkeepers incorrectly deflecting shots back to attackers.
  • Improved goalkeeper punches to be stronger and have more consistent ball trajectories.
  • Addressed instances of goalkeepers incorrectly deflecting shots into their own net.
  • Goalkeepers would sometimes not react to shots while being manually moved.
  • On occasion, goalkeepers could have automatically and ineffectively rushed out of the box in situations that did not need it.
  • Addressed instances of goalkeeper arms clipping through their body.

Dribbling and Skill Moves​


  • Players are now better at maintaining their movement speed when trapping the ball.
  • Improved ball trapping consistency.
  • Improved cases of air ball traps resulting in the ball going too far away from the player.
  • Removed fancy ball traps for players without Trickster PlayStyles.
  • Requested Skill Moves were sometimes not performed.
  • In some cases, a Ball Roll could have occurred instead of the requested Croquetta Skill Move.
  • When attempting a first time fake shot, sometimes the player could lose track of the ball.
  • The exit direction of a first time fake shot did not always correctly follow user input.
  • An unintentional Player Switch could have occurred in cases where a Skill Move raised the ball.
  • Requesting a Flick Up could have sometimes resulted in two flicks.

Other Gameplay Updates​


  • Increased frequency of attacking and shooting by the CPU AI team in the Be A Goalkeeper experience.
  • In Player Career on Professional difficulty and above, the CPU AI will focus more on buildup and team play.
  • Increased strength of Stamina-related effects in Authentic gameplay.
  • Increased frequency of fouls committed by the CPU AI.
  • Improved referee logic when making standing tackle and sliding tackle foul calls.
  • Sometimes the referee could have incorrectly called for a penalty kick despite the fouled attacker scoring a goal inside the box.
  • Sometimes, the Player Switch to the ball receiver would not occur when using the Air Balls and Manual Player Switch settings.
  • In some cases, players could have become stuck in a Shielding state.
  • Players could have sometimes unnaturally jumped up too high when going for headers.
  • Players could have sometimes been pushed too far when engaging in physical contact.
  • Shielding players were able to sustain maximum shielding ability for longer than intended.
  • Sometimes, a shot could have incorrectly occurred when requesting a tackle.
  • Push back animations could have occurred at incorrect times.
  • After a headed pass, the player switch to the ball receiver did not always occur.
  • Addressed cases of an interception resulting in the ball winning player losing track of the ball.
  • In loose ball situations, sometimes players could not perform a requested shot.
  • Improved cases of late shot modifier inputs not registering.
  • Tactical suggestions were incorrectly appearing at the same time in every match.
 
DerleiPT said:
Passing
  • Ground and Lofted Through Passes are now more respectful of your aim input and are less assisted.
  • Lowered headed lobbed through pass and cross accuracy.
  • Addressed cases of attacking passing headers applying too much power and speed to the ball.
Movement and Positioning
  • Moderately reduced speed of Controlled Sprint Dribble.
Other Gameplay Updates
  • In Player Career on Professional difficulty and above, the CPU AI will focus more on buildup and team play.
  • Increased strength of Stamina-related effects in Authentic gameplay.
  • Increased frequency of fouls committed by the CPU AI.
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I don't know if all of the above changes apply to Authentic gameplay or not - it's actually a REALLY good sign to me if they're applied in Competitive gameplay, but I hope Authentic doesn't miss out!

Either way, I'm really surprised at the changes above in-particular because they seem realism-focused.

The first point on the list I'm particularly pleased about. Push it further, guys! Less assistance will add to the "skill gap" Competitive players demand AND add realism too. It's win-win!
 
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