“For Those Who Never Stopped Believing…” read the caption of EA Sports’ post announcing the return of a college football video game. The believers in question had hoped that sometime in the last 11 years the beloved sports game would finally come back. Finally, after years of waiting amongst controversy and debates, EA Sports College Football 25 will be released on July 19. Those who have waited finally see the end in sight, and new players will be treated to a classic game making its long–awaited return.
What is the College Football video game and why is it so loved?
Image via easports.com
EA Sports College Football (formerly known as EA Sports NCAA Football), is a simulation video game based on NCAA Division I FBS programs. Much of the love surrounding the NCAA Football series focuses on its gameday atmosphere and the uniqueness of college sports versus professional sports. Despite sharing the same game engine as EA Sports’ NFL-focused title, Madden, many users have reported that NCAA Football always felt different. A unique element of the past NCAA Football games that separated itself from other football games was its immersive game modes like Dynasty and Road to Glory, which will be covered later.
Why the 11-year wait?
Despite the NCAA Football series being consistently well received, other factors led to its decade-plus hiatus. At the time of NCAA Football 14’s release, NCAA athletes were barred from profits and compensation of their name, image, and likeness (NIL). However, former student– athletes such as Sam Keller and Ed O’Bannon sued EA Sports and the NCAA, noting that while their names were not officially in the NCAA Football video games, both organizations were still profiting off their NIL through various other methods. One way EA was able to manipulate the system was by finding legal loopholes that allowed players to be in the game whether they agreed to it or not. In a notable example covered by ESPN, former Heisman– winning Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III was not in the NCAA game. However, Baylor’s in-game roster had their best quarterback wear Griffin’s number 10, allowing him to be in the game while not officially having his NIL. The accumulation of lawsuits and controversy surrounding NIL put a pause on an iconic sports gaming franchise.
Why is it returning now?
Athlete compensation and branding have always been a hotly contested issue within college athletics. Though there are countless examples and many other debates within the issue itself, the NCAA had vehemently banned athletes profiting off their NIL. This finally changed in 2021, when the NCAA’s new rules allowed schools to decide what and who could profit off athletes’ NIL which went into effect in July of that year.
College Football is Back
As the college sports world and its fans sensed the legality of NIL change was imminent, EA Sports apparently saw the same. On February 2, 2021, over almost eight years since their last college football game and just months before NIL became legal in college sports, EA Sports made a post that changed the sports gaming world once again. The image simply said, “College Football is Back,” with its caption reading, “For those who never stopped believing…”
Building Hype
Image via polygon.com
No release date was immediately set, but speculation amongst fans led many to believe a date somewhere around summer 2023 was possible. After a set of updates in late 2022, EA Sports dropped a teaser trailer for “EA Sports College Football 25” on February 15, 2024, giving a more concrete date of summer 2024, with a full reveal coming in May.
On May 17, 2024, the official reveal trailer was posted by EA Sports on its various accounts. Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle” played in the background of the action-packed trailer featuring game engine footage showcasing a host of college teams and athletes, including Colorado superstar Travis Hunter making highlight plays. The trailer also showed various traditions and celebrations unique to the dozens of programs to be featured in the game. Most importantly, it set a release date of July 19, finally marking an official end to the long wait. EA Sports also released a deep dive video on May 31, 2024, focused on the finer details and changes to gameplay, which added even more hype to the game.
What’s New, What’s Stayed the Same, and What’s Gone?
Image via ign.com
It’s been over 11 years since NCAA Football 14, so it is expected that there will be quite a few changes within College Football 25.
The graphics and game engine are almost incomparable, as it runs on the Frostbite Engine, which is used for nearly all of EA’s games. The College Football Playoffs have also been added, allowing 12 teams to vie for the NCAA Championship in Dynasty or other modes. New gameplay features such as abilities and wear and tear are also added and can be read about here.
Returning to the game are Dynasty and Road to Glory. Dynasty allows players to take control of an entire program of their choosing, while recruiting, training, and transferring players to build a college football dynasty. Road to Glory focuses more on the individual student athlete aspect of the game, with the user playing as a college football player both on and off the field. Another returning feature is Teambuilder, where players can create and insert their own custom college football program into any game mode. Most importantly, as the trailer showed, traditions unique to the colleges remain in the game. Celebrations and traditions such as Florida’s Gator Chomp and Penn State’s whiteout are just a few of the aspects of college football in the game.
However, some of the changes see some previous aspects of the game altered or removed entirely. Mascot Mashup, which saw each team’s players replaced by their respective college’s mascots on the field, is no longer part of the game. Also, the aforementioned Road to Glory mode began with the user creating their own high school football prospect, but that is no longer the case as the mode jumps straight into college ball.
How and When to Play?
EA Sports College Football 25 releases on July 19, but there are ways to play the game as early as July 16. EA Play members not only get a discount on the game, but they also get 10 hours of early access to the game. Purchases of the Deluxe Edition of College Football 25 allow unlimited early access beginning on the same day. The base game itself can be pre ordered for $69.99 both on console stores and other retailers. The Deluxe Edition, which comes with several Ultimate Team items and unlimited early access is available for $99.99, while the MVP Bundle featuring deluxe versions of Madden and College Football 25 is also available for $149.99.
Until then, users can be treated to speculation and hopefully more trailers will be released by EA. Whether you have played previous NCAA games over a decade ago or have never had the chance to get your hands on the classic series, College Football 25 is a can’t miss addition to the sports gaming world.
Are you going to spend your summer playing College Football 25? Let us know on our social media @ASICPP on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok!
