EA Sports College Football 25 Preview: The Big Game on Campus

A lot can change in 11 years.

2013 marked the last time a college football video game from EA Sports launched on consoles. Thanks to an ongoing lawsuit between the NCAA and former players, the franchise was put on indefinite hiatus. An entire console generation passed without a single college football game, and many thought a second one might do the same.

However, thanks to the NIL and other outside factors – and a new name – EA Sports College Football 25 is nearly here, and we had the chance to travel to Orlando to see what the return to campus will look like for college football fans who've waited over a decade to head back onto the digital gridiron.

That game day feeling

One of the major hallmarks of College Football 25, from everyone we talked to at EA Orlando, was capturing the authentic feeling of a Saturday during football season. The team strived to bottle every bit of the pageantry of game day, and it shows from the minute a game begins.

For our hands-on time, we took the field in South Bend, Indiana with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The scene fades up to players in navy and gold walking down the steps and touching the iconic "Play Like A Champion Today," before shifting to the cheerleaders on the field and the Fighting Irish mascot holding his fists to the camera. The team takes the field with the Notre Dame Victory March fight song blaring, the crowd erupts, and the game begins. It feels like we're watching on TV, right down to the smallest detail.

This is one example of what the dev team has prepared for players from across the country. Say you're a Penn State fan, and you know a certain game on the schedule is the "White Out Game" where everyone in the stands wears white; that same game on the schedule in CFB25 will have a sea of white surrounding the field. If a team's fan base has done a special night like the White Out in the past – or more impressively, has planned one for the future – College Football 25 will reflect it.

Home-field advantage

That game day environment also affects the game’s flow – mostly for the unlucky team on the away team's sideline. In high-pressure situations, a team's home crowd will have a major impact on key moments, from receiver routes looking like a child's drawing when the quarterback takes the line to the screen shaking as he hikes the ball.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in the kicking game, as attempting to kick a field goal on an opposing team's field, especially late in the game, is nearly impossible. The screen shakes to near-earthquake levels, the trajectory of the kick flails helplessly from one side of the goalpost to the other – it's a messy situation. However, that is part of what makes college football so special, and it's presented in a unique and fun way here.

A different game

The atmosphere isn't the only thing that makes the college game different from the pros, and College Football 25 does a good job of highlighting the pace and approach of the collegiate level. Option plays have been reworked to feel more like the college option, with the ability to pull the ball back to the quarterback easily or throw a pitch to the running back on his flank. The passing game employs a power meter of sorts that impacts both the ball’s trajectory and the throw’s speed. After a few plays, our Notre Dame offense was in a real flow, both on the ground and in the air, and it felt great.

The most notable new mechanic in College Football 25, however, is the Wear And Tear system. This separates a player's body into different body parts and takes into account how much impact they've taken to a certain part throughout a game. As the game progresses, if a body part is continuously hit, the player's performance will be affected when they need to use it.

For example, if a quarterback is sacked six times, and three of those see him landing on his throwing shoulder, then his throw accuracy might be affected. The impact of the tackles alone might diminish his core, which will hinder his ability to make powerful throws. Every player on the field will be affected by this Wear And Tear system, and it can have a major impact in the later stages of the game.

In the aforementioned Notre Dame game, our running back was chewing up yardage left and right, but he took more hits on his right side than his left. After a while, running plays to the left of the center – where the back would have to push off defenders with his right arm – became less effective, as his ability to break tackles was different. This isn't a drastic drop by any means, so don't expect Wear And Tear to completely break the game; instead, it's a novel way to tell the story of a football game that also adds an extra layer of strategy throughout.

Living the college life

While we didn't get to play these modes in our hands-on preview, College Football 25 is offering both Dynasty and Road To Glory modes for players to build their legacies, either on the field or coaching from the sidelines.

Dynasty mode offers the player 30 full seasons of a coaching career, both in online campaigns with up to 32 players or offline in a solo endeavor. Different coaching archetypes will give some coaches an edge in certain areas while weakening them in others; a coach with a good football mind might not be the best at recruiting, for example. Skill trees allow for even deeper customization, with a solid amount of options for molding a coach in the player's image.

Each season will include a recruiting session, with a finite amount of resources available to sign the top players in the country. The transfer portal – new to the entire college football world – is also here, and it could see your best player off to another team simply because you broke your promises. Recruits can be persuaded based on factors like national championship chances or the potential to become a pro, or even how much exposure their personal brand will receive.

During the season, you'll be able to track standings, Heisman Trophy odds, and look at the current state of the National Championship Bracket – which will reflect the full 12-team structure being introduced to real-world college football this year in a preview of things to come. Dynasty is filled with deep, detailed features like this, and with 30 seasons to play through, you won't be at a loss for things to do.

Meanwhile, Road To Glory mode will let you create a player at one of five positions across offense and defense and take that player through their entire college career. From redshirting as a freshman to becoming team leader in your senior year, everything is on the table.

Road To Glory will let you choose your player's background, position, special abilities, and sign with the school of your choice. From there, you'll have to manage academics, social life, practice, workouts, and everything else that goes with being a college athlete in order to maximize your four years on campus.

Will you skip morning workouts to get some extra sleep before class, or will you skip the class to hang out with friends? The choices are frequent, and each one will impact your player's week-to-week progress. If things don't work out at your current school, you can enter the transfer portal and try your luck somewhere else, but that comes with its own set of risks. Where Dynasty offers the complete coaching experience, Road To Glory looks to do the same with the life of a collegiate athlete.

Big game on campus

It's been a long decade-plus since an official college football simulation was on store shelves, but College Football 25 is looking to end the drought with authenticity as the driving force. The essence of game day translates well based on our hands-on experience, and the featured-packed modes surrounding the action on the field will bring the experience of the college football lifestyle to center stage, both from a coach and player perspective.

It remains to be seen if College Football 25 is worthy of a national championship, but seeing it back on the field at all is a welcome addition to the gaming landscape.

EA Sports College Football 25

Release Date: July 19, 2024

• PlayStation 5Buy
• Xbox SeriesBuy