Although Electronic Arts is one of the kings of the sports video game genre, it does not have the best track record as of late. FC (formerly FIFA) and Madden games are bestsellers every year, but they also have dreadful user reviews on sites like Metacritic. That’s due to light, incremental changes year-over-year, a lack of crucial mechanics for sports simulators, and lots of bugs. That rocky reputation made EA’s impending return to college football equal parts exciting and scary ahead of its release. Would EA Sports College Football 25 be the grand return of the series after a decade of dormancy or a disastrous return?
Thankfully, I can confirm that EA Sports College Football 25 is the best EA Sports game that I’ve played in years. It takes the solid core of Madden’s football gameplay, but actually builds on that in a couple of key ways. Its presentation feels much more lively and polished than other EA Sports games, and its modes bring a lot of welcome depth and customization options that have been sorely lacking in other EA Sports offerings. While there are still a couple of quirks to be ironed out, this is the first EA Sports game I’ve felt comfortable recommending at full price in a long time.
Taking the field again
Unlike this year’s Top Spin 2K25 (which somehow still felt like a minor improvement over its predecessor despite the decade-long gap between them), College Football 25 feels like a big step up for the college football franchise. It’s now running on the Frostbite Engine like Madden and FC do, and because this is a current-gen exclusive, it’s one of the best-looking sports games out there. EA upped the production value of the presentation around the game too, with highly detailed stadiums, cheerleaders, mascots, referees, and more.
Those kinds of presentation flourishes were something that has felt lacking from even recent Madden games, giving College Football 25 an edge over its NFL-focused counterpart. On Xbox Series X, there are occasional frame rate issues when transitioning from replays to gameplay, and some players are running into online connectivity issues. Personally, I haven’t run into nearly as many glitches in College Football 25 as I have in recent Madden games.
You might just consider a well-presented and not bug-filled EA Sports game the bare minimum. If that’s the case, then you’ll be happy to hear that College Football 25 backs it up with solid gameplay and modes. Moment-to-moment football feels similar to Madden, although I enjoy this game’s unique tweaks to passing and kicking controls. Interestingly, EA’s football gameplay style also inadvertently feels a bit better for college football than professional football because of its fast pace and focus on explosive plays.
When it comes to modes, College Football 25 features the typical Play Now and Ultimate Team ones, but really shines in Road to Glory and Dynasty. Road to Glory is its athlete-specific mode clearly inspired by Road to the Show from Sony’s MLB The Show. Players choose a position, fight to become a starter on the college team of their choice, and then must perform well in football games to keep their spot. Between games, players also have to manage spending energy on things like school to ensure they can keep players and improve their skills by using points gained via level-up.
Playing as a quarterback at my alma mater in College Football 25 is really where I gained my appreciation for its presentation and gameplay improvements. Fans of franchise modes in sports games will probably want to pay more attention to Dynasty mode, where players control a team as head coach, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator. In Dynasty, I appreciate College Football 25’s wear-and-tear system, which makes dealing with player health and injuries a more involved process over the course of the season. I also love that I can customize the conferences to my liking, something that’s impossible to do in Madden.
Scouting high school players in Dynasty feels even more involved and captivating than scouting players in Madden because a lot of effort is required to convince prospective players that you’re one of their top schools. Hopefully, the creative spark and innovations in College Football 25 will trickle down into Madden NFL 25 and future EA football games. This is the most refreshed I’ve felt playing an EA Sports game in years, and I hope EA learns the right lessons if this game is successful and improves its whole sports game lineup.
EA Sports College Football 25 launches for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X on July 19. You can access the game now if you buy the $100 deluxe edition.
