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FC25 adds frantic Rush mode and women's player careers to new PS5 football game

EA Sports has lifted the lid on this year's iteration of the FC footballing franchise and has introduced a load of new changes to make it the most 'fan first' soccer title ever

[EA Sports FC25]

EA Sports FC25

EA Sports has finally lifted the lid on its new football title, a soccer hit set to revolutionise the game both virtually and on the real pitch.

The returning Electronic Arts series, out on September 27 on PS5, PC and Xbox Series X, has made the 21-year-old Three Lions ace Jude Bellingham, who came so close to winning the Euros on Sunday, its youngest ever cover star.

And bosses said they want this years effort in the series the most social and authentic game to date, packed full of changes requested by fans and gamers.

The game doubles down on the revamp EA Sports did last year by stripping itself away from the classic Fifa branding and giving the element a major overhaul.

The standout new addition this year is a game mode called Rush.

And its so good it could be a whole new way of playing football in real-life too.

The 5vs5 mode has been built on gaming community feedback to allow players to team up with four other buddies for fast, frantic footballing on a smaller pitch.

Its a goalie and four outfield players with no fixed positions on a fairly large, but smaller than usual pitch.

[Gianluigi Buffon, Aitana Bonmat, Jude Bellingham, Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham posing in a trophy room]

Gianluigi Buffon, Aitana Bonmat, Jude Bellingham, Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham posing in a trophy room

The ball is rolled in from the side for kickoff and you can only be offside in the final third of the pitch, not from the usual halfway line.

There are blue cards - something recently rejected in the real game by lawmakers after a trial this year - which sees a player sin-binned for a minute if they commit certain fouls.

The result is the Padel equivalent of Tennis, a more intense, close quarters and frantic game packed full of speed, adrenaline, flair and fun.

Sam Rivera, senior producer, said: We want to give fresh life with a new gameplay experience.

We want to take advantage of the fully established progression systems that our players already know, are engaged with and enjoy.

We want a social gameplay within the game.

It creates a very unique experience.

EA Sports have also been working a lot on tactics for this version of the game.

[Womens football comes to Career Mode for the first time ever]

Womens football comes to Career Mode for the first time ever

You can now dictate each individual players tactics, movements and abilities to the minutiae thanks to an overhaul of the system theyre calling FC IQ.

Using real-world data, it gives you massive control over how your team acts not only on the ball but off it too.

There are now more than 50 new roles under FC IQ to guide how the characters play off the ball, whether they press hard to win it back, or hold off, whether they act in a central Playmaker position or star more as a speedy wing-back.

Its all about making the game ever more realistic and the HypermotionV system also sees huge improvements to player animations using the real-life video capture of favourites like Erling Haaland and Bokayo Saka, feeding that directly into the game engine to mimic their movements.

Thomas Caleffi, producer, said: We wanted to overhaul the tactics of the game to modernise how teams play and how you interact with your team.

It allows players to channel their inner Pep Guardiola, Xabi Alonso or Zidane.

The community has been asking for this.

[Faces are ever-more recognisable]

Faces are ever-more recognisable

They want to be able to dictate exactly what their team does.

This whole feature is made for our fans.

In Career mode, Live Start Points puts players at the centre of the biggest real-world storylines as they take place, such as taking over a club after mid-season transfers or managerial shifts.

Additionally, this year will see , achieving parity with mens football across all game modes and further contributing towards EA Sports FCs commitment to grow the womens game.

Nick Wlodyka, of EA Sports, said: "With EA Sports FC 25, were strengthening our vision of a fan-first future for football and redefining whats possible on the pitch with FC IQ, using AI and real-world data to modernise player tactics and complement the power of HyperMotionV and PlayStyles.

Were bringing our fans innovative ways to play with Rush, our most social and engaging experience weve ever created, and continuing to craft an authentic representation of the worlds game with the introduction of womens football into Career Mode, strengthening our vision of a fan-first future for football.

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