College Football 26 Review in Progress

There’s an aged thought that 2nd efforts mostly aren’t arsenic bully arsenic the first. It’s called the sophomore slump, and determination are a twelve reasons for it. Sophomore students don't attraction arsenic overmuch arsenic freshmen; bands person little clip to write, practice, and grounds a 2nd medium than the “breakout” deed they worked connected for years earlier anyone knew who they were; athletes who person exceptional rookie years regress to the mean; and truthful on. There’s nary denying the powerfulness of caller car smell. I deliberation portion of the crushed College Football 25 popped disconnected arsenic hard arsenic it did (and spot maine if you’re unsure: it popped off) was it’d been much than a decennary since NCAA 14 and radical really, really wanted a caller crippled based connected assemblage football. It didn’t wounded that it was besides a bully game, but the yearly “it’s the aforesaid crippled arsenic past year” fatigue of the sports genre hadn’t acceptable successful yet. That makes College Football 26 the existent test.

I’ll beryllium honest, reader: I haven’t had a ton of clip with this sequel yet (I've been engaged finishing up my reappraisal of Mecha Break, which I thought was beauteous great), truthful these impressions are going to beryllium beauteous light. One of the things I’m funny successful arsenic I play much is however this car handles aft we’ve enactment immoderate miles connected her, and if it falls into the aforesaid slump truthful galore games, bands, and students person deed earlier it. But portion that remains to beryllium seen, I’m having a beauteous bully clip truthful far.

Part of that is College Football 26 is built connected a truly steadfast foundation. College Football 25 was a bully game, and it inactive has that infectious tone and consciousness of contented that made it a bully alteration of gait from the much straight-laced Madden. From what I’ve seen, College Football 26 builds connected that successful bully ways. One of the things I’m appreciating astir is the Trophy Room, which tracks the existent satellite trophies you’ll accumulate crossed your full career, nary substance what mode you’re in. It’s chill to spot worldly similar the Heisman Trophy, the Unitas Golden Arm Award, and the Orange Bowl Trophy collected successful 1 place, and beryllium capable to larn astir them, too. There’s a batch of past to assemblage football, and I admit that EA has tried to seizure that.

So far, astir of my clip has been spent sneaking Quick Play games successful wherever I can, truthful I haven’t truly dug into College Football’s large modes excessively overmuch yet (something I program to remedy this weekend), but I person noticed immoderate on-the-field worldly that makes maine happy.

The small alteration I’m happiest astir is to however defenders play the shot erstwhile it’s successful the air. If you’ve played College Football oregon Madden successful the past fewer years, you’ve astir apt been intercepted (or had 1 of your defenders intercept) a walk that they can’t spot without turning around. They’ve fundamentally got eyes successful the backmost of their heads, and it could beryllium precise frustrating. EA has said they’ve changed that, and successful my testing, it’s proven true. Now a defender has to spot the shot to prime it off, and you’ll announcement defenders turning their heads (or not) earlier the shot arrives. If they don’t, however, it doesn’t mean that defender can’t marque a play connected the ball. They tin inactive swat it. It’s a bully alteration due to the fact that it’s two-fold: you present really person a crushed to swat the shot down alternatively of going for the prime each time, and amended defenders tin present marque plays mean ones can’t.

I’m besides a large instrumentality of dynamic subs and customized zones for defenders. The erstwhile allows you to swap players connected the tract and not conscionable connected the playcall surface (thank God), though you whitethorn person to hold a play for the substitution to instrumentality effect, and the second is the antiaircraft mentation of past year’s customized stems for routes connected offense. I bask the antiaircraft crippled much than the violative one, truthful being capable to acceptable wherever I privation my zones to beryllium connected the tract successful real-time and not successful a paper is welcome. I’m enjoying playing astir with this stuff, and I ideate I’ll beryllium utilizing it rather a bit.

Now that I person the clip to truly excavation into College Football 26, I americium excited to spot each the caller additions to Road to Glory, wherever I’m truly looking guardant to being capable to play my precocious schoolhouse career, arsenic good arsenic each the caller bells and whistles successful Dynasty, which is wherever I ideate I’ll beryllium spending astir of my time. But the on-field worldly is wherever it counts. I can’t accidental yet if EA has avoided the sophomore slump with College Football 26, but I’m going into this twelvemonth optimistic, and that’s not nothing.