We have the official Gameplay Pitch Notes from EA for FC 26 and I have to say, there is a lot of great stuff in here.
While the fine tuning of passes, gameplay speed and responsiveness will have to be seen with the launch of the game itself, there are a lot of new features and updates to existing mechanics that we can look forward to.
Let's break it down and take a look at the Top 10 gameplay changes coming to EA FC 26:
10. Passing Lanes for Through Balls
This is a new concept introduced for Semi-Assisted Through Passes in FC 26, aiming at a specific passing lane/gap between two defenders will decide the target selection of your pass receiver to make sure the ball goes to the player you intended.
9. Reworked In-Game Fatigue
This will only apply in Competitive Gameplay settings (Online modes/FUT) where the player you are actively controlling will ALWAYS play as if they have FULL STAMINA and only experience short term fatigue.
Short-Term and Long-Term fatigue will still be applied but only to the AI controlled players in your team, affecting AI positioning and runs but will play as if they have full stamina once you control them.
8. Removed Timed Finishing
Timed Finishing has now been completely removed from the game mechanics, EA cited unbalanced buffs and a lack of meaningful skill gap for this.
In order to get that extra bonus while shooting, players will have to use Precision Shooting which is more skill based and keeps the shot selection consistent in game.
7. Back to 3 AcceleRATE Types
We will be returning to the classic Lenghth/Controlled/Explosive AcceleRATE types in FC 26 to get more predictable pace changes.
The formulas have been reworked and there will be different height restrictions for Men and Women players to be eligible for the Lenghty and Controlled AcceleRATE types.
6. Player Stats/Attributes have increased impact
We have been complaining about the seeming irrelevance of in-game stats when compared to the impact PlayStyles have in game and EA have listened; stats will be influencing core gameplay mechanics more than PlayStyles.
Players with high stats will perfrom core mechanics like first-time passes, jockey and ball control consistently even without PlayStyles.
5. New Player Roles
We have 4 new Player Roles in FC 26:
- Inverted Wingback (RB/LB)
- Box Crasher (CDM)
- Wide Back (CB)
- Ball-Playing Keeper (GK)
With added freedom from the Versatile Focus and reworked focuses for existing roles you will find the tactical setup in FC 26 a lot more fluid.
4. The return of 3-CB Formations
With the addition of the Wide Back Player Role and the reworked LM/RM Wide Midfielder Roles to be more defensively oriented, formations like the 3-5-2 and the 3-4-3 are more viable in FC 26.
The Wide Midfielder Role with have Defend | Build-Up | Support Focuses that will allow you to customize how they behave and track back to help out in defence and attack.
3. Double Tap Low-Driven Shots
You can now make ALL shot types except Chip Shots Low Driven by double tapping the Shoot button, this is what has replaced the Timed Shot button mapping in FC 26.
Here are all the Low Driven Shot types and how to perform them in FC 26:
- Low Driven Lace Shot
- ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Finesse
- R1 + ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || RB + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Trivela
- L2 + ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || LT + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Flair Shot
- L2 + ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || LT + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Power Shot
- L1 + R1 + ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || LB + RB + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Volley
- In Air Shot - ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Header
- In Air Jump - ⚪ (Hold to power up) + ⚪ || B (Hold to power up) + B
2. Enhanced Physicality
A lot of focus has been given to create more physical interactions between players, creating opportunities to use your strength to get the ball, protect it while dribbling and make space for yourself.
Here are the new Physicality-based mechanics that we will see in FC 26:
- Shield Trapping
- Shield Dribbling
- Shield Entries
- Contested Box Outs
1. New PlayStyles
Some PlayStyles have been reworked and removed in favour of more targeted PlayStyles that help add a more unique feel to players and reflect how they play in game.
The following PlayStyles have been removed from FC 26: Power Header, Aerial, Trivela, Flair.
Here are the new PlayStyles added in FC 26:
- Enforcer: Helps with Ball Shielding/Physicality mechanics for attackers
- Aerial Fortress: Jumping boost ONLY in defensive situations
- Precision Header: Better heading in attacking scenarios
- Gamechanger: For fancy/flair shots. You can ONLY perform Trivela Shots if you have this PlayStyle
- Inventive: For fancy/flair passes. You can ONLY perform Trivela Passes if you have this PlayStyle
You can find more details about all upcoming changes in EA's Gameplay Deep Dive here.
Which gameplay features are you most excited about in EA FC 26? There is a lot more to come so stay tuned to the FUT GG News page for updates about FC 26!