Electronic Arts saw its turnover increase by $2.02 billion in the second quarter of 2024 thanks to increased sales of American football games. The CEO of EA, Andrew Wilsonsaid he wanted to develop a more sustainable model for Madden NFL and therefore move away from annual releases, so that fans can play the game every day of the year, indicated The Holywood Reporter. A new path that could apply to EA Sports, the EA subsidiary in charge of the development of Madden NFL, UFC, F1, NHL…and above all FC (formerly FIFA) !
Why FC 26 might never see the light of day?
EA’s wishes seem to have clearly changed, the game may no longer be released annually! FC 26 could therefore never be releasedsince management now plans to update the game regularly. One question remains unanswered: will the updates be paid for?
At the moment, there is no evidence to answer this question. If EA Sports decides to make its football simulation free, like eFootball and UFL, they will be able to count on their number 1 asset: microtransactions, an economic model that has greatly satisfied the franchise since FC 24.
What would it change if FC 26 did not release the previous games in the same way?
For fans of FC, the news may seem difficult to believe, but yes, EA would like, through this new model, to improve the gaming experience of its users. It is always easier to start with an already built game and continually make updates to correct bugs, than to have to recreate one every year from scratch…
Especially since in the end, players complain that from one opus to another, the gameplay does not change one iota. FC 25 is the perfect example. The game is clearly a copy and paste of its little brother released a year earlier. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to maintain an identity in the gameplay, but for that to happen it would have to be correct. The same mistakes come up every year and the players’ annoyance only increases. Hopefully this will change in the future!
