EA Sports College Football 25 Reviews
College Football 25 nails the on-field action with a dynamic feel, stellar graphics, and tons of smart gameplay tweaks. However, so much of what's off the field feels unfinished, with UI issues and barebones modes that seem like they are waiting for a rebuild next season.
The best American football game in a decade, with a career mode which will take over your life – along with fabulous levels of college pageantry and authenticity.
EA Sports College Football 25 makes the gridiron feel new again with stellar visuals that heighten the gameday intensity and smooth controls that evoke the high-octane moment-to-moment action that makes college football so beloved. I enjoy the painstaking, time-consuming process of revitalizing weak programs in Dynasty as well as competing against teammates to earn that coveted starting spot in Road to Glory, but some skin-deep progression systems and game modes are concerning; beyond the campaigns, there simply isn’t enough to see or do. Nevertheless, CFB 25 is a confident spiral throw in the right direction, and I’m excited to see how its strong foundation evolves in future releases.
EA Sports College Football 25 proves it's more than just nostalgia with its impressive production and gameplay.
Running the ball has also changed. The AI around blocking schemes has improved, and new animations and physics make it easier to fight through arm tackles or poor pursuit angles. The option system has also been revamped. The good news is that players now have multiple types of pitches they can throw, which can open up the playbook beyond the commonly used Read Option. The bad news is that the button scheme to hand the ball off or keep it has flipped from the last few years, meaning that I spent hours handing off the ball when I meant to hold on to it.
EA put all of its chips into College Football 25, and it truly paid off. People are buying consoles just to play this game. It's a cultural phenomenon and the experience that's provided isn't replicated anywhere else. All the new additions to help make the game stand out including Wear and Tear, Turbo Mode, different coverage shells and added hot routes for pre-play, and basically everything added isn't just a gimmick, it's a substantial change. While some bugs and logic need to be addressed, College Football 25 is undoubtedly the most fun football game to come out in years. Everything College Football is here.
College Football 25 had over a decade of expectations and wishlists to overcome, but EA has managed to relaunch the series with a gem of a game. That said, some modes like Road to Glory feel underbaked and it's not exactly friendly to newcomers.
College Football 25 is exactly the return to the series that fans will have wanted. The gameplay is solid, and sets itself apart from Madden in a way that rewards dedicated players, and the Dynasty mode will alone will keep you engaged endlessly. A lack of depth in the other modes and some fiddly UI pull the experience down a bit, but never by enough to hinder what the game does best.
When I heard EA was bringing college football back, I was fully prepared to play a game of Madden with college uniforms. In all honesty, I would have played it and been mildly satisfied. EA delivered a much deeper experience that easily carves its own identity in every way possible. Once EA learns its way around the restrictions of the NIL situation, the series will go to an even higher level.
EA Sports College Football 25 is simply one of the finest interpretations of American football since NFL 2K5. Dynasty mode is great, Road to Glory has untapped potential while CUT has all the pros and cons of EA's Ultimate Teams. It's been years since I've played such a beautiful, engaging and well-curated simulation.
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The game is truly a combination of work hard, play harder — sounds a lot like college.
EA Sports College Football 25 succeeds at setting itself apart from Madden with new mechanics and systems that change the way you play the game. Wear & Tear forces a new kind of strategy, and the changes to passing and player movement open the door for unforgettable plays. There are some cracks in the presentation, the game needs more songs, and Dynasty could use a tad more polish, but College Football 25 has delivered a level of fun that I haven’t gotten from a football sim in years.
College Football 25 is a success. Period. There will always be individuals who can’t accept EA Sports delivering a solid product, but I’m giving credit where credit is due. This game has gotten me excited about simulated football again—something that Madden hasn’t done since the mid-2000s. It’s not perfect, but nothing is. The year ahead with College Football 25 is officially exciting, and if Madden can replicate what it does well, it’ll be a glorious time for football fans.
The ten-year wait for EA Sports College Football 25 has been worth it, with its all-encompassing Dynasty mode likely to prove an obsession for some football fans. Great gameplay paired with a deep spreadsheet simulator makes this one of the most fun and fresh sports games in eons, and it's backed up by some stellar presentation, too. Ultimate Team feels superfluous, and Road to Glory could do with more time in the oven, but as far as comebacks go, this is one for the ages – even if it's mere existence is likely to bemuse practically everyone outside of America.
There is so much more to this game, but I am not equipped to go into the details of a lot of college football. I am more of an NFL guy. Still this game should make players who have been dying for the series return extremely happy. It does a lot of great things and sets the template for future games. The foundation is great, and they just need to flesh out the modes in the future and fix the glitches that crop up. It feels good to have this series back, and I hope it serves as inspiration to improve Madden as well.
EA Sports College Football 2025 is the return of college football that sports gaming fans have been waiting for. There's enough here to keep the avid and dedicated fans around for a good while, with Dynasty Mode and Road to Glory taking center stage. Control over dynasty players, playing defense, and not fully showing what controls are bring down the experience quite a bit, especially in the beginning hours. EA Sports College Football 25 is not for everyone, but fans will get enough out of it to keep the franchise coming back around each year, hopefully with improvements.
Being the first college football game in a decade also works heavily in favor of College Football 25. Were this an annual franchise, elements like its clunky UI may be more of a sticking point. However, as it stands now, College Football 25 will bea must-play for any hardcore college football fans, and the excitement of the new release helps players ignore some of its flaws.
Eleven years is a long time in between games, and the developers at EA Orlando largely did a good job. There's a lot of fun gameplay but there are some issues that will need fixing for the next version. Dynasty mode is the star of the show here with so much depth you might get overwhelmed. Here's hoping EA Orlando builds upon the success of this game and does even better next year.
Even with the immense weight of its own legacy on its shoulders, EA Sports College Football 25 delivers on every single one of its promises - and then some. While EA couldn't help but underhand returning fans of the series with Ultimate Team, they provide more than enough alternatives for those who wish to leave the mode on the bench.