Sawt Falasteen - 'Fifa' successor 'FC 26' polishes the beautiful game

While sheding its "FIFA" moniker in 2024 when its publisher parted ways with the global footballing body, "EA Sports FC 26" builds upon its three-decade lineage that aims to faithfully portray on-pitch action with real-world male and female stars.

Players on PCs and consoles can jump into anything from fast-paced online pick-up games to solo experiences closer to a real-life match or managing a team over a season.

When early access for PCs and consoles opens on Friday, "FC 26" has a lot to prove.

Last year's edition became the best-selling game in 17 European countries last year, according to German market research firm GfK.

But it got middling reviews from critics and fans, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Keeping the "FC" series fresh is all the more urgent as it has faced new competition this year from French-made "Rematch", which notched up five million players in a single month, and "FIFA Rivals", a mobile game bearing the imprimatur of the federation.

"We never stop listening" to the public conversation, associate producer Bogdan Banasiewicz told AFP at August's Gamescom trade show.

A new official feedback portal allows fans to send in gripes directly, while developers have also canvassed high-profile gaming streamers.

"There are some very engaged players that can be very vocal," Banasiewicz acknowledged diplomatically.

"That's absolutely fine, we're playing the game as well, we understand" their frustrations, he added.

Where last year's "FC 25" introduced the quickfire five-a-side "Rush" gameplay mode, "the most encouraging aspect of 'FC 26' is the glaring lack of a big gimmick," news site Gamesradar's sports editor Ben Wilson wrote.

- 'More responsive' play -

With "FC26", "we want to improve the fundamentals... to make sure there's more authenticity, more variety, more depth," senior gameplay producer Sam Rivera told AFP.

Developers have reworked everything from the speed at which players' bodies are animated to the communication between players' machines at home and the distant servers hosting online games, or even how consoles interface with their controller handsets, he said.

"If the game is not responsive it's not fun," Rivera said.

"You need to be in control of your players all the time, and they need to execute what you have in mind immediately".

Banasiewicz says the difference is clear from new dribbling, with trimmed or updated animations for ball control from jog to sprint.

"The game really listens to the player's input," he insisted, with passing upgraded in a "very similar" way.

"FC 26" also used artificial intelligence techniques to train its computer-controlled goalkeepers' positioning in response to the action upfield.

"We've been using machine learning for years, but this year it's about position... when to rush, when to stay, how to cover near post versus far post," Rivera said.

The team "want to explore" how to use the tools for further tasks like improving positioning for the rest of the virtual squad, he added.

- 'Eye-opening' disability feedback -

With billions of people around the world now gaming across mobile devices, PCs and consoles, the profile of the average player that developers of mass-market games must address is broadening.

Feedback EA Sports received from fans while making "FC26" included comments from players with disabilities such as colour blindness.

"It was actually really eye-opening, what type of challenges they had playing our game," Banasiewicz said.

In response, the studio included features like a high-contrast mode that clarifies the visual information on the pitch.

"You can literally just change the colour, not only of the players, but the pitch, the referee," the producer added.

With still more gamers able to participate, the volume of feedback the developers will receive is likely to grow.

"I would recommend all players to use" the official portal to have the best chance of influencing future updates, Banasiewicz said.

M.Qasim--SF-PST