2024-07-17 02:30:02
The wait is over.
After a decade without a new release of the NCAA Football video game, the 2025 edition is finally here and it’s an absolute blast. As somebody that grew up playing the series religiously, and also had insanely high expectations coming in, EA Sports College Football 25 truly blew me away as a CFB diehard.
The pageantry, the energy in the stands, the glimmering of a sea of helmets coming crashing out of the tunnel as the lights shine down, they captured it all. The game is a visual masterpiece that transports the player off the couch and into the stadium. And while there are a few things that are missing — no game is ever perfect — the level of detail included is quite impressive.
Here’s some info about the experience for Colorado State fans.
Uniforms
One of the first things you might notice is that you do not currently have the option to select Ag Day or State Pride uniforms. Don’t worry though. You will be able to play with CSU’s slick alternates this fall. The school confirmed that the uniforms will be included in an update. Ram fans are in for a little surprise in real life this September, too.
Canvas Stadium
This is the first time that we’ve been able to play at Canvas Stadium on a video game and they got a lot of the visuals right. It does not seem like they included Cam the Ram — at least based on what I’ve seen so far — and that is definitely disappointing. I was impressed with some of the details they included though.
They nailed the team running out of the tunnel and through the pyro. And as the players pour out onto Sonny Lubick Field, the expanded view of Canvas looks perfect with the band and color guard out there.
When playing at home there are little things that really make it feel like you are actually there. For instance when you are defending on third down, the menacing song that the band plays roars throughout the stadium. (I tried and failed to find the name of the tune but it’s the one that sounds like something you’d hear in the Wizard of Oz as the flying monkeys terrorize people).
Some other aspects that I appreciated were the view of campus through the north end zone, the crowd yelling in an alternated pattern “Go Rams” and a lot of small details like the artwork in the tunnel or the helmet bumpers having “Grit” on them. Again, there are always little things you could tweak, but they did a really solid job overall.
Tory Horton is a cheat code
When playing as the Green & Gold it’s obviously important to take advantage of the mismatches and it does not matter who the opponent lines up across from Tory Horton, it’s going to be a mismatch.
With a 91 overall rating the star wide receiver is a top 50 player in the game and a top 5 player at his position. I racked up about 30 catches for 500+ yards with him in a couple of wins over Colorado and Wyoming. What’s fun is the playbook is so expanded that there is essentially infinite ways to get the ball in his hands.
Need to move the sticks on third down? Find No. 14. Want to stretch the field and test how well the opposing secondary can run? Screw it. Tory is down there somewhere. With his speed and absurd catch radius, it reminds me of playing with Randy Moss on the Vikings back in the day.
BFN can rip it
They gave quite a bit of respect to Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi with an 81 overall rating. I was impressed while playing with him how accurate they got some of his mannerisms and mechanics. Ram fans are going to really enjoy ripping the ball downfield with him. The new dynamic passing feature also allows you take advantage of his touch on more precise situations like a slot fade or corner route.
If you are using this offense and not putting up points, don’t be afraid to unleash the beast and let is rip with BFN.
Who is missing
It’s important to note that just because a player opted into the game it does not necessarily guarantee their inclusion. Every team gets 85 real players on the roster, so technically some guys could be left out.
If a player did not opt into the game then it’s now too late for them to be included. However, if a player did opt in but was not initially included, EA could theoretically update the roster down the line. Unlike 20 years ago when the disk came out and that was it, EA does have the ability to update the game.
A few noteworthy players that I noticed are not in the game right now are (RB) Justin Marshall, (WR) Armani Winfield, (WR) Jordan Ross and (TE) Jaxxon Warren. I did not see (DT) Hidetora Hanada either. We’ll see if any of those guys get added down the line but there are no guarantees.
