Since EA Sports FC 24 was released back in September, there has been a lot of talk online about how unenjoyable the game is to play. Why is it then that millions of people still persist with it?
A lack of competition could certainly be a major contributing factor. Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer series (now eFootball) used to provide EA Sports with serious competition each year; in its current form, eFootball is not the serious challenger to EA Sports that it once was, however, and EA Sports’ grip on the football game market is now stronger than ever.
When you’re not able to get outside and play football, playing the sport in a video game instead can provide a fun alternative, and right now there aren’t too many options that allow you to do that. Football Manager is an extremely deep and impressive video game for exploring tactics and testing out your managerial credentials, it doesn’t allow you to actually take control of the players for yourself though, and as good as it is, it does therefore provide for quite a different experience.
Ultimate Team also has a firm grip on many, providing motivation to play the mode in the form of rewards for completing different objectives. It can be quite fun, but it’s also incredibly addictive, and with the ability to invest real world money to help improve your squad; there’s very real potential to spend big in this mode in your thirst for glory. Opening packs in this mode is a huge draw for some, and certainly another reason that could explain why people that don’t enjoy the game continue to keep sinking time into it.
There’s also a cycle of habit to consider. Do people continue to play the game because they gain genuine enjoyment from it, or are they playing it simply because it’s something that they’ve always done and therefore it’s something that they continue to find themselves drawn back into?
UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.
