EA Sports released their deep dive article on College Ultimate Team 25 today, the game mode where you can build your "ultimate team" with current college players, current NFL players, and former collegiate legends! There are a lot of similarities between the new CUT mode and the MUT mode we're accustomed to from Madden but with some major differences as well! Let's take a look at what we learned from today's deep dive below:
For the original EA Deep Dive, click here.
CHALLENGES AND OBJECTIVES
If you've played an Ultimate Team mode before, you are probably familiar with challenges and objectives. Complete specific requirements in different scenarios against the CPU with your team to earn Packs, Player Items, and Coins that can be used to purchase Packs and Players. There will be a total of 100 challenges available at launch with many more being added throughout the year.
Objectives are similar to challenges but are typically achieved over multiple games with gradual progress toward Packs, Player Items, Coins, and XP for your Field Passes.
TEAM CHEMISTRY
The concept of Team Chemistry should be familiar to any returning UT players. Add players with the same Team Chemistry to your lineup to unlock ratings boosts for all players sharing the Team Chemistry. It sounds like Team Chemistry will function the same way in CFB but with one major difference; instead of just a player's current team being available to equip, all 134 Team Chemistries in CFB 25 will be available to each player. So, for the Michigan fans who have always dreamed of using their favorite Ohio State Buckeyes, you are in luck!
SCHEME CHEMISTRY
Scheme Chemistry is making its return to Ultimate Team in CUT 25 after disappearing for a few years after MUT 21. Scheme Chemistry is based on a player's playstyle and provides ratings boosts to players sharing the same Scheme Chemistry that increase as more are added to your lineup. Playbooks in CUT 25 will also contribute to your Scheme Chemistry total. Check out the 19 new Scheme Chemistries from EA's Deep Dive below:
PLAYBOOKS
College Football Ultimate Team will feature playbooks for all 134 teams available, plus 19 Scheme Chemistry playbooks. Not sure which scheme will fit best for your playstyle? Head to the Challenges section of MUT and play scheme trials on offense and defense to experiment with different playstyles to help decide which schemes best suit you.
UNDERSTANDING PLAYER ITEMS
As you can see in the first picture below, the front of College Ultimate Team Player Items display the standard information you might expect: archetype, position, key ratings, team, OVR, and rarity. The tiers of rarity for player items are:
- Common - Grey
- Uncommon - Green
- Rare - Blue
- Epic - Purple
- Legendary - Gold
A simple flip of the right stick will show the back of player items with their ratings and equipped abilities (see image below):
ABILITIES
Similar to Madden Ultimate Team, Abilities will be available to equip on player items in College Ultimate Team 25. Each Ability will come with an Ability Point (AP) cost that will count against the maximum AP limit on each side of the ball. So, you will have to be strategic about which Abilities you equip and on which players. EA mentioned two different types of Ability Buckets: Mental and Physical. We'll have to wait and see which Abilities are available in each bucket.
PROGRAMS
As you can expect with any Ultimate Team mode, College Ultimate Team will be a Live Service, meaning it will receive updates throughout the upcoming football season. EA provided a sneak peek at 4 different programs we can expect to see when the game launches. Check all 4 out below:
ULTIMATE ALUMNI
The first program EA teased us with is the Ultimate Alumni Program, featuring players who previously stood out on the college gridiron. Challenges will be available that relive some of the players' biggest moments on the field. If you pre-order the Deluxe or MVP Editions of College Football 25, you will receive a pack containing your choice of 1 of 10x 82 OVR Ultimate Alumni Player Items to help you get started. To view the 10 different player options, click here.
CONFERENCE STORIES OF THE WEEK
As we approach the upcoming college football season, a program called "Conference Stories of the Week" will help spotlight some of the biggest stories from different conferences with new challenges, players, and sets. SMU Defensive Lineman Jonathan Jefferson was the first SOTW Player revealed by EA.
ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)
The ICYMI Program celebrates the most memorable college football moments over the last 10 years (2013-2023). A few specific moments mentioned by EA were the 2013 Miracle for Auburn, UCF's perfect 2017 season, and Alabama's Title Redemption against Clemson. Ohio State Buckeyes' LE Joey Bosa was teased as one of the first ICYMI Player Items available.
LEGENDS
No Ultimate Team mode is complete without a Legends Program, and College Football 25 will be no exception. New Legendary All-Americans will join the game mode each week, presumably with a similar format as we've seen in MUT in recent years. The first Legend teased by EA is none other than former Miami Hurricanes' MLB Ray Lewis!
FIELD PASS
Located under the "Live Events" tab, some new programs released throughout the year will come with their own Field Pass that unlocks unique rewards as you increase your Field Pass Level by completing various objectives. The first Field Pass available at launch will be called "Orientation" and is meant to introduce everyone to how Field Passes will work throughout the season. If you've played MUT in recent years or games like Fortnite, Call of Duty, etc., then you're probably already familiar with how Field Passes work.
SETS
Sets are another feature that Ultimate Team Players should be familiar with by now. Sets allow you to exchange lower-rated player items for higher-rated player items. To help speed up the process of completing sets, each set will provide the lowest-rated OVR in your inventory that meets the set requirements and allow you to complete it with one button press. However, while this feature can save time, be sure you don't accidentally exchange a player item you didn't mean to because once the set is complete, there's no getting those items back!
NEW WAYS TO PLAY
EA briefly highlighted some of the game modes we can expect to see in the upcoming game, both old and new! Let's take a quick look at each one:
- Solo Seasons - A repeatable 5-game regular season format against the CPU with playoffs and a championship game.
- Solo Battles - Take on featured CPU teams each week to unlock new rewards.
- H2H Seasons - Compete against other players during your own individual season as you attempt to make the playoffs, win championships, and increase your division to earn better rewards.
- Squads Regular Season - Team up with 1-2 of your friends as the Offensive Captain, Defensive Captain, and Head Coach of a shared team as you compete against other squads of players, increasing your division as you win and earning rewards together.
- Gauntlet - For those who enjoy a more competitive environment, the Gauntlet will open every Friday at 1:30pm ET and end on Monday at 1:30pm ET. Players who qualify through the Champs game mode or pay a coin entry get 1 chance to reach 10 head-to-head wins without suffering 2 losses. If you lose twice, your Gauntlet attempt for the weekend is over. Reach 10 wins and you will be rewarded with Coins, National Champion Packs, and exclusive players!
- Champs - Play the head-to-head Champs game mode throughout the week to qualify for the upcoming weekend's Gauntlet event. You will have a maximum of 20 games to reach 16 wins and earn your spot in Gauntlet for the week.
- House Rules - In this more relaxed head-to-head atmosphere, you will find unique twists to the rules and scoring. New events will be made available throughout the year in the "Live Events" tab. The following two House Rules Events will be available at launch:
- Touchdown Tango - 25-yard first downs and 14 points for a touchdown. Take a 28-point lead on your opponent for an immediate win. ICYMI players and packs will be rewarded for racking up wins in this mode. This event will expire on 8/29 at 10:00am ET.
- Overtime - Traditional College Football overtime rules against other players. Each team will get one possession to score a touchdown or field goal until there is a clear winner. Simple!
What are your thoughts on our first look at College Ultimate Team?
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