The best addition toEA’sannual football-and-lootbox simulator this season has beenPlayStyles. An expansion of the Traits seen in previous years, PlayStyles make players feel tangibly different from one another even if their stats are similar. Some are better than others – you want Anticipate defenders, Rapid wingers, and Finesse Shot strikers – but you’re able to make other styles work for you.
Whipped Pass and Power Header is a brutal combination, Power Shot can be as decisive as Finesse with a little practice, while Relentless, Press Proven, and Technical can make the difference in the middle of the park. If you haven’t taken a 30 yard free kick with a Dead Ball specialist, you haven’t lived.
However, this has led to a new meta inEA Sports FC 24. I find it refreshing that the meta is more malleable these days, and that we’re notentirelyreliant on pace any more (it helps, but even 60-pace Thiago Silva did a stunning job as a centre back in the early days of the season). PlayStyles make players like Silva usable in game, and bring the game closer to the authentic football sim it purports to be.
However, team building has remained stale. The best players are now those with the best PlayStyles and every match will see you face Moussa Diaby on the right (Rapid), Antoine Griezman up top (Finesse), and Raphael Varane at the back (Anticipate). This is where Evolutions come in.
Evolutions are another new addition to Ultimate Team, and allow you to upgrade a player of your choosing with new PlayStyles and boosted stats. The upgrades occur gradually, provided you complete certain challenges (score ten goals with your Evolutions Striker, for instance), and allow you to give unloved players the boost necessary to deserve a spot in your squad.
I’ve evolved Joel Matip twice now, and while he doesn’t have a PlayStyle+ yet, his suite of regular PlayStyles and improved stats make him a mainstay in my defence. He started as a meagre Charmander, with a belly full of fire but not the speed to back it up, and has now blossomed into an 85-rated Charizard, bodying opposing strikers like they’re Weedle in his path.
Matip’s low pace has been offset as I’ve evolved him, allowing his stellar defensive stats to shine. Add in new PlayStyles and his already great passing capabilities, and suddenly Matip is a great defender who sometimes keeps Van Dijk out of my team.
I recently evolved Divock Origi, too. His mediocre gold card is now a mighty 86-rated Evolutions card, complete with Power Shot and Power Header to create a strong, yet surprisingly agile striker. He’s a versatile option off the bench and, as a Liverpool fan, I’m glad I can honour the Anfield legend in my team.
Not everything about Evolutions is perfect. The best upgrades cost money – either virtual currency or real cash – to complete, which brings new meaning to pay-to-win. The time limits to complete Evolutions also means you’re able to’t plan ahead – I was lucky that my already-evolved Matip fit the requirements for another challenge, but knowing what’s to come might aid players in choosing lower-rated options who can become superstars in their own right.
The Ultimate Team community is fairly split on Evolutions, largely thanks to those locked behind paywalls. Some, like the Centurions Box-to-Box Midfielder, seem aimed at one particular player (Marcos Llorente), which goes against the spirit of the whole thing. Would you pay150,000 coinsto upgrade Llorente to a Gullit Gang master of midfield? Most people, myself included, would say yes. But if you wanted to give young Jobe Bellingham a boost for the fun of it, that price seems incredibly high. Still, I don’t think the paywalls are too different from SBC costs as a rule, but they are a barrier to fun.
The other problem that the community has with Evolutions is that you can only complete one at a time. Playing 40 matches with a defender to fully upgrade them is a mammoth task, especially if you’re steering clear of AI-based Squad Battles, but the fact you can’t upgrade two players with those same 40 matches is a sticking point for many players. For me though, it just forces me to pick my Evolutions carefully.
Generally, I know how much free time I’ll have in any given fortnight, and I’ll judge how many Evolutions I want to do in that time. Really busy in the run-up to Christmas? I’ll slowly work on one – Emma Koivisto looks like a great option at right back. Got a week off and time to kill while I worry about never finishing Baldur’s Gate 3? I’ll do three Evolutions back to back.
Note: Not all Evolutions take 40 games to complete, I didn’t play 120 matches last week.
So, while PlayStyles+ may be dictating the meta right now, Evolutions are letting players have fun. Ultimate Team has been too reliant on the meta for years, and this is finally a chance to use underappreciated players and have somefunfor once. All that’s left to decide is whether to commit to the 50-match grind and evolve Melissa Lawley twice so she’s an 87, or take the easy route to an 85-rated Dominik Szoboszlai. I doubt I’ll ever see anyone else in the game using Liverpool Women’s left winger, but Szobo has that Dead Ball+ for beautiful free kicks…
