Review in Progress: College Football 26

Oh, so here we go again with those second tries, right? The ol’ sophomore slump, as they say. Sometimes it feels like everyone’s just waiting for that moment when the shiny new thing loses its, well, shine. Maybe this is why College Football 25 had its moment, that long wait since NCAA 14—a decade! Gosh, people were longing. Longing for that college football fix.

Anyway, so fast forward to the sequel, College Football 26, and what do we have? Well, it’s complicated. I haven’t exactly sunk my teeth into it just yet—I mean, seriously, Mecha Break had me all tangled up in robots, great stuff—so forgive the half-baked thoughts here. Did I mention how I’m curious if this game’s got legs after some real playtime? Yeah, maybe it’s a jittery car on its sophomore ride, who knows.

And oh, that dude I heard? Shelling out $500 just to get his hands on College Football 25, like what even? Makes you wonder if he’s having a blast or just bewildered, you know? It’s one thing to know college football, but EA games? Bit of a different beast. They catch you or they don’t. I mean, last year’s game looked good, felt decent on the field, but, eh, not winning trophies in my book.

Speaking of which, there’s this Trophy Room in College Football 26? Pretty neat, a collection of shiny awards like the Heisman or the Orange Bowl. All just hanging out there, telling their stories. Kind of cool, right?

So in the few moments I’ve managed to dive into Quick Play, I caught something that made me grin—defenders aren’t pulling off witchcraft anymore. Used to be they’d snatch passes without even turning around, as if they’d grown extra eyes at training camp. But now? They actually need to, you know, see the ball. Realism, finally!

Also, those dynamic subs and custom zones—oh boy, that’s a relief. No more fiddling in menus just to swap players or set defenses. It’s like EA finally got the memo from the fans. Or maybe we just screamed loud enough.

I’m itching to see what Road to Glory and Dynasty have in store once I get some proper time with them. Can’t help but be hopeful, and isn’t that what keeps us coming back? Even when last season was just fine, you hope for magic next time around. Here’s to College Football 26, then. Maybe it’ll hit it out of the park—or wait, that’s baseball. Ah, you get it.