Debutting together with the EA FC branding, PlayStyles were a welcome novelty at the start. After all, the mechanic promised to further increase how unique star players feel and better translate their strengths to the pitch.
What the debut kicked off, however, was a complete reshaping of the franchise’s meta during the coming years, to the point of making even once meta-defying Icons (such as Ronaldinho and even R9 to some extent) fall by the wayside in 2026. But is there a way for the company to turn the boat around? Here are a few ways in which EA could fix its PlayStyle-sized problem on FC 27.
By Nerfing Their Effects
What many consider to be the obvious choice, lowering the importance of PlayStyles by making them more situational, is by far the most straightforward way to mitigate their effects without making drastic changes to the formula. This option is also by far the most feasible here, since EA FC 27 is most likely already past the halfway point of development and far from the stage at which any game-changing choice can be made with no major drawbacks.
By Making Them Stat Dependent
A different way to tackle the issue, making PlayStyles an extra and linking them to stats, in a similar way to how badges work in NBA 2K, is also a possibility. Doing so would allow EA to keep the concept pretty much intact, all while making sure your card’s stats are still the most important pieces of the puzzle. Want a Tiki Taka+ midfielder? Well, they must first have over 90 Vision and 90 Short Pass.
On the downside, this would mean completely reshaping the franchise’s current approach to stats and could give birth to an even more predatory system, as all 2K fans can attest.
By Removing Them All-Together
The option most of the fanbase stands behind, removing PlayStyles altogether in favor of a factory reset, would allow stats to once again be the key deciders behind a card’s worth. This dream scenario, however, is by far the most unlikely outcome. The reason? Even if we ignore the already leaked City-like mode, expected to be released with the franchise’s next installment, PlayStyles (and Roles in general) have become one of the pillars of FC‘s current approach to Ultimate Team monetization, which relies on a constant influx of new releases and evolutions.
So, what about you? Is there any way you believe EA could fix PlayStyles in FC 27? Make sure to let us know below, and as always, thanks for supporting Operation Sports.
