New College Football Video Might Be A Financial Disaster For EA Sports: REPORT

Could the upcoming college football video game turn into a nightmare?

"College Football 25" drops at some point in July with the rumored exact release date being July 19th. I can't remember the last time so much hype surrounded a video age, and it makes sense. It's the first college football game in 11 years being released by EA Sports. How could fans not be excited?

Well, what if it turns into an unmitigated disaster? That's the concern a popular video game publication is raising.

Will "College Football 25" fail?

"The release of College Football 25 is fast approaching. The first college football game in 11 years, is set to be perhaps one of the most bought EA games they’ve had in quite some time. The game is causing much pressure on EA to sell well. If this doesn’t reach the critical reception of both the game being good and the low finances of the game, it could be down as one of EA’s biggest blunders they have ever done," GameSided wrote, in part, when speculating about how things could go wrong.

The biggest worry floated by GameSided is the game might be a "re-skin" of previous games like you often see with "Madden." If that happens, fans will revolt and GameSided believes the financial losses could be devastating.

"This could lead to a significant problem for the game. EA could recycle the files from Madden 25, swapping out the uniforms, logos, and other elements to create a college football-themed game. They could even introduce a mode like Ultimate Team under a different name, like with Teambuilder in NCAA 14. Add a few glitches, and you have the recipe for EA’s worst college football game. The backlash from such a move would be significant, potentially causing EA to incur substantial financial losses due to low sales. It could also affect Madden or its other sports franchises as untrustworthy that they’ll make a good game again. Let’s see how EA can make this a good match," the publication wrote.

Will fans even care if it's not great?

Nobody is hoping "College Football 25" is great more than I am. As I've said many times, I'm literally buying a PS5 just to play it. That's how excited I am. I don't even like video games, but I make a significant exception for college football games.

However, will fans really not buy it if it's anything other than elite? I'm skeptical of any claim that suggests the game might be derailed. The hype is simply too much for people to not grab a copy.

Even if it was just updated graphics and rosters from "NCAA Football 14," I still think people would rush out and buy a copy just because gamers are so nostalgic.

It's been 11 years. You could just put "NCAA Football 14" in a new case with a fancy cover and I'd probably buy it.

Now, if the game is terrible and fans hate it, then EA Sports could find itself in a world of hurt when it comes to releasing a game in 2025. However, when it comes to this summer and making money, I don't see any situation where "College Football 25" doesn't sell at an incredibly high rate. Think I'm wrong? Agree? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.