FC25 - V2 'FULL GAMEPLAY PACKAGE RELEASE VIDEO!!!!!!!!!! MAJOR POSITIONAL + OFF BALL CHANGES!!!!! 60+ OPTIONS!!!!

The first real taste of my FC25 mod is FINALLY here!!!!

The work I’ve put into this version has been some of the most challenging, but also rewarding since I’ve started gameplay modding. Some areas have been particularly difficult, and after some frustrating days we’re now in a great place!

TEST V1 was a good first step towards establishing the core movement base and the ball freedom etc, but now we’re moving into the real heart of the mod.

SPECIAL NOTE: IT IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL THAT YOU READ THE INCLUDED DOCUMENTS AND FOLLOW THE CORRECT SETTINGS FOR THIS VERSION. IF YOU DON'T, YOU WILL HAVE A VERY 'OFF' EXPERIENCE. I'VE WARNED YOU - THE REST IS UP TO YOU!!! 

Note: I know there's been some talk about FMM V1.2.0. My mods have been launching perfectly fine when using this version.

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WHAT’S NEW IN V2?

If you’re new around here, be sure to read my ‘FC25 Mod Guide’ for more general information about what’s included with my mod. This space is for the NEW additions to V2.

V2 builds on the foundations set from V1.

V1 was about getting the movement foundations in place. It was about freeing up the ball, enhancing the ball physics, balancing passing/shooting speeds and setting the base core in many other areas to build from. 

V2 is where the mod begins to develop its character. The fundamental focus in V2 is positioning and off-ball behaviour.

This presents itself in a number of ways and has a major impact on the gameplay experience.

There is now a FREEDOM to the gameplay and it feels a lot more natural. This applies to BOTH the attacking and defending side of the game.

The possibilities of FC25 are now opened up in the most realistic way possible.

I have worked extremely hard to make sure all of these features combine to create a balanced, realistic and rewarding experience. .

See the features explained in more detail below!

+ FREEDOM -  the rigidity of FC IQ is gone!

The major focus for this version of my mod is to create a more natural gameplay and one that is not ‘restricted’ by the rigid new ‘Player Roles’ (and of course the dreaded ‘1v1’).

This area has been some of the most challenging work I’ve done, but I’m extremely happy with the result. There are some very specific systems in place for both the attacking and defensive sides of the game. Players will now naturally contribute much more in both attack and defend.

For example, defensive midfielders can now join your attacking phase if you want them to, CBs can come well beyond the halfway line and help with build up, Wide players will drop to defend more, etc (focus dependent of course - more on this below).


+ Tactical Accountability!

The improvements made to fundamentals in attack and defence create a solid foundation for FC IQ to thrive.

The result is a tactical varied game, where you absolutely have to consider your tactical set-up. This includes your build up style as well.

How you set-up will have a bigger impact than ever. Importantly, this is not done in the ‘cheap’ way, it’s now the realistic way.

For example, if you want your CBs to get extremely high up the field and help with build up (Man City / Arsenal) style, then you absolutely can do this now with the right tactical approach. The negative is just as it is in real football - make sure you have the right players and system for it, or you can get caught out.

You want your DM to roam around and get forward? They will now when you ask them to. With default FC25, your DM simply CAN’T attack. With my V2 mod, they can - but you have to consider your transition and how open you are etc with other positions.

These changes take FC IQ to the next level and let it shine.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The ‘ATTACK’ focus needs to be looked at as the old ‘Stay Forward’ defensive support instruction from FC24 and older titles. If you choose this, your players will not come back and defend and you can use this as a tactical tool.

Unlike the default game, the ‘Balanced’ focus will now properly create a true balanced approach. There are still considerations to be made, but the overall rigidness is greatly removed. Wingers will not get quite AS deep to defend as wide midfielders for example.

+ Natural spacing, team shape and movement

I have spent a huge amount of time analysing and re-working the team shape right across the pitch. I have worked on the base positioning for on and off the ball separately for every position.

Specific areas across the pitch have been individually designed to create a very natural looking and behaving team shape.

Defensive midfielders won’t be stuck to the defensive line anymore creating an ugly mess. The defensive line itself won’t squash together to create a false feeling of compactness. Instead you will see things like, the defensive line decompressing and compressing based on distance to goal, midfielders pushing higher up the pitch to win the ball back, DMs naturally being more conservative (tactics dependent of course), attacking players pressing more narrowly etc.
 
Not only does this look much more realistic, it has a big impact on gameplay.

Certain spaces that previously you could not play in, are now possible. The pitch is more balanced as a whole. Not all of the play is directed out to the wings for example. The wings are of course still a viable method of attack, but you can defend them better now also.

I have also worked on making formations not as ‘tied’ together as they often are in FC, so they move more naturally.

Those in the ‘Full Gameplay Package’ also have access to a number of new options, to tweak and refine this. A new and improved version of the very popular ‘Ball Side’ positional base variant is included for example!

+ Complete rebuild of the defensive line behaviour (with tactical variety as well)

The defensive line will behave much more naturally now. They will no longer be dragged back so easily by attacking runs to open up huge gaps across the field cheaply. Instead, they will control their position much better.

These changes have been tailored to create different behaviours based on your tactical set-up. I have especially re-worked the way the ‘Deep’ and ‘Balanced’ tactics work in this regard to ensure a more stable representation of the defensive line.

For example, the ‘Deep’ tactical set-up will still have a deeper line with specific behaviour that is inclined to drop more with runs, but they won’t be pulled backwards quite as easily anymore.

This area has been worked on a lot and there are significant improvements even compared to my FC24 defensive line behaviour.


+ Major improvements to ‘1v1’ and the general defensive side of the game

A major re-working of defensive behaviour. This includes how teams mark, track, drop, press, shuffle, cover etc.

A lot of these changes are based more on stats now, but this is an area where even more ‘personality’ will be implemented in future versions. If you try to press with players who don’t have a high stat in this area, your press won’t have the same impact and you risk getting pulled apart for example.

+ Instant Tactical Changes

You can now make instant tactical changes on the D-Pad with no more artificial delay.

Switch between multiple fully created tactical set-ups, with different player roles etc and implement them instantly with two button pushes on the d-pad.

You no longer have to wait for the change to execute and you can see it happening in front of you as you play.

+ Attacking Variety+Fluidity

Another area I have worked on is the attacking side of the game. You will find attacking much more expressive now. In terms of the CPU itself, you will find more switches of play, longer balls, through balls and an overall increase in their creative approach to goal.

There’s also much more fluidity in attack. Players won’t just stop running because their ‘zone’ limit has been reached. They will instead perform more natural runs, allowing for more rewarding attacks*.

There are also options in the ‘Full Gameplay Package’ to refine and customise this area. The ‘CPU Alternative’ for example will create different decision making patterns for the CPU. The ‘Attacking Alternative’ can be paired with this and will also increase the scope for the attacking spaces and movement as well.

+ ALL Player Roles Unlocked and Included in V2

This was a separate mod for my V1, but this is now included in V2. This opens up an additional 17 player roles and focuses, expanding FC IQ considerably. Please see the specific read me file about the new player roles for more information here. 

+ Huge Variety of NEW Options

Those who have the ‘Full Gameplay Package’, I have added in many new options, allowing you to customise your game even further.

These options are ever expanding and will continue to grow in future versions.

The extremely popular ‘Ball Side’ positional variant is back (new and improved also). There are also a number of other positioning alternatives as well as many more options. These will continue to grow and expand over time also.

There is a ‘Read Me’ file in each and every folder explaining what these options offer, as well as an important ‘Positional Bases’ guide to make this potentially confusing area very easy to navigate.

+ Many other small adjustments and tweaks

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What’s Included?


‘MOD TESTING AND SUPPORTING’ TIER:

• AIO Standalone Versions:
  
  - V2: Regular
  - V2: Slow

  
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  ‘FULL GAMEPLAY PACKAGE’ TIER:
  

  AIO Standalone Versions:
  
  - V2: Regular
  - V2: Slow

  - V2: Default Movement + Animations
  

  Options:

  
  - Attacking Adjustment - Less Runs  NEW

  - Attacking Adjustment 2 - More Runs NEW

  - Attacking Adjustment 3- Many More Runs NEW

  - Attacking Alternative Option NEW

  - Contain - More Intense Option NEW

  - CPU Alternative Option NEW

  - CPU Difficulty Boost Option NEW

  - Goalkeeper Boost Option NEW
  - Increased Ball Freedom Option NEW

  - Increased Field Friction Option - Strong NEW

  - Increased Field Friction Option - Subtle NEW

  - Narrow Option - Strong NEW

  - Narrow Option - Subtle NEW

  - Positioning Alternative - Ball Side NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Ball Side (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Ball Side + Defensive Line Drop NEW 
  - Positioning Alternative - Ball Side + Defensive Line Drop (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact + Ball Side NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact + Ball Side (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact + Defensive Line Drop NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Compact + Defensive Line Drop (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + Ball Side NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + Ball Side (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + Ball Side + DLD NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + Ball Side + DLD (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + DLD NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Deeper DMs + DLD (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Defensive Line Drop Option NEW

  - Positioning Alternative - Defensive Line Drop Option (More Pressing) NEW
  - Positioning Alternative - Defensive Line Drop Option NEW

  - Positioning Alternative - More Pressing NEW
  - Weaker Goalkeeper Option NEW

  - Width Option - Strong NEW

  - Width Option - Subtle NEW
  - Anth's 'Regular' Passing Speed Isolation Option

  - Anth's ‘Slow' Passing Speed Isolation Option

  - Attacking Adjustment Option

  - Ball Physics Option - Larger Ball

  - Ball Physics Option - More Curve

  - Ball Physics Option - More Curve + Larger Ball Combined

  - Contain - Default Option

  - Default Ground + Through Ball Distance Option - Regular Base, Slow Base

  - ‘Easier’ Defenders Option

  - Goalkeeper - Default Option

  - Increased Walk Speed Option - Regular Base Movement, Slow Base Movement

  - Jockey - Default Option

  - Jockey - Faster Option

  - Jockey - Slower Option

  - Slower Walk Speed Option - Regular Base Movement, Slow Base Movement

  - Sprint Risk Option

  - Touch Error Alternative - Default

  - Touch Error Alternative - Strong

  - Touch Error Alternative - Subtle

  - Touch Error Alternative - Swing

  - Trajectory Option

  - Trap Option
  
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  Remember guys, I am building this mod entirely from the ground up and to do it properly it requires time and long periods of testing. We’re already in a very good place, but there’s a lot more still so much more to come! More development, more refinement, more options, more standalones!
  
  Finally, please just remember with these positional changes, that I’m working within the constraints of EA’s mechanics. 1v1 is still the core defensive mechanic, but there is a lot I’ve done to greatly offset its impact. Don't expect perfection, but there is a lot of improvement here I can assure you!
   
  - Anth