The FIFA streamers GamerBrother and Tisi Schubech were allowed to play EA Sports FC 24 ahead of time. In addition to many positive impressions, there were also some shortcomings to complain about regarding the new football simulation. The main focus of the criticism is primarily a new feature in the gameplay.
What is it about? In FC 24, EA Sports makes a modification to the game mechanics and introduces PlayStyles. These are comparable to the attributes/traits from past FIFA years and are supposed to make players even more unique.
One of these attributes was criticized by the content creators on their YouTube channels, expressing their dissatisfaction based on experiences from previous years. Which PlayStyle it is and what changes this innovation could bring, you can read here.
Is the autoblock returning as a PlayStyle in EA Sports FC 24?
For many FIFA fans, the term “autoblock” probably raises the hairs on the back of their necks. For several years, this game mechanic has regularly driven gamers to despair.
What is the autoblock? The autoblock is an action performed by the AI that cannot be consciously controlled by the player. It is used in defensive actions. It is enough to place the player in the shooting path of a shot on goal, the rest is then done by the AI. And it does so with extremely high efficiency.
Here you can see a good example of how the autoblock works from FIFA 23. Only on the third attempt does the ball finally get past the defender.
Why is the autoblock criticized? Many gamers see the autoblock as a feature that requires no skill and works too well. The effectiveness of this game mechanic leads many players to position as many players as possible in front of their own goal and let the AI do the rest.
A subreddit from Hspracks in FIFA 21 ironically summarizes the problem: “There’s nothing more frustrating than running alone towards the goal, then a Varane sprints in from 16 meters away and blocks your shot as if it were nothing.” (via reddit.com)
What are the streamers’ concerns? In EA Sports FC 24, according to GamerBrother (via YouTube) and Tisi Schubech (via YouTube), there will now be a trait for defensive players that resembles the mechanics of autoblocks.
In different game situations, it has been clearly recognizable that some players could prevent shots much better and showed different animations when defending shot attempts.
The streamers felt they were clearly reminded of the autoblocks from previous FIFA years.
Are these blocks a new PlayStyle? For the FIFA streamers, the new PlayStyle “Block” seems to be responsible for these additional defensive animations.
From the Pitch Notes on the PlayStyles from EA, it only becomes clear that the “Block” trait is likely a skill that must be intentionally executed by the player. For defensive players, Block increases the range and success rate of their defensive actions. Whether the right timing plays a role in this is not clear from the Pitch Notes.
What consequences could this innovation have? At first glance, this innovation does not seem to be very popular, as a new form of blocks that at least resembles autoblocks could come into play. Here you see another extreme example of the autoblocks.
However, it remains to be seen whether only the PlayStyle “Block” will enable such defensive actions, whether the AI will be weakened by it, and particularly how many players will ultimately have this PlayStyle.
If “Block” turns out to be a trait for shot defense, EA might counterbalance by giving the trait only sparingly to the best defenders in EA Sports FC 24. In that case, the concerns of our FIFA streamers might turn out to be unfounded. In that case, defensive players with this PlayStyle could become highly sought after and become difference makers in Ultimate Team.
Whether there is also a defender with potential Block trait in our Top Ten best players in EA Sports FC 24, you can find out for yourself.
