Review: EA Sports FC 27

World Cup years are always special for casual football fans like me. I familiarise myself with players not named Ronaldo or Messi, I find new countries like Cape Verde to cheer on and I get a little more excited for the annual EA Sports FC game.

I wrote extensively about EA Sports FC 26 right here on Recharged so let’s see what this year’s version brings to the field.

GAMEPLAY

On the pitch, EA Sports FC 27 is instantly familiar with a few worthwhile refinements. I recognise this isn’t a profound statement, it’s not like the game of football changed its rules in the last twelve months to allow cricket bats or anything.

However, attacking players make more intelligent runs, and the dribbling gives agile players more control when challenged. I also noticed the corners were reworked, even though I still can’t score from them. These changes do not reinvent the experience, but made me sit up and notice, like a new secret herb in Colonel Sanders’ recipe.

Career mode also gets a noticeable refresh and Ultimate Team gets the FUT Gallery, which encourages you to collect and organise player items. I appreciate the parity with other console versions but the smaller Switch 2 transfer market makes collecting a lot of cards harder.

I do appreciate that Nintendo players are no longer getting a stripped-back release with missing modes like previous years.

GRAPHICS AND PERFORMANCE

There is one compromise I am finding harder to overlook. FC 27 still runs at 30 frames per second on Switch 2, with no performance mode to prioritise responsiveness. Granted, it’s much more noticeable if you play on multiple consoles but even if you only played on Switch 2, I would have assumed the hardware is powerful enough to support it.

The difference is immediately noticeable when I jump between Xbox Series X (where I play FC 26) and Switch 2. The movement feels heavier and the game is sluggish, particularly when reacting quickly or moving the ball at pace. It’s not unplayable, but the comparison is difficult to ignore.

The upside remains the flexibility. Taking a full EA football game on the go, playing in handheld mode or handing over a controller for a local match is genuinely useful. That convenience counts for a lot and I would say it is a fair trade-off.

THE GROUNDS

The headline addition is The Grounds, EA’s social football space built around small-sided games and Clubs. On paper, it sounds like a welcome change, almost like what I imagine Facebook was hoping for when it launched the metaverse.

In practice, it feels empty. So empty. I could never find games in the first weekend, or the second, or the third and now I just check in for completeness for this review but once Nafisa publishes it I doubt I’ll go back as rejection is not in my syntax for the rest of 2026.

I suspect the lack of crossplay is a major part of the problem. Switch 2 players are separate from the PlayStation, Xbox and PC communities, leaving The Grounds to rely on a much smaller pool. The 30fps ceiling may be a factor, but I’m just guessing.

VALUE FOR MONEY

FC 27 is still a good football game, and its Switch 2 feature parity deserves credit. The gameplay refinements and Career mode changes are welcome, while handheld play remains a compelling reason to choose this version.

But the unchanged 30fps performance is disappointing, especially when moving between this and the Xbox Series X version. The Grounds feels like an idea that has arrived without the player base to sustain it.

If you mainly play offline, locally or in Career mode, there is plenty here to enjoy. The price point is a bit high at R1 549, but I do predict that will drop for Black Friday or festive season as last year’s game dropped significantly in price soon after launching. If you’re a huge EA FC/ Fifa fan you’ve already bought this so this advice is for the casuals, like me.

FINAL VERDICT

If you are upgrading from FC 26 for The Grounds or hoping for a smoother experience, temper those expectations. This is another strong step for content on Nintendo hardware, but not the technical leap I was hoping for.