FIFA 23 has been doing rather well for itself since it launched late last month, so says EA. A FIFA game doing well upon its debut isn’t exactly a new phenomenon, of course, but it is particularly notable this time around in light of a few things, the biggest being just how much of a record-breaking launch FIFA 23 has had.
Electronic Arts announced in an official press release today that the latest installment in its annual soccer sim franchise saw over 10.3 million players within its first week on the market. It’s the single largest launch period in the series’ history, and EA said that it’s thrilled at the response from FIFA 23’s players, which has been “nothing short of incredible.”
The company also took the opportunity to celebrate all of the features that helped contribute to this new record, listing off the 300 partners, 19,00 players, 700 teams, 100 stadiums, and 30 leagues that fans can access in the game. Also mentioned were things like the game’s inclusion of both the Men’s and Women’s FIFA World Cup tournaments as well as various collaborations like FIFA 23’s Ted Lasso content and the special FIFA Ultimate Team items featuring illustrations by Marvel artists.
In addition to the content that’s already in the game, EA teased content that’s to come. According to EA Sports general manager Nick Wlodyka, there are “exciting updates” planned for women’s club content in FIFA 23. When exactly that will be released isn’t clear, but Wlodyka stated that EA and its developers are “just getting started” with supporting the game.
FIFA 23’s early success could, at least in part, be due to its status as the last FIFA game from EA. Following reports of FIFA demanding an exorbitant fee for EA to continue using its brand, EA officially announced that it’s dropping it and adopting the name EA Sports FC for its soccer games starting next year. It’s the end of an era in many ways, bringing an end to a collaboration that has gone on for nearly 30 years. FIFA has long been a household name for fans of sports-based video games, which is why many think EA may be making a mistake abandoning the FIFA brand for one without all that history backing it up.
Despite its success, the last EA FIFA title hasn’t been without its detractors. While overall critical reception has been positive, FIFA 23 was still review-bombed at launch over a number of issues. Complaints have been made against things like the PC version’s anti-cheat system, the Nintendo Switch version continuing to lack any new features from previous iterations, and the continued prevalence of microtransactions with the Ultimate Team mode. It remains to be seen if any of these complaints will be addressed at all as EA leaves the FIFA name behind and enters into a new era with the EA Sports FC branding.
FIFA 23 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: EA