u/Vortex_of_Downvotes

I just started playing a few weeks ago. I guess EA purposefully releases high-powered packs and evos near the end of the season so newer players can “catch up”? My squad already ranges from 90-94 and a lot of the matchups I get are squads of 95-97.

It’s not really that fun TBH. Every player is so fast and stacked with playstyles+. There’s no space on the pitch. Every finesse shot is an automatic goal. Every tackle is predictable based on whatever playstyle matchup is occurring. And that’s “competitive” play. Most matchups are brain-dead superstar spam. Bomb up the wing on the same side always, feed to Pele, Mbappe, Dembele, Messi, or Salah. Spin, spin, spin, shoot. Repeat.

Honestly the most fun I have is when I play seasons with a 3-3.5 star club and restrict matchmaking to a similar club. Almost resembles actual football. But it’s hard to find a match. Forget about open matchmaking. Literally the same 4 clubs over and over: Barca, Real Madrid, PSG, Bayern. And those matchups the most brain-dead shit I’ve ever seen, esp because of the sheer lopsided stats.

I love the idea of building a squad and the different kind of comps that UT has, but like the more sane gameplay of non-galacticos.

So - do things kind of level out after the llaunch of the next year when everyone is starting from scratch?

Now that the World Cup is happening again I was thinking of this infamous moment from the 2014 World Cup:

https://m.youtube.com/shorts/\_KL7OzcqlPg?ra=m

Dutch player Arjen Robben took a dive, drawing a penalty, which lead to Mexico’s elimination from the tournament.

All over social media was the phrase “¡No era penal!” Of course: “it wasn’t a penalty!” The moment is remembered by the phrase today.

What I never understood was why it uses the imperfect conjugation of ser: “era”. Why wouldn’t it be “no fue penal”? It’s describing a discrete event, not an ongoing situation.

Is that just an idiomatic use?

Seeing that footage from Seattle, the national anthem that made Sacha Kljestan cry, enthusiastically cheering and booing for corners vs goal kicks, same explosive energy after the VAR review as when it first went in, and of course that glorious country roads sing along long after the match was over. Not to mention all the footage from the watch parties. What a day.

Will it stick this time? Think we could approach that again on a gold cup or nations league match in Dallas, Houston, or LA?

I’ve only ever played the game outside of RtL events, and within recent years, so not a ton of multiplayer activity (ps5). I really want to get into the multiplayer experience this time around. Can anyone give me the gist of how things work and some of the unofficial conventions and etiquette, meta levels, etc?

My only mutiplayer reference is from Elden Ring.

Pretty much all i know about ds3 multiplayer:
- you have to be embered to summon
- while embered you can be invaded, whether or not you have summoned
- certain covenants will have you auto summoned. I’m my experience, blue sentinels got me summoned a few times to crucifixion woods (guess that’s because of watchdogs of farron?) and blades of the dark moon got me summoned to the pontiff sulyvahn arena once

One thing that’s not clicking for me though is that embers and red eye orbs are both finite right? Is multiplayer initiated for ex by someone purposefully embering in crucifixion woods, which will lure in a watchdog of farron, which will then summon a blue sentinel, etc?
Don’t people run out of embers?