For the first time in 11 years, college football returns to video game consoles.

Set to release on July 19, EA Sports College Football 25 will be the first college football game made since 2013, although fans and gamers who purchased the deluxe edition of the game have been playing the game since Monday.

Your friends at Hawai’i Sports Radio Network got a chance to play the game ahead of Friday’s release to give you a preview of what to expect and to see if it’s worth it as a Hawai’i Rainbow Warrior football fan.

One of the biggest positives about this game is how authentic the game feels on the field. (Key word, on the field, we’ll revisit that later.) 

Each team has their own individual playbooks that fits their current schemes, so fans of the run-and-shoot offense will have fun airing it out with Brayden Schager at the controls to receivers like Pofele Ashlock and Steven McBride. Gamers that are familiar with the Madden video games will notice that EA Sports College Football 25 is more fluid and emulates real-life movement a bit more accurately. Fatigue also plays a factor as if a player is on the field for longer, they are more susceptible to injury and turnovers.

Playing as Hawai’i is scarily similar to real life too. Like on the actual gridiron, the virtual Rainbow Warriors have difficulty running the ball, but have no problem launching bombs down the field… when protection holds up on the offensive line.

As a whole, the ‘Bows are rated as a 74 overall team, with offense being 71 overall and defense being 72 overall. McBride and Ashlock are the highest rated players on offense at 86 and 84 respectively while safety Peter Manuma headlines the defense with a rating of 82. Offensive line is one of the weakest positions in the game with everybody at center, right guard and right tackle all rated under 70.

Not every ‘Bow is in the game though however. Players that opted to have their NIL in the game were compensated with $600, but those that didn’t (or that EA just didn’t bother) are replaced with a fixed generated player in their stead. 

The stadium that Hawai’i plays in is also fake. In-game commentators say that it’s in Aiea and it’s listed as T.C. Ching Athletic Complex, but the product on screen does not emulate the old, condemned Aloha Stadium or the facility is currently on lower campus.

Is this a dealbreaker? 

For me personally, no. As a gamer, I favor a game that runs and plays well over something that looks good and 100 percent authentic. I will remind folks that our current stadium situation is only temporary and the stadium that the game gives Hawai’i actually looks better than what we currently have. 

There is a mixture of online and offline game modes for everybody to enjoy. I actually am glad that they prioritized content that you can play offline because a lot of modern games now requires an internet connection to do anything in the game.

Fan favorites that played the older college football games will be happy to know that game modes like dynasty and road to glory are still in the game. They both can be played offline, but dynasty also has an online dynasty option that allows you to compete with friend.

Dynasty mode lets you create a coach and allows you to coach the school of your choosing as you try to build or maintain a program’s winning ways. You are also tasked with recruiting and making sure players are happy or else they might transfer out of your program.

Road to glory is in a similar vein, although this time you create your own player that can sign a letter of intent to the school of their choosing. There are many different ways to play the game mode, ranging from an established starter to working your way up the depth chart as an underdog.

You can also play online against other players with any team of your choosing, but be aware that they can also pick any team as well. The game lists three tiers in the game, with Hawai’i being in the lowest tier. There are only 10 teams in Tier 1, which is revered for the elite teams like Alabama and Michigan. In Tier 2, there are around 44 teams, while the other 80 FBS teams are in Tier 3 like Hawai’i. When you do play online, you can choose to have your opponent be from any tier, or in a specific tier to help with competitive balance.

Ultimate team is the last game mode that is available to play. The game mode has you building a team with player cards that feature current players as well as former college athletes. Like many ultimate team game modes in the EA family of games, more cards are released as the weeks progress that gamers can try to unlock. 

You progress in ultimate team by playing through various challenges to unlock more player cards and get in-game currency, although card packs are purchasable in the game store that requires real-world currency. This game mode is largely a pay-to-play game mode when going up against other online players, but played can grind through various challenges.

There is some intrigue in the game mode however. One of my current goals in the game mode is to build a lineup that features just players that have Hawai’i ties. Having Mililani alumnus and current Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel throw touchdown passes to the likes of current Hawai’i receiver Koali Nishigaya is something that can only happen in a video game and I’m all aboard that train. Fans that always wondered how Hawai’i would look like if everybody stayed home can now live out that reality, albeit in a video game.

All-in-all, should you get the game? I think so. With a standard price of $69.99, there is enough in this game that makes you get your money’s worth. Unlike Madden that only has 32 NFL teams, this game has 134 FBS teams to chose from so the possibilities are endless. Dynasty mode is one too that devoted gamers have spent countless hours on too as well as a 20-year run at the helm is totally possible.

And for Hawai’i fans that aren’t gamers themselves and might struggle with the game mechanics, you can always adjust the sliders and settings to make the game easier. If the Rainbow Warriors lose a game this season, feel free to take your frustration out on the same opponent virtually.

Either way, the game is worth it and will continue to get better with updates throughout the year that will keep the game fresh during the college football season.