An honest review of EA Sports College Football 25

We are just over 48 hours into the EA Sports College Football 25 era and fans everywhere are loving the new game -- and not just because it's the first edition of the beloved game in 11 years.

In fact, this is already being touted as one of the best sports video games of all time.

And I tend to agree.

I've been lucky enough to play the game a handful of times and dive deep into my favorite mode: dynasty. There are so many fun additions to the game that we have never seen before like ultimate team, online dynasty (at least it's better), and a far more extensive Road to Glory mode.

But I'm not here just to hype up the game and its new-feel gameplay, I'm here to give an honest review.

So without further ado, here's what I like and dislike about the new game so far.

What I like about College Football 25

First off, I'm a huge fan of the new animations regarding the tackling, catching, and celebrations. You have the option to celebrate after big gains or touchdowns which I really like and not all the tackles look the same like they did in NCAA Football 14.

As far as Road to Glory goes, this mode got expanded majorly and I really like what EA Sports did with it. They added social media and texting options where you can kind of "choose your own adventure" in a way. You answer texts and participate in social media posting that could affect how you're perceived by others. This mode is always fun and I don't have any qualms here.

In the dynasty mode, I love the customization factor that you can have with conferences and the coaching upgrades you can make. The ability to start as an offensive or defensive coordinator is awesome or you can take over a smaller program and work your way up.

As for gameplay, I like how tough the game is even on the varsity level. You turn it up to All-American and it's as tough as anyone could handle. And then Heisman is a completely different beast. If you're starting a dynasty at a smaller school (UTEP) like I am, you're bound to walk away with a healthy amount of losses at least in year one. Heck, even if you're at a solid Power Four school, there's a good chance you're losing some games. Oh, and the graphics and stadium entrances and fan chants are all top-tier.

Oh, and recruiting is also fantastic. Being "locked out" of a recruitment for not meeting a deal-breaker or selecting what kind of visit a recruit will take are two really cool new features. Recruiting carried the 2014 version of the game, but it's just the cherry on top of this one.

What I don't like about College Football 25

So we all know what the game does well and anyone who has been on social media has seen content creators drool over the new game. But I'm here to be honest, right?

I'm going to tell you what I don't really like about the new game.

Let's start with the new passing meter. I had to turn it off (maybe I'm not built for it) because it was too difficult to learn a new style of passing. Passing even without the meter isn't easy as interceptions have piled up for me in my new season. Hitting intermediate and long routes is not a walk in the park which is realistic, but it almost feels like moving the ball through the air is darn near impossible sometimes.

Now onto defense. It's impossible to get stops on All-American and Heisman. You could be Alabama playing UL-Monroe and the WarHawks are dropping at least 20 on you. It shouldn't be this tough to get stops and the missed tackles are wild -- passing defense just isn't easy.

Something else that could definitely be altered is the amount of penalties. There is rarely a flag thrown (maybe 1-2 per game) which is just not realistic. That can probably be messed with in settings, but the default is just not it.

And let's not even get started on the kicking. Field goals and punts are nearly impossible to hit accurately and with strength. Don't even try to kick a 40-yarder on All-American. Not worth it.

My only real gripe is the passing difficulty but that's just going to get easier the more I play. I'm not worried about it, but if you haven't played Madden over the years, it's going to take some getting used to.

Overall, I love this game and I'm going to probably play it non-stop until my coach makes it 30 seasons. It's well worth the money but could use some minor necessary changes. Still, this is probably the best sports game I've played in over a decade -- maybe ever.