EA FC 25 First Frost update patch notes: New Roles, shorter Rush matches & Drag Back buff

The EA FC 25 First Frost winter update is here, bringing long-awaited changes to the length of Rush matches, as well as a host of new Roles to try out.

EA FC 25’s gameplay was largely praised at launch, but there were also some glaring issues that fans have been hoping will be fixed. Luckily, the devs have been releasing regular updates to address some of the biggest problems across Ultimate Team, Career Mode, and even Rush.

Now, Title Update 6, named First Frost, has arrived, so here are the full patch notes breaking down every single change.

New PlayStyles and focuses

One of the biggest additions in the EA FC 25 First Frost update is a host of new Roles and focuses. These give players even more options when customizing their tactics.

Check them all out below:

• CAM – Classic 10
• Focus: Attack, Wide
• CDM – Wide Half
• Focus: Defend, Build-Up
• GK – Sweeper Keeper – Build-Up
• CB – Stopper – Aggressive
• CB – Ball-Playing Defender – Aggressive
• RB/LB – Wingback – Support
• CDM – Holding – Ball-Winning
• CDM – Deep-Lying Playmaker – Build-Up
• CM – Holding – Ball-Winning
• CM – Deep-Lying Playmaker- Build-Up
• RM/LM – Wide Playmaker – Build-Up
• CAM – Playmaker – Build-Up
• RW/LW – Wide Playmaker – Build-Up
• ST – Poacher – Support
• ST – Advanced Forward – Support

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Drag Back buff

Drag Backs have been a staple of FIFA and EA FC for many years, but in FC 25 they’ve been woefully underpowered. This is mostly because of how long they take to pull off, giving defenders plenty of opportunity to easily steal the ball back.

Now, after Title Update 6, players can perform the skill much quicker, making them more “useful and satisfying.” So, don’t be surprised to see Drag Backs become a meta technique in Rivals and Champs from now on.

EA FC 25 Title Update 6 full patch notes

Check out the full patch notes for the EA FC 25 First Frost Update below:

Gameplay

Made the following changes:

• Added the Classic 10 and Wide Half Player Roles, as well as thirteen Focuses.
• Slightly increased speed and consistency for the Stop And Turn (While Running) Skill Move when performed by 3 Star Skill Move players.
• Slightly increased speed of Drag Backs.
• Improved consistency for the Stop And Turn (While Running), Roulette, Heel To Heel, and Feint and Exit Skill Moves when performed by 2 Star Skill Move players.
• Slightly increased speed and consistency of Jog Fake Shots when performed by 3 Star Skill Move players and above.
• Slightly decreased the speed of Jog Body Feints.
• Attacking players can now come back to an onside position quicker than before.
• Slightly increased the window of time in which a Directed Run can be requested.
• A Player Switch can now be requested during passes while in Player Lock.

Addressed the following issues:

• Improved defensive logic for tracking runs during Kick Offs.
• The attacking team’s center backs could have pushed too far up the pitch in some cases.
• When requested, Secondary Contain was not always being performed by the player with the Next Player Switch Indicator.
• Sometimes, center backs could have positioned themselves too far apart while their team had possession.
• Addressed instances of Player Switching not functioning as intended.
• Addressed instances of the Player Lock Input triggering an unintended Player Switch.
  • As a knock on effect that we are investigating, goalkeeper movement can trigger an unintended player switch.
• Addressed an issue that was preventing high tackling Attribute players from being as effective as intended in specific situations.
• In some instances, deep free kicks resulted in the ball not being passed to any specific receiver.
• Improved referee logic when determining offside calls in situations involving the goalkeeper.
• Improved referee logic when determining foul calls in some tackling situations.
• In rare situations, attacking players could have crowded the center of the pitch unintentionally.
• In some cases, defenders could have won the ball from behind the ball carrier easier than intended.
• Addressed an issue in which a requested tackle could have moved the user controlled player towards the ball before starting the tackle animation.
• Disabled the D Pad Tactics UI in Kick Off 3v3 matches as it had no impact on gameplay.

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Ultimate Team

Made the following changes:

• Reduced Rush match length from 7 minutes to 5 minutes.
• The Squad Builder Rarity filter can now be used to search for all available rarities, similar to how search is done in the Transfer Market.
• Players not actively engaging in a Rush match are now more likely to be kicked from the match.

Addressed the following issues:

• Some Player Items were incorrectly showing as Loan Items when viewing them in the Season Pass.
• After editing tactics, the positions of Player Items could have changed unintentionally.

Career Mode

Made the following changes:

• Non academy players can now earn PlayStyes as they develop.
• Goalkeeper Youth Prospects now have a chance to develop two PlayStyles+.
• Updated Tactical Vision presets to account for new Player Roles and Focuses.
• Added winter weather to Training Drills which can be enabled or disabled through the Weather Effects setting.
• Updated list of available ICONs in Player Career.

Addressed the following issues:

• In Live Starting Point, edited injuries and suspensions were not always applied to players correctly.
• When creating a club in Manager Career, the default squad could have had the same facial expressions.
• Trophies did not always display correctly.
• In some cases, players could have earned an unlimited amount of PlayStyles through Training Drills.

Clubs

Made the following changes:

• Winter weather is now present in Drop-In matches. This is a visual update only and does not impact gameplay.
• Added the VR Room and Passing Drill facilities.

Addressed the following issues:

• Signature celebrations could not be performed in League Matches.
• Some PlayStyles would not display when viewing Avatar presets with more than six PlayStyles.
• When playing as a goalkeeper at the Kenilworth Road stadium, the player’s view could have been unintentionally limited.

General, Audio, and Visual

Made the following changes:

• Updated the menus with a new winter theme.
• The Tactical and Possession views can now be toggled on the Team Tactic screen.
• Updated some kits, stadium, celebrations, scenes, messages, button callouts, badges, tifos, gloves, balls, banners, flags, boots, ad boards, hair, tattoos, trophies, audio, UI elements, and commentary.

Addressed the following issues:

• Addressed instances of various stability issues that could have occurred.
• Addressed instances of stability issues occurring during co-op online matches.
• Some lower rated teams were easier to play against than intended on Legendary Difficulty.
• Addressed instances of placeholder text, incorrect UI elements, incorrect camera angles, and button conflicts.
• When playing a tournament in Career Mode or Tournament Mode, the trophies for some leagues were not the intended trophy.

For more on EA FC 25, be sure to check out our upgrade trackers for the Thunderstruck and FC Pro Live cards in Ultimate Team.