FIFA 21 Demo Cancelled By EA Sports And Fans Are Furious

There's been a bit of a "balls" up at EA Sports as FIFA 21 fans are trying to give the publisher the red card for cancelling its demo. Following the lacklustre reception that FIFA 20 received last year, there are already high hopes that FIFA 21 can redeem the tattered reputation of the football simulator.

With promises to overhaul Career Mode and Financial Takeover, the first signs were that this year's title would be a marked improvement - emphasis on the "were" part of that statement.

While fans thought they'd be able to hit the pitch early for a demo ahead of FIFA 21's full launch on October 9, EA Sports has kicked those dreams to the curb. Posting on Twitter, EA Sports explained, "We aren't releasing a demo for FIFA 21, instead we've made the decision to focus our development team's time on delivering the best full game experience for current and next-gen consoles. We look forward to EA Play members jumping in 10 days from now and launching the game 9th Oct".

As you can imagine, the news didn't go down well on social media.

• Read More: FIFA 20 Sale Slashes Price By 90%

 

Every year, the FIFA marketing machine rolls out like clockwork with the reveal of the cover, the roster of players, first gameplay reveal, then the demo. EA Sports is breaking with traditional as it cancels the FIFA 21 demo, and some fans might not be won over by the excuse it's because the publisher is readying the game for next-gen consoles. FIFA 21 is in a difficult position as it's placed between the likes of the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5. 

EA Sports has already promised you'll get a free upgrade from current consoles to next-gen, however, there was recent controversy when the publisher confirmed FIFA 21 cross-play won't be supported. Also, the announcement that the FIFA 21 demo was cancelled on September 21 is a little late in the game, especially considering many expected the free trial to drop on that day. Now that there isn't a demo, it has also highlighted the fact things will have to be perfect when the game finally drops.

There are several versions of FIFA 21, releasing on several different dates, meaning things can get a little confusing. The full release for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC (on Origin and Steam) is October 9. This is also the date for the Nintendo Switch Legacy Edition, which includes a roster update for £38. Those who signed up for EA Play get to test out the game for real on October 1, however, it's for a limited window of just 10 hours. You'd better book the Thursday off work because all progress will be carried over into the main game. 

The FIFA 21 Ultimate Edition goes on sale with three days of early access on October 6, which is also the same for the FIFA 21 Champions Edition. If that wasn't enough dates to mark in your calendar, there's a Google Stadia version coming at some unknown point in the future. Having the FIFA 21 demo cancelled is a blow to fans, but don't worry, it sounds like there's plenty of new content to pull us back into the game.

 

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Images via EA Sports