Speed, stamina, concentration and patience. These are the attributes you need to hone in order to know how and when to strike against your opponent. Developer Sloclap knows this well, and it's what made its martial arts title Sifu such a hit back in 2022. But these traits are compatible with more than just hurting people, as proven by the studio's new game Rematch, which has already delivered my most thrilling and satisfying gaming moment of 2025.
Having spent a long time playing FromSoftware's latest smash hit Elden Ring Nightreign, I felt like I had found the year's most satisfying loop. Load into a match with randoms, work together using only simplistic in-game prompts, and complete the run for a high I can't stop chasing – within a few weeks after launch, I had every trophy on PS5. But then I loaded up Rematch and, two hours later, realized I was hooked beyond comparison.
A game of two halves
Rematch review: "As with Rocket League, the just-one-more-game pull is magnetic"
In Rematch you play as a footballer in teams of three, four or five, all controlled by other humans, as you take on an opposition made up in the same way. With a third-person camera – it's vital you control this as well as the ball – you have to decide in the moment whether to keep your eye out for a lurking player or put your focus squarely on the goal, depending on what the situation calls for.
Playing on PC with an Xbox gamepad, tapping A pushes the ball ahead so you can run faster, while RT is the shoot button. Holding LT will have you stand with your back to your goal in a defensive posture, making it easier to intercept opposition forward balls. When in net, pressing Y and a direction on the left stick has you dive to make a save (or jump up if no direction is held). You can also click the right stick in to call for the ball. It all feels new for an EA Sports FC veteran such as myself, but is intuitive enough to become second nature.
Players of EA Sports FC 25's Clubs mode (formerly FIFA's Pro Clubs) will be pretty familiar with the concept of controlling a single player in a team, but in action Rematch is a very different game. The control scheme, movement and aesthetic make clear you're not in the Premier League here, and it's a refreshing feeling after so many years of the same old mechanics, at least in my personal experience.
Beautiful game
Much like Man City's dominance and tedium-inducing possession-based style of play all but ruining English football throughout the last decade, EA's annual sports titles similarly owned the competition at the expense of fan enjoyment. Pro Evolution Soccer tried to keep up by becoming eFootball, but isn't quite the pleasing alternative we've been asking for, feeling a bit too similar in energy despite its apparent differences.
Now Rematch is here, a veritable Liverpool, bringing an exciting, bombastic game plan to a genre in critical need of change. Instead of playing as big clubs from around the world, you take on the role of a lesser entity. No I don't mean Tottenham Hotspur, but an unnamed player for a 5-a-side team who you can customize to your liking.
This shift in focus goes hand-in-hand with the on-pitch play. With fouls basically not a thing in Rematch, you can slide into tackles at full force with no fear of so much as a caution from the officials. Keepers are also sweepers, able to leave the box and swap places on the fly for maximum advantage, both offensively and defensively. Best of all, the ball doesn't magically stick to your foot when you go to receive a pass, meaning you have to think in order to take a touch, creating a sense of immersion beyond anything a FIFA game ever could.
As Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp once said, "behind every kick of the ball there has to be a thought." Rematch embraces this idea wholeheartedly, offering a range of shooting and passing limited only by your ability. But similarly to Nightreign, you can't get complacent. Pay attention, keep your eye on the prize and don't stop running until time's up. Whether you're in goal making saves and passing the ball up the pitch to your teammates, or tearing down the wing with the goal at your mercy, you have to keep your focus on the matter at hand.
When the hard work pays off and a gap appears in the opposition's defensive line, the thrill of striking a ball top bins is as real in Rematch as it is when playing at the park with your mates. This feeling hit fever pitch when I capped off my first MVP display with a hat trick, tucking home a rebound with an instinct that only had its chance to shine thanks to positional awareness and the wisdom to lose my marker. The state of elation went beyond felling any Nightlord, and made clear why Sloclap went with the name Rematch; no matter how many times I play, I always want one more game.
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