Loving the game Big Ant team and I think AFL 26 has been a really positive step in the right direction for AFL gaming. I think the game itself has great bones with plenty of face scans, great animations (like marking contests that have an impact system), 2-man gang tackling, a solid career mode and Pro team has a lot of potential.
With the hopes that maybe an AFL 27/28 is in the works, I thought I’d give some thoughts on what I would like to see fixed/worked on and maybe a couple of quick fixes that could be implemented into AFL26.
- My current biggest issue is surrounding handball receives/gaining possession:**
Maybe it’s due to archetypes or skill rating, but I find the game picks who’s going to pick the ball up without considering who’s in the best position to actually pick it up. I frequently have times where my player will be 1m away from the ball but someone 3-5m away will get to it first and/or the game will make the ball go through my player and go to the other player. Just makes the game feel a little scripted and frustrating.
- Ruck contests are too important.
It feels like whoever wins the ruck tap wins the clearance. Ngl I don’t know how this can actually be fixed - but it could be cool to see players under pressure fumbling ruck taps every now and then. Maybe even more ball ups after a tap? (This could make the tap/kick off the ground feature more prevelant to clear the ball out of the contest)
-
QUICK FIX - FK advantages feel quite broken - I think it would be great if you could press R3 to take the free kick (like how in FIFA you use the bumpers to not take advantage).
-
Option to play 2v2 online would be phenomenal
-
AI is too easy even on hardest difficulty.
The addition of sliders has been awesome, but I still think the AI is a little bit silly most of the time. Often it will just kick the ball straight to my players while trying to chip it up the field and doesn’t have too much intelligence with the plays it crafts.
-
I would love the ability to be able to tell a player to run forward or make a lead to you (again similar to how EAFC has L1 and R1 to do that). It would also be good if you could have some way to have a player run past you after taking a mark for a quick handball.
These are just a few of my ideas but I’m interested to hear if others agree and/or have other ideas.
1 Like
Definitely a good list, i think Online play is something that needs to be looked at going forward since there is such a big market with ProTeam at the minute. I have added a list below of what i want to see added in future updates or iterations.
- Ability to choose what foot your player takes a set shot on
- Online Stability and dedicated servers for a fluent online experience on ProTeam and Online Modes
- Less Congestion around the ball and more reward for winning the ball
- Player Stats to mean a lot more with around the ground skills
Overall this game has been a much bigger improvement than AFL23 but still a little way to go before we have the best AFL game ever made.
Completely agree with everything mentioned above. I’ve also noticed online that the set shot bar seems to move slower when you’re the away team, not sure if that’s intentional or not.
I’d also love to see snap set shots revamped. Like mentioned above, being able to choose which foot to snap around the body with would be unreal, and it’d be great if player stats had a bigger impact on the opposite foot attempt too.
Another thing would be having players actually stand 10m from the kicker on the angle, then being able rush in and pressure the kicker as the kicker moves off the line. That’d probably mean snap set shots need a slightly different process compared to current set shot mechanics. A controller vibration feature like NBA 2K during shots could also add a lot of pressure, especially when players are charging toward the kicker.
In terms of features I honestly think the game is in a really good spot already. Obviously a few additions and tweaks to career mode would be nice, and I’d still love to see a spectator mode, which I’m pretty sure Ross mentioned wanting back in AFL 23.
Haven’t fully thought this one through yet, but I’d also love a toggle to swap between camera angles, similar to Pro Clubs in EAFC. Being able to switch between end-to-end and side-on cameras during play would be awesome, using end to end to hit up a lead and then quickly switch to side to be able to switch the ball 
Future AFL 26 Improvements (Toward a True Sim / FUMA Mode)
-
Kicking and handballing:
- Manual aim + power already feels great = keep and build on this
-
Goal kicking needs upgrading:
-
Marking system:
-
Reduce positional magnetism
-
= Greater focus on positioning
-
Manual jump timing should determine success
-
Contests / loose ball:
-
More manual, less animation-driven
-
Triangle = attack the ball
-
Perfect timing and distance = clean pickup
-
Early/late = fumble, miss, or pressure error
-
Clear choice: attack ball vs hold for tackle
-
Manual bodywork (Square):
-
Maintaining run trajectory and speed for disposal:
-
When pressing kick/handball (Circle / Square / X)
-
Player maintains current run speed and direction
-
No forced slowdown or snapping to target direction
-
allows aiming to be the full focus and reduces instances where a player gets HTB just because they need to aim
-
Teammate control (R1):
-
Controlled movement (L3):
-
Slower, tighter movement mode for contests
-
Better for tackling, positioning, and close play
Overall direction:
-
Less magnetism, less scripting
-
More manual control and player agency
- This is especially important for a player’s career - give more control to the player
-
Reward skill, timing, and decision-making
2 Likes
I would suggest for the amount of time taken to get reward cards that they come with more than one contract.
can we get more setshot types in the game i know we have a bunch but i think we may need more for legend players in the game and current players aswell
2 Likes
Being able to use custom teams in career
2 Likes
Love playing AFL 26 such a lot of fun
Just a thought for future editions
Wondering if it’d be possible to have a couple of “classic teams” for each of the AFL clubs
Eg beng a Bombers fan, maybe the mid 80s and 2000 Essendon teams
Carlton, early 70s and maybe early 80s
Even for Brisbane you’d have the early 2000s obviously and maybe the Fitzroy team from the late 70s- early 80s And so on
Even an “all-time” team for each
1 Like