September 27th 2023.
It's a sad day for FIFA fans as EA has started the process of delisting all its previous football games from online stores. This is due to the fact that EA no longer has the FIFA licence and, as a result, FIFA 23 and all its predecessors are now unavailable for purchase.
The only way you can play FIFA 23 or older titles now is to find a physical copy or a digital edition you bought earlier. Fortunately, if you do have a digital copy you’ll be able to redownload it whenever you want.
EA ditched the FIFA licence in favour of the new EA Sports FC series, which is the broadly the same game but without the FIFA name. This happened because FIFA raised the price for using its name to a reported $1 billion, which EA refused to pay.
The process of removal has only just started, with a message on Steam reading: ‘At the request of the publisher, EA Sports FIFA 23 is unlisted on the Steam store and will not appear in search.’ EA Sports FC 24 is the replacement, launching for all formats on September 29.
This is yet another example of the poor state of video game preservation. One of the world’s most popular franchises is now impossible to buy new, except via whatever old stock physical stores may have left. It's a shame that fans won't be able to experience the FIFA 23 game in all its glory.
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