If you’ve ever booted up eFootball 2023, only to get steamrolled 6-0 by the default AI in your first three matches, or found the game so easy you’re scoring 5 goals a half without trying, you’re far from alone. So many new players skip past the pre-match settings entirely, and miss one of the simplest ways to make their offline play way more enjoyable. Knowing how to change AI difficulty in eFootball 2023 lets you tailor every match to your skill level, whether you’re picking up a controller for the first time or you’re a seasoned player looking for a real challenge. I still remember my first week with the game, raging after back-to-back losses before I realized I didn’t have to force myself to play on Professional difficulty right out the gate.
Step-by-Step Process to Change AI Difficulty in eFootball 2023 Offline Modes
The process to adjust your AI difficulty is super straightforward, though it varies slightly depending on which game mode you’re playing. Before you start any adjustments, note that you can only change AI difficulty for offline, unranked modes - you won’t see this option for online competitive play, for reasons we’ll cover later. This process works for almost every offline mode where you can change AI difficulty in eFootball 2023, so you don’t have to memorize different steps for Master League, Dream Team friendlies, or local matches. You can also save your preferred difficulty setting to your profile, so you don’t have to adjust eFootball 2023 AI difficulty every time you launch the game.
- Launch eFootball 2023 and navigate to the offline mode you want to play (Dream Team Friendly, Master League, Local Match, or Training)
- On the pre-match settings screen, scroll down to the Difficulty Level option located right below team and stadium selection
- Use your controller’s left/right d-pad buttons to cycle through available difficulty levels, from Beginner all the way up to Legend
- Confirm your selection, tweak any other match settings you want (half length, weather, ball type) and start your match
Difficulty levels are clearly labeled to match different skill ranges, so you can pick based on how comfortable you are with the game’s mechanics. Beginner is designed for total new players, with slow AI movement and very loose defending. Amateur is great for casual players who know the basics but don’t want to stress too much about perfect passes or defensive positioning. Professional is the default setting, Top Player ramps up the AI’s reaction time and defending, and Legend is reserved for hardcore players who have mastered most of the game’s advanced mechanics.
What to Do If You Can’t Adjust AI Difficulty in eFootball 2023
It’s really common to load up a mode and find the difficulty option is greyed out, and there’s usually a simple reason for it. All ranked Dream Team matches and online competitive events have fixed AI difficulty (usually Professional or Top Player) to keep the playing field level for all participants, so you won’t be able to change it there. That’s intentional, to stop players from dropping difficulty to farm wins in ranked play. If you’re playing an offline reward event, like some of the Dream Team Challenge modes that give free coins or player cards, the difficulty is usually locked to the event’s requirements. You can’t drop down to Beginner to get those rewards faster, as Konami sets the difficulty to ensure players have to earn the prizes. I ran into this once when I tried to lower difficulty for a challenge event that required me to score 10 goals across 3 matches, and I had to grind through on the set Professional difficulty instead. If you’re sure you’re in an unranked offline mode and still can’t access the option to change AI difficulty in eFootball 2023, try restarting your game or checking for any pending updates, as small bugs sometimes lock the setting for no obvious reason. The only other time you can’t adjust difficulty is mid-match, so if you’re 10 minutes into a game and realize it’s way too hard or easy, you’ll have to quit out and restart to change the setting.
How to Pick the Right AI Difficulty for Your Skill Level
Changing the AI difficulty isn’t just about making the game easier or harder, it’s about finding that sweet spot where you feel challenged but not frustrated, and still have a realistic shot at winning if you play well. There’s no “right” difficulty to play on, despite what a lot of toxic forum posts might tell you. If you’re winning 90% of your matches by 3 or more goals, you’re probably on a difficulty that’s too low - moving up a level will force you to improve your defending, passing, and set piece skills way faster than you would coasting on an easier setting. If you’re losing every match by 4+ goals and can barely keep possession for more than a few passes, drop down a level - there’s zero shame in playing on lower difficulties when you’re learning, and it’s way more fun than getting stomped every time you kick off. You can also adjust the difficulty for training modes if you want, though most players don’t realize they can change AI difficulty in eFootball 2023 practice matches to make skill drills easier or harder. For example, I play on Top Player for most of my casual Master League runs, but I drop down to Professional when I’m testing out new formations or learning how to do advanced dribbles, so I don’t get frustrated every time I mess up a new move. Test each difficulty for 2-3 matches before you decide, because it can take a game or two to adjust to the AI’s speed and reaction time when you move up or down a level.
Hidden Benefits of Adjusting AI Difficulty Regularly
Most players set their difficulty once when they first get the game and never touch it again, but switching it up regularly can actually make you a better player and keep the game feeling fresh for longer. First, playing on a difficulty one level higher than your usual for 1-2 matches a week forces you to learn tighter defending and more precise passing, because the higher level AI intercepts lazy passes way more often and punishes even small defensive mistakes instantly. It’s a low-pressure way to practice high-stakes play without risking losses in your ranked online matches. Second, playing on a lower difficulty occasionally is great for practicing new skills like fancy dribbles, long shots, or custom tactics, without the pressure of getting countered every time you make a small error. I’ve spent entire afternoons on Amateur difficulty just messing around with new skill moves I saw online, and it’s way more fun than trying to learn them while the Legend AI is pressing me nonstop. Third, adjusting difficulty can help you grind for offline rewards faster. If you’re playing an unranked offline mode that lets you change difficulty, dropping down a level lets you complete event requirements in less time, so you can get those free coins or special player cards without wasting hours on frustratingly hard matches. It also prevents burnout: switching between Professional and Legend every few days keeps the game from feeling repetitive, even if you’re playing the same mode over and over.
At the end of the day, learning how to change AI difficulty in eFootball 2023 is all about making the game work for you, not the other way around. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone by playing on the hardest difficulty if it’s not fun, and you don’t have to stick to easy mode if you’re ready for a bigger challenge. Play around with the settings, test different levels for different game modes, and you’ll get way more enjoyment out of every match you play. The best part? It only takes 10 seconds to adjust, so you can tweak it as often as you want until you find the perfect fit for your playstyle.