I find the offline feature of the EA app much more frustrating and unreliable than it was with Origin. Playing offline without having to connect in order to go into offline mode is extremely important to me because, after a patch update, I wait until all the mods I use have been updated, before going online to install the patch. During this waiting period, if I cannot play without going online, then I cannot play at all until I am ready to update, because I cannot risk the game forcing me to update before I am ready to update.
I am finding that the game will stay in offline mode for a while, but then randomly decides it can't be and I have to go back online to put it back in offline mode. Origin never did this to me ever.
Once the "go offline" mode is set, it should stay that way. The game should be able to open while the computer is disconnected from the internet, as it could with Origin. Players should not have to repeatedly go online to put it in offline mode.