EA asked me “How big can football get?” . After having played FIFA 10, I can’t see how much bigger, badder, meaner, and more enjoyable it can get. Let me get this off my chest now, so I don’t explode: if you even remotely enjoy the game of fu…er, soccer, buy this game. It is that. Damned. Good.
Over the past few years, EA has done much to change the reputation of its FIFA franchise. Long considered a distant second to Pro Evolution (PES) from the sport’s diehard simulation-hungry gamers, FIFA has not only closed the gap, but it most cases eclipsed the competition entirely. FIFA 07 began the change, FIFA 08 and 09 built upon it, and FIFA 10 has certainly sealed the deal. It’s hard to imagine capturing what makes a sport great in a video game, but FIFA 10 does just that. It shows just what makes the sport the “beautiful game”, providing everything a player would ask for in a simulation while at the same time being forgiving enough for newcomers to enjoy as well. The same imagination and creativity that makes watching the pros and playing the game in the real world fun is captured.
It’s hard to find an aspect EA Canada didn’t improve upon in developing FIFA 10. What was good before has been made great now. What seems like underwhelming changes on paper have translated into an experience that can hardly be compared even to FIFA 09. The most notable change is the 360° control a player now has over the virtual athlete. FIFA has historically operated on an 8-point axis that, until now, was never really that restricting. I challenge anyone that’s played FIFA 10 for more than 5 minutes to even attempt to go back to 09—you’ll quickly realize just how terribly limiting the controls once were. This new system affects nearly every aspect of the game, allowing you to angle passes, shots and runs in a way that hadn’t been possible before. The controls feel much more refined and lifelike, which improves the overall flow when navigating the pitch.
Perhaps the most important part of the game is the behavior of the ball itself. As with previous versions of the series, EA has been able to mimic the real life physics of the ball very well in all types of weather conditions. Passes, both short and long, have the right amount of zip and acceleration to them. Long passes, in particular, have been adjusted to prevent from the painful high, slow, lofted ball being sent in previous versions of the game. They’re flatter and quicker in getting to their target. Medium passes have also been improved. When attempting to pass to someone two or three players away, the game recognizes what you’re trying to do and will move your own teammates (and referee) out of the way accordingly. This seems simple enough, but proved to be one of the most frustrating parts of FIFA 09. Often, those same players got in the way, only to leave you watching the ball bounce hopelessly away towards the opposing team. Oh, I suppose I should mention dummy runs, heel flicks, and ‘leaving’ the ball not only (finally) work beautifully, but are viable attacking strategies.
Even the shooting system seems to be improved as well, as balls are less likely to coast over the crossbar when pulling the trigger from a reasonable distance. Much like in the real world, the virtual players are often unable to rifle perfect shots or accurately complete long passes as they’re being jostled by a defender. Having said that, under the right conditions, it’s still entirely possible for long shots to fly past the keeper with FIFA 10’s refined shot placement/modification system. Players have the ability to drive the ball, sacrifice power for ‘english’, or bang it with the laces all by holding the proper corresponding bumper or trigger.
Another welcome change relates to headers. What was once a sure goal—based on how tall you were—is now calculated between a mix of ability, the aforementioned pressure on the player, and positioning between the ball and the defender. You’ll have to set yourself up properly if you expect to beat the keeper this time around.
One thing I’ve always enjoyed about FIFA is the way it plays. Rather than having an arcade-y “headless chicken” feel to it, EA provides a more realistic ‘contain first’ simulation on the defensive end of the ball. Players are unable to sprint haphazardly around the field and turn on a dime. Instead, FIFA 10 forces you to plan ahead and cut off angles, taking into account the extra step or two it would take to change direction. That said, FIFA 09 had a terrible habit of punishing you with a speedy forward on the opposing team. It was almost a hopeless endeavor attempting to contain these players (and rightly so, to a certain extent). EA has tweaked the topdown strategy during a game enough so it no longer feels like an exploit. You can still break free, but it certainly isn’t the same frustrating experience it used to be. Defenders now feel urgency and are more capable of taking opposing players out of stride as they run by. Let me say that one more time, just because you might have read over it: defenders feel urgency.
Just as well—if you happen to be within arm’s distance from a defender, you can expect enough jostling to render your sprint useless or even be pushed completely off the ball. This physicality on the field further refines the great system FIFA 09 had in place. The reality of just how easy it is for a larger defender to push a smaller striker off the ball (what? height and weight actually mean something now?) is a bit tough to swallow at first, but challenges the player to alter their strategy the next time down the field. Finding the perfect timing to push the ball away with the right stick to draw a foul comes with practice, but is entirely rewarding when it happens. Better still, the aforementioned 360° movement allows for slight adjustments of the left stick (at full speed, too!) to allow the player to shield the ball without having to drop his stride as in previous FIFA installments.
While we’re on the subject of fouls, perhaps one of the most welcome additions to this franchise is the advent of the quickpass. Players have the option of putting the ball back into play almost immediately after being fouled (provided you don’t have to sit through the annoying card animation), rather than having to wait for the set piece to load up and the defense to reset. If you do decide to run a set piece, a tap of the trigger allows you to quickly switch who takes your free kicks. Gone are the days of having to pause and sift through menus to select who you’d like to bend it in with. For the hardcore soccer fans, EA has added a practice mode allowing you to build your own set pieces, complete with timed runs, to save and use in game as well. Words don’t even describe how cool that is.
I could go on for days about how the Be A Pro mode made creating a player infinitely more fun. Skills and techniques from learning how to play the game in the real world can be applied to your virtual Pro—how you’d play the position in real life amounts to how you should play that same position in game. This is so cool. What was once your run-of-the-mill player creation and grind for experience and skill has changed into something you really immerse yourself in.
In the past, FIFA rewarded you for completing what amounted to a given ‘task’ on the field (score 2 goals, take 5 shots, etc). Rather than a player’s skill on the pitch, improvement was more directly correlated with time played. EA has slightly altered this system, allowing you to unlock skills only by finishing more realistic accomplishments during a match. These accomplishments are more directly related to something a more skilled player would do in real life. Dribbling 5 players in one game is no easy task, but completing this in game gives your virtual pro a slight boost to their ball handling abilities. Completed passes/crosses, shots taken from distance, tackles completed, etc. all provide slight boosts to specific growth categories of your pro in your quest to make them the best in the world. In essence, a pro’s skill level will plateau early if the gamer isn’t willing to put in the time and effort to make him better. This speaks volumes to the immersion factor FIFA provides, and is why I love this game mode so much.
The inclusion of EA’s Game Face technology allows you to take a picture of yourself and apply it to your virtual Pro, making your dream of playing for your favorite club all the more real. The system works quite well…almost too well. It’s a bit creepy seeing just how accurately it can render your head from two profile pictures—it’s a good thing I’m quite the looker. The standard multiplayer game modes are all back with the addition of a slight change to Live Season 2.0—provided you’re willing to pay for it (800MS points for all 6 leagues or 400 per individual league) the mode allows you to play your team’s real world fixtures week-to-week. It has become more comprehensive in tracking player transfers, injuries, and form. Manager Mode has also been overhauled, and now focuses more on player development (and your prima donna superstar’s needs on the pitch). The sponsorship, international transfers and markets, scouting systems, staff development, and contract negotiation end of this mode are enough to make your head spin. Thankfully, EA offers you help if you want it. Clearly, though, there is enough depth to keep you coming back for more, provided you’d like to try something new and different.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some downsides to this game, its just that I can’t hear them over the sound of how awesome the rest of the game is. Well, that’s not entirely true, though it does make them a bit easier to swallow. Goalkeeper AI, while it has been revamped and improved upon, still has its questionable moments of unnecessarily punching the ball away on diving saves. The main menu system is a bit cluttered, but this doesn’t affect gameplay in the slightest. Even old Andy Gray and Martin Tyler are a bit late in their reactions to what’s going on at times, or discuss something that may have little to do with what’s actually happening on the pitch. Really, though, these are all very minor issues.
EA really nailed the look, sound (the virtual tens of thousands of fans will make your hair stand on end), and feel of soccer. Everything from the absolute frustration of near misses to the overwhelming glory of hitting a last second game winner—and being able to choose your celebration to rub it into your foe’s face—is captured. Even flicking the right stick to burn a player with a preset move is rewarding once again. With a ton of game modes, fluid player movement, improved AI, and adjustments to FIFA’s previous downfalls, this game will keep you coming back.
EA said it better than I could have: “It’s in the game.”
FIFA 10 is available now
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