xdevx – cd & live reviews

Fifa 10 (click to resize),

developer: EA Canada, publisher: Electronic Arts, platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PC, PS2, Nintendo DS, PSP, iPhone OS, N-Gage, Mobile Phone

Electronic Arts’ yearly try and error phases now seem to yield fruit as Fifa 10 is a coherent, nice looking and pleasantly lively football experience. Even if the changes and updates towards last year’s edition seem to be minor for the untrained eye, Fifa 10 took all the criticism to heart and consequently stamped out frustrating gameplay situations and improved the physical interaction between players and the overall behaviour of the players on the pitch.

Players now move, behave and position themselves more realistically than ever before. On attack, players analyze space more effectively, curve their runs in an attempt to stay onside, create passing lanes naturally, and drive for more variety in attacking options. On defense, new concepts like position priority enable defenders to multitask so dangerous spaces left open by teammates out of position are covered. Plus, slide tackle targeting, press marking, and better-urgency clearance logic provide new options that make defending a more challenging tactical skill. In goal, improvements and refinements to goalkeeper intelligence result in a more responsive and powerful rushing system and much more realistic saves. This sounds all too good to be true… and it’s a pity that it only sounds that good as in reality these things are mostly controlled by an AI that is just too artifical and not at all as intelligent as the developers hoped it to be. The gameplay weirdly seems to be entrapped in some kind of grid. Not even the new 360 degree controls can gild the fact that Fifa gameplay still is forseeable and feels strangely ’scripted’. Again it’s too easy to learn attack patterns that lead to simple goals. The game severely lacks hazard, luck, chance and accident which makes it some what formulaic. Another drawback is the nonexistent heaviness, energy and power. There’s not much of thrill and holding breath when Hitz the Hammer unwraps a 130kmh strike out of 30m and the ball gently weeps into the goalies gloves.

Fifa 10 clearly offers the best gameplay in the series’ long history, but minor (and for the PES-corner major) flaws as the dodgy AI and lack of real control and power taint the overall impression. Nonetheless it’s a great football game, yet maybe a bit too polished.

Fifa 10 - Trailer