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 FIFA
Soccer 10 (Playstation 3)
EA's FIFA has improved dramatically over the past few seasons, and last
year's edition was considered a high-water mark for the series. The 2010
edition does an excellent job consolidating the features that made last
year's edition great while adding a few innovations of its own. The new
360 degree dribbling system gives the game a much higher degree of
unpredictability while increasing the skill and challenge in winning
matches. New modes and improvements abound, with a deeper Virtual Pro
mode, more elaborate Management mode plus varied practice modes give it a
more comprehensive feel. FIFA 10's presentation and visuals remain superb
with realistic player models, smooth frame rates and sleek menus giving
the game a highly-polished look throughout. Join us as we hit the pitch
and find out why, with so many significant and much-appreciated
improvements in place, FIFA 10 remains at the top of its game. |
Players have come to expect a lot from EA's FIFA series, especially after
last year's stellar installment set new high standards. While some of its
improvements are minor, the biggest changes make for another solid sports
title. FIFA Soccer 10 builds on all the successful elements and delivers
the world-class licenses, brilliant gameplay and deep management modes
that made last year's game so impressive. There are some fairly
significant changes to the game this time around, and the most immediate
are apparent as soon as you get on the field. FIFA 2010 offers a far more
realistic sense of action with much better physics, improved player AI and
more nuanced controls. By far the most impressive addition this time
around comes in the new 360 degree dribbling system, which allows you to
push the ball forward with much more dexterity. Instead of being locked
into predictable patterns that are easily anticipated, you now have many
more options in moving your characters around. Player contact is much more
fruitful and they'll push and shove each other to keep their opponent
off-balance, and can perform special moves when the 'urgency' AI kicks in.
This gives them added channels in which to block attacks, change momentum
suddenly and keep the game unpredictable. You have to tackle moves that
can be used to try and knock the ball from your opponents. Sliding tackles
work as they have in previous games, but you need to be careful in your
timing since poorly timed attacks almost always lead to red cards. More
consistent and easier standing tackles have been improved dramatically in
FIFA 10 and make it much simpler to deflect a run without running into a
card. Here, you wait until you're close inside an attacker's area and run
towards them to try and kick the ball out from under their feet. If you
really want to get the ball, you can combine this with a sprint and try to
overpower them by the sheer momentum of your defender. It's a subtle
change, but it has a huge impact on how matches unfold. Goals are much
harder to come by, and possession more fluid between teams which creates a
more defensive style of play that feels more accurate.
One of the biggest on-field changes
involves defensive moves called Jockeys. Instead of running in straight
lines, you can now move sideways using the new jockey move, which helps
you cover a player by running in parallel to their movements. This allows
you to keep your opponent's attacks from becoming routs, but it also makes
scoring that much more difficult, since you can't rely on overpowering
them with momentum alone. You'll need to think ahead a little bit more
this time around, and not only see your movements, but anticipate and
counter what the opposing side will do. Since each side has more options,
the gameplay is much less predictable, making the outcome of each match
uncertain. There's definitely a lot more skill involved in passing as
well, since the defense AI is much stronger, with a greater ability to get
into your passing marks and disrupt your moves. You can still set up
passes effectively, but you won't have as much leeway as you did in
previous FIFA titles. Shots on goal aren't as predictable either, since
the goalkeeper AI has been improved to make them more aggressive. They'll
run after a close-in player and tackle them to gain control of the ball,
which makes attacking far less prolific in terms of scores. Conversely,
you can become over-reliant on the goalie, and placing them too far
outside the box leaves you vulnerable to an easy goal if the attackers
break through your defense. These changes give the game a different
momentum, making FIFA 10 feel much more authentic in terms of chances on
goal, defensive maneuvers and overall pacing. It definitely feels closer
to the style and pacing of real soccer, and its unpredictability gives
FIFA 10's gameplay a more realistic approach.
There are loads of on-field changes this
time around, but FIFA 10 also includes numerous updates to its various
modes that make for an even deeper, more satisfying experience. One of the
biggest changes this year comes in FIFA's signature practice arena. While
previous editions merely allowed you to kick the ball around and play
1-on-1 between matches, its now been expanded with additional options that
allow you to practice and create set pieces, quite handy if you want to
master corner kicks or the new Jockey moves. More interestingly, the set
piece creation mode allows you to create your own set pieces (corner
kicks, throw-ins and penalties) and practice how they'll work in real time
and then save them after you're satisfied. Once you've done this, you only
need press a single button during a real match to trigger them. This
automates the set-piece process and makes the game even more
comprehensive. Finally, you can train and learn the moves in a practice
match with a complete roster. There's no clock or scoring in a practice
match, which allows you to play and learn the passing, shooting and
dribbling moves without pressure. The changes go even deeper than that and
include many enhancements to already existing modes.
 One
of the coolest things about FIFA 10 is the ability to create a virtual
pro, a custom player you can use in any mode of the game, including the
manager mode and Be a Pro sections. As in previous installments, you can
begin by creating your character's appearance, set their default position
and home team. There are plenty of character appearance options for you to
select and you can now download your own face and paste it on the player
in-game. Virtual Pro is definitely a cool feature, but some to unlock the
rewards of playing in the Be a Pro mode, you need to go through the game
with an actual player. This is slightly annoying, but the game compensates
by adding to the fun here. In Be a Pro, your player starts with fairly low
skill sets, but these can be increased by playing through the various
modes and earning skill points. These can be earned by playing in matches
and successfully performing tasks, such as passing balls. As you get
skilled, not only will your player become more effective on the field,
you'll also be able to purchase additional items such as bandanas and
other items to give them a more individual look.. These additions really
let you put yourself into the game like never before and add to the
impressive sense of immersion FIFA 10 creates.
Last year's online Live Season mode has
been enhanced in several ways. You can still track your club through an
entire season by downloading weekly updates, but now have the ability to
change the results in real-time by playing your actual competitors in
matches. This lets you change the results of each season, and you can do
this with multiple clubs through the season. FIFA 10's Manager mode has
also been upgraded with more realistic transfer markets, better player
development systems, a weekly results system and many additional options
to make this more realistic and challenging. It's still not quite as
exciting as getting on the field and playing, but there have been some
nice strides made in this area. The single players games feature some
impressive AI, but the game also shines online. Several multiplayer modes
are available, including the cool team play modes, where you take control
of a single player and compete in head to head matches with other players.
FIFA 10 also gives you the ability to go through an entire season online
in Super Team mode with other virtual pro players. You need to train your
own characters from scratch for this mode, and you can't use online cheats
such as superstar players. These various modes give FIFA 10's online modes
almost as much depth as the single player experience and add a ton of
constantly updating replay value to the game.
The high-water mark visuals seen in last
year's game have been tweaked slightly, though the differences between the
games are incremental. Its player models still look fantastic and they
have an impressive range of emotion during the between-game cinematics.
During gameplay, you can choose from several different camera angles,
including traditional side-view modes and the still-impressive pro-view
which takes you onto the field and focuses on a single player. Each venue
has been reproduced faithfully, and the action is quite exciting. FIFA
10's sound effects are fairly good and there is quite a bit of audio
intensity between the roar of the crowd and the hyper-ventilating
announcers. This is definitely one of the best looking and most authentic
soccer games on the market, and EA's extensive licensing adds a more
accurate feel to the gameplay. While some of the changes in the game are
fairly dramatic, others are incremental. The changes in controls,
especially the new 360 degree dribbling take some getting used to, but
create a more interesting game. FIFA 10's increased AI make for a more
accurate, less predictable game that's less about button mashing and more
about skill. While some players may find these changes a bit jarring at
first, the end result is probably the most intense, challenging and
realistic soccer game to date. FIFA 2010 kicks the ball into the net in
some many areas, the few missed shots don't really matter. There are a few
teams and leagues omitted, but most are comparatively minor, and don't
make much difference to the on-field action. Despite these issues, FIFA
remains the year's definitive soccer title, setting a new standard in
gameplay, presentation and depth other releases will have a hard time
matching.
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Michael Palisano
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