EA Sports churn out FIFA titles quicker than Sepp Blatter can dodge a footballing Scandal but every now and then things will eventually catch up with you and leave you with a red face. Has EA Sports managed to keep the FIFA footballing series ahead of its competitors like Pro Evolution Soccer or is it heading into trouble? I’ve played FIFA games since I was a child in fact every console I’ve owned has had the latest FIFA title to go along side it, from the days of indoor soccer on FIFA 97 to the chiseled looks of going 3D for the very first time. It’s a series I’ve grown up with and in many ways been blinkered to what issues it had.
I’m sure many of us have spent hours on FIFA loved it then bought the newer version and looked back to the previous years iteration and wondered how did you live with it! The Skills Trainer is back once again and it really helps to learn some of these new mechanics, such as being able to make the most precise passes or tackle the ball without hitting the opposing player also. These are spread across multiple training areas, with varying levels of difficulty as well. Even for those that do not plan on using the Skills Trainer specifically, the game will offer random training exercises prior to matches across the various game modes, similar in some ways to the pre-game practice pitches in MLB: The Show.
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FIFA 16's gameplay is going to be a bit divisive, then, so it's a good job that its buoyed by a number of positive design choices and additional content off the pitch. As always, the title's presentation is stellar, and menus are slick, easy to use, and engaging. Together with real world news updates, customize main menu panels ensure that every time you boot the game up, you're presented with stuff that gets you into the right footballing mindset almost immediately. It's an impressive achievement, and something that FIFA gets absolutely right every single year.
This has the advantage of stretching play quicker, or catching defenders unaware. The drawback is that it's much easier to miscontrol, the ball bobbling off unprepared feet. The key to unlocking defences and keeping possession is to mix up your passing game to pull teams out of shape. Manage to get through and the shooting is exceptional, given real fizz and physicality. Smacking one into the back of the net has rarely been so gratifying. But make no mistake, defenders are vastly more competent both in and out of your control. They hold the line with unsettling discipline and are quick to shut down marauding forwards.
They're too good, in fact, out muscling even the most powerful number nine and matching lightning wingers for pace as if attached by a bungie cord. However, just as with the finesse passing, it seems the effectiveness of block tackles has, as a corollary, been watered down, meaning I often find myself in the unenviable position of having an opposition player wander into my box, not wanting to slide tackle for fear of conceding a penalty, and feeling completely unable to do anything other than watch on.
In fact by far the most common kind of goal I've conceded has been this - an opponent with a basic understanding of the dribbling skills stepping away from my ineffective attempts to "contain" and walking right through the center of my defense to slot it in the corner, unhindered. It makes a nice change from Aubameyang running onto chipped through-balls, but it often feels like a very frustrating way to concede.
The transfer market around you still seem a little bit over the top and scripted, the same stereotyped players move around, and the same transfer stories seem to develop which again doesn’t seem to be based off a teams performance too much. That is slightly disappointing and I would like to see that overhauled too in the future to the level of football manager, but it isn’t a major concern at the moment and is solid enough for now. I do wish the interface was tweaked though, I want to see a bigger summary of what’s happened in the transfer market from all clubs!
