When playing football games I look for and appreciate slow build up play with good player movement and an ability to try what I want without feeling that it has no chance to succeed. You should be able to play with a variety of styles and not find yourself falling back into known routines that have proven to be effective time after time. Perhaps the most important thing to mention is that I primarily play offline, either against the CPU in manager mode or in local two-player matches. I have no interest in special gimmick modes like FUT or My Club. With that explained then, this review will focus almost entirely on the actual gameplay on the pitch.
There are hundreds of places where you can find out more info about all the extra features should you so desire but, for me, it has to be a good game of football before I’ll even start to care. So is it? Pace and power are still as important as any other attribute, but timing - bursting past a full-back at the right instant, or shrugging off a central defender just as a crossed ball meets your striker’s forehead – is now critical in using them correctly. Nowhere is this better showcased than in the newly introduced women’s matches. Without the Olympian velocity of a Cristiano Ronaldo or Yaya Toure’s adamantine strength, finesse is imperative - that means recycling possession among midfielders and full-backs until a tantalising defensive gap offers a through-ball opportunity, or an out-of-position opponent provides a brief window in which to cross.
That big addition is this: FIFA 16 is the first entry in the series to feature women’s soccer. The game includes 10,000 real world players from 500 teams. There's a new game engine for you to enjoy while controlling your little soccer men, and EA has implemented celebrations on mobile for the first time. I bet you can buy new celebrations too. That sounds like EA. It's free-to-play, but note the device compatibility is super-weird. I can't get it to install on devices like a Note 5, One M9, or 2014 Moto X. It might just be a mistake, though. Fifa 16 on the other hand hasn't improved a great deal on the graphics front. The colours are still rich and cartoonish and the movement is still more like an ice skater than a real footballer.
But in Fifa's defence, over the past ten years it's one of the most detailed games in the world. And with more than 16,000 players rendered, it shows an incredible depth to the series. Right down the hair of Stevenage FC's second-choice goalkeeper. Defensive action has also become less complicated both for the player and for the Artificial Intelligence. With it, players are able to capture passes and to shuffle with strikers so that they make certain that they will not get the space they necessitate to become perilous. The addition of the 12 women's national teams also gave the game a much-needed advancement. They can be accessed in Kick Off, Match Day and in Online Friendly matches. The FIFA Ultimate Team Draft as a new game mode also lets users join in Ultimate Team. But compared before, this version will no longer have the same time and devotion needed to create a team from scratch.
IGN's verdict says, "The complete package is as substantial as ever, and those who've acclimatized to FIFA's play style in recent years will likely consider it good enough." But EA Sports will need to go beyond "good enough" if they want to be the best football game title holder. The most exciting new feature added into FIFA 16 is the addition of 12 new women’s national teams. For the first time ever in a major sports video game, players like myself all across the globe could not be more excited for this new and innovative feature. National squads from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China PR, England, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, and the United States will be in the game and fully playable. To celebrate women’s national teams being added into the game, United States Forward Alex Morgan will be featured on the cover in the United States.
The rest of us will lament the lack of a career mode or the option to play as our favorite club and have a little kick about. FIFA 16 Ultimate Team does play the best game of football on mobile - by a mile, as well - but in terms of features it is left in the dust by its competition and its predecessors.
