Product Reviews

Overall rating

4 / 5

Gameplay

3 / 5

Graphics

4 / 5

Sound

4 / 5

holy-mob

FIFA: For the Committed

PostedOctober 18, 2008

FIFA has been the premier football game for many years now, and for good reason. Now, more than ever I believe that their sales have depended on the number of leagues more than anything, although the Argentine first division would ideally be the next league to be added other than some garbage Norse league. With the release of FIFA 08, I fell out of love with this game. I at first thought it was something to awe at to see real life physics on my favorite players, but then quickly realized that the controls were sluggish and unresponsive at times and at other times, too sensitive. To be frank, I thought this new gaming engine was awful. I was hoping for a gaming reform in this new installment, but much to my dismay, these controls seem as unresponsive and lagging as FIFA 08. Shots lag too much in the build up of power behind the ball, shot accuracy leaves something to be desired, and it seems your team, no matter what you do, cannot string together a coherent set of passes without one going astray or behind the target. It's no wonder everyone calls Pro Evolution Soccer the best football simulation on the market. FIFA needs to find a balance between physics and game play now, but to achieve such a task for the team at EA is beyond their grasp and seems so for the immediate future. I dearly wish for a gaming engine reform for the next installments in FIFA. I wish for the game play to mesh together well, and it don't even have to be a perfection, or else FIFA will find themselves with at least one less patron in the future. I seriously want to like this game, but how can I when frankly, the game play doesn't play, and your constantly left feeling like your two second late on a play, or not like your playing at all, and trudging through ninety minutes of some kind of terrible. On a side note... a BIG side note, I have yet to play online, but I would have relatively liked the online team modes if it were not for the god awful camera that kept panning between you and the ball and kept you wondering where you are on the field and on the play. I would also like to mention that although I gave the user interface, graphics, and statistics good ratings, you have to remember, one, EA have had more than ten years to get it right. Two, that with next-gen systems, good graphics are something that can relatively be taken for granted. I would lastly like to acknowledge that player stats and diversity are good because its what you expect from a sports game, otherwise its an arcade game.

Overall rating

4 / 5

Gameplay

4 / 5

Graphics

5 / 5

Sound

4 / 5

excaliburkillz

GOOD game but some minor problems

PostedOctober 17, 2008

FIFA 09 is a really good game. I still prefer it over the PES series but it did have its problems. In some aspects FIFA 08 was better and in others FIFA 09 was. 09 Lacks good ball control. its kind of hard to explain but when the player has the ball it seems like its stuck to him but once the ball is a little out of his way its really loose. 08 had better control in that aspect of ball control and balancing it. Also when a player shoots the ball it cruises in the air and slowly dips down, bad: because anyone can is capable of letting a powerful shot go and score and the ball doesn’t curve realistically. It pretty much just stays straight even on a finesse shot. Another thing was that when a player has the ball the run seems more robots like than smooth-realistic. When u changes the direction on the run the player moves at a 45 degree angle rather than the gradual shifting in 08. Another thing was that when a player is tackled via slide they fly around. Even the big players fly. It’s a pretty good game overall with better graphics and new animations and cool celebration control. Oh and another thing. The goalkeeper is still pretty lame. Now sometimes he wont even dive for the ball, he just stands there like "oh I got beat o well" and wont even attempt a dive at it. And they also can catch almost any shot which I didn’t like. Because most of the time a keeper deflects the ball in real games but it’s the game he has like super grip, and it’s not just on the good keepers it applies to any keeper. Is has its bad and good but I still like it.

Overall rating

5 / 5

Gameplay

4 / 5

Graphics

4 / 5

Sound

4 / 5

bearsfinest18

FIFA 09= SICK

PostedOctober 16, 2008

I've been buying FIFA games since i was a little kid, about 11 years running now. I got the new FIFA the day it came out, and this year's FIFA is by far the best soccer game by EA sports i've played. I'm not a huge fan of the PES series, but I can honestly say that i no longer even need to try it, due to the realism provided by this soccer simulator by EA sports. The pace of play can be changed at your will to your liking, from slow buildup play like Manchester United to fast counter attack soccer like the Italians. FIFA 09 is a great game with a ton of game modes that offer variety and keep you entertained. Like all games, there are a few flaws. I feel like the jukes and fakes, such as stepovers, don't always work as well as you would like, but outside of that tiny flaw, this is the best soccer game I have played to date, and I would highly recommend any fan of soccer to go out and buy this game, because you will be blown away by its realism.

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