FIFA 10 Preview

[thelems]

I only bring that up because titles like MLB The Show (not EA), NCAA and Madden really seem to have this down. Maybe not to the extent of FM, but really damn close. I'm fairly sure you could pay 20-30 dollars just to play their franchise modes alone...

[MK47]

Some of those comments make me fear that they further tweak the game to make it more about tricks and up and down the pitch "joga bonito" that's impossible to defend rather than anything that has to do with the real game of football. So far FIFA is still a game with the odd 0-0 and 1-1 type games but the last 2 games (Euro 08 and FIFA 09) one could already detect a trend towards a less tactical, less solid game of football and more one aimed at those who want to dribble their way into the net.

But I guess a lot of the target audience isn't really very familiar with the actual sport.

[ChaseB]

I don't think you have to worry about the developers straying from pursuing a realistic soccer sim.

[Murkurial]

Quote: Originally Posted by ChaseB

I don't think you have to worry about the developers straying from pursuing a realistic soccer sim.

They already have with the move from FIFA 08 to 09. 09 is all about the super fast arcade-style play. If they've essentially gone back to what 08 was with better responsiveness, then maybe we can say that. If it isn't drastically different (read: slower) than 09 then we're still in arcade territory.

The target audience really only cares about highlight reel style play anyway but I hope for the soccer purists' sake, they actually try to make a sim.

Quote: Originally Posted by MK47

Some of those comments make me fear that they further tweak the game to make it more about tricks and up and down the pitch "joga bonito" that's impossible to defend rather than anything that has to do with the real game of football. So far FIFA is still a game with the odd 0-0 and 1-1 type games but the last 2 games (Euro 08 and FIFA 09) one could already detect a trend towards a less tactical, less solid game of football and more one aimed at those who want to dribble their way into the net. But I guess a lot of the target audience isn't really very familiar with the actual sport.

Nice to know someone else has their head on straight.

[thelems]

This sounds like the complaint from FIFAs 99-03 era. Pacing was a huge issue back then and the game always played too fast. People complained and complained. And since PES was sitting around demolishing FIFA internationally and in North America no one gave a damn, mediocrity and not much development was the norm for the FIFA series at the time.

I don't think that would happen again. A real developer, even a North American developer, should know, if not from the fan response the past ten years, that soccer is a game about the build up and developing the plays and not as often the individual feats.

[Murkurial]

Quote: Originally Posted by thelems

This sounds like the complaint from FIFAs 99-03 era. Pacing was a huge issue back then and the game always played too fast. People complained and complained. And since PES was sitting around demolishing FIFA internationally and in North America no one gave a damn, mediocrity and not much development was the norm for the FIFA series at the time. I don't think that would happen again. A real developer, even a North American developer, should know, if not from the fan response the past ten years, that soccer is a game about the build up and developing the plays and not as often the individual feats.

If you've played FIFA 09 then it's pretty obvious that there is no such build up play there as well. It's already happened again. Now if they go back to what 08 was, but keep the increased responsiveness and 360 dribbling, among other things, then we're all good.

The majority of those tossing all compliments EA's way either don't play soccer and only see the odd Sportscenter Top 10 Plays highlight reel of ridiculous volleyed goals (like Donovan and Eskandarian's from last night; which don't happen every other goal) or they don't watch enough soccer from leagues around the world. For anyone to even begin to call 09 a sim is a joke and from all accounts it doesn't look like the dev team seems to see a problem with what 09 brings to the table.

FIFA 08 saw you having to pick your passes, draw defenders out, and actually build up the play. In 09 the midfield is nonexistent. If that isn't rectified in FIFA 10, along with a whole host of other issues, the only people that are going to find this game good are those who honestly think that all the stepovers and 360s, and rainbow flicks, followed up by volleyed goals from 30 yards out, is what soccer is all about.

[ChaseB]

Sounds like you have an issue with people who just aren't as "hardcore" as you, but either way, talking down to them won't help your cause.

The passing has been slowed down a tick for '10 but the game speed is the same as '09. I think you'll see more types of build ups for '10 since now there are things like curved runs. Also I definitely felt it was easier to contain and play defense on the AI in the middle of the pitch, so maybe that will help you out.

But it sounds like your issues with the game go much deeper, so I doubt this will appease you.

[Murkurial]

Quote: Originally Posted by ChaseB

Sounds like you have an issue with people who just aren't as "hardcore" as you, but either way, talking down to them won't help your cause. The passing has been slowed down a tick for '10 but the game speed is the same as '09. I think you'll see more types of build ups for '10 since now there are things like curved runs. Also I definitely felt it was easier to contain and play defense on the AI in the middle of the pitch, so maybe that will help you out. But it sounds like your issues with the game go much deeper, so I doubt this will appease you.

Well it's not really an issue of being "hardcore" it's just having played soccer before and realizing that being able to chase a team around the pitch for 90 minutes with no visible fatigue, long assisted throughballs from your penalty area all the way to the midfield line, and a ton of other issues that you simply won't see in a real game, simply aren't realistic. It's sort of like what people went through with Madden 09 (which seems to have been fixed with Madden 10).

As for the talking down, I'm not trying to convert anyone because in all honesty the majority of those here aren't soccer-first guys and probably don't know as much about how the sport is really played as they do about basketball or football. Not really me trying to be an *******, just stating facts. I'm also the only one that feels this way. The guy I quoted said precisely what I and a ton of other people have been saying for a while now.

I'm just trying to make sure that people don't mistakenly call this game a "sim." When it isn't. Would you call those calling for all the changes to Madden 10 too "hardcore." Soccer isn't simply a recreational sport and I mean, just as some people want their basketball and football games to be realistic, so do other people with soccer.

Curved runs don't have anything to do with build up play. I'm talking about being able to pass around in the midfield, pick your spot, and draw the defense out of position without having to worry about (like in FIFA 09) the other team simply running all around the field, swarming one of your players with 3 guys and just knocking you all around the pitch. I'm not sure how much 09 you've played online but you'd have to check it out a bit more to maybe know what I'm talking about if you haven't already.

And no, not containing the defense in the middle, but even saying that must imply that the game is slowed down enough that you actually have to pass to the midfield in the first place.

If you want you can check out a few sites like FIFAsoccerblog.com and evo-web-co.uk, and even the "Online Changes" thread on EA's official FIFA forums if you wanna know more about the bevy of issues that a lot of people have with the game. It doesn't do much good either to try and explain away my problems with the game with a simple "you're too 'hardcore'" response.

I play FIFA with a guy that has never played soccer and hadn't even watched a single game until this past WC and now that he's into the sport even more even he can see the extreme difference between what he sees on the pitch and what he sees in the game. So I'm more than certain that it's not just me.