FIFA 15 News Post

FIFA 15: Career Mode Details

09:34 AM - August 13, 2014 by RaychelSnr

FIFA's career mode is seeing some important new changes to it this year in FIFA 15. The focus this year is on managing and finding players, and making those tasks simpler for digital managers. Here is what you can expect:

Player Growth - FIFA 15 has a more realistic system for player growth and potential. Highly rated older players won’t retire as quickly and high potential players grow faster if you give the opportunity to do so.Global Transfer Network - Improved scouts will now automatically recognize squad weaknesses and suggest replacement players based on the team you want to build.
Intuitive Player Search - A new player search screen lets you find players faster and better suited to your team. Player names populate as you search.
Storylines and Presentation - Accurate and in-depth analysis around players, team and leagues during the match and throughout the mode as you progress your career.

Team Management

Customise up to six different Team Sheets per club and alter your strategy based on your next opponent, the changing tactics in-game and fitness of your players. Get your favourite team playing the way *you* want them to play.

Here are the four ways you can now manage your clubs:

Instructions - Player instructions can be applied to each of the 10 outfield players with multiple options per position - from defensive positioning and mentality to run types and attacking mentality.
Formations - Preset formations for any of your custom squads and pick one the best one to take on your next opponent.
Roles - Set roles like captain, set-piece and penalty takers for each of your squads.
Tactics - Set a default Team Tactic to each of your Team Sheets so your gameplan is locked before hitting the pitch. Or go deeper and add custom tactics to any of your line-ups.

These changes look like they're hitting the right spot, especially the player search and improved scouts, which were two of my main gripes about last year's mode. Look for FIFA 15 to drop on September 23.

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Member Comments

# 21 mfp @ 08/16/14 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GR5Noles


	I actually didn't mind it. It made the transfer market a whole lot more realistic and gave transfers some 'boom or bust' potential. In previous FIFAs you could go out in the market and just looked for teenagers with 70+ overall and automatically know that he's going to be a star. This brought a different dimension to transfers which made it more enjoyable in my opinion.

Thing is, the problem of buying high potential youngsters and easily building a fast growing team of superstars had little to do with being able to see player OVRs. The problem you're discussing had to do with unrealistic transfer mechanics.

So the GTN introduces a mechanic of hiding player OVRs but does NOT fix the problem. For example, I can easily look up player ratings online and do exactly what I could've done in FIFA 13.

Ultimately, the GTN did NOT make the transfer market mechanic any more realistic. All it did was introduce a gamey, unrealistic, tedious scouting element to the process that in no way mimics the process of squad building in real football.

# 22 mfp @ 08/16/14 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oulzac


	That is not what makes it bad. But that is not how I see it either. What makes it a terrible system is how its managed. You lose reports after 60/90 days. Why in the world? Who would throw reports away for someone on your shortlist. Meaning you have interest in them. You can't search for specific positions. If you want a CAM you have to search for CM which includes CMs, CAMs and CDMs. Cluttering up the results. This is when you are searching, not using a scout. When using a scout you choose midfield or attacker. So it gets even more grouped together. Scouts don't give you the proper reporting of the players ability. Which is no the bad thing. Its how they relay it that is the problem. This garbage of stat ranges is dumb and most of the time highly accurate. OVR means nothing. I only care about key stats for each positions. So it should be based off a scoring system. What does the scout think of his crossing ability, poor, below average, average, above average or good. I would much more prefer that. And each of those could have wildly different stat ranges in them based on the position and the scout. Don't show me all the numbers. Hide them all. Showing me the numbers makes me go nuts when scouting players. I spend way too much time on it. And I can always find the best player doing so. I have not had a bust pickup since my first season using it. It doesn't work as intended. Which just makes the whole thing feel busted even more. Basically lower level scouts need to be wrong more often. I haven't had a bust as you say in forever. The system is too easy to find gems. Also let me compare scouted players side by side better. The current compare view is terrible. And it should be smart enough to compare only keep areas for that position. I don't need to see defensive stats for a striker. Another problem with it is fact that the scout will run out of people to scout. Really? You mean in all of Italy you could only find 3 players? And now your giving up. What? There are surely more than 3 players in the entire country that meet my measly criteria. Which leads me to the next thing. Scouts need to have traits and personalities. Every scout is exactly the same in the game, and I don't feel the need to spend the big money on a highly rated scout. Because I can do the same thing with a 2 star scout for much less money. That is how broken the system is. Scouts need to be widely different in decision making, ability to find talent, etc. Maybe I want too much out of the game. But I spend a lot of my free time playing FIFA. And I would like a better overall experience in my CMs. I find this system so broken I don't even use it anymore. I just use the youth program to bring 3-4 a players a year (which is also pretty broken). And if I need a transfer I use the search system to find the players I want. I don't bother scouting anyone anymore. You can tell how a good a player is based off his value and wage. Why bother scouting when I know a player with a value of 7million and a wage of 50K that the team is asking 15 million for and is crucial to their squad, will be 75 rated or higher and be good at his position.

This is exactly spot on. The concept of the GTN isn't terrible (though it's not what was needed to begin with), but it's implementation is.

Like you said, it doesn't really make building a team more difficult, it just makes it more tedious.

# 23 Entiae @ 08/16/14 12:31 PM

Can we turn Firings off?

I guess the answer is still No, and I'll have to try to find another workaround. I'd rather spend those hours actually playing the game.

I'm still very excited about the game, however.

# 24 Wavebird99 @ 08/18/14 03:01 AM

Im pretty pumped to hear about the six seperate team sheets (with names!) so that I dont have to re-do my lineup before every match.

Also excited to hear that the young player progression has been fixed. That futhead guy played 3/4 of a season with United and Zanazaj grew jumped 4 points. Need to see alot more of that.

Also impressed to see that they realized the AI needed an overhaul from last year. Games quite honestly grew stale, especially when 95% of the time the AI was determined to either play a "good" game or a "bad" game, regardless of the quality of the team. I got sick of 14's CM much earlier than I did with other additions.

GTN is ok, but I need to see better results for my searches. I often found the players that popped up werent what I was really looking for. Hopefully thats addressed for the better.

# 25 woody2goody @ 08/19/14 05:48 AM

One simple fix would make career mode better for me, getting a guaranteed youth intake every year like on Football Manager.

You can still go scouting around the globe for talent, but 90% of your youth players should automatically come from the country that the club is based in.

This way, you might only get a couple of real superstars through but it would add a more realistic element to the long term game, as each club would still retain the majority of it's national identity through its playing squad.

# 26 half-fast @ 08/19/14 06:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightmareBooster


	My initial reaction is that "Storylines and Presentation" sound like the same old news updates from the past 2 or 3 iterations. However, I am optimistic about a better model for player growth, youth academy growth in particular if it extends to that. Hopefully we'll now know BEFORE we sign a youth prospect what his work rates are. Very few things are more annoying than frothing at the mouth over a 70-74 OVR, 90-94 POT CF only to have him come in with L/L work rates.

I actually really like the news stories. The more they add, the kess often you see the same ones, I think theyre great.

# 27 mfp @ 08/19/14 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wavebird99


	Im pretty pumped to hear about the six seperate team sheets (with names!) so that I dont have to re-do my lineup before every match. Also excited to hear that the young player progression has been fixed. That futhead guy played 3/4 of a season with United and Zanazaj grew jumped 4 points. Need to see alot more of that. Also impressed to see that they realized the AI needed an overhaul from last year. Games quite honestly grew stale, especially when 95% of the time the AI was determined to either play a "good" game or a "bad" game, regardless of the quality of the team. I got sick of 14's CM much earlier than I did with other additions. GTN is ok, but I need to see better results for my searches. I often found the players that popped up werent what I was really looking for. Hopefully thats addressed for the better.

I'm curious to see what they do to player growth. I see criticisms like yours that players don't grow, but I see loads of player growth... probably too much. In my current CM, my two star team became a three star team in one season. I've got 8+ players who grew 3-4 points in a season. And I'm playing on Legendary.

# 28 woody2goody @ 08/19/14 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfp


	I'm curious to see what they do to player growth. I see criticisms like yours that players don't grow, but I see loads of player growth... probably too much. In my current CM, my two star team became a three star team in one season. I've got 8+ players who grew 3-4 points in a season. And I'm playing on Legendary.

Player growth seems pretty good to me, even too good at times.

However it's good to know that they have fixed everyone becoming useless straight away when they hit their 30s.

# 29 NYBorn81 @ 08/20/14 03:09 AM

Everything sounds pretty sweet to me.

# 30 RunnyEggs @ 08/20/14 03:55 AM

While we're on the subject of youth-player growth...

It seems like there is a huge amount of left-footed, star players that come out of my youth academy. Like 5 lefties to 1 righty. Kind of frustrating...

# 31 Zac @ 08/20/14 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RunnyEggs


	While we're on the subject of youth-player growth... It seems like there is a huge amount of left-footed, star players that come out of my youth academy. Like 5 lefties to 1 righty. Kind of frustrating...

I don't mind that so much compared to the fact that 90% of all youth players are under 5'5". I hate finding someone who has 80+ potential and is 4'11", or 5'1".

# 32 woody2goody @ 08/20/14 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZO


	I don't mind that so much compared to the fact that 90% of all youth players are under 5'5". I hate finding someone who has 80+ potential and is 4'11", or 5'1".

They are taller when you call them up though. I have a 71 overall 16 year old who was 5'5" in the academy but is now 5'10" in the main squad.

# 33 Zac @ 08/20/14 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woody2goody


	They are taller when you call them up though. I have a 71 overall 16 year old who was 5'5" in the academy but is now 5'10" in the main squad.

Well that is good to know. I've always just ignored those players and not signed them.

# 34 NightmareBooster @ 09/03/14 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paradingwolves


	I have a question maybe someone can clarify for me. The storylines from around the league during the match or only in the CM menu? I saw a poster mention he was playing in his last game of the BPL season and during the match their was a score update on another game that had a huge impact on his teams fate, does this actually occur? My excitement level is already pretty much maxed for this game (I haven't bought one since 12 because they weren't improving enough imo) anyway, can anyone confirm this for me?

Yes, this happens in '14, it's called "Goal News Selection". In CM, at the screen right before you start a match (where you see PLAY NOW, TEAM MANAGEMENT, etc.) if you scroll down you'll see GOAL NEWS SELECTION (I believe that's the name, or something like that). Anyway, when you select it, it'll show you the other games that will be played alongside yours and you can select which games you want to get updates about.

Actually I'm surprised you aren't already hearing the updates in your games as it's on by default. I hear them all the time.

# 35 Wavebird99 @ 09/03/14 04:11 PM

I'm actually pretty pumped about some of these changes. CM is the main mode I do for these games.

# 36 Twister26 @ 09/04/14 10:50 AM

Some of my thoughts on the Fifa 15 career mode beta. Bare in mind this is not the final build and some of these things have reportedly been fixed. I played a full season so if you have any questions shoot and I'll answer them if I can.

Shooting - Sometimes it seems a bit balloon like if that makes sense. The threshold on the power bar seems to be set lower than Fifa 14 which makes the ball balloon over the bar more. Especially if you shoot on the run or with a players weaker foot, it's much harder to hit the target.

Passing - Not a huge difference I feel but I don't think change was needed. Players seem to make much better runs this year which is great and that in turn opens up the opportunity to slice defenses open with great passes.
One thing I don't like is I could rifle a pass straight at an opposition player from 2 yards and he will control it everytime without any trouble which is unrealistic.

Tackling - Much better than last years game! I don't know how many great tackles I made in Fifa 14 only for the ref to give a foul, penalty or red card against me, very frustrating. I made some crunching tackles in the beta where I won the ball and sometimes injured their player but thankfully I went unpunished.

Defender's Pace - Seems to have been improved upon where if you break clean through with someone like Aguero Hangeland isn't turning into Usain Bolt and catching you to intercept the ball.

Throw ins - Has been improved upon and it's nice that you can control the ball receiver to try to get him into a better position but there are still instances where I'll throw the ball at him and it will bounce off his face or the ball will sail straight past him.

Goalkeepers - Sometimes unbeatable then other times horrific! Usually on crosses or corners they are error prone where they will get out jumped for the ball or they may just charge out and not jump allowing a free header at goal for the opposition player. At times I have ran at them with the ball where they charge out at me and I walk past them without them attempting to dive at my feet or block me allowing an easy goal.

Weather - Snow and rain seems a tad unrealistic. If there was that much water splashing up or if there was that much snow on the pitch in a real game then the game would have been abandoned. It just needs to be toned down a bit. It also seems to play better than last year. Playing in the snow in Fifa 14 was like playing on an ice rink but this year it doesn't seem to be as bad although I've only had one match in the snow.

Graphics - Amazing! I Wouldn't have said there was a big difference at first but I went back and played Fifa 14 today and the difference is huge. Players faces, the stadiums, shirts getting dirty etc, some vast improvements that make the game feel more realistic. The crowd look great as well and the chants are very good but even more chants for specific clubs (or even specific players) would be something else that could be improved upon.

Presentation - Very nice, especially the pre-match screens with the line ups etc. There is however other small things that can be improved upon. Things like pretty much the same animation/celebrations as previous games when you win a cup/league in career mode also I do wish we had more options with regards to commentators, although there is some new material this year Tyler and Smith still come up with the same repetitive lines and during a career mode this can become tedious. A new duo for next year along with or to replace Tyler and Smith would be great.

Offsides - Seems to be better than last year but still room for improvements. EA trying to make the game as realistic as possible but are still missing that human element. Linesmen and refs make mistakes! It would be good for the game and opens up more talking points for the commentators. Goals given when the player was offside, soft penalties given through diving or other means. It doesn't have to happen in every game but to be thrown in there now and again would give something fresh and new.

Time Wasting - If I'm 1-0 down with 10 minutes to go and the ball goes out for a thrown in, I want my player to get the ball in his hands then back into play ASAP. I don't want him messing around with the ball, taking an age to actually take the throw in or waiting for ages until another player kicks another ball off the pitch before I can take it. I should be able to run over, pick up the ball and throw it immediately!

Misc - Lots of small details that make the game better. The goals shaking when the ball hits the woodwork, shirt tugging, Players arguing with each other, all the Premier league stadiums look great, pitch wear and tear and much more. I have probably forgotten a few things I wanted to cover but all in all this is a great game and I can't wait to buy the full version. Playing Fifa 14 just doesn't feel the same anymore after having a teaser of this version.

# 37 BBallcoach @ 09/05/14 08:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZO


	Well that is good to know. I've always just ignored those players and not signed them.

Yeah dude, those are 15 year olds, They grow in your youth club until they turn 18 or you call them up. I have a stud American CM who was 5'5" at 15 then grew to 6'0" at 16 and when i called him up he was 6'1"

And on a side for my feelings of the new features, While I am excited for the new career mode features, I was hoping to be able to use the mini games to help improve players individual stats.

# 38 redsox4evur @ 09/08/14 08:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Twister26


	Some of my thoughts on the Fifa 15 career mode beta. Bare in mind this is not the final build and some of these things have reportedly been fixed. I played a full season so if you have any questions shoot and I'll answer them if I can.

OK man I got a question for you. How "realistic" are transfers this year? IE Real Madrid signing every top striker. Or Benzema being sold in every first transfer window. I also had one career where Man City bought the greatest set of midfielders and had Mesut Ozil sitting on the bench!!!!

# 39 grizzlies317 @ 09/09/14 12:09 PM

One small thing I wish they could implement is the ability to start a career mode on the current date. When I start my career with Liverpool, it'd be nice to pick up with the current league table. Not a big deal, but it would be a nice touch.

# 40 LousyJackRanga @ 09/09/14 08:41 PM

I hope they have tweeked the management job function. I feel that fifa 12 had it right and they dropped the ball on the last 2.

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