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That is all forgotten once you kick off, the slick presentation that pretty much is Fifa comes to the fore. Passing around and looking for the gap has never been more fun, frustrating, exciting and nail-biting. There is a new physicality about the game which means stronger players can really dominate in certain areas, but get a small, quicker player and he will leave the strongman for dust. Thankfully, crossing, and scoring off crossing, has been made much more accessible which just adds to the realism of the game. EA have introduced the so called Pro-Passing to the game, which adds more value to each pass. Under-hit a pass and it will be picked off resulting in a quick counter. Over-hit a pass and your player is likely to not be able to control it effectively. This really works well, but at times tends to be a bit ‘buggy’, as the game couldn’t quite differentiate whether I was trying to play a longer pass or just a hard pass to the nearest player. On the whole, the new passing system works and means you need to be far more accurate with your passing instead of just abusing the pass button and making the game feel like a pinball table.

Another bullet-point headline introduced by Fifa is the Personality Plus. What is this you may ask? Well, it means that certain players, mostly stars, have a more evident personality. At first I thought this was just a gimmick, but when you play against certain teams you can see who the stars are by their definite playing style. It is a good move by EA, but doesn’t come without its faults. Firstly, a player like Stevie G who, as part of his personality plus, is able to score from long range, can do just that, but I am unsure what difference that makes as opposed to him simply having a higher ‘long-shots’ stat. Little things like that make the whole system feel a little superficial, but I do think that EA have got a good basis on which to build the personality aspects of certain players. Maybe they could even make bad players have a standout personality, Titus Bramble gaff anyone?

Another aspect I must mention, where Fifa seems to just fall flat, is on a tactics and strategy basis. As I said before teams all seemingly play the same style in single player, and therefore there isn’t much need for you to change your own style, make tactical changes or substitutions. This is really a let down, for all the realism on the field, there seems to be very little off it. Sure you can change your formation, and how attacking your team should be, the defensive line and player support, but the fact that is makes very little evident difference, means you are unlikely to be bothered to do so. That coupled with the fact that who your captain is, makes no difference really saps some of the realism which otherwise oozes from the game.

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So what does the sound in Fifa have to offer? So what does the sound in Fifa have to offer? So what does… okay, wait, you see what I did there? That is often how I feel about the commentary in the game. Martin Tyler and Andy Gray return to bring you sometimes interesting, mostly pointless facts about the teams and the game. When they stick to commentating on what is actually happening in the match, it is faultless and adds great atmosphere to the game, however, when they decide to go on a tangent about something regarding one of the teams, well they fall apart. They are often interrupted in the middle of a fact by what’s happening in the game, and then you don’t hear the rest of the fact. Or the reverse, where they will continue with the information, and miss out on a glorious goal you just scored, only to shout “what a goal” once you are kicking off again. Another problem is that the bits of information get really old, really quick. A few matches into career mode you hear the same thing about your team or one of your players for the umpteenth time and it starts to play on your nerves. While commentary is a bit ‘hit and miss’, the atmosphere in the stadium created by the crowd is just fantastic. Crowd chants are realistic and sound perfect, adding to the excitement of the game taking place. Couple this with the fact that you can download your own custom chants and you have the perfect Saturday afternoon game. Really, the sound is just something else, and only makes me a little sad that the World Cup is over.

Alright, what have I left out? Some basic points you might be wondering about. Custom celebrations are still there, which is great until you play against someone who thinks it’s funny to run around the field for ten minutes. Added to this are multiplayer celebrations, right, teammate scores, you can celebrate also, yay! The ref is a bit finicky, soft fouls are given away far too often, sometimes ruining the flow of the game, but the advantage rule is almost perfect. Goalkeepers are excellent and the previous Fifa glitches with goalkeepers seem almost non-existent now. In fact, on a whole, the Fifa ‘glitches’ which always seem to make their way into the game, are almost completely eradicated. Now and then your player won’t react, or your players will run into each other and tumble to the ground, but this happens very occasionally.

Conclusion:

While Fifa 09 was somewhat of a revolution in the series, and Fifa 10 and World Cup improved upon said revolution, Fifa 11 feels more like a step sideways. It is a great game, that goes without saying, it refines and improves on many of the little things, but one can’t help but feel that there has not been an attempt to move forward. The learning curve from previous games is very low, which means that the game is more of a roster update with some nice touches, rather than something innovative and new. Not a bad thing, but unremarkable at the same time


Scoring

Gameplay 8.5:

Fifa’s stand out point for sure. The gameplay is as good as ever, particularly when it comes to multiplayer. With the new pro-passing, personality plus and improved physicality, the flow of the game is truly a pleasure to take part in. The difficulty in making that critical pass means that games are exciting and will have you on the edge of your seat. That being said, the single player gameplay in terms of Career mode and Be a Pro still needs some work in order to improve the lasting appeal, and lets the overall package down just a tad.

Sound 9.0

Despite the repetitive nature of some the commentary, the team of Tyler and Gray do a great job. The crowd chants, player sounds, and general atmosphere created in the game are truly a marvel to behold. Really, it feels as though you are right in the midst of the action. Not really mentioned before, but the soundtrack is very mainstream and makes for nice background music while setting up the game.

Presentation 8.0

Fifa 11 looks good on the whole. The menus are easy to navigate, information is readily available and you are never lost on where to go next. That being said, the menu loading times are an annoyance to say the least. Graphics are as good as ever, from the stadium to the majority of the players, as well as the animations. It may just be getting a little too “cartoony” though.

Value 8.5

Multiplayer is as addictive as ever. There is nothing quite like battling it out against a friend on the field. The overall package offers an abundance of modes, customization and challenges. The new additions are welcome, if not perfect just yet. The lack of depth in the single player damages the experience slightly, but it is still very well worth playing, even if it won’t keep you playing for a full year.


Overall 8.5

Fifa 11 stays true to the series, with the flow of the game as realistic as ever, which is ultimately what us footie fans care about most. I can’t help but feel that the game is a side step, rather than a lunge forward, not a bad thing as it had a hard act to follow, but that being said, EA only have to look at their closest competition to see how easily a series can stagnate if improvements and changes are not made effectively from each year to the next.

[Reviewed on Playstation 3]

Last Updated: October 25, 2010

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FIFA 11
8.5

12 Comments

  1. al360

    October 25, 2010 at 13:21

    yip i fully agree with the review i can’t justify having to upgrade unless its a steal of a deal

    Reply

  2. Parker

    October 25, 2010 at 14:05

    Best review I’ve read of the game so far. I think PES has taken back the crown again…

    Reply

  3. barkingdog

    October 25, 2010 at 16:47

    I guess Konami pays you guys more to write such reviews. Cause FIFA`s AI, animations, physics, dribbling and passing are light years ahead of PES`.
    And if someone ever says PES` animations are anywhere near FIFA`s level, that guy should be just put to sleep.

    Reply

  4. Nick de Bruyne

    October 25, 2010 at 16:50

    Yes, you have caught us out. Konami’s bribes also offer Dental

    Reply

  5. Milni

    October 26, 2010 at 08:55

    Where does this review even mention PES you inbred Fanboi?

    Reply

  6. barkingdog

    October 26, 2010 at 12:00

    Are adds called “bribes” nowadays?

    Reply

  7. MieLLiePaP

    October 26, 2010 at 12:07

    i must also say the the AI, animations, physics and lots more in FIFA is better the PES. i can’t seem to like PES, i have tried it, but it feels like an arcade style soccer game that you go and play at joyland!

    Reply

  8. Gavin Mannion

    October 26, 2010 at 12:09

    man I wish conspiracy theories were true.. so far (if the rumours are to be believed) this week we are being paid to write stories by Konami, Microsoft, Turn 10 and Sony…

    And of course we must be being paid a fortune to throw our dignity and integrity out the window :blink:

    Reply

  9. Nick de Bruyne

    October 26, 2010 at 12:23

    Why am I not seeing a cut of all of these bribes anyways, this is BS. I want my free Konami lunch box and mug at the very least.

    Reply

  10. barkingdog

    October 26, 2010 at 14:15

    Yeah, right. Jeff Gerstmann case was just a work of fiction I guess? Or “a single, isolated case”?

    By the way, I happen to work in the same area as you guys and I`m seeing how things are done, regarding ads…
    (Well, I`m just implying best case scenario – ads. You may be just blind PES fanbois, which will be pitiful.)

    Reply

  11. Conor

    October 28, 2010 at 01:13

    Yeah decent review gents. Iam more of a FIFA man then PES.

    I tried PES 10 it felt as your man above me said it feels like arcade game. Also the team names like man red and man blue i know FIFA owns team name licences but still is annoying. Also FIFA has more teams and leagues.

    I bought FIFA when it first came out and I still think its a solid game. Also happy to see Kaka get the cover.

    Reply

  12. Aussious

    November 3, 2010 at 09:47

    What ever happened to that Soccer franchise I think it was called This is Football…

    Reply

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