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FIFA '07 Preview
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Formats: All current gen & X360
Out: September 29
Publisher: EA Sports
EA's FIFA games are a bit like Christmas – they come once per year, are as commercial as McDonalds and tend to leave you feeling like you've been short changed. This is because FIFA games - like Christmas - are more often than not exactly like the last one. Except you get a few new bits-and-bobs.
Kicking off with the “feel of it” bits, when you first start playing the most immediate thing that hits you is the acceleration and inertia on the players’ movement. The shift from standstill to full pelt, and vice-a-versa, is much more gradual and fluid than last year's version. It makes it harder to suddenly change direction and you quickly have to adopt much more of a passing game. Another change that smacks you right in the face is the ball physics - you can now control it with different parts of your upper body and there are new animations to compliment this chest and shoulder juggling.
Certainly the most striking change to play occurs when you take a, er, strike at goal. Previous versions have used a crappy attributes mechanic to depict the shot's accuracy. In ’07, it’s much more skill-based and you can feel your directional movements having a much greater affect on the ball’s direction. Elements like the speed of the pass and the angle your player is facing when taking the shot are now calculated into the ball's trajectory, and the whole process feels much more involved. There’s also a brand new side-foot shot on offer, performed by holding down a shoulder button when kicking. It’s less powerful, but more accurate, and gives the game a touch more depth.
As far as options go, the big new mode is the Interactive League, an online set-up that simulates the season as it’s being played out for real. You tell the game what your favourite team is and then it’ll hook you into a massive competition where you’re pitted against someone who’s picked the team you’re playing against.
For example, if you support Arsenal, when Arsenal is playing against Chelsea (or whoever) the Interactive League will match you against the Chelsea fans that are also plugged into the league. This can’t be tested until the game is on the market but it sounds absolutely brilliant and is a rare, genuinely revolutionary addition for a FIFA update.
The game runs onto the pitch late September – we’ll have a review over the coming weeks.
