It was a sun-kissed afternoon in Atlanta circa 1998. I was attached to the laptop for 10hrs straight. A fluidity had been achieved. Academia, a one star club in every attribute had just beaten a star studded england 5-0 in hard difficulty mode. The 16-bit game engine did enough to make a 10year old jump from his seat. That was my first stint with a football game on PC, that was FIFA ’98 Road To World Cup.
Now the game has achieved new highs. The technically superior competitor FIFA was chasing until a couple of years back, is comfortably in the second place. Sales records year on were never a problem for this EA franchise, as every possible license concerning football is in its kitty. What is certainly more exciting about FIFA over PES is the glamour quotient; from the original crowd noise, closely knit player faces, exciting menu UI and all the way down to EA Trax (brilliant momentum building music), FIFA has taken special care of the extra 20% the gamers need along with the gameplay.
Coming down to how all of this came into shape gradually over the last 12 years mainly. The first major enhancement came in FIFA 99 with a fully redesigned 32-bit game engine and direct X graphics coming into play. Some minor tweaks were followed in FIFA 2000 with improvements in team kits and player faces and new teams and licenses being added on.
The next major title, FIFA 2001, was the first to have official club emblems and kits along with a decent attempt to match some of the real life player faces. Also some new leagues and teams were added like every year as EA’s license database increased. FIFA 2002 was also somewhat similar with exception of newly introduced power bar for passes.
FIFA 2003 was another revolutionary game considering the previous versions. A new graphic engine was used, which gave a better detail on stadiums, players and some minor issues like ball projectile when it is kicked. The first touch was also tweaked a bit. New tricks were built in and all one had to do was press a key to perform a ball on shoulder trick or a ball on head move or fake a move. Commentary along with team specific crowd chants was also added. Real Madrid were the real deal with Raul and Morientes pillaging defenses. A delightful performer this game proved to be.
Next version I was able to get my hands on was FIFA 2006 World Cup edition. This was a fresh start considering a two year break and proved out to be futile. The game was all but exciting apart from the unlockable dream team and the legendary difficulty mode. Referees were next to useless, offsides were rarely given and fouls were given in the penalty box for minor pushing, goals were easily scored from the half way mark as the keeper always stood near the penalty spot. The graphics were cartoonish; some of the new elements in the unlockables included invisible walls rising from the outside line, ball touch with a bass, gravity defying ball; which were all horrendous to say the least. This was also the year I got my hands on PES 2006, my first other football game. The gameplay was lavishly advanced compared to FIFA ’06. Ball projectiles, goal keeping, player first touches, header response, free-kicks were all miles ahead of FIFA. Hence for 2 years I stuck to PES in spite of my soft corner for FIFA.
Even though PES 2008 was much better than FIFA 2008, I still shifted to FIFA. This game had the best goal keeper a gamer could hope for, plus the defense was also better organized, considering that all the defenders weren’t running after the opposing striker with the possession, some were covering the empty spaces for a forthcoming Xavi like pass. Graphics were still cartoonish compared to PES.
FIFA 2009 was a much better overall performer and EA’s first true attempt to match the Konami masters. Gameplay was much more fluidic and the first touch and ball projectile were pretty accurate. Be a pro mode and good commentary were decent additions. But PES 2009 still outperformed FIFA.
FIFA 2010 was largely similar to 2009 in the graphics and gameplay department. But, player experience and growth system and the change in their value in the transfer market were better synced with each other.
FIFA 2011 for me was 90% of PES 2011 and also my first FIFA game on the XBOX 360. Team EA probably bought some of their competitors head people and designers. Playing as a single player was lovely, specially when you could ask for a pass from anywhere, rest was all on your skills to beat the offside trap and score against the keeper in a TV viewing like camera angle. The online mode was tweaked up as well, there was a gamer point system which depended on how much you play and how less you lose, which helped in unlocking items and strengthening in online mode.
2012, the year when FIFA beats PES. The collision system introduced in FIFA 2009 was totally revamped and performed with extreme accuracy. This was also the first version to get rid of the long press defending move; the gamer had to be more careful and awake about defending now. The online integration, career mode, be a pro mode, graphic engine, free-kicks were all improved and performed fantastically.
In a couple of months time we shall be hanging our tongues out for FIFA 2013. I don’t know how PES 2013 will be, but it will definitely wake up and redesign a lot of stuff including gameplay which has been more or less the same since PES 2010.
The thr’ill’ing factors of FIFA 2013 according to EA will be –
* Integration with Kinect. Motion Sensing that is. :D
* Improved AI concerning player attacking, passing and goal keeping.
* XBOX 360 controller offers 16 possible movements and nowadays games are more console-centric rather than PC oriented. And this version will offer 360 degree mobility with the ball.
* Each team cannot be Barcelona and 2013 will eliminate the first touch control, hence making it more realistic possession wise.
* Access to a EA sports football club
What will and won’t be ill about FIFA 2013 will be discussed in a review once it lands in illgaming’s office.
Konami master is nearing a disaster I say. The pro evolution of FIFA is complete and beyond. The extra 20% is no longer the criteria for liking FIFA over PES. My first love will remain my only love.
