Playmaker- FIFA Soccer 10 Review

Clearly, the developers of FIFA Soccer 10 recognize the strength of the mini-game also; with a press of the back button, the warm-up turns into a full featured practice mode which allows players to drop in attackers and defenders, as well as build set pieces. Admittedly, the concept of drills in a sports title sounds initially dreadful- after all, the beauty of gaming is that it can endow players will professional-level skills. In execution, the mode is surprisingly pleasurable and serves as an invaluable way for players’ to develop their overall aptitude. Hopefully, next year’s iteration will allow players to share their set pieces online, are at least offer the option to include them in online matches.

Following the precedent establish by many of this year’s sports titles, FIFA 10 has also included a comprehensive career mode, entitled Virtual Pro. Here, gamers can create their own prospective footie star which they can take into any of FIFA’s modes from Manager Mode, online matches or even custom tournaments. By completing a myriad of in-game accomplishments, players are able to access skill upgrades, improve their stats, or just unlock new gear. Strangely, the ability to use the Xbox Live Vision camera of Playstation 3 Eye is notably missing- players must upload digital images of their visage to EA’s servers.

Once players hit the pitch, they’ll immediately discover FIFA 10’s most crucial new development- the game’s moment and animation system. Previous version of the title restricted player movements to eight directions, an antiquated holdover from the game’s 16-bit origins. Now, each athlete moves both realistically and incredibly sinuously. This type of fluidity often comes at a price, as gamers can feel locked into motion-captured animation routines. FIFA 10 rarely controls mechanically, and unlike most soccer games, ball movement and control is handled realistically.

While the game’s animation is top-notch, FIFA’s other visual components are starting to show their age. While the title’s menu system is certainly functional, navigating through the options hasn’t offered much graphical diversity over the last two years. Although the game’s character models are competent, some of the FIFA’s textures are showing their seams- several of the sky maps look embarrassingly pixilated. Sonically, FIFA 10 offers a superbly varied soundtrack, and the game’s play-by-play by Martin Tyler and Andy Gray is first-rate, lending the game an impeccable feeling of authenticity.

With so many elements of the game executed impeccably, only one aspect of the game deserves serious admonishment- the cost of Live Season 2.0 mode. A contemporary trend in sports games is to present a component that tracks and adjusts a game to model real-world events, from trades, injuries, to hot streaks. While NBA Live 10 does this out of the box, FIFA 10 charges players $5 to update a league, or $10 to cover all six leagues. Although it could be argued that like most downloable content, Live Season 2.0 isn’t essential to FIFA’s enjoyment, charging for the service in one game while offering it complementary in another, seems contradictory.