FIFA 11 Hands-On Preview

10 Sep 2010 at 17:00:07 by James Chalmers

You've got to hand it to the guys at EA Sports. Just when you think the studio can't top its latest version of FIFA the next one is released and somehow it's head and shoulders above the last version. This is definitely the case in the past year with the fantastic FIFA 10 and then somehow only 6 months after trumped it with the impeccable South Africa World Cup. Walking into the office last week those words all summer I've been waiting for; “James you're previewing FIFA 11” suddenly I was like a giddy teenager about to meet their idol for the first time mixed with the feeling you used to get when it was Christmas Eve. Then the realisation hit...“What if FIFA 11 didn't cut the mustard?”

Thankfully after 204 games (one of the neat features for the exhibition menu is that the game records all of your games in a little side bar) I can assure you for the time being the game is shaping up to be another hit. This year's headlining features are the new passing engine as well as the Personality+ where players play like their real life equivalents.

Personality+ is definitely a game-changing addition to the footy sim and instantly makes the game a much more realistic affair on a whole new level. Players play the positions like they should, wingers will be rapid quick and try and get that early cross into the box, defenders throw themselves in front of balls as a last ditch attempt at preventing that shot reaching the goal and the likes of Rooney will track all the way back into their own half just to make that crucial challenge. You can take a team like Aston Villa and you're going to notice instantly the difference between the pacey players of Young and Agbonlahor and the lumbering frame of Heskey. Oh and computer controlled players now do skill moves too.

I soon learnt this in my very first game; taking control of my beloved Southampton I decided to test out what FIFA 11 had to offer and took on arch-rivals Portsmouth. However being the office expert for FIFA 10 my initial over-confidence got the better of me and before I knew it Kanu had put the ball through my midfielder's legs, 360 pivoted around a defender and then smashed a shot into the net from 18 yards...this was going to be a steeper learning curve than normal.

One of the other features which requires a few games before you begin to get the hang of things is the new passing engine. Rather than just having the opportunity to hammer A or X depending on your console to pass to team mates you're going to have to weight passes. Granted if you don't put enough power behind the pass it is still going to reach your target (well sometimes, more on that in a moment) however it won't have the full momentum and in turn will allow defenders to quickly sneak in with a tackle, rather than continuing that blistering run that you made past the full back.

Lofted through balls now feel and look a lot more deft rather than last years hoof and hope approach. You get the sense of a range of passes this year around and the animations that come with each pass are truly unique. But it all depends on the standard of league and team that you're playing as. Sure short passes using flicks and lay-offs are there for the technical midfielders in the middle of the park but nothing beats drilling in a cross at the front post to create a sense of pandemonium in the six yard box as goalkeepers, defenders and strikers all vie to get to the ball.

Goalkeepers have been vastly reworked making them a lot more tougher to beat with the reactions of a cat compared to the snail paced movements of the FIFA 10 keepers. I've had to just stare at the screen in awe as a goalkeeper pulled off a finger tip save and then picked himself back up to pull off another save to thwart the advances of my strikers. The chipping flaw from FIFA 10 has been rectified, while it was fixed in World Cup the goalkeepers, when one on one, are much more intelligent. They know when to rush out to close down the opponent or when to stick on their line, keepers will see a loose ball and quickly shoot off the line to smother it before it's smashed into the bottom corner. It makes for some truly remarkable games and the skill of a goalkeeper can be the difference between a win and defeat, well that is until you take control of them yourself.

Be A Goalkeeper mode was revealed at Gamescom earlier this summer and allows you to play as the man between the sticks. As good as it sounds it's quite a lot like being picked for football at school and then being shoved into the goal...in truth it's a little boring. Even playing a Southampton vs Man City game where I expected to be peppered with shots every couple of minutes I spent the majority of the match stood in my goal waiting for the action to head my way. But when the opposing team finally venture into your half the fun begins.

Depending on your skill of being a goalkeeper you can adjust the different assists that come with playing the game. There can be a circle on the floor to dictate where the best position to stand is, a path of where the shot is going can be made visible or you can go into a game with nothing to aid you. Using the face buttons along with the analogue sticks you can decide where to dive and how quickly to rush out, nothing is more satisfying than tipping a goal-ward bound freekick onto the post or correctly deciding when to rush out and collect a cross amongst a crowded penalty area. At times I felt like a true stopper but at times I felt like sitting down in my goal while waiting for the action to hit. For those budding last minute GK heroes you can even go up for corners to get that vital goal; then again if they break you better be ready to try and scramble back to your own goal before they make your courageous attempt feel worthless.

Talking about taking the opportunity, penalties continue in the form of the 2010 FIFA World Cup mechanic. For me it was a change that I hated and I still do; having the pressure bar and then defining how far away from the centre of the goal you score or in most cases miss depending on how hard you press buttons is un-needed. I was a fan of the easy to use pick the place and hope the keeper doesn't dive the right way, whereas this style is just frustrating and it seems like the CPU struggles too. Playing one shootout with Tottenham against the mighty Inter Milan they only managed to score one penalty with some of the world class players that grace the Inter team seemingly bottling it at the last moment.

While penalties can decide a draw they are obviously handed out if you're hacked down in the area. This year sees the ability to select which referee you want to take control of your game. Licensed refs aren't in the game, how cool would it be for Howard Webb to officiate the Manchester derby in the game? The EA-created refs come with different mental attributes for deeming what is a foul or an advantage. The refs are categorised with two different traits, bookings and fouls. These two will then be scaled either Lenient, Average or Strict expect to see totally different decisions made in-game for the same fouls that you commit. A lenient ref will barely show a card to an offender while a strict ref will be handing them out like sweeties; think the World Cup final and you're basically there.

There are still things I've not covered; Career Mode which now mixes the Manager Mode and Be a Pro game modes from last year into one massive expansive mode. Online play once again returns and don't forget there is also the brand new creation centre allowing you to bring your own fictitious teams of user-created players into the game. There are also brand new team based celebrations, okay not as elaborate as the fishing celebration from the Icelandic team but you can now use two players to initiate the traditional shoe shining celebration. But for now I'll let you find out about all of these additions when the review comes round in the coming weeks. 

For me 1st October cannot come quickly enough as that is the magic date FIFA 11 graces consoles and until then be sure to check out the demo for Xbox 360 and PS3 next week.

Comment