FIFA ’09 Review (360)

Fifa manage to get another goal

Before I write this review I should mention that I am and always have been an avid Fifa fan, I know the rivalry between Fifa and PES and although I did sample some of the earlier versions on PES I have not played it for a while now. This however is irrelevant as this is not a comparison of the two games. Fifa seems to have really pulled it out the bag again this year as they seemed to last year. Instead of making the mistake many do with long running games of changing it year by year completely (of which fifa have been guilty in the past) they have just taken the previous game and improved on it.

There are two of three big changes within the game that are worth mentioning.

Firstly they have lengthened the “Be a Pro” season, this means that you can be one person in a team. They have made this 4 seasons long and far more in depth as now pick your team and start in the reserves for them and have to work your way into the first team squad by proving yourself with good performances. Not only this but you can also get picked for the international team which is a fantastic extra. This mode really makes you feel like you are just a member of the squad. A couple of down sides to this I have found, although in truth I have only played a Liverpool so far is that every other member of the team seem to want to be sent off with the type of tackling they do, this can become frustrating when it is a tight game and things like that could swing the game the oppositions way. Also I created myself as a striker and some of my game by game objectives were to score two goals, etc. But when trying this mode as a midfielder

Little areas still bug you like transfers between other clubs

I was getting these objectives again and considering a big part of getting experience points which lead to upgrading your player’s stats is staying in your correct position on the pitch this is a difficult task if you have to push forward to score two goals in a game.

Another major step forward is if you have the ability to get online from your chosen console then every week it will update the stats of each player by taking into account how they are playing at that time, this can affect the teams within the game in a big way and is a very nice little feature.

FIFA 09The manager mode is pretty much the same as last season’s, although this is generally excellent and always my chosen mode of play there is a constant struggle in certain areas that do not seem to have improved much. Little areas still bug you like transfers between other clubs, they do happen but not enough to be noticed especially if you’re buying all decent players and the teams don’t spend the money you give them.

The final and probably most important point is the actual game play, this seems to be the area Fifa have most improved that or it’s just the area you notice most. A review I read on this recently mentioned many fantastic points about how the players cover each other when they go out of position and how they seem to jostle and interact more this is all very true but they are only slight advantages on last year where this happened also, firstly the graphics throughout game play have really been taken up a notch, they really take hold of you and you see who everyone is in details not only this but the way a player moves with the ball is changed player by player to match how the play in real life. Crosses are a lot harder and rarely make their target which I suppose is slightly more realistic then previous games where if you are desperate for a goal you could just cross several times in the hope a goal would come � which it usually would. The movement around the pitch is much more realistic but something that impresses me most is one of the least important factors � the crowd. You can see the crowd person for person; this is a fantastic show of their graphics. Other little extras you might enjoy in the game, the referee is finally in the game and can sometimes even get in the way of a ball, you can choose celebrations when you score and I’m sure there are many more hidden gems to be found. One last criticism is the free kick taking. Following on from last season this is poor once again it is difficult to put any real pace and accuracy on the ball although the swerve is now very dominant and this can be frustrating especially as the computer seems to be very good at free kicks and it is a real danger if they have one near the goal.

Overall I feel this is the best football game out and it has enough different modes to keep me occupied, at least until the next one comes out.

The Good: Fantastic graphics, beautiful movement in play, plenty of different game types
The Bad: Not enough improvement on small areas of detail


FIFA 09 FIFA 09 FIFA 09 FIFA 09 FIFA 09 


Silver Y AwardSilver Y Award
4 4 / 5

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