Official FIFA 08 Review Thread

I must just add a quick opinion, I bought my copy yesterday here in Sydney and played for a couple of hours last night. It really is a fantastic game!


I started off playing as Man Utd against Liverpool and lost that game 2-0 (my main problem was trying to get used to the new controls). I did note that after a few games, I did improve and was able to win (or draw) most games. With that said, I did start off on semi-pro whilst I find my feet and so far haven't given the Professional setting a go yet It is definitely more difficult to score but much more rewarding when you do. Every goal scored is satisfying as you know how you managed to do it, working the ball into space etc using the 1-2 passes.


Be a Pro mode is fantastic! It really adds to the realism when you have to keep your eyes open and make the runs as well as dropping back to mark up to 3 players. I played as Paul Scholes for Man Utd as I felt a midfielder was likely to see more of the action. There is a bar on screen that lets you know how well you are doing green for good and red for not so good. Making passes, tackles or scoring goals obviously increases the amount of green in the bar. You are able to call for passes etc, so if you make a great run, you can call for the ball but if your team mate thinks there are better options, he'll ignore you.


Another good thing I noticed about Be a Pro mode was that the player you select to control, will replace Ronaldinho in the 1-on-1 loading screen.


It also appears that you are awarded stickers' for various things. I got one after a couple of games last night. After beating Chelsea in a friendly it said Congratulations, you have been awarded a sticker. The sticker said You're getting the hang of it and was worth 500 points. I'm pretty sure that it indicated it was sticker 1 of 100, so it looks like there are plenty of things to unlock with the points earned.


Graphics are fantastic and the AI has definitely improved. For example if you play against a lower league side, they are much more unorganised. But with that said, you cannot just run through them. They will make more mistakes than a premiership side but they are still professionals so they don't happen too often. Goalkeepers look and act much more realistic too.


As I say, I have only played for a couple of hours last night so will save my proper review until I get into the game a bit more. But all in all I am VERY pleased with this game and it has already become my favourite.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Was_There_Then /forum/post/11738038



For example if you play against a lower league side, they are much more unorganised. But with that said, you cannot just run through them. They will make more mistakes than a premiership side but they are still professionals so they don't happen too often. Goalkeepers look and act much more realistic too.

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Love the AI. That would make the game very appealing to me.


Comments on:


The diversity of CPU teams attacks (some use long balls, some 1-2, etc)


Your CPU teammates ability to play defense without you taking control


If moving up in difficulty negates player ratings (a human controlled 99 spd won't outrun a CPU controlled 74 speed)


Would be appreciated.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Dralt /forum/post/11738593


This is as much soccer as a stone is an apple.


No way the result of such a match could be 10-3. Yet, I made that happen.


Try to realize such a score with PES.

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I have....after globally editing the other team with PES Editor


Come on man! Give me some specifics. While I'll admit that it didn't exactly feel right playing the FIFA demo, I think that is to be expected after so many matches with PES.



I'm still holding out some hope for FIFA. Very encouraged by the differing AI's offensive abilities.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Was_There_Then /forum/post/11738038


Another good thing I noticed about Be a Pro mode was that the player you select to control, will replace Ronaldinho in the 1-on-1 loading screen.

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Further to this, it appears you can select any player for the 1-on-1 loading screen, regardless of the Be a Pro Mode.


Go to settings, select "Arena Player" and select whoever you like. Not that there is anything wrong with Ronaldinho of course!



Quote:
Originally Posted by ABSiNTH /forum/post/11743745


I dunno about you guys but I was severely disappointed in FIFA 07. I ended up trading it and snagging PES 2007 which I LOVE. I am curious as to how well the AI is in more detail for those of you that have FIFA 08, as I would still like to play the FIFA franchise. As of now, though, I am waiting for PES 2008...

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Well, I can tell you that I played the absolute crap out of '07 on PS2. It was certainly a game with its flaws, but still fun to play. I actually thought the PSP version was superior and played that even more.


I'm in the States, so no PS3 FIFA for me until, but based on the demo I can already see vast improvements in the gameplay and, more importantly, the AI. I thought the whole line about each player making 1,000 decisions per second was a load of BS when I first heard it and was too good to be true, but the more and more I play the demo, the more I notice the little improvements they've made. Your teammates are smart. They will work and get into space, helping you play your game. I was just playing with a buddy of mine. One game I was Man. U and the next I was Inter and we both noticed a difference in the speed and approach of the game between the two teams. Man U was a far more hectic and fast paced approach while the game I played with Inter was far more calculated and didn't get fast until you were in the attacking third and ready to pounce.


For me, those things are huge. While FIFA '07 was fun, running a wing offense formation and crossing the ball into the box almost always resulted in a scoring chance and most likely a goal. You can't do that anymore. There's much more here when it comes to substance.


I still wish you had a bit more control over your goalkeeper, but it is what it is. Some have complained that they feel FIFA is too slow in its pace. I personally like the tempo and can't wait to get my hands on the final version in a couple weeks when it finally comes out in the US.

I've played a couple of games a Fifa (two friendlys and one Be a Pro) and I thought I would post a few comments. Obviously I'll have to play a bit more to fully confirm this, but here is what I've noticed so far.


The big negative that wasn't changed from the demo (despite other reports to the contrary) is that your teammate defenders don't play real defense. This leads to you needing to take control of every defensive player except of course in Be a Pro (there they do play real defense). In regular matches your teammate defenders just stay between the ball and the goal but never get up on it and pressure the ball handler unless you tell them to (at which point they will sprint straight at the ball). If you don't take control of the defender it will almost always lead to the CPU getting the ball into the wing and then crossing it for a header (which your teammate also won't fight for). It really is ridiculous that this happens but what can you do?


Be A Pro mode is awesome however it seems like you can only use it for training and not for a full season (I need to confirm this), which really stinks. I'd love to take control of Gerrard and anchor Liverpool for the whole year. Nonetheless, the mode really gives a whole different flavor to the game. The rating system for Be A Pro is very good in concept and works well in some areas, but poorly in others. For example you get credit for acting as your team's quarterback (sorry for the other football reference), but you get penalized on defense even if you aren't in the play. If the CPU was working the ball around far away from where my player should be I shouldn't lose points for it. Instead they seem to encourage your player to run all over the place and try to steal the ball. You can of course turn off the rating system and just play the game as one player which really is a neat thing, again I just wish I could do if for the whole season.


Other stuff does seem to be fixed up from the demo. You can no longer just dribble around and cut one way to get around the defense. You need to find the open guy and pass it around to break down the d.


Those are some initial thoughts. As I play it some more I'm sure I'll notice some other things and try to post them. I also have not tried to play online yet so we'll see what issues come that way.

All right, I've been playing this since about 1:30 this afternoon. Played several friendlies, and then a few online.


First, in comparison to the demo, the game does feel faster and more controllable. Game speed seemed especially quicker when playing online, I found. But beware, I'd recommend consulting the user manual if you're used to past FIFAs as the controls are definitely tweaked this year. For instance, many people's gripes (including my own) about the demo were about the futility of through-passes. Well, in 2008 you have to hold triangle and use the left stick to direct the pass to a player making a run. So, slightly more finesse is necessary but after a little practice I had it working pretty soundly.


Secondly, with exception of a few jitters during the cutscenes, the graphics look very good. To me, they seemed slightly less cartoony than the demo, and I didn't notice any significant degradation in graphics in online mode. In addition, I had no issues whatsoever setting up and getting into online games. Oh, and as a sidenote, in my first game I killed Arsenal 4-0 with my Bayern Munich. Not a bad way to start a new online career.


Anyway, thirdly, I immediately bumped the difficulty down to amateur based on how hard the demo was. Well, this turned out to be a joke as I kept winning by large margins. Even semi-pro isn't as hard as the demo's "semi-pro" was, so I'm currently on professional and I find it to be a nice balance of frustration vs. accomplishment... for now.


I'm sure many will disagree, but I think this is a fine game, and none of you will get me down about it!