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FIFA 12: The Pro Clubs Debate
Now, I’m a big fan of the FIFA series of games. Those of you who follow my posts and the Podcast will know that I am an avid supporter of the FIFA franchise (only once did I slip over to the Pro Evolution Soccer darkside). Every year I get excited about the prospect of a new FIFA game and what features they’ll introduce, what gameplay they’ll fix from the last game and whose ugly mug will be plastered on the front of the box. With FIFA 12 it was no different. I can sing the praises of the FIFA 12 game; I believe it is EA Sports best attempt yet at a “football simulation” and there are many promising factors about where the franchise is heading in the future in terms of gameplay. However, one minor thing still haunts me to this day. The source of many debates and hot-worded Xbox Live Messages revolve around this question, ANY or No ANY?
Personally, my Pro Club plays with an ANY (to those of you who are clueless, an ANY is a player nominated to control the rest of the team that aren’t your online friend/s). Obviously, this shows that I am in favour of people on Pro Clubs playing with an ANY. My argument for this is as follows.
- Mano-a-mano – Two teams with an ANY are going head-to-head. The ANY’s individual skill, the team’s ability to work effectively as a team and the team’s tactics go head-to-head. It’s about that sense of gladiatorial competition, the right to say that you are better than the person you are playing.
- Ridiculous AI technical ability – If you play Pro Clubs, you probably know how I feel. A team without an ANY has a striker up front. The ball is situated in their own penalty box. Said striker puts his hand up to call for the ball. A seemingly bumbling defender swivels on a six-pence and delivers a rocket of a pass, flat trajectory and all. Said striker gratefully takes the once in a lifetime pass into his stride and is on the counter attack immediately. Wash, rinse, repeat.
- The sense of being cheated - I may be the only one, but whenever my Pro Club plays a team without an ANY, Lady Luck seems to err on the side of the AI. It’s as though the AI has it’s own pride, it’s own hunger to win. So, low and behold, bounces start going against you, the referee appears to be on the opposition pay-roll, the post and crossbar start to look that little bit thicker. It’s nice that EA Sports have included this sense of having the “rub of the green” in the game, as a modern game of football does, but sometimes the coincidences stack up into an all too common occurrence, game after game.
- Inhuman reaction times – The AI has a faster processing speed than a human brain. When that ball is rolling over the line, an ANY’s brain has to process the image of the ball and then tell the correct finger to depress the correct button at exactly the right moment. The AI sits back, smokes a cigar, maybe catches up on its correspondence, knowing that it has the processing capabilities to deal with the panic. Hence in those button-bashing panics, the AI has the upper hand over the human ANY player.
- AI, Master of the defence system – The new defence system EA Sports introduced in FIFA 12 was supposed to introduce “Tactical Defending”. Basically, you were supposed to jockey the person on the ball, waiting for the precise moment to stick a foot in and take the ball from him. Every gamer had to learn a new way of playing and defending in FIFA 12. However, a team without an ANY do not have to worry about this (unless their Virtual Pro is a defender, of course). Instead, the AI, master of the new defence system, constantly maintains the optimum position to defend a situation, doesn’t react to step-overs and other flicks a human defender may react to (which would open space for the attacker), but instead sits back and thwarts carefully laid passing movements. With 5 at the back, this wall of master defenders looks nearly impossible to penetrate.
- Masters of the air – Not only does the AI have amazing defensive skills, it also has the uncanny ability to out jump even the tallest attackers, winning headers 90% of the time. Pair this with their inhuman ability to spot a pass and then make it, all in a split second, it adds up to quite a formidable counter attacking weapon.
I could go on with more reasons, but I’d end up ranting myself into an early basket case. I have thought about how EA Sports could balance the Pro Clubs game mode in a fairer way. I used to think that making a player play as an ANY in the Pro Clubs mode would solve the problem, but that would drive some players away from the game. Instead, I think a search filter option would benefit the balance of the game. This would allow clubs with an ANY to search for games with other clubs playing ANY and vice-versa, thus restoring harmony and fair competition to the Pro Clubs world. Hopefully, EA Sports will listen to the gaming public before making any decisions on FIFA 13. Who knows, they might even take away the “Be a Goalkeeper” mode. Oh well, one can dream I guess.
Review: FIFA 12
FIFA 12 is the annual return of the hugely successful FIFA franchise, the biggest football game in the world. In recent years FIFA has faced competition from the also popular PES – Pro Evolution Soccer. With the release of FIFA 11, the game was revolutionised and the series dominated PES in both sales and reviews. With limited improvements left to be made in gameplay, FIFA 12 faces a challenge to keep its considerable lead at the top of the market.
This year’s FIFA sees little change in appearance and the ‘feel’ of the game. Aside from the new UI, when I first started a game I felt as if I was still on FIFA 11. I played the ball up front and ran towards the opponent’s defence. Then it hit me. Or rather, Ryan Shawcross did. My first realisation was defenders no longer home in on you when closing down – instead they jockey in front of you, limiting your movement and waiting for the right moment to tackle. While I was observing this, Jonathon Woodgate’s slide tackle collided with my player’s leg and a beautiful swan dive took place. I had just seen perfect examples of the biggest additions this year and how they completely transform the game. Previously, the same situation would have consisted of the Defender holding down a single button and his player would close me down. Now he must assign a defender to jockey my player and hold me back while timing a tackle or getting another player to come in and risk opening his defence. Defending has been made more challenging, and for the better. What was once dragging the series back is now a major feature that functions well and adds to the difficulty. Adding to this, all collisions result in realistic movements from players. The new physics engine increases realism and removes previous blights in the game – players clipping inside each other, repetitive falls from tackles, and awful goalmouth scrambles. Everything that happens feels more genuine, like it could actually be taking place in a real life match. What may sound like two small additions have made the game feel much more perfected and realistic. Read the rest of this entry
FIFA 12 Career Mode – 7 Key Changes
Following announcements made this week, OXM have reported 7 vital changes to FIFA 12 Career Mode which are promised to improve the experience of the single player game mode. In no particular order, here is a look at those 7 key changes:
Player Personalities
Players will no longer follow your every command like a robot. Like the real life game, players will moan and whine if you send them out onto the pitch with a newly healed fracture, will demand more wages if they believe they deserve better and even have opinions on how much they respect the club captain.
Transfer system: Deadline day madness
Transfer deadline days will be like the real thing, stressful, frantic and some what entertaining. Clubs will bid against you for transfer targets, negotiate prices when buying and selling players and test your resolve with shrewd bids for your star players.
Under the media microscope
The press will no longer reel off the scores like a Vidiprinter, but instead scrutinise your every public action. Just played your club captain out of position? The commentators will question every detail of your tactical choices and the press will want to know why you dared play him out of position. The press will also spread gossip about transfer news and comment on the rise and fall of celebrity players.
Glossy Presentation
One thing that has been lacking in previous FIFA titles is the general match-day presentation. Well, no longer. FIFA 12 promises to bring Sky Sports style build up and pre-match team analysis, with the commentators discussing individual players and tactical decisions. A new default camera angle is also set to change the way FIFA looks.
Smarter Scouting
FIFA 12 gives you the ability to send scouts out multiple times to see the same player in action. Instead of bidding for a player on a hunch, after seeing him on the pitch for about 5 minutes, you now have the ability to analyse him over a number of games – but beware, other clubs will cotton on and also send in the scouts.
Old Dogs can’t be taught new tricks
Older players will have less of a learning curve than players younger than them. Train a 16-year-old hot prospect and he will learn fast, whereas the more veteran players will find it hard to grasp new skills and will consequently level up slower – or not at all.
Wage and transfer budgets can be combined
More financial control means you’ll be able to budget accordingly to make that big name signing. Just be careful you don’t bankrupt the club.
Preview: FIFA 12 (Release date announced)
Submitted earlier this month on TGS, here is my preview to FIFA 12. Release date has been announced, read on to find out:
As inevitable as the sun coming up, your toast landing butter side down and finding a Zubat in Dark Cave, FIFA 12 will be a commercial hit – as was its predecessors. However, sales alone do not indicate a games overall quality and playability. Take FIFA 11 for example. Last year, FIFA 11 sold over 821,000 copies in the UK alone in its first week of being on the shelf (Source: MCVUK). This crowned FIFA 11 the fastest selling sports game of all time, however, despite the games improvements from FIFA 10, gamers were met with numerous bugs and latency issues in the first few weeks of it being released.
So, what can we expect to see in FIFA 12 that is different from last years title? EA Sports have revealed a number of new features:
Player Impact Engine
The Player Impact Engine promises to deliver realistic collisions, physics and player animations to emulate the strength and jostling of the real-life game. Defenders will try to push players off the ball when shoulder to shoulder and pull back attackers that are getting away from them. Attackers can expect to use their strength to battle for every inch of space and hold the ball up.
Precision Dribbling
Close control means the player will have more control of the ball when in possession meaning more ways of getting past opposing defenders or creating space for a killer pass.
Tactical Defending
EA invited FIFA 11 gamers to submit ideas for new features in FIFA 12. One concern was the lack of skill needed to defend, with players simply “pressing a button and hoping for the best”. Tactical Defending hopes to inject skill into defending, adding timing and positioning into the mix. Defenders will now have to jockey the attacker and wait for the right moment to dispossess the player.
Football Club Online Mode
Revealed at this years E3, Football Club Online Mode will allow players to follow the real-world results of their favourite clubs and have a chance to replay these games to change the outcome. Points will be awarded for completing challenges and winning matches, which will go towards the players team on a Support Your Club League Table. This means players can help their team avoid relegation, win trophies or simply get one over their closest rivals.
With FIFA 12 scheduled for release 30th September 2011, gamers eagerly await the latest instalment of the football game. There’s no doubt it will be a commercial success, but hopefully EA will learn from the release of FIFA 11 and make sure FIFA 12 is bug and lag free come release day.
The official gameplay trailer can be found HERE.
