2006 FIFA World Cup

Time and time again i have to argue with people that you can't judge any game with decent variety of options on how good it is versus the AI.

The real game is ONLINE and against your mates.

You can't have an online game thats too easy, quite simply because even the best players on the Planet lose.

The online of Fifa is very much like Fifa 2006's online, although slightly quicker, and the community is if anything very slightly larger.

Never less than 50 people online and ready to play, so its a pretty varied experience.

I could write the same about the game as everyone else, and leave out the difficulty, (which is pretty much the only problem), this game will hit 5*s everytime if you play online.

One thing that disturbed me about previous Fifas is that there used to be a way of scoring really easily, that seems to have dissapeared.

They seem to have got a good balance between wing-play, and ground-play, between long shots, and short shots.

The online play is incredibly narrow, there really is only one thing to do, and thats play constant 1v1s without any real follow through from one game to the next (Although there are cups, these often go awry because of players with faulty connections)

My View on the game:

Pros:

@Slicker shooting system, with more realistic curve.

@More realistic heading system

@Less 'UBER' skills

@Player Signature skills

@MUCH more responsive goal keepers, the numbers of rebounds they let in is far fewer

@They seem to have made a lot of the skills on players more realistic, for instance Thierry Henry has been boosted from his pitiful 91, and is now much more able to leave defences in his dust.

@Truly horrific amounts of teams, i believe over 100, everything that could have been put in has been

-

Note to all

-

This is the last FIFA that will ever be truly catered to the Playstation 2, and its gold.

Cons:

@Not enough to do online

@Sometimes plug-pullers can not be punished (although 90% of the time they are)

(Most of the problems other people listed are true, so i won't repeat)

I have to admit i was worrid when i bought this game because of how poor the fifa games have been lately, but i am pleased to say that world cup 2006 is a masterpiece. The gameplay is sound, the "star players" are a fantastic addition and when you play the game it actually feels like you are playing in the world cup with all the presure and exictment.

This really is a good game so order it of amazon now....

I bought this game on the back on a wave of World Cup optimism. Overall it's enjoyable, especially for multiplayer, but in single-player it's generally frustrating.

Good Points:

* This is without a doubt the slickest version of FIFA ever. The menus are smart, the game loading screens are montages and facts on one of the countries involved in the game, there is a virtual FIFA magazine that updates as you progress through the game, etc. Altogether, it's very polished. In-game you also get score-flashes of other games going on at the same time. When playing in the qualifiers or in the final group-stage game in the WC itself, this is a great touch.

* There are over 120 international teams you can play. They are selected via a smart-looking revolving globe. Rather than having the standard 5-stars to grade a team's strength, their FIFA ranking is used instead. It's a very nice touch.

* Gameplay options are varied. Yes, this is a game released specifically for the 2006 World Cup, and unlike other FIFAs you can't play the league and cup competitions of different countries. But EA have counterbalanced this with a number of different features. You can not only play in the WC 2006, or a randomly generated alternative, but you can also play in the qualifiers of any world region (it is quite fun trying to get Fiji into the WC!). There is the usual "Play Now" option for quick games, as well as an instant "Penalty Shootout" competition, and a "Global Challenge" section.

In the Global Challenge you must complete a series of tasks for each region. For example, one of the tasks in Europe is to get England to beat Germany in the semi-final of Italia 90... but you start 60 mins into the game, 1-0 down. There are gold, silver and bronze medals depending on how well you do. In this respect, EA are starting to introduce elements of other games such as Tiger Woods Golf into FIFA, which is welcome. Where EA have missed a trick is to include the historical squad player names. In the Italia 90 game for example, it just doesn't feel right scoring an equaliser with Michael Owen instead of Gary Lineker.

* The comparison with Tiger Woods continues with the introduction of objectives. Any game you play gives you the chance to achieve a number of objectives and points. There are hundreds available. Objectives include scoring a hat-trick in a game, scoring with 3 different players, etc. It's very much like the "Trophy Ball" set up in Tiger Woods.

Bad Points

* First and foremost, this game is far, far, FAR too easy. Note that I consider myself a 'casual' gamer. I normally buy games like this to play with mates and kill a few hours - so I am not one of these people who normally dominates a game within hours of buying it.

There are the usual 3 skill-levels: Amateur, Semi-Pro and World-Class. Amateur is so ridiculously easy that I am confident that someone who has never even picked up a console controller before can be beating Brazil within a few goes. Don't even bother. By default the game starts in semi-pro, and while it's a meaty step up from amateur, it's still frustratingly easy. Here's why:

- Computer AI. Computer controlled player are REALLY stupid. At first, you are quite impressed with the opposition. Even little teams like Fiji have an amazing ability to hold possession. The players retain the ball like their little lives depend on it, doing an amazing myriad of step-overs, pirouettes and Cryuff-turns. It's suprisngly hard to get the ball of them, and even more annoyingly, it's impossible to emulate this masterclass of close-ball-control with your own players. Unfortunately they do nothing with it. In fact, at times, if you put the controller down, you can sit and watch an opposition player repeatedly pirouette round in circles for a few minutes. When they do eventually move, they have a strange desire to run back toward their own goal. Players through on goal, rather than shoot, seem to stop, pirouette, then turn back to look for a pass, and failing that, they run back toward their own goal. After a few games, even on world-class mode, you will be screaming at the opposition to sort themselves out. It really spoils the game.

- Goal variety. EA have improved the variety of goals you can score. This is welcome. It adds a new dimension of realism and enjoyment, especially in multiplayer mode. Unfortunately, it just means it is easier to score from all over the park against the inept computer-controlled opposition.

- Through-Balls. The old triangle-button, through-ball in previous versions of FIFA was an annoyingly easy way to score. In this version... it's even worse. Your players tend to get caught offside more, but once you have 'mastered' (10 minutes should do it) when to press the button, you've done 99% of the effort required to score a goal.

* Considering the slickness of the menus, the in-game graphics are generally poor, and in my opinion, a step-back from previous FIFAs. The World Cup stadiums lack the realism of some of the club grounds from FIFA 2005 or 2006. There is far too much ticker-tape and streamers, it just looks stupid. The lighting tends to flicker as well.

* While the Tiger Woods style objectives and points system is welcome, it's wasted. In TW, you can buy hundreds of items of equipment and clothing for your golfer, most of which has an impact on the game. In FIFA, your options are very limited. You can buy match-balls or football boots - all of which look the same when viewed from the high camera-angle of the main game, and none of which have an impact on the game itself. You can buy classic players to add to "Play Now" squads; but the selection of players is poor, and their impact is negligible. Finally you can buy "game modes" such as Turbo-speed. These are interesting, but nothing more than a novelty.