|
 | The Final Say! | Gameplay
9.0 | Graphics
9.2 | Sound
9.1 | Value
9.0 |
Fifa 2004
- reviewed by Andrew B
Review Date: November
Review Score:
9.0/10
Distributed By: EA Sports | | |
Fifa 2004 returns on the XBox and once again promises the only definitive
soccer experience. Fifa 2004 boasts a variety of new features that include
over 500 official licenses, 16 leagues, 350 teams, 10,000 players to various
official series that include the European Super League, Americas Club
Championship and of course the prestigious Fifa 2004 series. When I first
loaded Fifa 2004 into my XBox Console, I was greeted with a music video like
introduction and menu system that really got me into the spirit of this soccer
experience.
Fifa 2004 also supports the usual gameplay
modes such as play now, tournament, practice and also the new career mode that boasts
over 350 official teams that include various leagues and of course the
international powerhouses. As with similar EA Sports career games, Fifa 2004
allows the gamer to swap between clubs as you slowly build your reputation up
in the world of soccer.
The career mode of Fifa 2004 also lasts up
to five gaming years that allows you to hire, fire and trade players. The
career mode is a nice little addition to the EA Sport's soccer series. EA
Sports have also included a new feature called Football Fusion that allows
players to transfer their teams from Total Club Manager 2004 and actually play
their matches in Fifa 2004. You can then send your team back to Total Club
Manager 2004 so you can resume managing again.
The control system of Fifa 2004 is perfect
on the XBox S-Controller and it uses a combination of the analog sticks and
d-pad buttons to control your players on the field. A new feature of the
control system is the "Off The Ball" control that lets gamers control other
players besides just their main player with the ball. This new feature allows
you to move players into key positions so you can easily pass the ball to
them. Personally, this new feature in the game was extremely frustrating as I
have enough things to think about while I'm controlling my main player. The
players themselves also moved with human like fluidity and performed a variety of
soccer tactics such as headshots, kicks, slides, fancy footwork, passes and
every other realistic manoeuvre that is associated with soccer.
Graphically, Fifa 2004 looks the most
impressive on the XBox console and not only contains a beautiful computer
generated soccer environment from detailed players to amazing stadiums but the
frame rate never drops. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Fifa 2004
supports a new widescreen graphic mode that is ideal for people with
widescreen televisions. Another new feature with the graphics engine are the
brilliant weather effects that accurately portray real-world weather. |
