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Fifa 13
Available on:
PS3, PS2, X360, PC, 3DS,
PSP, PSVita, Wii, WiiU & iOS (Reviewed on PS3)
It’s another year so we have another FIFA to get our hands on. With last
year’s FIFA 12 being arguably the best FIFA of all time, making a game
equally as good or better must be extremely difficult for EA to continue
to do year after year. Miraculously, they’ve done it again. FIFA 13
improves nearly every aspect that was present in last year’s rendition
of the famous soccer franchise; the gameplay, graphics and soundtrack
are all absolutely fantastic. This is not just the best soccer game of
all time, it’s one of the best games period.
Gameplay
Last year’s FIFA featured the first use of the Player Impact Engine.
While innovative, it featured bizarre issues such as the infamous
humping glitch. While hilarious, you’ll have a hard time finding any
sort of major glitch in FIFA 13. The Impact Engine is improved
greatly, with player collisions and interactions giving you better
control over your player in tight situations. Other additions such as
the new First Touch Control adds a never before seen realism to the
game. This new system prevents players with perfect abilities to be able
to perform as such every single game. They’ll make more mistakes in
dribbling and passing, allowing the game to become more open with
frequent loose balls. It may frustrate some gamers who have spent so
much time levelling up their player to a near God-like status to see
them easily miss a crucial goal, but if you compare real life situations
to what EA has managed to create with this system, it’s uncanny; it
makes the casual gamer actually have a chance at beating a hardcore
gamer due to this better balance in the gameplay. Further improvements
to the tactics, dribbling and defence plays make FIFA 13 one of
the most true to life video game experiences I’ve ever seen. Newly
implemented features such as Match Day constantly switch up the
gameplay, with players stats being updated to match those in real life.
It’s extremely impressive what they’ve accomplished in a year.
Graphics
The
look of FIFA 13 is obviously the aspect of the game that is least
important; however EA has still made this a beautiful game to look at.
Players move smoother, fields look lush and bright and the stadium
filled crowds bring life and emotion to the game better than ever
before. The main issue with the presentation of FIFA that’s still
present from previous games is that up close players move stiffly and
move their mouths as if they’re being controlled like a puppet. The
frame rate when watching a replay is lower than when playing, and it
does unfortunately expose some of the jumpy player animations, but these
are only minor complaints and won’t ruin your FIFA 13 experience
in any way. It’s still a rather beautiful game to look at.
Audio
One
of my favourite things about the FIFA series is the amount of care they
put into the commentary, and FIFA 13 is no exception. Martin
Tyler and Alan Smith return in fine form, with Clive Tyldesley, Andy
Townsend and Geoff Shreeves providing touchline injury reports and
scores from other games. The diverse commentary provides gamers with a
greater in-depth experience of the game, and makes them feel like
they’re watching an actual game on the television. The previously
mentioned Match Day feature adds to the commentary, with friendly
matches between teams being provided with actual team statistics in real
life. It’s really cool, however the variety of information commentators
provide is lacking, but it’s really the best they can possibly do. The
soundtrack of FIFA 13 is easily the best one I’ve heard in years,
beating my previous favourite in FIFA 06. EA has selected a great
variety of tracks, ranging from indie-pop to club hits that all work
well in making navigating the menus that little bit more exciting.
Crowds are loud and exciting, although it is odd to hear large crowds in
games involving less popular teams (Wellington FC vs. Western Sydney FC,
for example). Still, the audio on display in FIFA 13 is the most
immersive the series has ever seen. I’d go so far as to say it’s nearly
flawless.
Final Level
If
you’re one of those people who think that holding out for a few years
until FIFA gets better and better is a good idea, stop right now. Get
out of your homes and buy FIFA 13. It’s an amazing experience
that must be played at least once by every soccer fan. Everything you
love from recent versions is bigger and better, from the look and the
feel to the sound and the content; it’s easily one of the most
satisfying gaming experiences I’ve ever had, and I’m sure it’ll be for
you to. |
