FIFA Street
Reviewed By Reardon Jones
Before we begin, let me put it all out on the table. I'm an AFL guy,
always have been, always will be.
I have never understood the “World Game”. How could it ever compete
with Aussie rules and the intensity that it represents? Then I went and
watched a Victory game and have since played both FIFA 12 and PES12 and
I have to tell you, I am starting to get it.
Clearly not a FIFA diehard, I do enjoy the
occassional dabble in all things "football". So when I was given FIFA
Street for review, I got a little excited, especially considering it
was inspired by street footballers from around the world. Utilising the FIFA Gameplay Engine, FIFA
Street is a reboot and a refinement of the previous FIFA releases and
is more inline with the annual FIFA games then its predecessors. For
someone with a limited grasp of soccer and all things football, FIFA
Street is a perfect starting point. For FIFA nuts, it will be a vital
and adequate addition to the collection. For
those that have played FIFA 12 you will notice similarities in control
and game play as most of the players seem to control with relative ease.
It gets a bit tricky with some of the smaller arenas yet this enables
gamers to develop their skills, learn new tricks and challenge
themselves. Playing in close quarters makes for some fancy foot-work and great tricks.
Offensively this game works a treat,
defensively it is alot tougher. FIFA Street is targeted at a more
aggressively attacking style of game play with finesse, style and a bag
of tricks all the more important. Defence is pretty hard to get a hold
of, so keep an eye on that one. Street Ball Control enables gamers to
perform a list of over 50 new skill moves, aerial skills and dribbling
styles with a strong focus on control and responsiveness. An incredible
dribbling feature includes Standing dribbling.
Standing Dribbling allows the gamer to
control the ball in a stationary
position, volley the ball to yourself, balance it on your back and then
perform a panna or trick move as your opponent approaches. Coming up against a player one on one is
much more exciting with the greater control of the player. Being able
to pivot and pass on the spot lures your opponent into a contest that
makes it easier to defeat with some fancy foot-work. So what makes Street worth looking into
compared to FIFA 12? Well the simple fun of it. Playing with mates
across a variety of cool and highly detailed environments and backdrops
(More than 35 locations in fact). From Shanghai to Paris, Gyms,
rooftops and Streets, the environments change as you progress through
career mode or free play. A variety of other modes deliver a great
deal of depth and replayability to FIFA Street which is always a good
thing with sport games.
Some of these modes included are Futsal,
which after some research I have since discovered to be the official
name for Street Football and Panna is a game designed at rewarding
individual flair and skill. 16 different tournaments are available in
Tournament mode to play solo or online.
If you prefer a quick entry into a game then
Last Man Standing could be
the goer. With every goal you score a player is taken off, making the
field more open and difficult. Your skills will truly be tested towards
the end of this one.
The World Tour entails gamers to select a
rag tag bunch of soccer
players to compete in various street games culminating in a final
against the best players in the world. Having a mixture of
internationally renowned players taking on teams around the world is
pretty special and highly entertaining.
There are a bunch of brilliant positives
that stem from such a fine product from EA sports. The music that
encaptures the cultures from around the world is one fine example.
A negative issue that we heard raised from
the football loving public included an overload of international
accents throughout gameplay. Sure the accents can be a little
off-putting, but the international soup of languages displays the
boundaries the football world transcends. The lack of commentary was
also raised. We will answer the question on commentary with a question.
Why would there be commentary? This is all about the street.
This title is a great tie-in to FIFA 12 and considering
FIFA 12 was up there are one of the best releases of 2012, you would
be silly not to give this one a crack.
Rating:
85%
|
Game: FIFA Street
System: PS3
Developer/Co-Developer: EA
Canada
Publisher: EA Sports
|
|
|
