FIFA has always been odd in the fact that it’s the only EA series that’s not intended first and foremost for the North American market. This makes absolute sense, however, given that in practically every country outside of USA and Canada, soccer rules supreme. Quite suddenly, however, we’ve seen a paradigm shift that is seeing the North American market become a priority. Last year’s FIFA 15 was picked up by an entirely new audience riding the wave of the exciting 2014 FIFA World Cup and this year sees that audience increase even more after the sensational 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

 

While women’s sports popularity almost always play second fiddle to men’s, the recent Women’s World Cup proved immensely popular. More than twenty million people tuned into watch the final against Japan, which set a viewership record for any televised soccer game in the United States. EA has shrewdly taken advantage of this historical success and has added women into the series for the first time, alongside a bevy of updates.

 

On top of that, EA Sports has included women’s international teams in this year’s FIFA. It’s not just a case of re-skinning the men’s players either, it’s actually a concerted effort to encapsulate the essence of women’s football. The gameplay seems more measured, slightly quicker if we’re being honest, but they’re really limited - there’s not really a lot you can do with them aside from play a few exhibitions or vie for the prestigious Women’s International Cup. The cynic in me would say it’s a PR exercise, the idealist in me would say that EA is looking to further the women’s game. I’m still conflicted as to which of these statements rings true.

 

For the first few matches, this felt like a limitation, and I missed the ease with which I managed to get past opposing defenders in FIFA 15, but after a while, it becomes clear that the engine was tweaked to push the player to be smarter and to rely less on speed and on player strength to get a breakthrough. Because it's easier to defend, midfield players need to work harder to find openings, a task made even more complicated by the fact that the through passes that gamers have long relied upon are limited in their effectiveness.

 

Despite that penalty shootout costing me a place in the fourth and final game in just my first attempt, my winnings - a Jumbo Premium and standard Gold Pack - rewarded me with a few decent players to add to my Ultimate Team roster. I even got a Legend on loan (Spanish striker Emilio Butragueno). But what a buzz. I reckon EA has scored a stunner with FUT Draft - providing us die hard players with a novel new mode to keep us coming back for more. And it’s just one of many changes made to this year’s update. Stealing the headlines in the build up to FIFA 16’s launch was EA’s inclusion of a selection of Women’s National teams for the first time, recognising a rapidly growing part of the sport.

 

Overall, the football-playing part of FIFA 16 UT is sorely lacking in customization options and also in tactical options. The only aspect of your team you can change is formation and mentality, nothing else. You can't even decide who takes a corner kick or a penalty kick. I took a look at FIFA 14 while writing this review, and I was amazed at the depth of tactical options that game had compared to this one. I understand that EA probably tried to make the game more accessible to newer players, but more options never hurt; you just ignore them if you don't care about them.

 

FIFA 16 UT doesn't even have player ratings at the end of each match, so you'll have no idea who's playing well and who's not. I could go on about all the really basic features missing from the game, but I think you get the picture. But hey, at least they've added goal celebrations for the first time, a feature EA has been trumpeting for months. So, yeah, priorities.