Describing a new FIFA always involves a shopping list of newly invented marketing catchphrases, and ‘emotional intelligence’ is the one used to describe the more passionate computer players that now fill the game. Thanks to new efforts to recreate the atmosphere of each individual stadium – including all 20 from the Premier League – the game now feels more theatrical and alive, and not just a clinical simulation.
The trading card aspect of this mode has undergone some more drastic changes. EA has removed the ability to trade cards between friends as this was being exploited by websites selling digital, in-game “
FIFA 15 coins” for real, physical money. This would inflate the mode’s transfer market and bump top player cards like Hazard, Bale and Ibrahimovic up to prices that would make even the president of Real Madrid’s eyes water. Fifa 15 allows any and every Ultimate Team player to try out football’s elite, however, by introducing the ability to sign a player on loan for a few games.
This does mean that anyone who favours a crossing game may be disappointed. In the demo I scored far too many volleyed goals from long, arcing balls into the box, but that’s not the case in the finished game - though there’s an apparent sweet spot if you manage to double-up on one side. A short pass to a wing-back or wide midfielder and a first-time cross will finds a striker’s head more often than a regular cut-back from the byline. I’m slightly wary of suggesting finesse shots – and, to a lesser extent, flair shots - are overpowered, lest EA Sports nerf them too aggressively with another patch. But it’s true that in a one-on-one, squeezing the left trigger or right bumper as you let fly does give you a significant advantage.
This, in part, is due to big changes to defending controls, in particular making slide tackles much less effective and preventing lazy players from hammering the 'contain' button to block opponents around their box. Defending now requires more skill and concentration than attacking, and for those of us who have neglected this side of the game over the years, it's a pretty sharp learning curve.
The gameplay, however, is. Where FIFA 13 and 14 came touting all-new defensive and offensive systems or ball dynamics, FIFA 15 arrives saying little. Play it for a few hours, however, and you'll soon note how more fluid and dynamic the action feels. Attackers get more chances and defending is more difficult, so there's more end-to-end activity than you might have seen for quite a while. Players seem to turn and react faster without losing the ball, and it's easier than ever to get through to the box without relying on special tricks, though this remains a game that favours fast, accurate passing over ridiculous solo runs.
Scoring helps drive a lot of the game's emotion, of course, and scoring gets a lot of help this year with new momentum-based ball physics. Defenders and the goalkeeper will get in the way of more shots, but their rebounds will be less predictable and more apt to bounce further away. In past editions, the absence of momentum meant balls would stop dead and fall to the earth once they hit something; that made it easy for the defense to take possession of missed shots, and thus shot opportunities were almost too precious. The chance to get a second bite at the apple is nice, knowing the scoring chance I so carefully created doesn't go entirely to waste if I can keep the ball low and try to play a rebound.
