It is easier in FIFA 14 to score a goal from an airborne cross from sides of the field - Especially when your opponent has tall and strong attackers. To neutralize a goal-scoring opportunity from an aerial cross, it is necessarily to block any crossing attempt before it happens. To do that, you need to tackle the attacker and grab the ball from him. How? Well, you need to run and chase the attacker hardly. Use contain button, do short tackle and sliding tackle (if necessarily). If it’s late and the ball is already flying over your penalty box, try to switch the player quickly to the one who is the closest player to the receiver/striker. Then push the shoot/short tackle button consistently so you make sure your defender won’t give any freedom to your opponent and he will hit the ball before your opponent does. Don’t bring the goalie off the line, it’s not a good idea.
Furthermore, this year’s fresh interface in FIFA 14 - a series of tiles reminiscent of the Xbox dashboard - really comes into its own when playing FIFA 14 Ultimate Team. It’s clean, inviting, and highly functional. Nowhere is this more keenly felt than when trawling the transfer market. It’s easier than ever before to search for players or filter the market depending on what your team needs. It might sound like a minor improvement of FIFA 14, but I’m eternally grateful.
The really big change to FIFA 14 Ultimate Team is Chemistry Styles, which introduces lite RPG elements into the sport. Chemistry links in FUT 14 have sometimes felt a tad opaque, but now you can determine the style of your players. You can assign each player a different class in FIFA 14, which slightly changes key attributes. So “Artist” accentuates a players passing and dribbling, while “Sentinel” enhances defending and heading. They’re essentially skill trees, with the stat boost being heightened over time. They can also be mixed and matched to really capitalize on the style of your FIFA team. It’s a neat addition, adding more sophistication to the chemistry system. If you’ve never ventured into the life-absorbing world of FIFA 14 Ultimate Team, FIFA 14 provides the ideal moment to jump aboard - though I really wish EA would consolidate XP,
FIFA Coins, and FIFA Points into one in-game currency.
Shooting in FIFA 14 gameplay feels different too, thanks to the new pure shot. You can still score a screamer, but the “come inside, finesse into the corner” isn’t anywhere near as prevalent. You’ll hit the bar, you’ll miss, and the keeper will save it. It’s hard to tell if this is due to the physics of the ball or the player - or if they’ve just made the keepers better. But, one thing is for sure, even on the lower difficulties, this will stop the frequent 9-0 score lines, which makes even the lesser quality players feel like they’re playing football, and not a video game version of football. It’s so rewarding to experiment with positioning the players before shooting, but like much of the rest of FIFA 14, it takes some serious getting used to.
Shots, punts by the goalkeeper, and long clearance attempts are pulled off by drawing an arc on the screen with your finger, and if anything, shooting might be a little too easy in some cases. There’s a little less precision on defense, though you can call for your men to pressure the current possessor of the ball with just a tap and go for slide tackles with a well-timed swipe. An option is in place to revert to a virtual thumbstick and buttons, but it’s doubtful you’ll want to go that route once you see what EA has done with touch.
Looking past such a calculating diagnostic, losing yourself in this game is still easy. The kinds of shots players get off are varied due to how they strike the ball (and with which foot), and the controls hit a sweet spot of being easy to pull off and capable of letting you engineer some incisive attacks. These aspects in FIFA 14 are not to be underestimated, as they give you confidence going forward and the ability to score from some new areas. Combine this with all the different game modes, and you have a title that can satisfy in many ways. They say that athletes excel when they’re able to just execute on instinct in FIFA. Regardless of its drawbacks, this game still lets you live in that moment and relish its qualities.
