FIFA 08 Review

Game ON: FIFA 08

The pressure is on at half time!

Ea Sports have come up with another splendid version of the FIFA series. Like all other FIFA games this one too doesn’t disappoint. FIFA 08 has a few new features and better gameplay to offer. It looks more like ’07 with a couple of changes here and there….



New Features:

There are better controls in this game, you can control the goal keeper with the touch of a button and you can make better use of free kicks by adjusting the turn and the angle of the shot. Those who have played ’07 will know the frustration of a wasted free kick and the anguish when the goalkeeper lets the ball go into the net when the game is about to close in.

There are new music tracks available and the song- “Toura Toura: Nav Deep Remix” which gets you dancing makes its appearance again from Cricket 2007. Obviously EA loves this song and so do I!

There is a new game mode called “Co- Op” in which upto 4 players can play a season together in the same team. Each player controls only one character whom he can create or select an existing player. Selecting an existing player however, makes it very difficult for him to grow. Each player gets XP points after each match and the player with the most XP gets to be the captain. You also get attribute points using which you can boost your skills.



Some new changes in manager mode are these. You can schedule pre- season friendlies with upto 4 teams. These help you assess the team and make necessary changes to the team’s strategy. You can also schedule practice sessions on free dates on the calendar. Note that these can add to the team’s fatigue and cause morale issues. The board expectations are dynamic!



There are new balls and 3rd kits available in the fan shop. You can gain points to buy items by completing challenges.

There are new leagues and cups to play for and to keep you busy till the release of FIFA 09. There is no World Cup to play for though. I expect the world cup to make an appearance again in FIFA 10, considering that the football world championship is going to take place in 2010.....

Overall

This game has quite a lot to offer and is worth your money if you’re a die hard football fan. The game isn’t as easy as ‘07 though. Even at the easiest difficulty you just can’t blindly score a goal. But if you have played ’07 in the “Legend” difficulty (which you have to unlock, by the way) you might just be a little more comfortable than first time players. There are enough tournaments and challenges to keep you busy, you can even take a break from work by an instant friendly match. The players’ faces are well detailed and the celebrations are phenomenal. The fact that this game doesn’t require great system specs means that it will find its way into most PCs. I reviewed this game on a system with the following configuration….

AMD Athlon 64 processor
3000+
1.81 GHz 512 MB RAM
Gainward 6600GT 256 MB
Windows XP pro SP2

My Rating: 7/10

FIFA 08 official website- http://www.fifa08.ea.com