FIFA 15

World football tends to move in cycles – and as the FIFA games attempt to replicate the sport as closely as possible, EA’s annual soccer sim must also move on.

FIFA 15 received upgrades in all the right places: Presentation and gameplay.  EA Sports outdid themselves and have shown that the beautiful game is just that on the next-gen:  Beautiful.

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That, perhaps, is FIFA's defining contradiction. EA can quite fairly claim to have again delivered the best football game ever made. But every year the developers seem to have less of an idea what that means.

There's a sublime game of football in here, but overpowered goalkeepers and a lack of innovation sour the experience.

FIFA 15 is not quite the great leap forward that many would have hoped for but it’s a bigger jump than it initially appears to be. The changes, although infuriating to begin with as they make you re-learn elements of your game, ultimately make for a more realistic game of football. There’s more nuance, more fidelity in the tactical systems and there’s greater movements from the players on the pitch. In a series that is synonymous with incremental improvements, FIFA 15 manages to feel like more of an evolutionary leap.

For now though, we’ll confidently stick our neck out and say that FIFA is well worth a punt. Not only is FIFA 10 the best EA has ever produced, it’s also one of the best football games we’ve played, period. It’s not without its niggles, but setting these aside, FIFA 10 does just about everything else exactly right.

Online play is still as enjoyable as ever, and you’ll have the ability to challenge your friends to a 1v1 match, challenge their clubs while they’re away or put yourself into a pro club with your friends, allowing you to compete in 11v11 matches, which really is an exhilarating experience. From a technical standpoint online gameplay in FIFA 15 is very stable, though sometimes connection issues may create some aggravating situations. Disconnections before or at the end of the match may still result in losses, which is pretty frustrating wether you’re winning or not.