With the presence - yet again - of Rooney and Ronaldinho on the cover of FIFA 09, you may be forgiven for thinking that Electronic Arts has dressed up its last football game in slightly different garb, but no. There are more than 250 additions and enhancements to the core gameplay in the 360 version alone (each platform get its specific features in this year's iteration too).

FIFA 09 for 360 enables the player to customise the game to suit their ability and playing style. For the first ti ... more >>

With the presence - yet again - of Rooney and Ronaldinho on the cover of FIFA 09, you may be forgiven for thinking that Electronic Arts has dressed up its last football game in slightly different garb, but no. There are more than 250 additions and enhancements to the core gameplay in the 360 version alone (each platform get its specific features in this year's iteration too).

FIFA 09 for 360 enables the player to customise the game to suit their ability and playing style. For the first time on this platform, you can take advantage of the improvements in the game engine to customise your team's strategy and the positioning of your teammates to dictate how your team will play in any given situation. The popular Be A Pro feature - introduced last time around - has expanded to a career mode called Be A Pro: Seasons, where you can choose or create a player and then master a single outfield position over a four year period with the ultimate aim of becoming a soccer legend. The 360 version also features Adidas Live Season, wherein you receive weekly player form updates based on real world data.

There are fully licensed leagues from the UK, Europe and the rest of the world, as well as all the international teams you can think of, and some you may have overlooked. The matchday experience is so true-to-life with a referee and linesmen on screen, and with the stadium atmosphere and commentary all regionalised in great detail. All this, and especially of note for England fans, the new Wembley too! << less