Reviews// FIFA 15

Players tend to move with greater momentum in FIFA 15. They might not be faster, but their bodies carry them further, making the game feel speedier than last year's FIFA. It's like each player is impatient and wanting to move the game forward.

This change in behaviour extends to goalkeepers too. Improvements to their intelligence and range of animations make them feel more dynamic than ever. Combined with the aesthetic updates and gameplay tweaks they help to make each match feel like a unique event and each goal and deflection different from the last. Passing has changed again too, with balls to feet pinging across the pitch as if every player is Andrea Pirlo.

Got, Got, Need
The latest update to Ultimate Team brings a few small but important changes. Maybe it's the cynic in me, but each change seems geared towards getting me to pump more money into the mode, rather than improving the game.

The most noticeable change is concept squads. This allows you to build, but not play with, squads built up from all the players in the game, regardless of whether you can afford them or not. It's nice to play with and sold as a tool to see how prospective players will affect your team's chemistry, but ultimately it's a new way to give you a glimpse of who you could be playing with, if only you bought a few more packs. The same applies to loan players, which allows even the most broke of clubs to play a few games with Messi, Bale and Co.

Sack Race
Manager Mode has changed very little, but considering the advancements it's made over the past two iterations this isn't a surprise. You can still opt to either control a single player through their career or put on your padded gilet and hit the touchline as a manager. As someone who finds Football Manager too detailed and can't be bothered with everyday tasks like annual reviews for the Tea Lady, FIFA's career mode is still my favourite way to play.

Team Sheets are one of the few new additions and can be used elsewhere in the game, although they're most useful when navigating your team through a season. They allow you to create custom set-ups (formations, starting line-up, tactics) and deploy them when you see fit. Want to use your reserve team in the FA Cup, or have a specific style of play to counter online players picking Real Madrid? Team Sheets make the process much easier and cuts down time spent tweaking your team - very handy when playing online.

One small change to FIFA 15's career mode is that scouts now suggest players based on the needs of your team, or so EA claims. I didn't have lots of time to try this out but in taking charge of Chelsea I was told I needed to address my lack of striking depth. Are Costa, Drogba, Remy and Schurrle not good enough for my scout?

Season Review?
From playing FIFA games for decades I've come to notice a pattern. Each year EA promises ways that each instalment in the series will be better than the last, but it takes another year before that promise is fulfilled. Last time EA spoke of how it wanted to emulate the uniqueness and unpredictability of real football, and this year it's achieved it. In the process it's created a game that plays well and brings narrative into a game of football.

It also looks impressive enough to make you feel like it wasn't a waste upgrading to PS4 or Xbox One. I'm sure we've hardly scratched the surface of what a real modern football game can be, but we're off to a great start.

Pros:
+ Excellent presentation
+ The variety in matches
+ It's still a great game of football

Cons:
- Passing feels too zippy
- That nagging feeling that EA would rather you just played Ultimate Team non-stop

SPOnG: 9/10