by GrathiusXR:

©2009 Arthur Kotsopoulos

FIFA 09 undoubtedly showed off exactly what a sports title representing the beautiful game should be all about: fluidity, great visuals, the enthusiasm of the crowd and the realism of the sport.

A year later we now have the latest iteration in the franchise, FIFA 10, and just when you think it can’t be done it’s improved in almost all areas from its predecessor and is an even more realistic representation of football.

Featuring full 360 control over the ball, improved dribbling, improved ball physics and much more realistic character models these are just some of the 50+ improvements that EA have made in FIFA 10 to ensure that it reins as the premier sports title in 2010.

It’s action packed with a ton of game modes sure to satisfy any football fanatic and will always keep you coming back for more. Manager Mode, Be A Pro, Lounge Mode, Online Leagues etc… You name it FIFA 10 has it.

Manager Mode is back and slightly improved over 09′s Manager Mode. As always you can choose any team of your liking from Chelsea or Manchester Utd in the English Premier League or Real Madrid, Barcelona from the La Lige or choose Sydney FC or QLD Roar from the Australian A-league.

It’s up to you as Manager, to take your team to the top of the league rankings and ultimately win the title at the end. Thus enabling you to buy new players as you progress, building your board’s confidence in you, as well as purchasing new players from other teams once the transfer market opens up.

So . . . what’s new then?

It’s the same old tried and proved formula that worked before…with some nice new additions.

What isn’t the same old formula though is FIFA 10‘s online component. Classic Ranked match has had a visual overhaul now making it even easier for you to search and find a match over Xbox live.

Latency bars are now featured in the lobby when choosing a team so you know whether or not the game will run smooth or extremely badly, the amount of total players online playing the game and even searching for a match is now conveyed.

So you have more flexibility on who you wish to play in an online match, which is great, and the networking code is back and better than ever so as long as your internet connection is good playing opponents from say England, America, France and so forth won’t be as frustrating as 09.

It’s the little things that count

Yep, it’s the little features in FIFA 10 make it stand out above the rest.

Most noticeable is whilst in any match over the course of playing FIFA 10 is how the players now react in the match.

Players will now jump in front of strikers taking shots to block any chance they may take and in the last dire seconds of the match if they miss a perfect opportunity to equalize and miss, they will fall to the ground and start praying.

Many small fouls don’t require a full set up of a free kick just to pass the ball as quick free kicks have been introduced. Where any tiny foul is committed the free kick taker will run up to the ball and pass it trying to catch the opposing team on the counter.

It’s these new noticeable features that improve the quality and experience so much more than what was experienced with FIFA 09.

Oh dear, the niggles . . .

Unfortunately though, some niggly little things are still apparent in FIFA 10.

From time to time players will confuse themselves on the field and run into each other, passes will sometimes go to another player that was not the intended target, the keeper will sometimes come a bit out of his position and get caught off guard.

These aren’t major and don’t ruin the game at all but you do run into these problems from time to time and when you  need that winning goal they do make the game frustrating when nothing is working for you.

It’s graphically the same game with improved character models and some nice snow weather effects, an improved gaming experience with 50+ improvements to refine gameplay and features more games modes than you can name.

Live Season 2.0 is better than 09′s Live Season where everything from Injuries, Yellow/Red Cards, fouls- you name it- is updated for the league you have chosen to download it for. You have the option to turn these off so that when you go online your opponent if they have it will not be able to have their team updated.

You can buy Live Season 2.0 from the brand new FIFA Store which features content from Be A Pro booster packs, commentary in Spanish, French etc, as well as LS2.0 for almost every league in the game.

However, overall…

The package overall is superb and if you are looking for THE sports title of 2009 to tide you over till next year’s plethora of sport games FIFA10 is the choice of game here.

It’s an ever growing franchise that has only been improving with each new year and soon enough I have no clue if there will ever be anything to improve on.

If you haven’t played any of the FIFA titles beforehand then FIFA 10 is the best entry in the franchise to get started with.  Still, with Pro Evolution 2009 finally, after 3 years, stepping up to the game to try and be the best you will know that FIFA 2011 will be even better to continue its reign at the top of the league standings of this never ending derby, but for now…The World Game is FIFA 10.

Average press score accoring to TestFreaks: 8.7/10

©2009 Arthur Kotsopoulos

“9.5/10

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