The new physics elements help and hinder the football sim

Sep 10, 2013 09:38 GMT  ·  By

The full version of FIFA 14 might be two weeks away from launch, but football fans can now experience the game in demo form, which gives them access to the match engine and all the new features associated with it.

I played a match with each of the teams included in the demo, all of them against Barcelona, and I am at the same time pleasantly surprised by the flow of the game and a little disappointed at the fact that the experience is very similar to that seen in last year’s version of the game.

I like the fact that teams seem to have more character and Barcelona certainly uses the same tactics in FIFA 14 as it does in the real world, passing the ball around and relying on runs from Messi and Neymar in order to break down the enemy defense.

I also appreciate the small imprecisions that are linked to the new ball physics and the player movement and really make each phase of the match harder to read and to predict.

A long pass can catch a defender unaware and can lead to a chance that could never have existed in previous versions of FIFA.

The downside of the focus on realism and on physics is that most matches are decided in the build-up phase. Midfield players are now worth their weight in gold if they can deliver an accurate pass to release a forward on goal.

The computer knows how to defend itself well, mainly by predicting the runs a player will make, and I also got good results by agglomerating my defenders around the ball to make sure that technical opponents are unable to use their superior skill.

There are less chances created on either side in the new EA Sports football sim and that limits somewhat the excitement level of each match.

The full version of FIFA 14 on the PC and on current-gen consoles will be launched on September 24 in North America and three days later in Europe.

Look for a full review of the football simulation on Softpedia after launch.