Publisher: EA Sports
Developer: EA Sports
Multiplayer: Yes (4)
Online Multiplayer: Yes
Review by Schrekdog + Wrecker
The FIFA series is one of EA Sports most well known and respected brands. EA has been churning out a FIFA football game each year for over 15 years! By the time you finish with the “latest” version there is already another on the shelves and it is often unclear what actually changes from year to year. “FIFA 09 All-Play” is the latest edition and the Wii version boasts some exclusive new features.
Gameplay: 7.5
If you have played any of the previous versions of FIFA then you will know how this game works. As soon as you establish the controls to pass and shoot (and take down players with dirty tackles) you’ll be very familiar with the standard FIFA gameplay. The major difference for the Wii is that striking and thrown-ins are performed by swinging the wiimote, and once you get used to this it is actually quite effective.
The Wii offers two control schemes “All Play” and Advanced. The “All Play” mode is a simple control scheme that will auto-aim the pass of the ball to the nearest player instead of you manually aiming your passes. You can even see the projected path of where the ball will go and whether it is likely to be intercepted. If no nunchuck is attached then the movement is also automated. The advanced mode however requires you to point at the screen (to indicate where to kick the ball to) and you move the player with the nunchuck analog stick. You can also put spin on the ball by twisting the wiimote. Occasionally the controls appear to be slightly sluggish but shouldn’t be enough to seriously impact the game play.
One notable disadvantage of the point and play control scheme is that in multi-player modes you can see where your opponent is going to kick or throw the ball on screen. This is especially annoying if you are “secretly” trying to curl a ball into the top corner of the net from the penalty spot.
The “Footii Match” play is a game mode that is exclusive to the Wii. It has very similar gameplay to that of the standard match mode but the teams (and referee) are all Miis. The pitch looks cartoon-ish and fits in well with the overall Mii theme. Unfortunately there are only 12 teams to select and Australia isn’t one of them. It would be nice to see the Mii version of Marco Bresciano or Harry Kewell but you will have to settle for the likes of Ronaldinho and Wayne Rooney.
The multiplayer “Footii Party” options are light entertainment when you need a break from full on matches. This mode includes the 8 vs 8 “Footii Match”, as well as Table Soccer (Foosball), “Juggling” and “Boot it”. The table soccer is actually well implemented; you twist the wii remote to turn your sticks and you can alternate between sticks. It’s not as good as the real thing but is still a nice inclusion. “Juggling” requires players to execute a series of wiimote actions without making mistakes, while their Mii “juggles” a soccerball accordingly; essentially it’s last man standing wins. “Boot It” is a game where players take turns to score points taking penalty shots on goal and playing as the goalie. There are targets in the goal that will add or subtract your score; the person with the highest score at the end wins. All these games are simple but fun; they are in the same league as mini games included with Wii-Play or Wii-Fit. Some of these mutliplayer modes include a break-down of how many calories you’ve burned. This seems like a tacked on feature jumping on the Wii-Fit bandwagon. Who really cares if they just burned 0.7 calories? Ignore it and finish that box of barbeque shapes.
The comprehensive “Manager” mode allows you to step into the shoes of a team manager and control all aspects of the management process including scouting, sponsorships, scheduling games, managing player contracts & transfers. Ever wanted to manage an A-League team ? No Problem! If you’re a real control freak you can even play the matches as well.
There is a comprehensive training mode, called Football Academy that takes you through all aspects of the game; the training is actually fun to play which is a nicesurprise. You will be given a series of objectives to complete such as passing to the wing, crossing the ball in then scoring past the goalie or taking a free kick around a wall and scoring.
There is also a series of 60 challenges to complete ranging from easy, difficult (locked initially) and custom. These challenges involve set scenarios that have to be completed under certain conditions, such as coming back from a goal down to win by 2 in a certain time frame and so on; guaranteed to keep you busy.
As this game is officially licensed by FIFA all your favorite football teams and players (even ones you don’t like) are included. With over 500 teams in 30 leagues and 40 national teams you are sure to find a team to adopt. The team line-ups are current up until the 01/09/2008 which is quite impressive. It’s great to see the Hyundai A-League in this game so you can play as you favorite Aussie team.
Online play is included out of the box and once you have setup your router/firewall correctly it is very easy to connect to the EA servers and schedule a friendly match with friends or compete in on-line interactive leagues and tournaments. However,you will need to register in order to join the online leagues and tournaments.
Graphics: 8.0
The “serious” version of the game has some good player animations. There is a reasonable likeness to the players and while not exactly photo realistic, they are still good for the Wii. It isn’t too hard to pick out Archie Thompson for example.
The crowds look quite good, decked out in the appropriate team colors and jump around like headless chickens when a goal is scored . It looks good from a distance but close up looks a little blocky, but you hardly notice. The pitch, stadiums and weather effects such as rain look good too.
There are several different camera angles to choose from, including the standard side and end views. We found that the some camera angles appeared to be more difficult to play on, so it’s best to stick with the default side view.
The Mii version of the game “Footii match” looks great, although there only appears to be one stadium to choose from. It is nice to see the inclusion of your actual Mii characters and they look funny running around with the Mii versions of football’s finest!
Sound: 8.0
The crowd noise and the ambient sound in the stadiums are great. You can expect to hear the usual chants and the like during the game which adds to the atmosphere.
Now considered standard in FIFA games, commentary is once again included, although the Wii version appears to have less chatter than its other console counterparts. Well-known Scottish commentator, Andy Gray returns with some “choice” observations.
When the referee blows the whistle you also hear this through your wiimote which is a nice touch, but other effects on the wiimote such as throw-ins or strikes sound more like a sound clip from Monkey Magic or an old Kung Fu movie, which is a little off putting.
The soundtrack is pseudo main-stream with an interesting selection of tracks and is worth a listen. Love it or hate it, one mainstream band that made it into the game is “The Veronicas.”
Difficulty: 7.0
The game is designed to be accessible to a wide audience with varied controls and game modes. The training modes are comprehensive and allow you to get used to the important aspects of the game like passing, shooting, set plays, corners and penalties. Although, it may take some time before you start sinking a few into the back of the net. Heavy challenges (dirty tackles) are thankfully easy (by swishing the wiimote), so you should be drawing boos from the crowd and yellow cards in no time. The advance controls using “point and play” can take a while to get used to, as you have to watch the ball, your player and where your pointer is located. Thankfully for those people who find this tricky they can stick with the “All Play” mode. The “All Play” mode also has a series of on-screen prompts to help out which is handy.
Value: 9.0
There is no question that this game is chock full of things to do and all of it is pretty good. You can play some serious football or if you just want a bit of fun then you can set up “Footii Matches” with your Miis. There is a detailed training mode that is actually fun to complete, there are a series of challenges to complete and some great mini games to tackle, like table soccer. The management mode is comprehensive enough to be bundled and sold on its own. On top of this there is a great set of online multiplayer options including leagues, tournaments and casual matches.
Overall: 8.1
If you don’t already own a soccer game on the Wii you will be impressed by this game. It contains a wide variety of game modes and options, the controls feel good, it is fully licensed with your favorite teams and players, it includes your Miis participation and has online features to boot. In short, EA have created a football game that plays well and is accessible to everyone from the casual to hardcore football fan. Is it good enough to buy if you already own a copy of FIFA 08 or Pro Evolution Soccer 08? It’s difficult to say; perhaps you might have to try before you buy and argue about it in the forums.
Submitted by Schrekdog
17/10/2008
860
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FIFA 09 All Play
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