FIFA 15 review

Just how does FIFA continue to dominate the charts every single year? Without fail, you can guarantee it'll be the biggest-selling game right up until the inevitable release of next year's update, and then the update after that, and most probably the update after that. It's a never-ending cycle of Lionel Messi staring blankly at you from menu screens, looking more forlorn with every season that goes by.

I've got a pretty strong feeling it has something to do with the updated squads and kits for all the teams, as well as a revision to the player stats to bring them in line with their real-world counterparts. Let's face it, you slap the FIFA branding across any product and it's going to make millions. Despite this, the team at EA Sports tries to bring something new to the table with every new offering, to make sure the fans have a real reason to part with their hard-earned cash. And they usually succeed, as the FIFA juggernaut continues to roll on, crushing all before it.

Until this year.

FIFA 15 appears to be the developer's way of saying, "We've been doing this for decades, there's nowhere else to go." It's not quite an own goal, but it's a penalty kick that hits the crossbar after the goalkeeper has already committed himself. 

Usually, whatever cool revolution FIFA is marketed with - be it Ultimate Team or realistic facial expressions or Career - the one constant is that the gameplay delivers pretty much every time. Unfortunately the same can't quite be said of things this time around, as even strong pillars of the franchise like animation and collision detection appear to be just a little bit off.

You will see a lot of obstruction going on this year. Players getting in the way of their opponents just by standing there. I've lost count of the amount of times I've given away fouls by not even moving, as a ball is knocked passed me and I'm helpless to get out of the way. This is where the animation can screw up slightly, too, as some players can literally go flying after a slight touch from a defender.

It doesn't help my frustrations when the referees appear to be more card-happy than ever, and their decisions could do with a reality check. Challenges that deserve yellow cards at best can see your man sent off for an early shower, while a little trip on the halfway line due to a slightly mistimed challenge could have you on a yellow.

It's puzzling stuff, as EA really seemed to have this sorted with FIFA 14. That was a game that was solid all round, and even though some people criticised the defensive gameplay it was a fine representation of the sport. FIFA 15 holds no such claim, and in fact the stout defending has given way to endless attacks that are practically impossible to stop.

The goalkeepers have received a bit of a boost to compensate for this. They move much more fluidly now, and they can adjust their body positions to just get their foot on a shot that's swerving away from them. They are harder to beat, but on certain occasions we've also seen shots go straight through their hands, which is lovely if you're the goal scorer but not so much if you were the one stubbornly defending the lead. It does seem a bit strange that goalkeepers have been improved to make up for the fierce attacking, and it comes across as a game that isn't balanced correctly.

However there is still a lot of fun to be had here once you come round to the fact that every game is going to finish 3-3, and there are actually some new additions that are very good indeed.

One of them is the moving football. You might never have noticed it before, but the physics of the ball in previous FIFA games was pretty ordinary. No matter which way it was spinning, as soon as a player put their foot on it, the ball would go dead and players could move it on without much hassle. For FIFA 15 the ball now moves like the real thing, and it picks up topspin and backspin and you'll have to position and control your player to compensate. This leads to some moments we've never seen in FIFA before, as the ball picks up topspin after taking a deflection and then bounces away in different angles. Very nice.

Presentation has also taken a step up, and now there are cut scenes at half-time and full-time to highlight the best moments of the match, while all 20 English Premier League stadiums are included in the game. They look superb, as do the player models, which are slimmer and look more athletic than the blocky models we've been treated to before. Crowds sing songs to cheer on their teams and players will get noticeably annoyed with other players if they've been fouled more than once.

One of my favourite new features is the way the pitch changes over the course of a match. Now it picks up footmarks and slide marks over the course of the game, and they'll stay there for the full 90 minutes. It may not be a massive alteration, but it definitely adds to the presentation and feeds into the idea that you're witnessing a real game.

Elsewhere dribblers now have tighter control of the ball, which means they can change the angle of their run ever so slightly as a defender approaches to keep their attack going. Slipping by your marker is ludicrously enjoyable, and you'll be tempted to go on mazy runs with Messi whenever he receives the ball. Helping the attacking play even more is the fact that through balls can now reach their destination with pinpoint precision if you play them just right. Playing two pacey attackers out wide and feeding them tasty passes to run onto will get you goals all day long (Real Madrid fans will be very pleased to hear).

And set-piece tactics make their debut in a full FIFA game, after first being seen in FIFA World Cup Brazil earlier this year. Now when taking corners you can use the D-Pad to command your players to crowd the goalkeeper, wait on the edge of the area or make runs to the near or far posts. It adds an extra level of strategy and scoring a goal after issuing one of these commands makes you feel like a tactical mastermind.

Moving away from the pitch and there's not much new to be seen here. The same modes are present, with FIFA Ultimate Team adding concept squads so you can check out the chemistry of a desired team before you have the funds to acquire the players. You can also loan players in FUT now, but that's pretty much it in terms of innovation. The menu for changing your team line-up has also been altered, and now player ability can be judged with a little graph comparing stats in attacking, defending, speed, etc. Other than that it's pretty much as you were.

FIFA 15 is by no means a bad game. At the end of the day it'll come down to personal preference, and I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who will fall in love with the idea of more goals than ever. But for me it just doesn't stand up to last year's offering, which rewarded patience and ball retention over endless through balls. It looks as beautiful as ever, but the lack of new modes hurts it and the biggest reason to buy is probably - and unfortunately - the updated team squads.