Having played a bit more of the demo I'm still enjoying it - for what it is - a tighter Fifa 10. I like the increased responsiveness of the players, such that I can now twist and turn my way past a defender more successfully than in recent Fifas, and without the need for convoluted 'trick-stick' skills. I like the fact that shooting is a little (and I mean only a little) more weighty and I can score some low driven shots on occasion. Heading and clearances feel slightly more convincing, slide tackling seems to be more effective (or maybe that's just me?) and I have no problem with the pace of the game. I'm loving the commentary, the look of the stadium, the grass texture, the atmosphere, etc...
But......
The same old problems still exist:
- Individuality is negligible.
- Team-mate and opposition AI is still poor.
- Matches still feel one-paced and generic, and lack the drama and ebb-and-flow of PES.
- There's still little midfield play - it's mostly end to end - and yet again, the big influences in the centre of the park like Xavi and Iniesta just don't feel as important a presence as they should.
- Attention to detail on the kits is shocking, and detracts from the production values of an otherwise very good-looking and slick game. There really is no excuse for this in a major tournament tie-in. Even if they just concentrated on the 32 qualifiers, it would be something. Is it really that hard, EA?
- Celebrations. Just terrible. You run off in one direction and the cut-scene shows you on the other side of the pitch. Again, it detracts from the TV broadcast feel to the game. EA - play PES2010, watch the automated celebrations and report back.
I'm not sure if I should buy this game and make the same mistake I made with Fifa10 - a game that lasted me about two weeks. If WC 2010 was a £25 game there would be no decision.
I've had another Jeckyll and Hyde day, but I've finished on a high note.
The responsiveness really is ace. Much better than FIFA 10. L2 close control is especially effective now, particularly with Xavi and David Silva types. In this respect I disagree with you about their effectiveness to an extent - it's another step in the right direction. It still needs further improvement, and I definitely think EA should look at combining a tap of R2 with a smaller right stick knock-on (which it kind of does at the moment, but without the skipping away animation) to make you more elusive. But I am definitely finding Xavi to be more useful than in FIFA 10.
They've made the fake shot much more useful now. Found out by accident today that holding L2 at the same time yields new animations. There's one that is much like the Ronaldo heel chop trick but more controlled, and there's also a trick animation for moving in the same direction where the player drags the ball back and then forward again. I completely did Pirlo with this while exitting the penalty area - the ball moves a fraction to the left when done with the right foot, so Xavi moved the ball perfectly away from the lunging foot and slightly to the side of it. A real beauty which I should have saved because I don't seem to be able to find the trick on Youtube.
The defending issue needs resolving - without question. As does the 1v1 heading, the player switching and the reluctance of attacking AI to move into space for the ball (at least move backwards FFS!). At least encouraging players to think to look backwards rather than just forwards would increase the midfield importance significantly, as would passing inaccuracy (which Semi controls mostly represents for me minus the individuality) and further improving the balance between dribbler and pressurer (which would make the defending team more inclined to pack out their midfield).
Xavi will never be truly represented until passing inaccuracy is put into the game. And then not applied to him.
I saw another interesting animation today. I used the right stick knock on with Capdevilia to move infield of Camoranesi. He flicked the ball infield, but Capdevilia then stepped into Camoranesi, and clearly used his back to shield the ball.
I wish I'd saved this too. It only occurred to me now that I should be saving this stuff - I'll probably never do any of it ever again and go mental trying. It was the exact opposite of the skip away, and it was pretty effective. I've been strongly backing any idea to put shielding the ball
while moving into the game, and this was a tantalising glimpse into what the game could be like. I wonder if it's based on whether the player is massive or agile, or if there was something more to it than that.
After a horrendous stint earlier in the day, my mind has swung back to thinking that you really can beat the CPU pressure sprinters now, given my success rate in retaining possession and/or winning free kicks without using any tricks other than simple step overs and the fake shot. I just worry about human pressure sprinters now. They'll be the next challenge for FIFA to overcome. They need to be shown up as clumsy, reckless rugbyists rather than winning the ball as often as they do in FIFA 10.
I agree about celebrations. EA need to do away with these cutscenes and start putting these animations and facial detail into the actual game engine. As you say, it's ludicrous that celebration cutscenes have sod all to do with your actual position on the pitch.
