I posted this in the FIFA forum but posting here too as it's very relevant given the different direction Konami is going (has been going for years we can argue.) In case you're a TL
R (Too Long
idn't Read for the non-channers) person, FIFA 22 has moved in the right direction but it's miles away from FIFA 16 using the same comparisons we would use to compare modern day PES to PES5/6. Overall, I'll keep playing PES6/2021 for this year. I'll give eFootball a try just like the rest of moaning arseholes but I have a feeling we'll all be playing far more retro than current footy games this year again.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I cancelled my pre-order for FIFA 2022.
After 8 hours of the trial, I just couldn't continue turning a blind eye to the issues the game has and as many on here have stated, EA patches (like many Konami ones) tend to be one step forward and two steps back or in some cases, no steps forward and six steps back.
I've been playing on the Series X and here honestly is what I liked/didn't like (take into account I play on mostly manual with semi turned on for passing, through-balls and crosses):
PROS:
-------
- Beautiful presentation. Menus are slick and although the simplicity of yesteryear has gone, navigation is quick and the options and variation of modes to play is very good.
- Cut-scenes are incredible if you're into that type of thing. As an adult, it's a bit too sugary but I can imagine the pre-teens getting hyped by the intros and attempts to merge the game into a real-life tv presentation.
- The passing is 1,000% improved over the last 3-4 FIFAs. Although it can be over-accurate on almost every occasion, even on 'semi', you can at least feel you are in control of where you're aiming the ball. FIFA 2021 was often like Stevie Wonder reacting to crowd noises and kicking the ball to wherever gets the loudest cheer.
- Crowd sounds and cut-scenes are integrated very well. The option to quickly fade them out with 'A' is very smooth. Compare to PES 2020/21 where the crowd are all heavily Covid positive and can barely muster a loud sound unless you accidentally trip an opponent and then it's like the crowd at the end of Gladiator and they're after blood.
- Animations are awesome except when they randomly speed up to Bruce Lee speed to finish the animation before the mechanical function is performed with the ball. Although the keepers are schizo performance wise, their animations are the best I've ever seen.
- Player individuality. Star players (but unfortunately also not such star players) do show individual attributes albeit far too exaggerated. But you can see different styles of play from the players. Not so much for the teams as a whole though. Cambridge Utd play like Man City.
- The ball feels like a ball again and not a balloon. The players do/don't have weight to them in physical contact (it depends if the AI is in a scripting moment and then nothing will knock them off the ball, you're a ghost.)
- Tactical options are as deep as you can get without playing Football Manager. What outcome they have realistically is for debate but at least you feel in control of your team and can make the exact changes you want easily and implement them in the game.
CONS:
-------
- ALL FIFA goalkeepers have dissed the Japanese mafia and had their fingers removed because they couldn't catch a turd. Almost every shot aimed at the keeper is parried out for a corner or spilled into a dangerous position. I played as Man Utd against Liverpool, Preston North End and Cambridge Utd to see the differences in keeper reactions and they pretty much all go from Clark Kent to Superman to Scooby Doo randomly thoughout the game.
- Turning on the skill attributes for special players (with FIFA, everybody gets a participation trophy) pretty much turns anybody who costs more than 20M in real life into 2016 Ronaldo/Messi. Watching players who you know in real life would break a hip trying a stepover tear your defense to shreds regardless of whether you use tactical/legacy defending is ridiculous.
- Speed issues. FIFA on slow, or even normal, for the most part is a realistic speed but for some reason, the game during some matches goes through periods where it will speed up to superhuman speeds like you've suddenly hit the nitrous on everybody and the animations become ridiculously lightning fast as players perform moves that would get them kicked out of Matrix 4 for being too far-fetched.
- Too much movement from players that in a real game would economically adjust their position reading the build-up, not make constant sprints when the ball is 70 yards away. Look at the radar in-game even when the play is pretty calm and it looks like somebody stamped on an ants nest. (The new eFootball also appears to be like this from some videos.)
- Defending. This has always been my strong point in footy games and although online when I play vastly superior players, I find it hard to break them down to score, I defend very well mostly. In FIFA 22, you just know when the CPU wants to score because all the positioning and timing in the world isn't going to stop Cambridge Utd (even on pro level) score that equalizing goal in the 97th minute to make it 5-5. When the AI decides to not script things, defending is logical and realistic but IRL League 2 teams don't regularly play 20-pass combinations very often. In FIFA 22, it's like basketball where 95% of the game is teams taking it in turns to shoot with the occasional turn-over or missed shot.
- Shooting on full manual on FIFA 22 is like assisted in PES2020/21. You can barely miss the target from almost any angle if you concentrate even a little. I stopped having any passion for scoring because every game contained half a dozen 'goal of the season' contenders.
- Crossing from the CPU is not frequent whoever you play. They'll knock in a few crosses depending on how you force them wide but you'll see more corners in a game from the crap keepers than you will crosses.
- Fouls. Unlike some people, I did see fouls from the AI, prob 2-3 a game and the occasional card but again, you'll see as many handballs as fouls. I could live with that a little but even when you play carelessly and play Sunday League enforcement style, you rarely get a foul called on you unless you almost literally go for the jugular.
- Graphical glitches appearing randomly over the top half of players at some points during games. That might be down to my older tv not being set up correctly.
- Snow. We went from a very realistic sim of snow to now no stadiums can afford under-soil heating and we're back to the mid 70's where somebody has cleared the lines with a broom. I'd understand if there was heavy snowfall but there isn't, you can barely see it except in cut-scenes. The same with rain. PES 2020/21 is vastly superior in weather simulation and dynamic weather.
- Camera not keeping up the play on Dynamic camera. If you take quick shots from the edge of the area if you've stolen possession, you likely won't see the result of your shot as the camera swing/shift is too slow, even with zero zoom and maximum field view. It might be better on other cameras but this is the one I've always used.
- Goalkicks overpowered or like a 3-year old girl kicked the ball. They are like the average shower. Freezing water or boiling water. You are left with little time to decide how to react with your target/closest player and just guessing seems the best option.
- Defensive shape is atrocious and was actually the gamebreaker for me. Regardless of how much you mess around with the sliders, this game is made for the FUT crowd who want high scores so the defense will be forced by the AI to allow chances that would never happen in real life with frequency. On any skill level, the game plays a my-turn, you're turn approach to attack and despite a few minutes per game where you can get 2-3 chances in a row, the game soon corrects itself to taking turn with shooting and ensuring your defenders are all having a love-in in a 2 yard square or they're so spread out the other team could walk through to get a shot off.
- Offensive tactical changes shouldn't react in brainless outcomes on the field where almost every scoring opportunity comes from a simple sidestep past an idiot and then ripping the ball in the corner from 20 yards. The game is designed to FORCE you into 1v1s to make you use skill moves, not pass the ball around to evade pressure and create space to get a shot off.
It's something like: holy shit, my mates will not believe it !!! 
