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FIFA 18 DEMO - REVIEWS & OPINIONS

Vadim's shaders look very good on Bernabeau. It might be a challenge getting one set right for all stadia though. Many in the demo appear under-saturated in color, but the Galaxy stadium in the evening is over-saturated, if anything.
 
I just played 1 game of the pes demo and then 1 game of the FIFA demo.
Don't want to troll and certainly don't want to start another comparison, but i have to say it : if only FIFA had the same slow pace as pes, it would be perfect (for me).

Playing the 2 demo's right after each other made FIFA even faster for me. Even though i know it's slower than 17.
Such a shame as it's really a great game, but - for me - it is just too lightning quick.
 
elfie said:
I just played 1 game of the pes demo and then 1 game of the FIFA demo.
Don't want to troll and certainly don't want to start another comparison, but i have to say it : if only FIFA had the same slow pace as pes, it would be perfect (for me).

Playing the 2 demo's right after each other made FIFA even faster for me. Even though i know it's slower than 17.
Such a shame as it's really a great game, but - for me - it is just too lightning quick.
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sliders will fix it
 
Things I want sorted:

- I need to adjust the passing speed as the default speed every year is entirely too slow when playing on manual. Sliders will sort that out.

- CPU shot accuracy is far too high. Sliders will sort that out.

- I hope it's just the case of it being a demo and 4-minute halves, but a lot of fouls are going unnoticed by the ref. Very poor.

- Net tension options need to be set to loose. They're like steel cages.

- General slider changes as per usual.

- For EA to fire whomever thought it was a bright (ha) idea to turn a football game into a cinematic crime drama with black, white, and muted colors.
 
Tried out the demo

Frankly it's the same cr*p by EA, No fouls, No handballs despite thembeing turned on. AI passive on higher difficulties and all players and teams play the same way.

every attack is like a de je vu from past 10 FIFA's, full back overlapping and CDM making a darting run straight forward with the gk glued to his line like a muppet.

You can't tell what are the tactics or strategies being implemented by the opponent, Or if they're trying to park the bus or not because the game just conveniently creates scripts by moving players away from the ball when convenient. Every game If anyone is 2-0 down then they get a power boost to get one back, Very scripted.

Oh and the 45th and 90th minute goals or opportuinities are still in the game, Pathetc tbh

The ball is too small as well
 
Scutch said:
I do love how those slating the game and stating they'll "never buy this" or "it's the worst I've played" still continue to post and slate, hour after hour, day after day. If you don't like it, just exit the thread, toddle off to a PES thread or even a game that you quite like, and comment on how much better it is than the FIFA franchise. What's the point of continuously slating a game in a thread? You get nothing from it, surely? Posting positive comments is beneficial for those wanting to buy a game or finding out new features, but the negative comments are purely your own opinions and when you weight them up in this thread alone, the positive feedback completely outweights the negatives.

If you don't like the game, why bother coming in the thread to whinge about it? Go out and do something more productive. That's not a diss or being argumentative, it's common sense.
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Couldn't agree more Scutch, I haven't posted in the PES2018 thread for a while simply because I didn't like the online Beta or the demo. Why would anyone keep playing it and keep posting how bad they think it is. Strange if you ask me.

Heh its like me not liking fish but then continuing to eat it to tell people why I don't like it :P
 
shez said:
Tried out the demo

Frankly it's the same cr*p by EA, No fouls, No handballs despite thembeing turned on. AI passive on higher difficulties and all players and teams play the same way.

every attack is like a de je vu from past 10 FIFA's, full back overlapping and CDM making a darting run straight forward with the gk glued to his line like a muppet.

You can't tell what are the tactics or strategies being implemented by the opponent, Or if they're trying to park the bus or not because the game just conveniently creates scripts by moving players away from the ball when convenient. Every game If anyone is 2-0 down then they get a power boost to get one back, Very scripted.

Oh and the 45th and 90th minute goals or opportuinities are still in the game, Pathetc tbh

The ball is too small as well
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I haven't played FIFA in about a year (FIFA 17 was a shambles of a game, so I've ignored FIFA for the past 12 months) but going back to it now via this demo, it feels disappointingly unevolved and I tend to agree with most of what you've said.

My expectation is that in the final release, every team will play the same, so unless there is feedback from people with credibility that Team Styles is actually real and effective, I'll keep my £40-£50 in the bank and put the 4p interest towards my pension.

But I don't get this complaint about the ball size. Granted, in some videos, it does appear a tad small but when actually playing the demo, it looks absolutely fine on my PS4/TV.
 
After many more games I must admit I am really starting to see the Chris Davies effect more and more often. ie. The AI just hoofs the ball forward as quickly as possible with lofted through balls and those laser like drilled passes.

It's very hard to actually play a slower, considered game. The AI presses like a team possessed, and regular passes are so SLOW and seem less accurate than first touch passes and drilled passes.

I'm getting desperate to change things with sliders.
 
I always consider myself to have a slow/considered approach to playing FIFA - It is normally the way I have always played most football games since PES.

 
bsmaff said:
I always consider myself to have a slow/considered approach to playing FIFA - It is normally the way I have always played most football games since PES.

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I play the same way, but still the pace is too fast. CPU is constantly pressuring you. Let's hope sliders can fix this.
Decided to wait with this one till at least a few weeks after release date.
Want to hear some reviews and comments from the guys on this site, especially Matt with this sliders, before buying it.
 
Bendit said:
After many more games I must admit I am really starting to see the Chris Davies effect more and more often. ie. The AI just hoofs the ball forward as quickly as possible with lofted through balls and those laser like drilled passes.

It's very hard to actually play a slower, considered game. The AI presses like a team possessed, and regular passes are so SLOW and seem less accurate than first touch passes and drilled passes.

I'm getting desperate to change things with sliders.
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The thing is, sliders won't change their tactics or decision-making. If you turn down pass accuracy, I don't think they'll start playing better football. If they do start choosing to hit shorter passes, they'll all be laser-accurate because of the shorter distance. That's how sliders work in 17.

The demo feels way better than the beta to me, except for this route-one AI (which I documented when playing the beta). And we can't change it with sliders, or custom tactics, because the latter is ignored now, possibly thanks to hard-coded "team styles" that don't seem to have any real effect.

I'm genuinely absolutely gutted, because this ONE THING spoils the entire game against the AI, and they're not going to change it, because they've done it on purpose. They've said several times that "people complained about the AI enjoying possession too much in previous games" so now the AI is much more direct. Because IT'S FUN. That's what we want, right? FUN FUN FUN...

In my opinion, both football games this year have killer flaws that make them worse than the previous year's edition. I don't remember feeling like that before. (It's always "alternated" in my personal opinion - FIFA 17 wasn't great IMO but I loved PES, FIFA 16 was great but I didn't like PES, FIFA 15 was too fast but PES was okay... This year, I really can't "relax" and enjoy either game because I'm either shouting "you're Real Madrid, stop playing like a Sunday League team" or "93% pass accuracy, what a joke this game is".)

EDIT: A few people are saying "it's like this because it's a demo with short halves and it'd be 0-0 otherwise". No, it was the same in the beta. With any match length you like. They've said several times that they were going to make the game like this so that it's "fun". There's no hope, honestly.
 
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Yeah its like

- we would like to have a GREY picture
- here is this picture its WHITE
- great but we would like it as GREY
- here is the picture its BLACK
- ...

ps Chris i can make teams have low 80 pass accuracy with sliders and tactics in 17. But it all depends on the opponent of course. Barca will always have 80-90 accuracy.

I would be happy with 17 if

- it could be modded
- the cpu wouldnt do that standing with its back to the opponent in the final third thingy just to turn around anyway all the time and losing the ball
- the cpu would do any dribbling. Messi is non existent in the game eg.

FIFA 17 is well balanced with tactics and sliders. best game in that form ever. too bad they made a totally different game for 18
 
Chris Davies said:
If you turn down pass accuracy
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It also STILL has the effect of screwing the cpu's ability to cross....which is bizarre considering that it's only supposed to affect ground passes.

Chris Davies said:
They've said several times that "people complained about the AI enjoying possession too much in previous games" so now the AI is much more direct.
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What's particularly frustrating is that rather than use this as an opportunity to implement cpu teams with a range of styles - which is exactly what they claimed custom tactics would do, and now are claiming "Team Styles" will do - the changes they've made affect all cpu teams - ie. for all the hundreds of teams they've spent ££££s getting licensed in the game, there is effectively only one cpu opponent, it just happens to wear different kits.

Chris Davies said:
FIFA 17 wasn't great IMO but I loved PES, FIFA 16 was great but I didn't like PES, FIFA 15 was too fast but PES was okay.
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Pretty much the same as how I've played them over the past 4 years or so. This past year has been PES17 all the way for me. Prior to that it was a year of FIFA16, which was the best FIFA to date.

I've already found myself drawn back to PES17, which I prefer to PES18. I might also dig out FIFA16 again as the FIFA18 demo suggests it's a game that is fatally flawed.
 
At least in FIFA 16 if you turn down AI pass speed it does not effect their ability to cross, but it does make their longer and faster passes a lot riskier. Turning down their pass accuracy alone is not the solution. Reducing their pass speed doesn't mean they don't attempt snappy passes BTW, just that doing a faster pass pushes it towards the likelihood of going slightly astray, just as it does for human players. The AI decision making seems to take this into account too, which is most pleasing.

I understand and share Chris Davies' concern though. I did see their comment about intentionally making the FIFA 18 AI play Route 1 football. These things are very hard to balance, and impossible to balance to everyone's liking. That is why we need MORE SLIDERS so we can tweak it ourselves. Because the thing is, there are these systems hidden from us controlling all these things. Even in FIFA 16 it was possible to get the AI a beautifully balanced game with some .ini tweaks. By default they did pass it around the back a bit too often.

But it is indeed a concern if different team styles are being overridden by this route #1 logic.
 
FWIW I'm really liking the AI attacks. In FIFA 2016 I NEVER managed more possession in a single match against the AI. Made it so frustrating. Already in the demo I've seen more of the ball. Really pleased.
 
I have given this another chance because I need a game that will keep me occupied all year round

It's got a lot of good things

God damn the shooting. It's wonderful, I have scored so many types of goals already

There is rumour of an 'Ultimate' difficulty in full game too but I don't know if people on Reddit meant FUT?
 
guru83 said:
I have given this another chance because I need a game that will keep me occupied all year round

It's got a lot of good things

God damn the shooting. It's wonderful, I have scored so many types of goals already

There is rumour of an 'Ultimate' difficulty in full game too but I don't know if people on Reddit meant FUT?
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Ultimate difficulty has been in the game for years now, but only in FUT single player matches.
 
Chris Davies said:
The thing is, sliders won't change their tactics or decision-making. If you turn down pass accuracy, I don't think they'll start playing better football. If they do start choosing to hit shorter passes, they'll all be laser-accurate because of the shorter distance. That's how sliders work in 17.

The demo feels way better than the beta to me, except for this route-one AI (which I documented when playing the beta). And we can't change it with sliders, or custom tactics, because the latter is ignored now, possibly thanks to hard-coded "team styles" that don't seem to have any real effect.

I'm genuinely absolutely gutted, because this ONE THING spoils the entire game against the AI, and they're not going to change it, because they've done it on purpose. They've said several times that "people complained about the AI enjoying possession too much in previous games" so now the AI is much more direct. Because IT'S FUN. That's what we want, right? FUN FUN FUN...

In my opinion, both football games this year have killer flaws that make them worse than the previous year's edition. I don't remember feeling like that before. (It's always "alternated" in my personal opinion - FIFA 17 wasn't great IMO but I loved PES, FIFA 16 was great but I didn't like PES, FIFA 15 was too fast but PES was okay... This year, I really can't "relax" and enjoy either game because I'm either shouting "you're Real Madrid, stop playing like a Sunday League team" or "93% pass accuracy, what a joke this game is".)

EDIT: A few people are saying "it's like this because it's a demo with short halves and it'd be 0-0 otherwise". No, it was the same in the beta. With any match length you like. They've said several times that they were going to make the game like this so that it's "fun". There's no hope, honestly.
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I'm going to agree that the AI remains still the biggest negative (and I'd say that for both games), although for me I actually have more issues with defensive behavior than attacking. (For me, a defensive overhaul should be priority #1 for next year.)

The pace of the game is still too quick - not enough buildup or midfield battles for my taste - but I'm surprised that some people see the AI as just playing route-one football. Though FIFA is still dominated by the counter-attack, and the AI is aggressive in getting the ball forward quickly, I think there's a decent variety in AI attack.

Both games are too end-to-end for me, but I'm going to wait until the full release of FIFA before I start feeling gutted about anything since we've known from the past how the demo is not always indicative of final gameplay.
 
I am actually really enjoying the demo I had to drop it from world class to professional but now I am having proper midfield battles but the AI is abit dumb at times.

Abit of mixed bag of results so far but that to be expected because I havnt touched Fifa in over a year it always the defending that throws me.

I love the player ID for me it fantastic Ronaldo and Robben and others feel so life like when you see there movement.

The shooting is superb as mentioned by many here plenty of variation but what up with the Ronaldo celebration that yelp or whatever going on is hideous :LOL:

Another issue I have dont know if controller is buggered but Xbox one controller having issue with player switching sometimes having to double tap left trigger and also sprinting with right trigger my player stops still not sure what going on.
 
Bingham67 said:
I love the player ID for me it fantastic Ronaldo and Robben and others feel so life like when you see there movement.

The shooting is superb as mentioned by many here plenty of variation but what up with the Ronaldo celebration that yelp or whatever going on is hideous :LOL:

Another issue I have dont know if controller is buggered but Xbox one controller having issue with player switching sometimes having to double tap left trigger and also sprinting with right trigger my player stops still not sure what going on.
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It's his "ZUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" thing. I laughed out loud when I realized they made it audible during the celebration. Absurd. And yeah, sometimes the player switching is a little funky. It's not terrible, but a bit disconcerting.
 
I don't know about you guys but apart from the passing accuracy from the CPU and the lack of team styles, this game is pretty amazing and perfect. Love how hard defending is now in both footie games this year.
 
Topaz said:
I don't know about you guys but apart from the passing accuracy from the CPU and the lack of team styles, this game is pretty amazing and perfect. Love how hard defending is now in both footie games this year.
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Agreed! I had low expectations after playing the beta but the demo feels much better. I am, however concerned about the games main selling point for me, team styles still not present. EA will have some major explaining to do if they've dropped them.
 
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