With FIFA 23, already obviously available on the GamerSandy online shop, we all feel we are witnessing a historic moment for the world of video games.
Whether it was the story of a few games every now and then, perhaps between friends, that it represented an inalienable annual event, the Electronic Arts saga has accompanied the evolution of the world of video games for years; influenced the simulation interpretation of virtual football experiences, in combination with the eternal rival PES; has projecting our favorite hobby, to the sound of soundtracks and iterations with an increasingly television look, in that mare magnum that we enclose under the term pop.
FIFA 23, will be the last FIFA. Certainly not the conclusion of the American publisher's commitment to the genre, a commitment that will be renewed next year with the debut of EA Sports FC, but certainly the extreme end of the saga as we have loved and known it up to now. Before the inevitable restyling which, who knows, will bring with it substantial innovations in terms of presentation, mode, gameplay.
Yes, because already as his predecessor did in his time, the newcomer continues on the path already traced, allowing himself only here and there some changes, of which only a couple of really impacting.
The main menu, just to name one, has the same layout, different only in terms of the color palette used. The idea of giving a visual continuity to the brand is by no means despicable, and it goes in the same direction in which eFootball is going, that is to stop sooner or later the annual cadence of new stand-alone editions, but it goes without saying that lovers of innovation at all costs will be surprised to find something they already know like the back of their hands.
From Career, to Season, to single game, everything has remained exactly in its place . As Coaches it will be possible to select about thirty real existing managers, who will be joined by the affable face of Ted Lasso, protagonist of the homonymous and splendid Apple series; playing as footballers, however, it will be possible to pre-select a sort of disposition that will characterize and direct some choices of the avatar on and off the pitch. Also interesting is the possibility of playing the Career only through its highlights, playing the key moments of the game in person, offensive or defensive maneuvers impacting the final result, leaving the CPU to simulate the rest of the race.
News also on the FUT front where now the agreement is calculated based on the entire team that is sent to the field and not only between contiguous players. This novelty allows many more combinations and performing formations, to the benefit of the variety of teams that will face each other on the field, as well as the tactical possibilities given to the user. Already in these first weeks, with the servers populated by players from all over the world, you can pleasantly notice opposing teams composed not only of the usual superstars, but also of some more exotic excellence that, either by nationality of belonging, or by team in in any case it contributes to raise the level of general agreement.
If the triptych consisting of Squad Battles, Division Rivals and Weekend League is identical, the other novelty of the FUT takes the name of Moments, challenges to be faced also in co-op and which provide for the achievement of specific objectives, such as the realization of a certain number of shots, goals and so on.
Volta and Pro Player also gave themselves a very slight refresh. The two modes, to begin with, have been merged in some way: the player you create for the occasion will be the same for both and will be able to progress whether you use him on one side, or deploy him on the other. Volta, in particular, welcomes the introduction of Distinctive Abilities, temporary power-ups that increase the values of certain statistics.
For the rest, there is not much else to add, if not the pleasant presence of AFC Richmond, also taken from the TV series Ted Lasso, which you can use by inserting the team in any league both in the dry season and in the Career.
On the pitch, the first thing that catches the eye of FIFA 23 is the steadier pace of action . Athletes move slower and have shorter reaction times. Two factors influence a completely different pace compared to that of FIFA 22. The first is Hypermotion 2.0 which gives this year's iteration something like six thousand new animations, upgrades that make the movements of the players fluid, but also more credible and complex. athletes. On the other hand we have a clearly revised physics of the balloon. In this sense, the development team seems to have moved in the direction of eFootball, with a much less evident anchoring of the sphere, a factor that makes the control of the sphere and the changes of direction of the players less guided, sometimes unpredictable, realistic.
Linking one trick with the other still has its advantages, sure, but regaining control of the ball is less complicated, plus it's also more difficult to make your way through the defensive plots alone. FIFA 23 in fact, thanks to an allied AI that follows the action better, although there is still no lack of total blackouts of the teammates, it encourages much more choral action, team play.
In short, a little more strategy is needed, in short, some forethought in the offensive phase that was not needed before, a sign of a deeper and more pretentious gameplay in terms of application. The setting remains arcade, of course, but there is a slight approach to realism, despite the introduction of the so-called Power Shot, another novelty of the gameplay in a certain sense controversial. Basically by pressing both lats, after a relatively prolonged loading, it is possible to unleash a surprisingly precise and powerful shot. You have to be quite distant from the defender on duty, but it guarantees a rather high success rate. Especially inside the area, where for the moment the goalkeepers are struggling more than they should, the success rate is almost equal to one hundred percent, although playing it with not particularly skilled players remains difficult in any case. In short, the feature produces a further imbalance as soon as you face a team made up of superstars, with another one in the middle of the table.
As far as graphics and soundtrack are concerned, there are no big notes to make. In terms of presentation, FIFA 23 does its job, between television-style intermission scenes and a good commentary conducted by the Pardo-Adani duo. Although there are still some players who don't look like their real counterparts at all, and the fans in the stadium still look like stickers stuck in the background, undeniably we are faced with well-kept animations and highly detailed polygonal models. Excellent, as always, the soundtrack, generous with songs that will be appreciated by a vast audience.
FIFA 23 is a more than worthy closure of a brand that has marked our life as gamers for twenty-nine years.
While not deviating excessively from last year's iteration, both in terms of graphics, present modes and gameplay, a couple of new features bring not so superficial changes.
The renewed system of agreements of the FUT allows a greater variety of formations with the same efficiency. Furthermore, the pace of the matches has been significantly reduced, to the advantage of team play and strategies to be unleashed to earn a clean shot.
For the rest it is the usual FIFA, embellished by women's football, by the Volta, by the Pro Player and even by Ted Lasso and AFC Richmond.
At the close of the series, all things considered, it was hard to ask for more.
