FIFA Soccer 2003

"A fresh taste, a new beginning, a revolution."

After playing the disappointing NHL 2003, which was 3 steps back from last year's release, I turned my only hopes to FIFA 2003. When I first got my hands on this game, my first impression was a good one. I noticed immediately that on the cover, it clearly writes ''FIFA Football 2003''. Looks like EA Sports finally got their head out of their bollocks, and realized that the term ''soccer'' is only valid in North America. The sport is clearly called ''football'' in the rest of the world. Could it be, that EA Sports will finally create the perfect football simulation?

Almost.

Unlike NHL 2003, everything is so simple.... the interface is nice and clean. Installation was a breeze, by the way... no need for IE6 or any of that crap. At first I thought this game was incomplete, there weren't many features..... I think there are three play modes...

UEFA Championship Game (or UEFA Season)
Friendly Game (or Season)
Multiplayer Game

Obviously ALL the leagues are there..... International teams are really good too! I mean the rosters are very up to date, and so are the stats. The Koreans have really good numbers, as they should, for getting 4th Place in the 2002 World Cup. It's nice to see that EA really put their ''care'' into this game.

Next, graphics. MUCH improved, very beautiful, my only gripes is that the game seems a bit dark, I don't think there's any way to set the weather or brightness. And some faces aren't done very well, like Ilhan Mansiz from Turkey, my favorite player. He just looks like someone else. But oh well... everyone else looks fine and thats good. However, graphics are not the selling point this year. It's the gameplay...

The gameplay is great. Smart pass is back again... remember it was taken out in 2002, and you had to power up each pass? This time, you can use smart pass to pass it DIRECTLY at a player. Through pass is back as well! From 2001! This one has a charge-up, and you can pass to open space, and when combined with Player Run, you can create some really good scoring opportunities. Sprinting is not just button-mashing and running from defence to opponent's goal anymore. You hold the Sprint button to run faster, but you also push the ball further and thus can easily lose control to tackles. There's also a delay when try to do anything while sprinting, which makes sense. Since the ball is further ahead of you, you have to run to the ball in order to execute your action. Some bollock was complaining in the message boards about this delay, but i'm sure that in real life, you can't expect to run 50 mph and shoot at the exact moment, unless you bring lots of glue to the game.

Free kicks, another great feature. EA has realized that scoring from free kicks is one of the most exciting moments in the sport, and has pretty much PERFECTED the free kick system. There's the distance line from the ball to the goal, just like on TV. You use your crosshair to aim at a specific target of the goal, enabling some really sweet curls.

The AI is hugely improved, while still playing as fair as possible. There is a new difficulty setting from Amateur to Professional, and is called Semi-Pro. Basically, once you get enough pratice in this game you can BREEZE past Amateur. However, Professional is a bit tougher as the AI really TRIES in the game. In fact, the AI is so good that it changes strategy according to the situation. If the score is 1-0 in your favor, expect to reinforce your defence, or you'll drop behind 3-1 like I did when I played against Chelsea as Man.Utd. I was just stepping up from Semi Pro and I let my guard down. I did come back in the second half to make it 3-2, but lost anyways. The game is THAT realistic.

Now obviously there are still minor flaws, such as players clipping into each other in Instant Replay, but it's so obvious that EA put all their attention into the graphics and gameplay. There may not be 50 different settings to tweak, or 12 play modes to choose from. It's great for the gamer who just wants to sit down and play a good game of football.

One last note I would like to mention...... no more do I feel like I'm the only person who does anything on my team. I remember in FIFA 2002, that I was expected to do EVERYTHING. Whenever the AI attacked, I was expected to switch to the closest player and steal the ball, otherwise my team will just stand and watch. In FIFA Football 2003, my team is just as aggressive as the AI. They tackle and intercept passes, sometimes even before I can react to a turnover! Sometimes when things get too fast and furious, like when the AI attacks really fast and sends a cross, and I have no chance to react, my team automatically tries its best to head away the cross or dive for the ball.

Overall, this is definitely a great experience, and a must-have for any football fan. I haven't even mentioned about the Creation Center yet, either. In the game, there is no create/edit player/team feature. You need to download a seperate software called the Creation Center, made by EA Sports as a stand-alone gadget. It's very in-depth, and everything you can imagine is customizable..... from a player's face (there are 80 but talented artists can make their own), to the signboards, to the flags that fans hold up, even team cheers! I hope you have a fast internet connection because you'll be downloading MANY great stuff from talented fans, coders, and editors! All this adds up to many, many hours of gameplay.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/02, Updated 11/01/02