FIFA Soccer 97

"What were they thinking? I love the sqaure heads though..."

When I first got my PC (which I still have) back in 1997, I bought 3 games. One of them was Fifa 97. Big mistake.
It\'s predicessors were amazing, miracles of this time (especially on the Sega mega-drive), but this was the first of many disappointing EA sequels.

It is a very slow-paced, and rather boring game.

Storyline: Since it is a sports game there is no need for a storyline.

Graphics: A major disappointment - it it is a step behind other games of the time. The footballers are made from quadrilaterals, needless to say they look terrible.
To be fair to EA a select few of the players were recognizable, mainly the household names of the time (ie Ryan Giggs, David Beckham).
Could have been better.

Music: The music is annoying, you would think a big company would have sense to put decent music on. The in-game commentary is entertaining at first, but after 20 minutes of gameplay you will most likely be turning the music off (and the game if you have any sense).

Gameplay: In one word describe this game? Boring. It is obviously a half-bred attempt at rushing a game out before Actua-Soccer 3 was released. Although I have to say, being able to play indoor was an awesome idea. It\'s just a shame that it takes up to 10 seconds for your player to kick the ball. The players run like chickens and like previous Fifa games there is a spot where you can shoot from and score with a 100% success rate, making the game far far too simple.

Replay Value: There\'s just nothing there to come back to. I was inspired to write this review because friends were at my house and we were \'\'happy\'\' and decided to pull out an old game for a laugh. So I guess there must be something there to make you laugh. Maybe the comments the commentator makes when you score own-goals, or maybe it\'s the fun of slide-tackling the opponents goalkeeper to get sent off.

Challenge: Challenge you say? What challenge? Oh yea, the challenge where it takes you almost 10 minutes to find that point where you can score with every shot.
This game is terribly, terribly easy. The goalkeepers are rather pathetic.

Multi player: This is were all the fun lies. Set the options so that the player controls the keeper and then get good with using them. It makes the game alot more fun. One of the only positive aspects of the game.

One of the worst sport-genre PC games available. Possibly the worst.

This is a \'\'bin-it\'\' game! It receives the Animal Chin rusty rusty iron badge of disapproval!

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 08/06/03