FIFA 16

Football fans from around the world will be glad to hear that all of their favorite teams, players and stadiums have returned in EA Sports' FIFA 16.

When it comes to releasing yearly FIFA titles, many fans are hesitant to believe that the franchise is evolving and improving enough to warrant purchasing each new game. Luckily, that has all changed with FIFA 16, and this title feels like a completely new game. Some of the core mechanics in earlier FIFA games that frustrated so many fans have been thrown out or completely reworked. This has made countless new tactics viable without using overpowered mechanics.

FIFA 16: What Has Changed?

One of the biggest drawbacks of the last few FIFA titles was the focus on speed. Instead of battling it out midfield, the most effective strategy was to send the fastest players to the wings, lob a pass over the defenders, and then make a break for the goal. While speed is still a vital part of this game, the stats have been toned down. There are additional offensive and defensive moves as well, and this has made one-on-one battles between two footballers much more exciting.

The other major change comes down to the AI of the defenders. In many of the previous titles, NPC defenders could not keep up with a skilled opponent. During online matches, this often created extremely unbalanced gameplay that would result in dozens of goals that were nearly impossible to defend against. While the AI is not perfect, it has been improved by quite a bit. NPC defenders also have the ability to quickly shift their pivot foot and strafe in order to keep up with human opponents.

Ultimate Team

For many years, one of the biggest appeals of the FIFA franchise was the ability to collect and utilize cards in order to enjoy Ultimate Team matches. While these matches were quite fun, many gamers believed that collecting the cards through regular gameplay could become monotonous. EA has toned down the amount of time and energy it takes to collect cards and create teams. They have also refined the team chemistry aspect of the game that turned decent teams into world-class teams.

Other Features

Gamers who are not interested in playing an entire season can easily spend hours in this game enjoying friendlies, draft games, exhibition matches and co-op championships. Joining online games is as seamless as ever with ranked and unranked matches that can be found at all times of the day. For those who are still on the fence about FIFA 16, some of the other pros and cons include:

Pros

• Improved NPC defense
• Eye-catching stadiums and crowds
• Changes to speed
• User-friendly career mode
• Improved draft mode

Cons

• Games are slower and fewer goals are scored
• Human players still outclass NPC defenders
• Referees can now give soft penalties for light contact