With
hundreds of teams and players at your fingertips, FIFA 07 offers an
impressive roster of players and teams. Its enhanced controls, expanded
management mode, PS2 connectivity and, new mini-games presents players
with many new options and modes. The new player controls allow more fluid
movement and additional special moves, while the onscreen tactics menu
makes it easy to adjust your strategy on the fly. FIFA 07's production
values are excellent with smart commentary, cool music and top notch
visuals make for an excellent presentation that creates an exciting
experience. FIFA 07's new features and upgrades add even more depth and
authenticity to the experience, making it the most comprehensive and
realistic soccer title on the PSP to date.
There
have been many changes, improvements and upgrades since the last
installment of FIFA hit the PSP about a year ago. Both on and off the
field, the game has definitely undergone some significant revisions.
Unlike the World Cup edition released earlier this year, FIFA 07 includea
an incredible roster numbering in the hundreds. The options menu consists
of licensed international, club and league teams represented along with
thousands of real life players. Each team and player is accurately
recreated which gives FIFA an incredible amount of realism. The biggest
change this year comes in the form of its refined controls, which have
been revamped to offer a better selection of moves. The ball control is
the biggest area and now offers players better aiming through the use of
improved accuracy. Chip Shots, passes and kicks are much easier to
perform, making for a smoother, more fluid experience. Each match seems to
flow a lot better, with fewer shots missing their mark. Attacking,
Defending and Special moves are available in abundance and the game's
intuitive design makes these moves easy to perform. Players can pass,
juggle, tackle, and dribble the ball easily, and giving your player a
quick speed boost is as easy as pressing down the shift key. Each player
has a standard arsenal of moves they can use, but there are also several
Superstars who have additional abilities which allow them to perform
tricks and special moves to keep opponents off-guard.
The excellent tactical menu from last
year's FIFA title has returned and this allows even more sophisticate play
to emerge. Using this system, players can implement a variety of tactics
and move the ball up the field to increase the pressure on their rivals.
In addition to setting up your basic formation before each match, FIFA 07
allows players to change their strategy on the fly, using the PSP's d-pad
to select from a number of offensive and defensive tactics. This makes
changing your team's strategy a cinch, with an onscreen indicator used to
tell you which you're using. FIFA 07 offers several basic tactics
including three man release, wing play and box overload formations on
defense. When you're in the attacking mode, you can use Pressing, Zonal
and Offside Trap strategies to improve your chances in the goal mode.
Learning the game's basic controls and menus is fairly simple, and most
players should be able to get the hang of things by the end of their first
match. FIFA's interface is quite good this time around, and the fully
integrated tactical control means that the matches flow even better. The
standard games are loads of fun to play, but the numerous extra modes and
mini-games add even more depth to the experience.
Last
year's successful juggling mini-game was one of the more innovative things
FIFA's done over the past few years, and its return here is a nice
addition. Like last year's version, you once again need to turn your PSP
on its side and get a full view of the action. Pressing the button in
timed sequence allows you to perform knee-kicks and headers. Chaining
multiple hits together allows you to earn extra points which can then be
used in the FIFA store to purchase additional items such as alternate
uniforms, stadiums, and more. The mode allows you to build up your
players' skills by performing juggling moves, earning combos and more.
Juggling's premise is remarkably simple, but its one of the more addicting
modes in the game. A new multiplayer mode has also been added, which makes
this even more entertaining. FIFA 07 also includes an all-new wall attack
mode where you have to kick the ball towards a wall and knock off blocks
in sequence. Missing shots or hitting the red squares makes you earn red
cards, and five of these ends the game. As in juggling, winning scores in
this mode allows you to earn points to use in the FIFA store.
In addition to these standard single
player modes, FIFA 07 includes a some extensive multiplayer modes as well,
which can be accessed using the PSP's wi-fi connection. You'd expect these
standard modes, but the system can also trade data with the PS2 using the
Link Cable as well. This probably isn't that important if you're just
doing a standard game, but FIFA's new Manager mode makes trading all the
more important. As you'd expect, the manager mode allows you to trade,
purchase and train players, change your coach and other items, but it also
goes beyond these standard features to include media management, team
meetings and much more. This definitely adds a layer of depth and
challenge to the game that allows players to go beyond the standard
on-field action and get a behind the scenes look at what it's like to
manage a professional team. The menus in this mode are easy to navigate
and make going through each season relatively easy. To help speed things
along, you can have the matches played automatically im this mode as well,
and can also jump in and take control on the field to call the shots if
things aren't going your way. You can also play with a club through a
single season or several seasons until you reach the championship rounds
and tournaments. These various extra modes compliment the main game and
make FIFA 07 Soccer a comprehensive simulation of the sport that's both
deep and accessible.
FIFA
07's presentation is excellent and the game offers solid visuals
throughout. The players themselves are nicely rendered with excellent
attention to detail. Each one looks and moves as their real world
counterpart would, and has similar abilities and skill levels. You can
also select from multiple camera angles and levels of zoom allow you to
get a good look at the action while the menus and interface are very easy
to navigate. An excellent music soundtrack helps to get you pumped before
each match, and the stadiums come alive with the chanting and roars of the
crowd as the on-field action begins. Players can choose to turn the
in-game commentary on or off, and while it's fairly decent, we found it
really distracting for some reason. The game also offers a number of other
options which allow you to select the difficulty of each match, tilt the
crowd's support to one side, change the strictness of referees and more.
You can also change the aggressiveness of the AI when it comes to
switching players and in some matches, choose to end the match if the
score is tied at the end of regulation or settle things with either
penalty kicks or extra time. Overall, FIFA 07 is nicely presented, offers
plenty of options and features excellent control and challenging AI. EA
has done an excellent job in this department as well, which gives the game
enough flexibility and entertainment to appeal to both novice and
mainstream gamers.
Grade: B+
