Let's start with the positives, FIFA 11 looks absolutely stunning. Unlike the blurry mud-filled pitches of last year, everything is far more crisp and vibrant. Each stadium had been recreated with the finest attention to detail, although the crowds could do with a bit more polish. The stars of the footballing world look incredibly lifelike, and with the new 'Personality Pro' feature, they move in a realistic manner. The details continue to amaze when you peer closely, and even though the screenshots are slightly exaggerated, the facial expressions and subtle movements of clothing raise the bar for sports games. FIFA 11 is untouchable in terms of licensing, so you're going to find every official player, kit and sponsor from almost every league in the world. The crowds roar and it's genuinely the closest representation of the beautiful game ever released. Martin Tyler and Andy Gray return with the same commentary from last year, the majority of which is unchanged but the guys have started talking about referees a bit more. There's also a wide range of music, but you can import your own songs and for the first time ever - chants. Unfortunately you can't record vulgar bursts of rage from the microphone, so the likelihood of people using the feature is slim.
London's best in action.
The control scheme for FIFA titles has remained largely the same in recent years, so FIFA 11 doesn't fix what isn't broken. New additions that were introduced in 2010 FIFA World Cup make their comeback here; the two button layout and a revamped penalty kick system. The former is an attempt to lure the rest of your family into a fairly simulation based game. Apart from movement, players will only need to pass and shoot. FIFA 11 removes detailed decision making, so depending on the situation, it will determine if a pass should be long or short, high or low and so on and so forth. The new penalties have received a little bit of backlash, but they're more forgiving than what first impressions suggest. Players have more options than ever before, so you can choose to drill the ball into the net or stop mid-run and change direction. Veterans will already be familiar with the more complex controls which give you complete freedom across the pitch. The only minor complaint is that tricks are still too difficult to perform and are largely useless if you're not specific enough, but that's more a case of skill rather than the fault of the developer. You'll also be given the chance to perform co-operative celebrations, ranging anywhere from modest to ridiculous, but these are all welcome additions to the series.
By far the most improved aspect of FIFA 11 arrives in the form of crucial changes to the actual gameplay. Physical battles feel more natural than ever before, and slide tackling doesn't necessarily result in giving away a free kick. Passing has been made more difficult with the introduction of a proper power bar. If your team mate is further away, you're going to need to hold down the pass button longer. Pretty simple. It means that the outrageously quick passing of FIFA 10 is no longer an issue, and build-up play requires patience and precision. The most rewarding part of the game comes from counter attacking; players gain pace over distance and won't be able to hit full speed instantly. This means that breaking out of defence and spreading play to the wings allows for your attacker to sprint past a defender in disarray. All of these minor refinements mean that the gameplay in FIFA 11 is the most balanced and realistic yet, a far cry from the arcade matches witnessed last year. The goalkeeper, often labelled as the idiot between the sticks, seems have taken some lessons off Oliver Kahn. He won't automatically rush out at an incoming player, instead he'll stand firm and try to narrow the angle. It takes a lot of frustration out of defending, but unfortunately, that's where the positives end.
Watch the bounce!
When FIFA 10 was released last year, it was filled with bugs and a broken online system. One would think that developers might learn from their mistakes, but no... not quite. Trying to bring FIFA 11 online is an equally horrid experience. If you buy a new copy of the game, you'll be given an online access code, otherwise you have to pay 800 MSP (AU$10) after a seven day free trial. Technically this shouldn't be an issue, and while this won't affect everyone, our code was rejected after multiple attempts and variations. That leads onto the problematic matchmaking system, so problematic that it's barely functional. North America received the game two days before us, and by the time the rest of the world was playing, the servers were still atrocious. Head to head matches were eventually fixed but after playing just one game, we were disconnected from the EA servers. Trying to play with friends is even worse; quick search never finds a lobby and the only way to create one is by doing a custom search with silly requirements in order to be prompted into starting your own lobby. Another major issue with team play is that the game ends after ninety minutes, extra time still hasn't been integrated for some bizarre reason. The only praiseworthy element of the few online matches that we were able to play, is that games generally run quite smoothly, although it was impossible to judge if the game can really handle a lobby of twenty-two players. Virtual Pros are also back with the same accomplishments needed to upgrade certain statistics, but neither the Pro Ranked games nor the much loved Pro Clubs were working. Apparently over six million online games were played in two days, but they certainly weren't played in Australia and definitely not on the Xbox 360 version.
Annual upgrades of FIFA usually bring a host of new features, but not this time. Career Mode has been branded as a new addition to the series, but it's nothing more than a combination of the Be A Pro and Manager modes. You can start off as a player before climbing up the ranks to legendary status, and finally become a manager. You're going to get the same plethora of options to customise your team, but it's nothing that we haven't seen before. The only genuine new feature is the ability to control the goalkeeper, and while it has been done well, it gets very boring very quickly. More problems from FIFA 10 have made their way over to FIFA 11 also; the most annoying of which are the menus. They're presented with your standard EA panache, but they're simply not functional. It tends to run reasonably well offline until you need to simulate games, a process that takes far too long. The most atrocious part of the menu system, again, is a result of FIFA 11's broken online service. Every night since release day, the game menus have frozen at least once when trying to connect online, and the only way of escaping is to reboot the game - all because of the sluggish EA servers that can't seem to cope with even the smallest number of players. Considering that all of the issues were present in FIFA 10, it is completely unacceptable for a major sports game to be released like this.
Float like a butterfly, sting like one of the most under-rated midfielders in the world.
It's quite possible that these problems are only evident in the Xbox 360 version, and they will eventually be solved whenever EA decides to release a patch. At the same time, we shouldn't have to deal with this sort of rushed garbage... again. If it means delaying the release date by a week or two, then so be it. FIFA has already won over the masses so there's no fear of the game not making a profit. Imagine if Activision released Modern Warfare 2 with a matchmaking system that didn't work, would the community accept it? Of course they wouldn't, and football fans shouldn't be forced into dealing with basic problems that were supposed to have been fixed over the past twelve months. If multiplayer isn't a concern for you, then expect to be playing this for months. For purists, it's another frustrating FIFA game, but one that offers an unbeatable footballing experience. EA needs to learn a lesson, and hopefully when FIFA 12 arrives, the overall package is more streamlined.
By the time you read this review, EA might have already fixed the multiple functional problems with FIFA 11. However, it doesn't mean that the hardcore fans will forget about what happened. For the past two years, FIFA has been released in a broken state, and that's unforgivable. We're not asking for much, we just want the simple things to work. Putting something on the shelf with limited new features and a core element of the game unplayable should never happen. It's a great shame because the gameplay is absolutely tremendous, and in that respect, it's still a must-buy for fans. If the matchmaking wasn't a total farce, then we would have been looking at a much higher score. So what's the moral of the story kids? If a game isn't ready, don't release it. Sooner or later, FIFA needs to make another giant leap - but it hasn't happened this year.
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