Geek Citadel Reviews – FIFA Soccer 14

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I think it’s safe to say that we Americans like soccer. We understand it’s popularity around the world and we’ve taken a liking to it. I can say that because of the sale of the past FIFA games in the last 5 years. Well, don’t worry because EA Sports has brought out a new version of its annual soccer sim with FIFA 14 to quench your thirst.

FIFA Soccer over the years has transformed into one of the best sports game for anyone to play. It has brought one of the most in-depth career modes to date and that doesn’t change with FIFA 14. The career mode in this game continues to impress with the addition of the Global Transfer Network. A very good addition that will help the player out so that they don’t pull the trigger too fast on that next transfer target. You have scouts that will go where you tell them to go and scout the type of players you are looking for from around the world and any league. This addition works very well and as you scout these players you can choose to inquire with their current club or just outright make a loan or buy offer for them if you think you’ve seen enough to bring them in. If you’re worried about the youth squad, don’t worry, that still exists. You can still send your other scouts out to scout for young players to be apart of your youth squad.

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While career mode by yourself may be fun for someone by themselves, EA has given us a co-op Seasons mode. For those not familiar with Seasons mode let me explain it a little. Seasons is an online mode where you get promoted or delegated after playing a certain amount of games. For instance, you have ten games and you must win enough in those ten games to get promoted to the next division. This year EA has added in a co-op option so you and a friend can battle another 2 people. Unfortunately for me at the time of this review, I didn’t have anyone on my list to try out the mode with. Awesome to know it’s there for future games maybe.

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Last year, I got into the FIFA Ultimate Team mode and enjoyed managing a card full team. This year it’s back and has changed as well as adding legends to the mode. Let me clear up any confusion now, Legends will not become available until the Xbox One launches. It sucks that those legendary players like Pele can’t be used in this mode until then, but I can wait. The mode changes that were made was the addition of chemistry styles. This is a very interesting mechanic that makes building a team more challenging but will ultimately pay off in the end, plus I like it.

The last thing I will talk about is the gameplay and how much it has improved! When I reviewed the game last year I thought EA did a good job with the A.I.. Yes it still lacked something, but this year is a completely different story. Offensive and Defensive A.I. Has been improved greatly. On offense, I no longer see players just stick to their part of the field and make no effort to help create chances. Now I see players running around to create chances at goal. Defensive is also more aggressive when needed, forces you to play a different game and not just stand there trying to figure it out before really attacking. If they feel the need to come up and attempt to take the ball…they will do it. This also goes for people who like to attack by trying to run around the defenders. They will eventually catch up if their speed allows it and take the ball away from you. The other thing EA did that I liked was mapping your skill moves to the right thumb stick. No longer do I need to press the LT/L2 button to execute these moves, I can just do it with a flick of the right stick.

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Overall, FIFA Soccer 14 is a fantastic addition to the franchise. You will continue to have fun with the career modes and possibly even more fun with the co-op seasons mode. You are looking at one of the best sports games of the last 3 years and it holds true with FIFA Soccer 14. If you love the game of Soccer/Futbol/Football, you will definitely pick this game up and not be disappointed.

*A copy of this game was provided to the reviewer by the developer for review purposes