FIFA 16 – A Few Thoughts.As EA’s latest instalment in their FIFA Franchise has been out for just over a month, I thought I’d share some of my experiences and why my love-hate relationship with the game is still as prominent as ever.

A Game of Thrones

The FIFA series has monopolised the Football game market ever since the fall of PES, however PES is back on the rise. And with PES 16, Konami make their strongest claim for throne in a little while, so it was import that EA show everyone why they are number one.

Demo days

I decided to indulge myself this year and give the Demo a spin before the release of the full game, and during the customary Barcelona - Real Madrid debut game I was pleasantly surprised, the game felt fresh and exciting, perhaps I’d overplayed 15, but it really felt different

But wait, isn’t this the feeling I usually feel upon playing every new FIFA title? Yes, yes it is, EA had caught me again, hook, line and sinker. I think I’d need to wait until the full release to pass serious judgement on it.

Christmas

I’m sure may FIFA fans can vouch that release day is better than Christmas day. Or at least it is for me, as it usually entails me nursing a vicious alcohol induced birthday hangover. Anyhow… It’s here, the moment had arrived where I was able to sink my teeth into this year’s instalment. And into this years much Awaited Ultimate Team, which I will focus much of this article (Primarily because it’s the only game mode I’ve played in detail).

This years inclusion of price ranges from the get go was much welcomed by me, as it meant it kept player prices down and helped reflect true value. After playing 20 odd online seasons and a few drafts along with a couple tournaments and pack openings, I was able to fashion two pretty strong teams. The first from Liga BBVA and the other from The Bundesliga, with these teams I was able to rise swiftly to Division 1, leaving numerous foes in my wake.

Gameplay Refinements

Thankfully, gone are the days of the mindless chipped through balls to your overpaced powerhouse of a 76-rated striker. Controlled dribbling, precise passing and defensive physicality have a much larger influence on the outcome of games. This does however mean that the days of the cheap beast appear to be coming to an end and the higher rated players are well… better!

I would say the tables have turned perhaps a little too much in some cases, as with a physical defender like Naldo or Micah Richards, you can bully any smaller less-phyiscal striker that in previous games would’ve turned them inside-out, and any attempt at a ambitious chipped through ball gets cleared 99% of the time.

The Proof is in the Players

Players like Sturridge and Aubameyang are less effective on FIFA 16, much to my delight. The days are gone where you can coast through a game relying on pace alone, whilst it does help, it certainly isn’t the main factor to consider when building an effective team.

In 16 Robert Lewandowski seems to offer everything you’d need in a striker, I can’t stress the importance of having that player who can score you a late equaliser or winner when the chips are down, and Lewa has done this for me on countless occasions.

His current real life form has brought him into the spotlight and is now respected by many as one of the greatest centre forwards in the game. His ball control, strength and finishing ability make him a deadly force on FIFA 16 and a striker of his ilk will be a key part of a successful team, especially as a lone striker.

With the midfielders, I find that allround players for Example Luis Gustavo seem to shine, whereas on FIFA 15 pace and physicality ruled, you will get picked off if you look to ping first time passes out wide with your 67 rated passer. So far Luka Modric seems to encapsulate everything I look for in a midfielder, he picks up good positions as a deep lying midfielder and is effective at quickly distributing the ball around the pitch, which is important for the ever effective counter attacking style.

Pace is only needed for recovery, so if you defend tactically, you will have success without having to rely on rapid defenders, for example, Mats Hummels is equally as good a defender as Sergio Ramos in game, whilst less quick he exudes calmness in defence and can bring the ball out with ease.

Formations

I’d have to say the 4-3-3 attacking or (4-2-1-3) whatever you want to call it was the most widely used and most effective of FIFA 15, where you could mindlessly pass it to your CAM and look to wreak havoc from there. However if found in 16 the 4-3-3 Holding (4-1-2-3) to be much more effective, as the CDM can dictate play more effectively, and when used correctly, precise interplay within the midfield can tear teams apart. This style works on the counter and when looking to dominate possession in true LVG fashion.

However vie been beaten by all sorts of formations, its purely about finding what you get along with and what compliments your playstyle. EA have made

lots of playstyles feasible in FIFA as opposed to previous instalments where pace was lusted after so greatly.

Yo-yoing.

This is where I began to yoyo from division 1 to division 2 endlessly and this is where I started to turn on my team, despite having two decent teams, and having a strong playstyle that ripped a lot of teams apart, I was beginning to get frustrated however. Players that had much poorer teams than mine were managing to beat me. Even when I was playing a strong game, and making little errors I couldn’t come close to their box.

But the stupid handicapping from EA remains; I felt more comfortable playing against people with better teams than mine to get a helping hand from the game. This is where the game falls down, the logic and tactics I’d been using to ascend through the division seems to diminish as you get to the top and face the better players. I found the game seems to shift momentum to make your players make mistakes that they wouldn’t normally make. But anyway, the elusive Division 1 title seems miles away, without the highest echelon of players within my teams im not coming close to the championship.

A Welcome Change

Overall, EA has done well with 16, making the gameplay influenced by different playstyles to make a more rounded offering that rewards the better player. Whilst I haven’t played much of Career mode or anything else apart from Ultimate Team, FIFA 16 offers nothing much new from its previous instalment, it just tweaks the formula which remains as no surprise to anyone.