The Best FIFA by Far (FIFA 2002 (PS2))

Member Name: Foxy-Lady

Product:	FIFA 2002 (PS2)
Date:	16/01/02 (147 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: New gameplay features, Brilliant graphics, More realistic

Disadvantages: Quite hard to score, Bit more thought would make it outstanding!

EA Sports began producing the FIFA Football series in the early 1990s, with a newer, updated version of the computer game being released every year. It started on the good old Sega Megadrive, progressed onto the Sony Playstation 1 and now, has evolved onto the Playstation 2 console with the release of FIFA Football 2002.

The general idea behind the game is to play football!! Control the players in Premiership teams to try and win cups and competitions in an attempt to eventually qualify for the World Cup.

You can even take part in friendly matches along the way. When it comes to playing matches, you can choose which stadium you would like to play in and select your choice of weather condition. For the lazy ones among us, you can also choose to opt out of your next match and the result will automatically be created for you! You can also play up to three consecutive seasons which has not been possible up until now.

The 2002 version of FIFA has the most content ever featured in a football game. There are more leagues and over 450 teams, 125 of which are international. This is the first time that international teams have been included on a FIFA game.

The game is easy (ish!) to play and control if you have had experience of the FIFA series before. There are basic moves which are quite easy to pick up but it is a bit more complicated getting the hang of the combination of buttons for the more advanced gameplay, especially if you are a new player. The manual included with the disc offers good guidelines so dont be put off.

The usual gameplay is involved when it comes to tackling, heading, volleying and aiming your shot but it now has extra features making the matches more realistic and challenging. You can now hear other players actually call for the ball, and you can pass and play the ball into spaces whereas on previous games, it was automatically passed to your nearest player.

Another great new feature on FIFA 200
2 is that you have the ability to do quick one-twos, passing to a player and him passing straight back - ideal for bypassing a defending player!

There is now an extra, previously unavailable, bonus system included in the game. There are five new competitions that you can unlock throughout the game. This occurs as a reward when you qualify for certain cups.

Unlike other versions of the game, you now have the advantage of being able to score from virtually anywhere but it is difficult to score (a lot harder than it used to be!). Unfortunately, the goal celebrations that are shown are not very imaginative.

New customisable features are included where you can actually create and save your own leagues and teams. Before, you could only edit existing players but now, you can also create your own - even down to the colour of their boots!

The graphics are excellent and definately the best on a FIFA soccer so far. The pitch has new texture details but there still isnt much detail in the crowds. The players are very realistic as they now have different facial characteristics and even different body proportions in comparison to each other. The team strips actually show the real-life current sponsors too.

Commentary during matches is provided by Andy Gray and John Motson. This tends to get boring and a bit repetitive as there are only a small selection of key phrases. You can choose to turn this off though which is good.

As I mentioned earlier, the aim of the game is to qualify for the World Cup. Once you have achieved this, it unfortunately doesnt go any further. It would be good if this was developed so that in future releases of the game, we could actually participate in the World Cup competition.

The background music is quite good and has a better selection than some other versions of the game. Tracks included are by artists such as Gorillaz, BT, Schiller and DJ Tiesto (?) to name a few.

There is also a
ccess to an out-takes section where you can view footage of the computer generated players making mistakes Dennis Norden style. Watch players fall and take air-swings at the ball!

As for the price, it is quite expensive. Some packages have this game included when you buy the Playstation 2 console but if you were to buy it brand new, it would set you back approximately £45. A used version is still quite pricey at the moment - around £30, but it only keeps its price because it is such a popular game. I think it is definately worth the money.

I would say that FIFA Football has gradually got better and better over the years. I have played on most (if not all!) of the versions and the 2002 release is without doubt the best one so far. If it continues to improve, just imagine what we have got to look forward to a few years down the line - it will be amazing!!!

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