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FIFA 2000
"It really doesn't get much better than this!" Image Loading...
Developer: EA Sports
Distributor: EA
Game Type: Sports
Review Date: Nov 99
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Playability:
 
      While the visual side of the game has been tweaked to perfection there have been few noticeable changes in the gameplay. I suppose the development team didn't think there was much wrong with last years effort. Perhaps they were blinded by sales figures, but I recall a couple of niggles that could easily have been corrected.

Image Loading... Once again the learning curve is too steep. The difference between Amateur and Professional for the CPU controlled team is immense and there should have been an option in between. On the easier setting your side will undoubtedly be winning by four or five goals before half time. Move the skill up a single notch and the high score will probably have been reversed, making it impossible to get back into the game. It's all or nothing. I realize that selecting a more skillful team and adjusting defensive tactics and formation will help to counteract this, but you still get that feeling when the CPU team is going to score on Professional and World Class. It's as if it was programmed to happen and there's not a lot you can do about it... six immaculate passes at lightening pace and then... GOAL!

Image Loading... On the positive side passing to players off screen has now been made easier thanks to a simple color-coded arrow system. When flashing green it means that a gap has been created and the ball is almost guaranteed to reach its target. When yellow the chances of a through ball are 50-50. A red marker means the pass is completely blocked therefore look for alternative options.

There's also a brilliant new system for taking corners and throw-ins. Remember in previous versions when an extending arrow could be pointed, or an individual player could be selected to pass the ball directly towards? Didn't your opponent always rush in to intercept? So much so that any advantage was lost. Now, three players are assigned to the triangle, circle and square buttons. By secretly pressing any one of these your opponent won't know which player is going to receive the ball until it's well on it's way.

Image Loading...As with previous games three IGM tactical selections can be pre-set for each team allowing you to quickly switch from a balanced formation to a more attacking or defensive set-up with a quick tap of the 'select' button without interrupting the flow of the game. FIFA2000 has expanded this feature to include three 'set play' options for corners and free kicks that utilize the three joypad icons mentioned above. The added level of realism in games that this facility adds is immense: Imagine the scene... your taking a corner, but everyone waiting for the ball is standing around like tree-trunks. You tap the 'select' button a couple of times and choose a set-piece. Suddenly all of your players start moving around the in box trying to lose their markers - some rush out of the box only to dart back in just before you take your kick, while others snake around the opposition players looking for a space. You notice one of your team mates (with a 'triangle' icon above his head) running towards the back post unmarked and so you hit the button and watch the ball as it sails over the keepers hands and is hammered into the net with a well placed header from your selected attacker.
 
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