Developed by EA Vancouver and EA Bucharest and published by EA Sports, FIFA 19 has officially arrived on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. This year’s edition of the game sees quite a few new additions as well as some well-deserved gameplay tweaks.
Focusing on some of the new features, FIFA finally features the UEFA Championship League, Europa League, and Super Cup. This is a great step forward for the series as it makes the overall experience of FIFA 19 even more authentic than ever. The addition of the Premier League is not just a new coat of paint, but it has been integrated throughout the entire game. The UEFA Champions League mode will allow players to take their club to glory from the group stages to the epic finale taking place at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid. In addition to this, it will also form part of the narrative for the game’s career mode “The Journey.”
FIFA’s story-based mode, The Journey, also sees a number of new additions. This time around, we see Alex Hunter’s journey come to an end as he signs with Real Madrid as Cristiano Ronaldo leaves for Juventus. We also see two new characters come in which include the likes of Danny Williams who competing for the Champions League as well as Hunter’s half-sister, Kim Hunter, who is attempting to compete for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
This year, I personally enjoyed The Journey’s 14-16 hour campaign. Not only was it engaging and entertaining, but it could also be played as a single interwoven story or be split into three separate experiences in order to cater to the player’s preferences.
Ultimate Team has made a return; however, it feels pretty much the same as last year. It does have a new addition, which comes in the form of Division Rivals. Division Rivals is a mode that allows you to compete against other players for weekly rewards.
When it comes to gameplay, FIFA 19 has seen a number of improvements. Ball control feels a lot more precise this time around when running with the ball. Passing the ball to fellow players is also more precise and finally tuned. These finely tuned mechanics can also be seen when attempting to score a goal. Players can now power up their shot with the shoot button as well as press it a second time to make said shot more precise. This is a fantastic addition; however, it does make scoring a bit of a hit or miss situation as the ball can rocket into the goal if timed correctly, but also potentially shoot off into the crowd if your timing is a tad bit off.
Pacing has also seen some balancing… faster players will now need to stay on their toes as their opponents will steadily catch up with them while they are sprinting toward the goal. This essentially forces players to use the space they have wisely as scoring has now become a fair bit trickier due to the faster players on the field. This adds in a fair amount of authenticity, which ultimately makes the beautiful game even more exciting.
Apart from gameplay tweaks, which there is a plethora of, FIFA 19 is also a visually impressive game – especially when played on the PlayStation 4 Pro. Not only do the players look fantastic, but if you look closely you can see tiny beads of sweat on them. To add to the visuals, the stadiums are absolutely gorgeous and the crowds look better than before. Speaking of stadiums, the design team even went as far as including Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium before construction had even been finalised on its real-world counterpart.
Conclusion:
FIFA 19’s new tweaks and additions have definitely made an impact this year. Ball control is far better and so is player control. While the graphics have not entirely been overhauled, FIFA 19 does look a fair bit better than FIFA 18. To add to things, the addition of the UEFA Championship League is a big win for the FIFA series.
Overall, FIFA 19 is a must buy for anyone looking to play one of the most authentic football titles around.
By Darryl Linington
Follow @DarrylLinington on Twitter
Follow @ITNewsAfrica.com on Twitter
