FIFA 15
Though console games of 2014 now belong to the previous geological age, they are still of some interest, especially for those stuck to old consoles. FIFA 15 is a 2014 installment of the licensed FIFA series that lets you play real teams and feel like a real coach or manager.
Graphics: 3
The PS3 version of FIFA 15 utilizes Impact Engine, while for PS4 it’s been reworked on newer Ignite engine. In fact, it makes them two different games, so we focus on Impact version for old consoles. And it looks poor in the competition.
Anything you see on the field is rather schematic; players move too tightly, strained, like they’re short of moves. In fact, they are, due to limited performance and high requirements. The field is full of moving players with AI behind most of them; the camera moves to keep an eye on the one with the ball; the audience also reacts, and the sportscaster is always commenting on what’s going on. If your TV is HD, that looks good. On Full HD or higher resolution, the experience is much poorer, even if you set the output resolution to Full HD.
In off-the-field moments it doesn’t show so. The menus look quite decent, and video inserts too.
Gameplay: 4.5
Traditionally, you can select any of the FIFA teams to play through the season. There’s more to each team than just name and appearance (though these are licensed).
There are slight changes in on-field parts. The goalkeeper AI is reworked, so virtual goalkeepers got smarter. Ball movement physics is also improved. Almost every aspect of the match has been reworked a little – but too little to notice each separately.
There are 5 levels of difficulty while playing against an AI. You can try them one by one until you find yours.
The modes include FIFA Ultimate Team (a kind of card game where you collect your favorite players and combine them into your Dream Team), Career Mode, Tournament Mode, Online Seasons, Online Friendlies, and so on. To master the game, it’s better to start with Skill Games, a training mode for mastering basic skills.
Controls: 4
DUALSHOCK 3 is a default controller with default options; so if you’re used to it, you’ll make it out mostly on your intuition. The developers introduced no revolution in controls. If you need a complete instruction, you can find it on FifaEncyclopedia.
It won’t be hard to switch to PS4, as the control system is principally the same. That’s the case when you don’t think of controls at all, and that’s praise to the developers.
Replay Value: 3.5
Like in most sporting games, it’s almost absolute. It will take you long to try all the teams or players you’d like to control, to taste all modes, to get fed up by playing PvP online. This mode richness adds, even more, to explore in FIFA 15 that will make it last long after the season. And if you switch to PS4 after playing a lot on PS3, that’s another reason to replay it to feel the difference.
Conclusion
It’s just another soccer game, that’s it. The revolution is delayed until EA Sports doesn’t stick to PS3. But there’s always the level that strong players keep at, and here it is for the developers.
Licensed FIFA content
Many add-ons available
Overall gameplay quality
Various modes may confuse beginners
