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FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup Review
Chris Leyton
12/12/2005
FIFA's next-gen debut is an enjoyable if somewhat unremarkable first offering...
Early adopters to the Xbox 360 haven't got a lot to shout about when it comes to sports titles with the typical focus on US centric events, leaving only EA's FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup as the sole sporting event for those not caught up in basketball, American football and golf.
Thankfully, as with the rest of their titles, EA haven't given us an easy port of the current-gen versions (ala a certain rival publisher), but taken it's time to give something that at least manages to look like a 360 title should. This however has come at a cost; similar to other EA titles FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup may not have the exhaustive supply of content, teams and modes as it's current-gen cousin, focussing purely on the forthcoming World Cup.
Players have to guide their teams through qualifications to the tournament and ultimately lift the coveted trophy. In an attempt to bolster the length of the game the qualification stages also consist of a variety of fictional competitions such as the World Masters, although exactly how Sven's manages to convince the domestic managers that more meaningless internationals is a good thing is beyond me... To continue elaborating the focus of this title towards the European market players can only guide European teams to the World Cup, although a custom tournament mode provides the opportunity to pick the likes of Brazil, Argentina and Japan if you so wish.
Fundamentally the game maintains its ties to the current-gen versions so you'll find this season's so-so close-ball control technique although features such as Team Chemistry have been left by the wayside. There does appear to be a greater degree of freedom and flexibility to the shooting system making it harder then ever to actually score, whilst the ball physics and player animations have also been overhauled resulting in a more believable experience then previous titles in the series. It's not exactly Pro Evo (yet) and there are still occasions when glitches occur during animation transitions - our favourite being the goalie who carries an invisible ball after dropping it in the net - but it does represent a major improvement upon previous games and occasionally creates moment of pure brilliance such as a keeper deftly palming a screamer over the bar.
Although there's still plenty of work for EA to do when it comes to creating believable AI both for your own team-mates and computer opposition, FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup manages to present an enjoyable game of football even if it's not completely authentic just of yet. There's also work for them to do in developing and realising the long ball game as it's still not possible to whip 40-yard screams across the pitch with the type of accuracy you'd hope for, with the lofted high arcs not exactly what you'd wish for when picking up the ball with Beckham on the wing.
One particularly neat introduction is the ability to make substitutions, change tactics and formations on the fly with the d-pad whenever the ball is out of play. Along with such changes comes the appearance of the manager on the touchline; it's a small touch but one that's very welcome as tactical changes should occur instantly rather then going through the process of pausing the screen and accessing the correct menus.
Thankfully EA have certainly taken their time to ensure FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup looks worthy of being on the 360. Player models typically feature a striking resemblance to their real-life counterparts (albeit a tad waxy) although it's slightly disappointing to find generic models used on lesser teams and if anybody can explain what's happened to Ryan Giggs we'd very much like to know. Without a doubt the finest visual aspect are the facial animations when a player scores or is chopped down from behind; although NBA 06 features astounding player models the effect is completely destroyed by the players having facial animations as sophisticated as a shop-front mannequin, FIFA thankfully remedies this! The creators have gone to great lengths to bring the small number of stadiums up to scratch, with 50,000+ unique fans shouting from the stands, individual blades of grass and the coaches pacing up and down the touchlines. The overall effect is impressive however there are a few misgivings when put under close scrutiny; although undeniably impressive and something that helps to build the atmosphere the crowd does look crude in close-up's, whilst the one sequence of animation that governs the entire crowd immediately feels unconvincing. Seeing the individual blades of grass during a close up is what we've wanted from a football game in ages and there's little doubt that FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup does it with style, however occasionally the effect can look a little dodgy with players boots and hands disappearing into the tangled depths completely. Naturally it is the delights of HD that truly bring FIFA to life; the individual strands of woven fabric on a player's shirt or imperfections on their faces;
Typically football games come woefully short of the standard set in US sports titles when it comes to commentary, so it's a little surprising to find EA have actually stretched the barrel when it comes to FIFA 06: Road to the World Cup. Both Clive Tyldesley and Andy Gray provide a good level of banter during the game, commenting on rivalries between teams and describing players in some detail - apparently Ashley Cole has developed his defensive skills along with his ability to attack down the flank, but I remain unconvinced. There's a greater sense of fluidity to the commentary and accuracy to what's manifesting on the pitch, however significant play does reveal repetition after awhile and a number of mistakes such as reporting the wrong scoreline or crediting John Terry with two own-goals when really it was only one.
Xbox Live support features in the game which should help to extend the somewhat questionable depth of the game, however the ranked and unranked 1-vs-1 limit and overall lack of development since FIFA 05 is a disappointment. There's little doubt the online play is sorely needed given the relatively short life-span of the main game modes, however you are left wishing for a little bit more - why can't we have custom tournaments online?
