Just got FIFA 2003!

Post by **Jared** » Sat Oct 12, 2002 4:02 pm

Hey,
 
 We just received FIFA 2003 (final beta) from EA Sports. It´s gonna take me a few days before I can post some hands-on impressions on the game. In the meantime, feel free to send me questions....as I play the game, I´ll see if I can answer them.
 
 Jared

Cincinnati_Kid · Post by **Cincinnati_Kid** » Sun Oct 13, 2002 1:54 am

well....how different is it ?? what would be the biggest changes.......
 
 thanks jared any info appreciated

FloridaGators · Post by **FloridaGators** » Sun Oct 13, 2002 5:46 pm

How are the ball physics and the player models? Do the balls still wiz at 100 mph at the goal?

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Sun Oct 13, 2002 8:30 pm

Jared:
 
 Two questions:
 
 1. Any more cards than in past years? You nearly had to commit felony assault to get a card in previous FIFA editions.
 
 2. Is there more possession play in midfield? The one movie I watched of this game scared me because it showed the same old sh*t -- a midfielder gaining possession of the ball at midfield and sprinting to the top of a box untouched for a shot. No passes, just turbo running.
 
 Take care,
 PK

Post by **Jared** » Mon Oct 14, 2002 5:55 pm

Just to let y´all know...
 
 Real life has taken over, and I haven´t had a chance to play enough to answer these questions. However, I should get to them in the next day or so. In the meantime...
 
 Cincinatti,
 
 Biggest changes is the ball physics. The fact that the ball isn´t attached to the player makes gameplay a very different story...ball control is really important. Kind of like the WE/PES series, though the emphasis on dribbling isn´t as strong.
 
 Florida Gators,
 
 Ball physics are very good. No more balls hanging in the air or breaking the laws of physics. Some shots are pretty fast, but not nearly as fast as in previous versions of FIFA.
 
 PK,
 
 Haven´t played enough to answer regarding cards. I don´t know of the movie you speak of, but it´s pretty tough to do that. Maybe that movie was taken at beginner level?
 
 Let me know if you have any other questions.
 I´ll try to give some better answers the more I play.
 
 Jared

Cincinnati_Kid · Post by **Cincinnati_Kid** » Mon Oct 14, 2002 6:15 pm

thanks jared...by the way its just cincy <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_wink.gif">

Post by **Jared** » Wed Oct 16, 2002 4:02 pm

Sorry Cincy. <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_smile.gif">
 
 Here´s some more in-depth answers.
 
 The biggest thing about FIFA so far is that it´s very deliberate. You can´t just play pinball in simulation mode...passing lanes close up, and most through balls don´t work...you have to be perfect.
 
 Another thing is that there are quite a few little bugs...but this is a beta, so that´s probably to be expected (I hope...though this might be the final beta).
 
 PK,
 
 Not many cards so far...but I don´t play too aggressive. And midfield play...Paul, the ENTIRE GAME is midfield play. Serious...there is NO pinball here. It can get frustrating at times, because you get stuck in the midfield trading possession because of the defense.
 
 Florida,
 
 Ball physics are still great. I like the player models too...no more linebacker models.
 
 Let me know if you have more questions...I´m taking the afternoon off to just play non-stop.
 
 Jared

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Wed Oct 16, 2002 5:16 pm

[ This message was edited by: pk500 on 16-10-2002 20:47 ]

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Fri Oct 18, 2002 2:58 pm

Jared-
 
 pk mentioned he feels there is a lack of bookings in FIFA; I have to say I´ve found something different in past FIFAs. I have noticed a dearth of fouls in previous console FIFAs, with a very high percentage of these infrequent fouls drawing cards. So my question- does this FIFA have a more realistic attitude towards fouls? I mean, it is ridiculous to me that one could go through an entire soccer game with no fouls at all, as seems to happen often whenever I´ve played FIFA in the last few years. I am hopeful that the new ball physics (no more rubber band ball) may allow for more incidental fouls. Also, is fatigue a factor at all in shorter games, or must one play 45min halves for fatigue to have an effect?
 
 Thanks Jared
 
 -I miss Konami; FIFA is all we have. Please may it be good!-

Post by **Jared** » Tue Oct 22, 2002 12:24 pm

Hugo,
 
 Sorry for the delay in responding...it´s mid-term time, so lots of test taking and grading...ugh.
 
 There are more fouls than in previous versions. Cards are very realistics...most of the time, players will get what they deserve. I´m pretty surprised by the card accuracy, actually.
 
 As for fatigue...well, I can´t find fatigue ratings for players during the game. BUT, I do sense a real difference in player speed in the 85th minute compared to the 1st minute. And I´m playing with 6-minute halves.
 
 Jared

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Wed Oct 23, 2002 11:17 am

Jared;
 
 Thanks for the clear and concise answer. I haven´t played a good Konami since ISS ´98 for N64. Do you have Winning Eleven 6 for PS2? How does this FIFA compare in your mind to the Konami experience; that is, should I give in and get a japanese PS2, or is this FIFA going to sate my cravings well enough? I´ve been holding out for 3 years, now, but Konami shows us no love here in the States.

Post by **Jared** » Wed Oct 23, 2002 11:45 am

Instead of getting a Japanese PS2, you can buy WE6 from an import store and use the cog/knife trick and a boot disc to get it to work.
 
 WE6 is worth it. I´ve only played it for a limited amount of time, but it´s definitely worth checking out. Right now I´d say it´s better than FIFA 2003...but FIFA 2003 is definitely worth a look. A major improvement from FIFA 2002.
 
 Jared

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 12:07 pm

Could you expand? My understanding was that I needed a mod chip, and that a lot of modded PS2s simply break down after a while. Folks have told me it´s not worth the risk, and that simply buying a japanese PS2 is the best way to go. I know nothing about this cog/knife trick you´re talking about, and what about a boot disc?
 
 It really makes me crazy that Konami doesn´t give us the goods in these days of the PS2. I have no doubts that Konami soccer blows FIFA out of the water, but this new FIFA seems to be coming closer to ´acceptable´ than any previous effort. If I could play WE6, I mean, what else is worth playing?

Post by **Jared** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 10:37 pm

If you go to www.ps2ownz.com, and look on the sidebar, there´s something called the cog/knife trick. It´s got examples of how to do it.
 
 I´ve done it for imports, and it works well. You need to have a GameShark disc (or ActionReplay2 if you´re in Europe), or a Swap Magic boot disc. I´m not a fan of advocating piracy, but I also think it´s stupid that we can´t play PS2 games from other countries. So try the cog/knife trick. It´s a lot cheaper than buying a Japanese PS2.
 
 And yeah, it´s silly that Konami doesn´t bring this title to the US. I´m gonna try and find out exactly why this is so...it might be communication between Konami Japan and Konami USA....who knows though.

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Fri Oct 25, 2002 12:31 pm

It seems to me, as a simple gamer, that for some reason, Konami USA is committed to releasing atrocious sports games that have no chance of selling. Every game released by Konami USA under the ESPN label proved to be the worst in whatever sport it tried to simulate. And yet, Konami seems to have no interest in publishing their good games (either of their quality soccer franchises, and they must make a good baseball game in Japan, no?) here in the USA. They must want to prove to someone that American gamers won´t buy Konami sports games, and they fulfill their wishes by refusing to release the games that are well made, and foisting second-rate products like MLS Extra Time on us. It would seem to me that it could not be terribly complicated for them to elease WE6 here, but maybe there are licensing issues I don´t know about. But hey, I didn´t mind so much in ISS64 that the names were fake; the players were so well designed that I could recognize who they were supposed to be! I just wish someone would knock some sense into them!

Post by **Jared** » Fri Oct 25, 2002 1:20 pm

I haven´t played any Japanese Konami baseball games...there was a baseball game I played for the PS2 that was terrible...can´t remember the developer. Conversely, there´s a pretty solid Gameboy Advance title that has Japanese baseball teams....it´s pretty solid.
 
 As for Konami, well, who knows. It might be internal politics...porting over WE6 might put the people at Konami-Hawaii out of a job (that´s the studio that does MLS Extratime). I´m really not too sure though...but I wouldn´t be surprised if Konami America and/or Konami Japan just don´t know what kind of demand there would be for an excellent soccer game in the States.
 
 I might do some research on this and write up a piece later, if I have any spare time.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Fri Oct 25, 2002 1:33 pm

Hugo:
 
 Konami has one screwed-up marketing philosophy in the U.S., but your analysis is a bit harsh, man.
 
 The ISS and MLS ExtraTime series for the PSX and PS2 were light years better than any FIFA edition. They also were better than the decent World Tour Soccer 2002 for the PS2 by 989 Sports.
 
 Take care,
 PK

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Tue Oct 29, 2002 2:57 pm

pk;
 
 The only reason I´m being (admitedly) overly harsh is that I´m so very frustrated with Konami. To this day, ISS64 (maybe even ISS98 for N64) remain the most fun, most realistic, most intuitive, most satisfying soccer games (indeed sports games) I´ve played. What frustrates me is that in the new generation of consoles, Konami has stuck us with the decidedly second-rate Hawaii-developed MLS Extra Time instead of the superb (by all accounts) WE or ISS Pro series updates that they release in Asia and Europe. Yes, Extra Time is uniquley Konami (=good), as opposed to FIFA, but the lack of analog control (8 directions?) is just the beginning, IMO, of the many shortcomings of that title. Obviously, it was better than FIFA, that´s a no-brainer! I´m just so frustrated because I have been anticipating the newest update of ISS 64 on any and all of the new consoles (I don´t own Xbox) since their debuts, and Konami has fumbled the ball. (Or should I say knocked it into their own goal.) And to my mind, there is no tenable argument they could make to excuse their decisions. Perhaps the licensing issues are a major reason for their strategy. Beyond that, what reason could there possilby be?