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EA to end FIFA series


Mudface
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Welcome to EA Sports FC, the new name for EA's annual gambling-sim-masquerading-as-a-football-game.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/games/2022/may/10/electronic-arts-ditches-fifa-ea-sports-fc

 



Electronic Arts to stop making Fifa
Publisher has revealed EA Sports FC as the new brand for its bestselling series and promises innovations

EA Sports FC will be the new name of Electronic Arts’ football simulations, while Fifa promises that its brand will continue with new game publishers

Electronic Arts has announced that it will cease making Fifa-branded football games next year. From 2023, the series will continue under a new brand, EA Sports FC.

In a press release on the decision, EA stated that licensing deals remain in place with 19,000 players, 700 teams, and more than 30 leagues from around the world, as well as with UEFA, which means the Champions League will still be a part of the game, although the World Cup will not.

The Fifa titles have been an annual fixture in game charts since the release of 1993’s Fifa International Soccer on the Sega Mega Drive. Since then the titles have sold more than 325m copies around the world, dominating the football simulation market and seeing off competitors such as Actua Soccer and Pro Evolution Soccer.

The possibility of a split between Electronic Arts and Fifa was first reported by the New York Times last October when it was claimed that Fifa was looking to double its licensing fee to $1bn.

Speaking to the BBC, David Jackson, vice president of EA Sports said that the publisher has plans to extend the game beyond interactive matches, but that the licensing restrictions imposed by Fifa were prohibitive.

“At the moment, we engage in play as a primary form of interactive experience. Soon, watching and creating content are going to be equally as important for fans,” said Jackson.

“Under the licensing conventions that we had agreed with Fifa 10 years ago, there were some restrictions that weren’t going to allow us to be able to build those experiences for players.”

It’s likely that Electronic Arts will look to capitalise on the massive success of ‘live service’ games such as Fortnite and its own Apex Legends, where annual release schedules have been replaced by an evolving experience with seasonal subscription fees, live events and greater player customisation options. Watching live matches and esports competitions could also be part of the new series.

Electronic Arts has attracted criticism for the ‘loot box’-style monetisation of its popular Ultimate Team mode, in which fans pay for randomised digital packets of players with which to build their own superstar sides. In 2018, Belgian effectively banned loot box mechanics in games when they were classified as unregulated gambling. Governments around the world have since looked into tightening regulations.

For its part, Fifa has confirmed a new non-exclusive model for the future of the Fifa game titles. In a press release sent out two hours after EA’s, the football governing body stated, “a number of new non-simulation games are already under production and will launch during the third quarter of this year”.

Fifa did not share details on which games publishers it is working with. However, in a combative statement Fifa president Gianni Infantino said, “I can assure you that the only authentic, real game that has the Fifa name will be the best one available for gamers and football fans. The Fifa name is the only global, original title. Fifa 23, Fifa 24, Fifa 25 and Fifa 26, and so on - the constant is the Fifa name and it will remain forever and remain THE BEST”.

EA has not disclosed details on the plan for monetising its future football games, but industry watchers will be interested to see if it rolls back on its profitable Ultimate Team model. Fans will also await more solid information on EA’s promises to introduce fresh modes and innovate in new areas such as the women’s game and grassroots football.

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I hadn't played a version of FIFA since 2015 until they added 2022 for PS5 to PS+ this month.

 

Basic game mechanics seem totally unchanged, the career mode is basically broken if you do the player version, I created an attacking central midfielder and the managers keep playing me at centre back, which is a really common issue and has been for a few years at least. 

 

Ultimate Team seems to be even worse, you can't sell players from packs you win and the price of packs is a total piss take. They also appear to have removed the ability to just do the league format you had to do previously, so your options are a small quantity of game modes against AI which payout fuck all, or to get absolutely slaughtered by a 12 year old who has loads of team of the season or icon type players who absolutely tear your shit team of bronze and silver players apart. It's clearly designed to drive you to paying for points it's crazy.  

 

Sensible and in particular Sensible World of Soccer are still by far and away the best football games ever released, simple, fun, easy to play but hard to be really good at. 

 

I'd also put the seemingly totally overlooked by anyone other than me, Microprose Soccer, which was also made by Sensible Software, as being way above the EA games as well. 

 

TLDR: What @cloggypop said but with additional moaning about EA being cunts. 

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1 hour ago, Elite said:

I'm crying out for a football game since PES died on its arse. Never been a fan of FIFA games, shite.

I always enjoyed PES more, although I've not played either game for a number of years. I liked how great players in real life were actually great in PES too. Messi for example could run rings around everyone in PES. In FIFA, he's barely any different to anyone else. At least that was my last experience with either game.

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7 hours ago, Baltar said:

I always enjoyed PES more, although I've not played either game for a number of years. I liked how great players in real life were actually great in PES too. Messi for example could run rings around everyone in PES. In FIFA, he's barely any different to anyone else. At least that was my last experience with either game.

PES is a complete shitshow these days, as is Konami in general.

 

 

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FIFA have stated they have a number of titles in development to help push the FIFA brand, including games to tie in with the World Cup and Women's World Cup. I can imagine new football titles being a complete shit show like the old days of games like Gazza's Football and Microsoft Soccer. There were so many bad football games that just released at the same as time as tournaments.

 

Match Day, Sensible Soccer and Kick Off were the daddies.

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  • 3 weeks later...
33 minutes ago, Aventus said:

Any news on if FIFA will be releasing their own game without EA? 

They've said they are going to release games to tie in with their own events, so Women's World Cup, Men's World Cup etc. I saw they will give contracts to multiple publishers etc depending on the title.

 

Edit: just seen that FIFA 23 could be the last EA/FIFA game rather than FIFA 22.

 

FIFA 23 release date | EA Sports FC rebrand, free-to-play & crossplay | Radio Times

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Not played fifa in a few years 

Trying to play 22 on career mode. Jesus it's shite. Won't let me play any line up in preseason, just keeps making me auto fix the problem and plating with a team with half the team fitness fucked. Much like rockstar they should just tell you straight we only give a fuck about rinsing people's wallets for online play. 

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20 minutes ago, Lee909 said:

Not played fifa in a few years 

Trying to play 22 on career mode. Jesus it's shite. Won't let me play any line up in preseason, just keeps making me auto fix the problem and plating with a team with half the team fitness fucked. Much like rockstar they should just tell you straight we only give a fuck about rinsing people's wallets for online play. 

My nephew has spent a couple of hundred quid on this version over the year. Suffice to say my brother isn't best pleased and won't be buying another version of it. 

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On 20/06/2022 at 21:45, Carvalho Diablo said:

PES' forebear ISS was the greatest footy game ever.

I wonder if Konami might get an EA licence...

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