It has recently been announced that, after nearly 30 years,EA and FIFA are ending their partnership. The breakup had been rumored for months, but many people were still shocked when the news broke as the series has been one of the biggest names in gaming for numerous console generations.
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Although EA’s change toEA Sports FCwill be jarring, many people have actually welcomed the news, as FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) has announced thatFIFAseries will continue, which should provide some much-needed competition to EA following the lacklustereFootballfrom Konami.
EA will presumably want to go out with a bang inFIFA 23to not only give the partnership a worthy send-off but also to ensure its fan base thatEA SportsFCwill be the game to buy next year.
6Performance-Based Progression In Career Mode
One of the reasons why someFIFAfans believe the series' career mode has become less engaging in recent years is due to the removal of performance-based rating progression. In pastFIFAgames, a player’s rating would adjust based on their performances, so if agoalkeeperkept numerous clean sheets or astrikerhad a fantastic goalscoring season, their ratings would increase accordingly. In modern games, however, player progression is largely pre-determined. The players' performances now have very little impact on their ratings, and gamers just need to look online to see what their players' future ratings are.
This is disappointing for many people, as improving player ratings through performances is rewarding and lets gamers build a successful team around their favorite players, while the prospect of having players' ratings drop after spending too long on the bench meant that gamers had to think carefully about leaving unwanted players on the sidelines for too long. Considering that this feature was previously in the series, it presumably wouldn’t be too tricky to get it back.
5Playable Youth Teams
Following on from the previous point, bringing back performance-based ratings could create an interesting opportunity for youth teams.FIFA 22currently keeps its youth development system very simple, as managers assign scouts to countries of their choice and sign players to their youth team, which is little more than a menu where managers just sit and wait to see if theirtalented youngstersreach a high level or not.
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Instead, it would be great if the series introduced playable youth teams. Not only would this give gamers the chance to get a feel for their prospects and whether they would be a good fit tactically, but it would also let them work on improving certain player ratings if the aforementioned performance-based progression feature came into effect. Even if it doesn’t, however, it would still be great to try youth players before signing them to the first team.
4Improved Dialog Options
Consequently, communication with players is more important for managers than ever, as they need to ensure that their players have their heads in the game and are willing to work tirelessly. TheFootball Managerseries has certainly taken note of this and expanded its communication options, as there are now even body language options available to managers to help them get their point across. It’s unrealistic to expectFIFAto reach the player interaction levels ofFootball Managerby the series' next release, though it would be great if the game expanded onFIFA 22’s limited and repetitive dialog options.
3Expanded Transfer And Contract Negotiations
Another aspect of the sport that has become far more complex over the years is transfer and contract negotiations.The world’s richest clubsare now paying over 100m for a single player and negotiating contracts worth over 300k per week, with numerous clauses, bonuses, and payment plans coming into play.
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Therefore, it would be great ifFIFAcould expand upon the game’s current system. EA has put in work to make the transfer and negotiation process look nice with players and managers meeting in offices and restaurants, though the nitty-gritty financial details are what most people really care about.
2Smarter Defensive A.I.
Bad defensive A.I. has been an ever-present issue and source of frustration forFIFAplayers throughout the series' history. Although defensive A.I. has come on leaps and bounds over the last decade, full-backs will still make bizarre positional decisions, and center backs will still have the urge to track runners like they’re glued to them, destroying any semblance of an offside trap.
Simply put, it can ruin someone’s enjoyment when they spend hourscrafting a team and its tactics, only for world-class A.I. defenders to make Sunday league decisions. Improvements to defensive A.I. inFIFA 23could significantly improve the series' gameplay.
1A Mode That Pays Homage To The FIFA-EA Partnership
As mentioned before,EA and FIFA are ending their partnershipafter nearly 30 years of success together. Although many people expect that the newEA Sports FCseries will just pick up where theFIFAfranchise left off, it’s possible that EA will surprise everyone and shake up their tried and tested formula.
Regardless of EA’s future plans, it would be nice if the American company added a mode that paid homage to the near-three decade partnership. There are many ways that EA could go with this, such as a documentary that takes fans behind the scenes or a mode that lets people play some of the oldFIFAgames. Either way, it would be a shame if EA didn’t referenceFIFA 23being the last game that they develop in the series, as although the franchise has been divisive, it has been an important source of entertainment and a social hub for many people around the world.
FIFA 23is currently being developed for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
