By Simon Wright – Follow
me on Twitter @Siwri88
Football has
become one of the most popular simulations available for video game
addicts. There have been a range of
different titles over the years, and in a new regular series for Simon’s
Football Zone, I will be reviewing some of these games. They will range from excellent playable
games, to titles that were probably best being left on the shelf.
It is 20
years since the FIFA series started and I’ve been lucky enough to own all but
one title at some point during my life.
Next up on The Computer Chain is the start of the new century with the
launch of FIFA 2000. Unfortunately it
wasn’t one of EA’s better editions.
FIFA 2000
Released: 26 October 1999
Systems: PlayStation, Microsoft Windows
98/2000, Game Boy Colour
Cover Stars: Sol Campbell
Following the
general success of FIFA Road to World Cup 98 and FIFA 99, there was a chance
for FIFA 2000 to follow in the footsteps of these titles. It didn’t quite meet the expectations
however.
The intro to
the game is excellent. With the
soundtrack by Robbie Williams, titled ‘It’s Only Us,’ it shows a classic team
looking stunned at the emergence of the new talent in a brand new
millennium. As far as I was concerned,
it was the best part of the entire game.
I had it for PlayStation and felt totally letdown by it. My only other memory was scoring from the
halfway line with Stephane Henchoz of all players against Manchester United at
Old Trafford! I don’t quite know how
this happened and it probably meant there were plenty of glitches in the engine
of the game.
There were
more national leagues included this time around. Israel, Norway and Greece are among the six
new divisions added. The bland and
fictitious American league of previous is replaced by the modern and licensed
version, so FIFA 2000 does mark the debut of the MLS.
Sol Campbell,
then a defender for Tottenham Hotspur performs motion capture duties for EA
Sports, and is the cover face (pictured) on the game.
There are 40 licensed international sides along with fully integrated
seasons for the first time, the ability to shield the ball in possession and
tougher and frankly dreadful tackling that not only sees players sent off so
frequently, but would make Benjamin Massing’s crude tackle on Claudio Caniggia
during the 1990 World Cup look world class.
While the new
features on the game did add to the appeal, FIFA 2000 was letdown by the
graphics and the gameplay, both having taken a significant step back from the
1999 version. The creators decided to
introduce the fairly ugly icon passing in set-piece situations. So whenever your side took a corner or
free-kick, you’d get three icons appear over players for where you wanted the
ball to be directed. While this was a
useful tool for beginners starting out, it was annoying for seasoned FIFA
campaigners like me to have this. Since
when do you want a footballer with a big pink square (referring to the
PlayStation buttons) over the top of their head!
Another major
criticism was the vast differences in skill level. The professional level on the game is harder
than FIFA 99, but the amateur game is so basic and depressing to play. Okay, if you want to score 70 goals for fun
in a football match, enjoy playing this mode but playing amateur regularly
feels like a kick in the groin muscles.
It becomes so easy and embarrassing; you would have more chance of
forming a successful barbershop quartet than losing a football match on amateur
mode.
FIFA 2000 was
one of those games where certain aspects were an improvement but too many steps
were taken back on crucial areas such as the gameplay and graphics. EA were busy in 2000, producing games for
many different sports including basketball, ice hockey and Formula One and
perhaps took their eye off the ball with this version of the football franchise.
Next time is
FIFA 2001, the only FIFA game I never ever played.
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