2006 FIFA World Cup Review (no fat)

Game Description

The FIFA series from the EA Sports division, has become, in a way, the de facto football simulator that every other game is being compared to. Some, Pro Evolution fans included, might argue that this shouldn't be the case and that this game isn't the best simulator out there, or the most original, but the fact remains that EA's FIFA series has constantly been in the spotlight. But how much novelty can EA bring with 2006 FIFA World Cup in only a few months since the last FIFA release? Is this game really worth buying? Let's try to find an answer to all that.

2006 FIFA World Cup Gameplay:

There are a few elements that keep the FIFA series from bringing a great deal of innovation into the gameplay. Firstly, of course is that Electronic Arts keeps pushing to sell more copies of this series' titles that anyone would consider possible. With this year's World Cup and just 6 months in between releases it's really hard to do a great job at changing the gameplay for 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Secondly, FIFA has always been a nearly-arcade football simulator, and despite some recent attempts to closely begin to match rival Pro Evolution, FIFA remains a game for the casual football sim player.

The game's controls are quite good, the players, and especially their movements feel quite realistic, but of course this is not something new, as FIFA's engine has been doing this since around FIFA 2003. The menus are excellent as well, though things aren't without flaw.

The game modes are the standard ones for any member of the FIFA series that comes out before a World Cup. You can take a national team and go through the qualifiers, or just jump in straight to the big event itself.

However, there is something new to this game, in the form of the Global Challenges mode. If you've played Madden (or some other EA titles) you'll find this quite familiar. This game mode throws you in a tough spot, for example having to score, one, two or three goals with just 30 minutes to go into the match and so on.

While there's only a single difficulty level in this mode, it's not for beginners, and will give those with some FIFA experience quite a challenge on their hands

2006 FIFA World Cup Graphics:

FIFA is probably amongst the most visually satisfying sport simulators, and this member of the series doesn't turn its fans down. However, its predecessor, Road to World Cup, had some problems, because of attempting to do too much visually, and as the developers decided to take out some effects for a better gameplay you won't see as much as you'd expected if you've played RTWC.

The graphics engine still has a few glitches, but the players look quite better and most importantly, the stadiums look fantastic. Save for the grass which doesn't look nearly as well as it did in RTWC, the stadiums themselves just shine and really make you feel as if you were there, at the event.

2006 FIFA World Cup Sounds

Sound has always been something the FIFA series has been very good at and now it's better then ever. Provided that you have some decent speakers the roar of the crowd will sweep you off your feet. The commentary is quite good as well, though there still are some small glitches with this.

2006 FIFA World Cup Multiplayer

Not much can be said about the multiplayer component of this game, mostly because it hasn't been that easy to review. The online games are choppy at best, full of lag, and most of the time you won't be able to complete the game you start.

However, the game isn't bad at all for some local multiplayer, but if you're the online kind of person (and one must admit playing online is one of FIFA's most appreciated aspects) you’ll be disappointed with what this release has to offer.

2006 FIFA World Cup - Overall Impression

All in all, 2006 FIFA World Cup isn't that impressive a game. If you're a series fan, you'll find some appreciation for this one, but there's not much innovation to be seen in this game. The FIFA series would be better off if the game would just get an early patch with all the new players and other patches when EA decides to fix certain bugs that drive us all berserk.

Not many can appreciate EA's strategy of selling off a series of small patches to a game as an entirely different game in itself, but 2006 FIFA World Cup isn't without it's good point either. However, as is usual with this series, in a short time you'll be waiting to see what FIFA 2007 will look like.

2006 FIFA World Cup Pricing

2006 FIFA World Cup can be purchased at a price of $39.99