FIFA Soccer 2005

The player movement is very good, and ball physics are excellent. The game stumbles a little in terms of AI but delivers a sound soccer experience.

And it's not so much the backgrounds or stadiums, which don't get me wrong look great, but the animation of the players. EA Sports has always managed to get the players running, tackling, goalkeeping, and kicking right on the money. Even better than last year's game.

A very solid product overall. The game’s presentation is superb, the gameplay is good and fast-paced, and the game offers much replayability.

By no means a perfect game - however, it's quite addictive and has the best controls for any soccer game so far. [Nov 2004, p.145]

FIFA Football 2005 has more than proved its worth with some lovely new control features that add a lot more subtlety and variety to the gameplay, an extensive and highly involved career mode and those gorgeous graphics.

There's no doubt that this is EA Sports' best soccer game to date on the pitch, but it's really unfortunate that the career mode isn't more user-friendly.

The Franchise mode is extremely satisfying because the long term and short term consequences of your decisions are always going to be on your mind and that only ads to the pressure of winning. FIFA05 is the best version of the series so far.

The game feels a good bit more real as compared to earlier incarnations.

Those who are fans of the FIFA series will not be as disappointed as last year, but may still feel there is something missing that hasn’t been there since the 32-bit era.

The gaping chasm between FIFA and "Winning Eleven" may now be a photo finish. [Dec 2004, p.156]

The sheer range of teams, players and ‘prettiness’ makes this a perfect post pub blast, or one for the younger gamer to get straight into and has a very easy learning curve. The problem with that however is the lack of long term challenge, if even in career mode you’re odds on to score any time. Perhaps that’s the reason why we may just see Fifa 2006 same time, same place next year.

Controls are tighter and provide more control of where the ball and team players can be moved than ever before. Spotty visuals (PS2 version) and a complicated Career mode, however, make FIFA Soccer 2005 a good secondary choice after "Winning Eleven 7."

With depth and style, FIFA continues to deliver the goods. [Nov 2004, p.92]

The addition of the First Touch system makes the gameplay much more fluid, and it encourages you to improvise more often. Armchair managers will love the new career mode, one of the best you'll see this year.

A game of football that is fast and fluid; now that the game uses its own engine and not a modification of the NHL one, it’s fair to say that issues such as stifled player controls and jerky animation transitions are well and truly a thing of the past.

The best FIFA yet shows genius, but lacks the cohesion that separates a great team from a team of great players - and inescapably, it pales next to "PES4." [PSM2]

As good, if not slightly better than all the other FIFAs before it. And as long as this is all anyone asks for, it looks like FIFA will crawl along from year to year knowing that it never has to fully pull it all together. [Nov 2004, p.149]

The new first-touch control, the games biggest innovation for 2005 and the catalyst for this change in attacking emphasis, is brilliant. It’s logical, easy to use, works as it should, looks realistic and can blow a game wide open.

There are very few gripes here and there; camera issues and confusing career for newbies, but this is undoubtedly the best FIFA game in many years and seems ready for taking on "Winning 11" this season.

The graphics and sound are phenomenal as always, but the gameplay is still lacking that killer touch. The gimmicky selling point actually works for once this time, the pace and flow of the game is much faster and there are a number of other funky additions that go a long way on improving the general gameplay.

It’s a good game of soccer and sports a few nice, unique features. However, if you care more about responsive control and a better overall gameplay experience, look next to FIFA on the retail shelf and find your allegiance with "Winning Eleven." It's still the king of the pitch.

You know if you like it already, and you probably know if you're going to buy it already. As for us, we like it, just don't expect us to know where to find it in two weeks' time. [Play UK]

In Premiership terms: FIFA is Manchester United - polished and predictable. "Winning Eleven" plays like Chelsea - maverick with panache and flair. Which would you rather play? [Dec 2004, p.119]

With "Winning Eleven" on the market you just expect more, and you get it. FIFA may have high-priced Premiereship licenses and a killer career mode, but at the end of the day, it’s just not as much fun as the competition.

With its improved control system and animation the FIFA series is heading the right way across the pitch in terms of fluid gameplay, but even with these improvements, it still hasn't caught its greatest rival.