FIFA 16

The most challenging FIFA to master in years, if not ever - but that's exactly why you'll be playing it for ten months rather than ten matches. [Dec 2015, p.76]

Progressive and intelligent, FIFA 16 is a much more considered and more precise game than its recent predecessors, and it's an absolute delight to play. [Issue#262, p.60]

FIFA 16 added what it needed to add and refined what it needed to refine. It pinpointed the problems bogging down last year’s entry and fixed them.

FIFA 16 combines some great new features with the wonderful feeling we know as FIFA. Introducing great innovations on the pitch make the gameplay 'almost' perfect.

FIFA 16 is as close to the real game as players will ever get and continuous support in the way of match day updates and Ultimate Team challenges will further cement it as the best football sim on the market.

Some fans will be disappointed with the limited new features that are part of the game, but FIFA 16 is more balanced than its predecessor in terms of gameplay and superior in the graphics department.

While there are some rough edges, FIFA 16 stands out as the best football game in recent memory.

FIFA 16 can be stubborn and stifling, but it feels gloriously new, and having to learn fresh strategies and nuances in a game series like this is an almost-forgotten pleasure.

It’s a worthy step-up from FIFA 15 by fine-tuning small aspects of the game, but not compromising the formula fans have grown to love.

FIFA 16 is better than its predecessor and it's one of the best football simulators in recent years. Improved defense system, truly Next Gen goalkeepers, balanced passes and shots, and brilliant in terms of modes and licenses.

FIFA 16 isn't going to blow you away with any single feature. Instead, it falls back on its strong gameplay to provide a fresh experience.

FIFA 16 is the football simulation of the year and delivers a great complete package of football. You'll have to give it time though, to hone your skills and get better. If you don't, FIFA 16 can get slow, boring and even frustrating, but if you do, you're in for an exciting and deep football experience.

FIFA 16 takes another step towards simulation, with improved mechanics we saw in the last entries of the franchise, stepping aside from continuous counterattacks and giving more importance to the midfield. The addition of female teams results in an all round game for soccer lovers.

FIFA 15 was a huge disappointment for me and instead of playing it for a year (like I used to do with previous renditions) I buried it on the shelf right after I finished a bitter review. FIFA 16 showed up at my door with flowers and we worked things out. Casual gamer may not notice all the tweaks (i.e. more responsive defenders and better AI), but for me they were invaluable as they helped to rebalance the gameplay and made the game enjoyable again. [12/2015, p.50]

It's not just women’s football, FIFA 16 brings subtle gameplay improvements that make this year’s FIFA the best FIFA to date.

This is modern soccer. It might seem boring at the beginning, but it grows into very satisfying and challenging gameplay that offers unforgettable moments in soccer.

It's maddening, beautiful and downright frustrating all in the same utterance; an unpredictable, oftentimes surprising, experience that gives and takes in the same breath. It's more like the sport that it's trying to replicate than ever before and oddly enough that's not always as laudable as one might think. Though not as refined as optimally as one would hope, there is undoubted progress in this year's FIFA.

FIFA 16 is a good football game. That's precisely the problem. FIFA is "just" a good game now, and not the simulation which ruled the football world for years. EA seems to struggle to find how to make his series move forward again.

Beyond the women’s football debut, FIFA 16’s improvements feel like necessary changes after last year’s iteration. A really good FIFA.

For a casual fan of the sport like me, it provides an enjoyable level of challenge and never feels like it is punishing me because I don't know all of the subtle nuances of the sport.

FIFA 16 might take second place to PES 2016 this season, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a great game. EA Sports usually sticks with the “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” but with the soccer genre they have some serious competition.

FIFA 16 is different than FIFA 15. It is neither much better, nor worse. It‘s a slower, more tactical and offers more combination compared to a straightforward gameplay of PES 16. At least, players can choose the style of virtual or real football they prefer.

So, what is the verdict on this year’s FIFA then? It feels like a new game presented in a spruced-up shell taken from the old one.

FIFA 16 is different than the previous year. It´s not worse, it isn’t neither the better. But the game plays much differently and your ranking will depend on whether you like this new style. It is nice that EA is trying to develop its football simulation and doesn´t bring us the same game over and over. [Issue#257]

For better or worse the annual football release from EA retains its high quality standards albeit without any significant effort to surpass those standards. There are some improvements, mostly cosmetic, but not in the direction that the franchise actually needs them.

Overall FIFA 16 is a very good game, and an improvement on last year’s offering

FIFA offers some fresh impulses that could prove fruitful in the years to come. But while presentation is as good as it gets the flow on the pitch suffers.

FIFA 16, as a whole, feels like a new foundation for the series. It takes a little readjustment and not everything is quite in place yet, the lack of tactical difference and the clear scripting are stark in comparison to PES 2016's on-field excellence, but its action feels fresher and built for further improvement. And the work off the pitch remains exceptional.

FIFA 16 is an excellent football game, but while the gameplay tweaks and minor improvements make it the best FIFA yet, the limited scope of new additions and modes make it feel like EA has missed an opportunity to completely establish itself as the king of the football sim.

With so much content on offer, both old and new, alongside its many accessibility options, it's still hard not to recommend FIFA to footy fans of all ages and skill levels.

FIFA 16 is once more a good football game, though unfortunately it hasn't evolved a lot when compared to its predecessor. It's a slower game, filled with small improvements, dragged down by a shameful online multiplayer (FUT) that needs to be fixed sooner rather than later.

FIFA 16 doesn’t introduce a whole lot of interesting new changes, but it’s still an exceptional soccer simulator.

Much like its predecessor, FIFA 16 is likely to be picked up by a brand new audience purely thanks to the fact that professional soccer is growing exponentially in popularity in North America. Thankfully, newcomers and veterans alike will find an excellent game of soccer that yet again takes advantage of the higher processing power of current-gen consoles to deliver an experience more realistic than ever.

FIFA 16 is not a huge step forward for the franchise. The play on the pitch continues to get better and better and the refinements this year are all welcome. I especially was impressed with the overall flow of a match. It continues to get closer to feeling like the real thing while still being one of the most enjoyable sports games on the market.

FIFA 16 is undoubtedly an impressive beast of a game that's stuffed with official leagues and licenses, game modes and other little touches that add flavor to the match day experience.

With its biggest rival matching its dynamism and beating it for fluidity and responsiveness, EA Sports has work to do if FIFA is to regain its title as king of the digital sport.

All solid improvements over an already very good game that fans of the series will no doubt enjoy, but aside from the very generous (and not before time) inclusion of women, this one doesn't offer anything to be blown away by.

The gameplay is more realistic than ever before, because EA finally listened to her community. The soccer feels slower, but winning by understanding how soccer works is finally easier than winning by understanding gameplay. However, the fact that EA still does not have its online features right is a big letdown.

The worst FIFA game for over half a decade, and clearly inferior to PES 2016. And yet it’s still not a bad game in itself, with some welcome new features.

I've consistently defended FIFA as the most well-rounded sports sim. But the series has felt like it's been standing still this generation, and that is felt more acutely than ever in FIFA 16. As always, it has its strengths, and the FUT Draft is a strong addition, but it's not enough to break the feeling of staleness that has descended upon the once undisputed king of sports games.