Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #809 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Electronic Arts
• Released on: 2008-10-03
• ESRB Rating: Rating Pending
• Platform: PLAYSTATION 3
• Dimensions: .29 pounds

Manufacturer's Description
Step onto the pitch and play professional football your way in FIFA 09. Experience the most authentic football simulation EA Sports has delivered as you live the fantasy of playing as a professional player and customise the game to suit your style and ability.

Powered by the third generation of the EA Sports football engine, FIFA 09 features more than 250 core gameplay additions and enhancements that deliver the most responsive, intelligent and realistic action ever for the series. Enjoy turning defenders with more controlled dribbling and ball control, snapping off precision shots with improved first-time shooting mechanics and firing beautifully timed passes with greater accuracy, placing the ball exactly where you want it.

With new player momentum physics the speed and weight of the player determines everything from the distance of a slide tackle and the power of a header to the severity of player collisions and the height of a player's jump. Plus, players now behave according to their physical attributes with larger, stronger players dominating collisions, battles for control of the ball, and position in challenges for two player headers.

Customer Reviews

It was soooooo close to being the ultimate footy game ... but ...
You can always tell what time of year it is. The old PES vs FIFA debate is dragged out of the cupboard for another dusting down ... and this year the hype for both games was off the chart !!!

I started off being a FIFA fan until about 1998 when I started to lean towards ISS then PRO EVO. I hadn't looked back since. Until now that is. After purchasing a copy of PES 2009 and being massively dissapointed by how poor it was I returned it and decided to get my first FIFA game in a decade.

When you initally load FIFA you are instantly hit with how professional the game looks. No dodgy music, cheap imitation teams and players and no feeling of anything other than license heaven.
The novelty effect continues when you load up a game with your favourite team and watch the great opening graphics sequence lead to a very impressive match engine. The physics and detail in the player and stadiums are wonderful. You feel as close to the real thing graphically as possible.
With the inclusion of a new Be a Pro mode allowing you to create yourself and have a 4 year career .. along with every playable league and online mode you could want you would think this game is tops. Unfortunately after playing for a while you begin to touch upon a few annoyances ... that become frustrations ... that becomes enough to curtail your enjoyment. Then you realise why many previous reviewers didn't give it the BIG thumbs up ...

Firstly - it seems as though the reflexes of the players you control are so sluggish. Youtry to trap the ball - turn and shimmy past the defender with wayne rooney and all that happens is you trap the ball - turn and get tackled. It doesnt matter which player you go. Sometimes when you play a clinical through ball you player slowly jogs a step or two rather than sprint at full pelt as per your commands. No matter how hard i have practised i can seem to be as good as the computer at dribbling etc. Its not a case of me not being good enough - other reviewers have touched on this.

Secondly - how hard is it to beat the goalies??? its darn hard. Try unleashing a series of raspers from inside the box and you will see what I men ( and thats even against the weaker goalies ).

Next is the lag in the controls. I have lost count of how many times Berbatov has pointed to where he wants the ball to be played but ends up offside cos it takes the computer a few seconds too long to respond to my commands of a thru ball.

Finally - corners and crosses are made pretty much redundant. Try them for yourself and see how many you can land on your own players head and how many are cleared. 99.9% cleared should be the answer.

Ok , ok i know we aren't talking about massive problems on the surface. But try dealing with them every match and it starts to bring the enjoyment of the game down. In comparison to PES this is the biz , but it needs fixing for the next version.

Very slick.
To quote a fellow reviewer 'Real footy fans will buy Pro'. Well after the last dismal installment of ProEvo I think I will be buying Fifa again this year, especially after playing the demo. I always bought ProEvo until last year - but I can happily say Fifa are moving in the right direction at last. the gamplay is very slick, compared to Fifa08 (which is still a great footy game) the ball mechanics and AI have been greatly improved, it feels so polished. I'm not saying we should snub ProEvo again this year, hopefully it will have sorted out the terrible gameplay, bugs and bought at least one more license! However this game has it all - fully licensed teams, players and loads of leagues and online features.

The Greatest Football game Ever made....
... but only if you really like FOOTBALL.

If you are really into your football games, but wouldnt say you really had the patience or passion to learn the tactics of the real game, then dont buy this.

There have been a few negative reviews on Amazon for this game, and they all seem to be complaining about the same thing - fun and frustration. Many people have been saying if they wanted to play football realistically, then they could just go outside. Personally, I cant really understand this criticism as you are never going to be able to play to the level the game allows you to, and i also think that criticising a game for being TOO accurate is just bizarre.

There are negatives to the game. On PS3 the online is a bit hit and miss, sometimes you will go through periods of just being constantly disconnected all the time, but when it works, its great.

The manager mode is also not as good as Pro Evos master league. Dont ask me why, it just doesnt give you that same feeling of building a team that you get from Pro Evo. Thats not to say that its bad though.

The great thing about this game though is that it is just a total replica of the game of football. The movement of your teammates is just out of this world. Its some of the best AI ive ever seen in a game. You can play the game anyway you like. You can play long ball if you want, as long as its the RIGHT ball, but mainly you'll pass it around and thats were the game really shines.

On Pro Evo, if you pass the ball forward then you cant really go backwards again. Your AI teammates just look to run nto the box rather than giving you a number of options like they do in FIFA. In FIFA you can build brilliant moves and score utterly spectacular goals, but its all a case of learning the game, having patience, and understanding how football in real life works.

Most of the criticism that i've read here feels like it has come from one of the many people i've beat online in this game. I dont mean to sound big headed at all, but most people tend to get the ball to their striker as quickly as possible and just run up the pitch and shoot. The guys playing like this are just totally stuck in the past. You may still be able to do that on Pro Evo online, but not in FIFA if you're up against decent opposition.

Its easy to defend against people who are just going to try and run around you all the time, just like it is in real life. the best way to score is to keep possession of the ball, build attacks and allow the AIs movement to create space.

That is the beauty of this game. If you pass the ball and keep it in the opposition half of the field rather than just trying to burst thorugh the defence on your own, then your AI teammates will make intelligent runs behind the defence for you. Thats how I've managed to win quite a few games online. Its just patience.

So overall, this is the greatest football simulation ever in my book. If you have an open mind about games and want to actually learn how the mechanics work, then you will get a lot out of it. Its a fantastic game, one of the best of last year and I couldnt recommend it highly enough.