Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #808 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Electronic Arts
• Released on: 2007-09-28
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Platform: Xbox 360

Amazon.co.uk Review

The greatest battle of the new football season is not between any real world club but between the virtual giants of FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer. Konami’s game has always been the favourite but last year FIFA closed the gap to such a degree that the title race has never been closer. This year’s FIFA uses a completely new game engine, for the first time built specifically for the next gen consoles. But improved graphics and animation are only the half of it, with just as much focus going on the artificial intelligence thanks to the new "35 point decision engine". What this basically means is that every player on the pitch is fully aware of those around him and constantly thinking about tactics and position when not under your control.

Other changes include better modelled physics for taking a shot on goal, which take into account everything from air pressure to the angle of your foot. You’re also able to create your own special moves to replicate every possible trick from real life. There are also new game modes including Be A Pro which challenges you to play the role of a single player through a whole season or career. On top of this there are revamped online leagues to play a virtual season in the Premier League, Bundesliga, French League or Mexican 1st Division against real opponents. With 620 licensed teams, 30 offline leagues and 15,000 players as well FIFA might just have made enough new signings this year to put it over the top.

Manufacturer's Description
FIFA 08 challenges players to master the skills required to play like a professional soccer player. Fans around the world can experience the same highs and lows of real-world players and tackle the challenges they face on a daily basis.

The FIFA Soccer 08 next-gen gameplay engine, built to maximize the power of the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system and the PLAYSTATION 3 computer and entertainment system, delivers animations and ball control that is so responsive you feel like you are actually on the pitch. Players are now aware of their surroundings, reacting authentically to threats and opportunities to make intelligent decisions.

Now with the FIFA 08 shooting system you can enjoy even more control and precision in front of the goal to become a true marksman.

For the first time ever, fans playing FIFA 08 will face the pressure to improve their game that real-world players endure every day. A new play mode called Be A Pro locks you in the role of a single player and challenges you to master the same disciplines as a real professional player--from positioning and tackling to reading the field and passing.

FIFA 08 now gives every football fan the chance to perform pro skills with a true next-generation organic ‘building-block’ system. You can combine tricks and skill moves together to recreate signature moves from the real-world superstars or define your own style of play. You can even capture video of your best moves and goals in-game and upload to the FIFA 08 website to show off your style and celebrate your glory with friends across the globe.

The award-winning Interactive Leagues debuts on the Xbox 360 and the PLAYSTATION 3 as part of the deepest online feature set to date. Represent your club online (Internet connection required for online play) against your rivals throughout the season in the F.A. Premier League, Bundesliga, French League or Mexican 1st Division. When they play, you play. Plus, create and organise your own multiplayer Friends Leagues and tournaments with all the tools in-game.

In addition, FIFA 08 is dramatically more real and exhilarating with the inclusion of 620 licenced teams, 30 official leagues, and more than 15,000 players

Customer Reviews

Better than Pro Ev believe it or not!
I have always been a Pro Ev guy, way back to the days when it wasn't even called Pro Ev! I had always preferred the playing system, gameplay and basically everything about it compared to Fifa. I always felt that Fifa was a stilted game which did not allow any fluency or imagination whatsoever. Basically, i thought that if you understood football you would prefer Pro Ev.

I recently purchased the new Pro Ev and as usual noticed a few changes here and there but nothing groundbreaking. The game seems to have got slower as each new version arrives. I then read the reviews on Fifa 08 and when i noticed the price i thought why not?

I have been very impressed. This is the closest you can get to real football on a video game in my opinion. The speed is perfect. The players play exactly like they do in real life. Ronaldo runs like Ronaldo, Scholes scores from the edge of the box but can't tackle and Tevez bullies every defender he comes across. The passing is great with emphasis on build up play interspersed with flashes of imagination that create openings. The shooting system is intuitive and lifelike and the whole game looks brilliant.

On line the game comes into its own. Playing other people who make the same errors as you really opens the game up and makes it great fun. At times when playing the computer, chances can be few and far between. If you want an arcade like football experience then don't buy this.

If you think you prefer Pro Ev but haven't played a Fifa in a while then my advice is get this, you won't be disapointed.

Why it's now better than Pro Evo
Fifa 08 is a great game, much better on 360/ps3 than ps2. Amazing graphics, great gameplay as they made it a lot faster than last year where they were critised for slow gameplay esp passing, and those of you who played fifa 07 will know that the ball moved a lot in the air, on crosses and freekicks, unrealistically so, as if every player in the game was Ronaldo. This has been changed, so that freekicks are a lot more difficult to score, there is no 100% success formula, and the ball moves very little in the air, only ever curling slightly. The best bits are how realistic the game is; it's hard to score goals, and 3 or 4 in a game is rare. Also that the keepers are very good. You also cannot jsut run at defenders and slightly move the analog stick to brush them aside, you WILL get tackled, esp against the comp. Dribbling is difficult, but effective when you get it right, and only the very good dribblers can actually do tricks, e.g ronaldo, ronaldinho, messi...
Also people say that on Fifa you can't see the referee on the pitch, WHO CARES????

The most annoying game i've ever played!
OK, Fifa '08. I had been looking forward to this game ever since id got bored of Fifa '07. I couldn't wait for it. All the hype about intelligent AI and glorious goals blah blah blah.

but, im disappointed and ill tell you why.... this game is so annoying! To mention just a few, the commentary is repetative, stupid and doesn't even follow the game Here's an example... You'll be running down the wing with C.Ronaldo and you whip in a cross, he slices it and it goes out over the bar. The commentator will be like "Oh and that shot goes just over the bar". Can't the game tell i pressed cross rather than shot? It doesn't sound bad but trust me after 30+ games its annoying and thats not the only stupid thing the commentators say, you'll notice dozens!

Another annoyance is the heading of the ball. Its ridiculously hard. I mean im not a moron who hasn't ever played Fifa, ive loved Fifa since Fifa 2000 so i know how to play it and if i say so myself ive always been pretty good at it but every team you play are masters at heading. You win maybe 1 out of 10 headers and that 1 usually goes wide or over. Ive tried timing and jostling and pressing different buttons but its just so annoying! You'll have your man in the perfect position to head for goal but you get out jumped or head wide all the time. Ive even had 5foot Theo Walcott out jumping 6foot2 Rio Ferdinand, its stupid!

One more is the so-called "Intelligent AI" Ive seen 2 month old rats with more Intelligence than the AI in Fifa! Ive lost so many games because of the goalkeepers, the opposition will play a through ball into the box, it will be a 70-30 ball in favour of the keeper but he moves so slow that the striker almost always gets there first and scores. Your supposed to use the Y button to bring him out but the Y button is also the through ball button so when you bring the keeper out by holding Y a defender will come running in to try a through ball! Because of the keeper's slowness the defender always gets there first and through balls it to the opposition or out for a corner.... whos idea was it to have 'keeper rush out' and 'through ball' on the same button!? The list of annoyances could go on and on.

In the interest of fairness im not going to just point out the bad bits, there are good bits too! The graphics and ball physics are brilliant, you never see a replay where the ball goes through a players leg or bounces off the bar whilst being half an inch from touching the bar! Although the players do all look like something from "The Hills Have Eyes" They do have a slight resemblence but they just look abit deformed! Another good point is the free kicks. Hard to get the hang of but it is possible to do so (unlike the headers) and you can score some good goals. Speaking of scoring, that is probably the best bit about the game. When you score you get the sense of hard work paying off, you feel like you actually acheived it and nearly every goal ive scored has been followed by a "YES, GET IN!"

So its not all doom and gloom for this game but there are more bad points than good. The trick stick thing, good idea but it doesn't work in game. The one on with the keeper loading screen is good for practising tricks but when your actually in the game you have a different view so the trick you practised up,down,down for, will when in game this become right,left,left, too confusing. You could change the in game view to Pro camera but then that takes away the fun of Be A Pro mode because in affect your already playing Be A Pro because of the camera view! By the way, another annoyance is the fact that the power bar on the loading screen thing is different from the in game one so practising free kicks is pointless because you have no sense of where to stop the power when in game!

Now onto the controls. They're ok, few bad points but overall they're fine. To pass to the second man away from you, you have to hold the pass button just a bit longer than usual but there isn't a definate guideline so sometimes you'll lose the ball by passing to the second man when you wanted to pass to the first man. Also the anolog stick isn't sensitive enough. You have the ball in the keepers hands and you want to throw it to the left/right back but if you don't aim in almost the exact direction he will throw it to a central defender who is marked, he'll lose the ball and your opponent scores! So the controls need a bit of a tweak but other things like lobbed through ball and finesse shot work fine.

To summarise... Fifa '08 is an OK game, ive played over 100 games so far so it is slightly addicting although i have turned off the console half way through 2/3 of those 100 games because its so annoying. If you really want to buy it then buy it, you'll have it on eBay along with mine in a matter of weeks. Myself, i wish i'd have not wasted my money and waited until Fifa '09 to see if EA can iron out the creases!

Thanks for reading, i hope this review was useful to you (even if it took you 3 hours to read!)