FIFA Soccer 09 Hands-on Previews (IGN, Gamespot)

[Steve_OS]

The following sites have posted their FIFA Soccer 09 hands-on previews:

• IGN
  
  

  Quote:

  "The developer on hand setup a match between Chelsea and Arsenal and the action quickly began. I was admittedly rusty, having not laid my hands on a football title since UEFA. I was actually surprised by how different FIFA felt. There's a much larger range of motion, or at least that's the way it felt. I was much less inhibited by things like invisible rails or CPU-forced runs. Even though this has been a focus of FIFA for the last few years, it has clearly seen improvements here with 09."

• Gamespot
  
  

  Quote:

  "Another major addition debuting in FIFA 09 is the introduction of Custom Team Tactics. Essentially a compilation of various sliders dictating AI reactions during build-up play and scoring opportunities, custom team tactics will allow you to augment your team’s strategy around your strengths. The slider menu includes a chalkboard-like diagram showing you how your players will now react based on the settings you choose. Although a powerful tool, the mechanic still works on the basis of risk/reward. For instance, you could increase your team’s aggression slider to relentlessly attack the ball but doing so may place defenders out of position."

[Qb]

From the IGN article:

Quote:

The gameplay felt very tight overall and offered new fully customizable controls and camera angles. Yes, you can now change the height, position and other attributes of the sidelines camera.

Customizable cameras! That's so totally non-heinous, dude!



From Gamespot:

Quote:

One move the offense won’t be able to ride this year is the “through ball from a sideline sprinter” technique; it isn’t nearly as overpowered as it was in FIFA 08. Though the move will still yield goals, defenders are able to disrupt interior passing more effectively making this a riskier move.

Is the phrase in bold referring to 'sprint straight down the touchline & cross into the box every time' method? I have to assume so, as I don't think anyone could say through balls were "overpowered" in 08...

[Vince]

IGN's hands one was preety lame and really didn't say anything new.