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IGN: What was the thing that you disliked most about last year's game?
Aaron: I was always e-mailing our database manager and saying Adebayor and Fabregas were rated too low! Every time Adebayor scored a goal, I sent him an e-mail with a link to it.
We made a really good game last year, and it's a testament to the game that we've been able to make improvements this year. It's huge for us.
IGN: What do you think is the first new thing long-time players of FIFA are going to notice about FIFA 09?
Aaron: The new front-end flow is the first thing you see! After doing a lot of focus testing on our front-end flow, we got a lot of good feedback and it's more consistent and it's easier to get into the game. Getting into the gameplay itself, the first thing you'll notice is the responsiveness, shooting, passing, trapping, once you've done all that and you're feeling the physical interactions, jostling, you'll feel the momentum that we're working on.
IGN: How does the new trapping system work? How does the system decide how successful a player will be at trapping the ball?
Aaron: We try and make everything attribute-driven. Trapping takes ball control, touch, and other attributes and incorporates all of them into the process. Positional trapping is another feature, which gives the players on the field a better understanding of what's happening and what's the easiest way of bringing the ball into control. The way the player takes the ball is more under control in the first place, and that's supplemented by taking the ball at the right time as opposed to at the first time. When you're swinging the ball around your back four, your old center back would face the ball and trap it, but the new system would have him take it at a 45 degree angle . He won't have to do an enormous turn. That's responsive, and that's huge. Every time there's a pass or a loose ball, there's a trap.
IGN: How have headers been improved?
Aaron: We refined the header system, allowing players the motion and freedom to position themselves. We've improved the visuals so that the jostling and fighting for position looks a lot better, and the context of what happened is a lot better. Two player headers can result in collisions, and players will act accordingly. That's not just a visual outcome, but we're bringing in mass and strength and jumping and heading and other attributes into the equation to find out what the best possible outcome is and who should win the scenario. That's the key thing we've been doing, and then implementing the trapping system alongside. A lot of this is being driven by customizable team tactics. [Peter] Crouch, for example, needs to nod it down to the guys coming alongside him. All these little elements come together to make a more authentic game.
IGN: Is there any concern that, due to the gameplay changes, the best teams in the game will be impossible to beat with lesser teams?
Aaron: We always look for balance in the game. Q&A tests it, animators and engineers test it, all the permutations of player ability test it. What I think is gonna happen is actually the opposite -- in FIFA 08, when we released it, Barcelona was very powerful. Everyone used Barcelona online and deterred people from using their favorite team if it wasn't Man U or Arsenal. Barcelona has all that guys who can dribble, but what we're doing is focusing on the personality traits of all players. Crouch isn't a lesser player to Eto'o, but a different player. That allows you to tailor your attack and your positioning to fit the personnel you have. Barca can be powerful because they have strong, skilled strikers, but if you adjust accordingly, you can compete against those teams and use those strengths that you and your team have. It's not just based on numbers but a lot of things, including your mental abilities.
IGN: What teams do you think are going to be most helped and most harmed by the new gameplay additions?
Aaron: I think the custom team tactics can be the great leveller. Ben Carter, who's behind the CPU side of custom team tactics, he's a QPR [Queens Park Rangers] fan. He always plays with them and is frustrated when I play as Arsenal, but now that he has these tactics, he can change how his team plays and this team will have an opportunity to play. The worst team won't be better than the best team since the attributes will still be hugely important, but it gives you the ability to overcome somewhat with play and tactics what the raw numbers say. When Barca got all those great players, they were supposed to be unbeatable, but they weren't.
October :huh:
Football fans take note, EA Sports has revealed that FIFA Soccer 09 will release on October 3, 2008, for every platform known to man. The release date comes courtesy of MCV who spoke with senior product manager Trevor Uzice regarding the latest enhancements to the popular sports franchise. "We've made over 250 improvements from last year and we wanted to give the team the time they needed to make the best FIFA game possible."
Focusing on improved AI, physics and an ambitious 20-player online mode, FIFA Soccer 09 should grab the attention of any footy fan when it hits this fall.