FIFA08... why I have returned to PES2008

[SpoonyPizzas]

I've been playing FIFA08 X360 solid and until now, I thought, wow this game is absolutely amazing and I've been a fan of the PES series since ISS. The only FIFA before this one that really tempted me away was FIFA05... but PES5 came out and was one of the best... especially with all the patches etc.

This time, I played the PES2008 demo after played the FIFA08 demo and my eyes were hurting... the pitch filter, the crowd... omg awful. I didn't like the way you could only run in 8 directions. Slowdown, goalies dropping the ball at every shot...

So back to the FIFA08 demo I went, and couldn't get enough of it.

Then it was released! The wait was over!

I've been playing it almost every night for at least 2/3 hours, and im realising one thing... my goals are very similar and its pretty lame when you play World Class or Legendary because the only real way to score is to cross and hope for the best... else it'll be another draw.
Proffesional is too easy, and World Class and Legendary is too boring, it doesn't let you play fast football, so you build up slowly from the back, and then its a case of give it to a fast winger and cross and hope. lol.
Also no matter what striker you have in the box... even if its even Tevez or Scholes against Hypia... the strikers usually win the header 75% of the time.

I enjoy playing it on proffesional because I can score some good goals and although I win every game, I can play at a fast tempo and slow it down when I want.

Now... FIFA08 is collecting dust... maybe I've just overplayed it... but theres something just not drawing me back to it....so while I was thinking.... I can't go without a good football game for a year and I really disliked PES2008 demo when I first gave it a try, but the release date is near and thought... shall I pre-order it?...

Now when I got home tonight... I thought hmmm, lets give PES2008 a really good shot before I make any decision whether or not to pre-order. So I booted up the demo and I was ready for the poor graphics... well... its not poor graphics.. just the pitch filter graphics which are poor. I was playing with Portugal and really enjoyed it... it was so fresh and responsive compared to FIFA. I was pulling off lovely moves, and you can trick the computer using the super cancel keys by letting the ball roll past you while you spin around the defender... brilliant. I also cut inside a Brazilian defender and smashed it into the top corner.

Every goal I scored on the demo was different and it felt good.

Admittadly it feels too easy because Im playing it on Top Player... and hope its a bit more difficult but difficulty doesn't concern me because I'll be playing other players online... this game is so fun... just can't understand why I didn't see it when I first tried it.

There are just a few things I hope they sort for the demo:

Camera angles (being able to ZOOM out!!!)
Save Replays (90% sure these are in)
and...
No slowdown!!!!!!! (omg please be fixed on the X360 version)


Needless to say... I just pre-ordered it again.
I'll always give a game a good try, and EA are getting closer... im just a fanboy of neither game... just love a good footy game.

 

[PacMan]

Are you absolutely sure an experienced player (someone who played the game for several months) would not be able to score in any other way than crossing the ball in World Class? For many people, the only way to score in PES is via a cutback, and the first time I played PES it took me several months to "open up" the variety of goals I had. So can't this be the case with FIFA? I don't really trust any review on difficulty coming from a player of FIFA 08 who just got the game... it's just as unreliable as a FIFA player playing PES for the first few months and saying that they can't pass right or shoot right. Think about this --if a FIFA player just bought PES 2008, played it for a month or two and told you that he can only score in 1 way in top difficulty, if at all, what would you tell him?

From what you say there about super cancel, I can tell you know your way around PES very well, so perhaps it's FIFA that you should give a chance. Learn its secrets, its nooks and crannies, and then give us a definite comparison on game difficulty and flow. Just as an example, the first year I played PES I didn't really use much more than X, O, square and triangle plus the sprint button. And it won me games. But there was so much more to the game, right?

I wish I could do this myself, but I have a PC.

 

[LarssonIsGhod]

Bravo Pacman

 

[SpoonyPizzas]

hmmm

Look what im saying is... I've played FIFA 08 probably more than anyone in the world lol. Quite a daring thing that we'll never be able to prove but trust me, I put ALOT of hours into it and im finding, yes its a good game, yes its getting close to PES style... but it STILL lacks something... just the responsiveness probably... and the way the crossing works... the attacking team should not win more in the air.

Also if you've played online... you'll notice the amount of draws is incredible. Even in the interactive leagues... Man U 1 win - 7 draws - 0 losses. lol... or Liverpool vs Tottenham 22 draws 1 win 0 losses.

The GOOD players online... no matter where they in the box... they won't look to pass or shoot... they'll look to cross... I had a 2 vs my goalie situation... and the guy lobbed it across when it surely woulda been easier to pass... but the goalie gets confused and he puts it in the empty net. Why? Because its easier.

Don't get me wrong I loved FIFA 08 and really enjoyed it but when I played the demo PES2008 for a long time last night... I saw the light and came home.

 

[o0oGedo0o]

i like pacman's answer, i think the whole site is fifaphobic (being a pes site and all). actually i'm getting my ps3 later this week for fifa mainly, cause i'll get pes on pc. i'll write a decent review by then, cause last year i've been playing pes and fifa in parallel and my review wouldn't be biased.
One thing i agree with spoony, at first i hated pes demo because it didn't feel revolutionary to me (next-gen), but as i played it further i felt it's not so bad, actually it's quite good but still not up to the next gen standards.

 

[Dmitris]

FIFA's gameplay and PES are different. Mostly PES is much better, unfortunately FIFA has the kits and licensing.

 

[El Pocho]

got sucked into FIFA again this year, i want to burn it already its so crap!!!

 

[o0oGedo0o]

has anyone tried the game against players? not only AI?

 

[Dmitris]

On FIFA? I've only played the demo and played some of my friends.

 

[PacMan]

Look what im saying is... I've played FIFA 08 probably more than anyone in the world lol. Quite a daring thing that we'll never be able to prove but trust me, I put ALOT of hours into it and im finding, yes its a good game, yes its getting close to PES style... but it STILL lacks something... just the responsiveness probably... and the way the crossing works... the attacking team should not win more in the air.

Also if you've played online... you'll notice the amount of draws is incredible. Even in the interactive leagues... Man U 1 win - 7 draws - 0 losses. lol... or Liverpool vs Tottenham 22 draws 1 win 0 losses.

The GOOD players online... no matter where they in the box... they won't look to pass or shoot... they'll look to cross... I had a 2 vs my goalie situation... and the guy lobbed it across when it surely woulda been easier to pass... but the goalie gets confused and he puts it in the empty net. Why? Because its easier.

Don't get me wrong I loved FIFA 08 and really enjoyed it but when I played the demo PES2008 for a long time last night... I saw the light and came home.

I don't think the game should ever reach the point where it is a copy of "PES style". And if the attacking team has players who are better at heading, then they should win a lot in the box.

I wouldn't pay so much attention to online records. Have you seen FIFA fans playing FIFA 08? They suck, mostly, they run around all the time and don't pass the ball very much. And if by the "good" players you mean those who win a lot, well, the players who get the most wins in online PES are NOT what I consider "the best" players by a long shot.

I've not played EA's game very much, so if you honestly tell me that's the case, then I give you credit for really trying it. I still think that IF the game has any depth, you'll need at least more than half a year to get to get to know it somewhat well. Now if the game doesn't have depth, then that's it.

I suspect PES still has the upper hand, but if EA revert their habit of completely changing the game from year to year and instead decide to refine it, they might have an absolute winner by 2009 or 2010.

 

[SpoonyPizzas]

I don't think the game should ever reach the point where it is a copy of "PES style". And if the attacking team has players who are better at heading, then they should win a lot in the box.

I wouldn't pay so much attention to online records. Have you seen FIFA fans playing FIFA 08? They suck, mostly, they run around all the time and don't pass the ball very much. And if by the "good" players you mean those who win a lot, well, the players who get the most wins in online PES are NOT what I consider "the best" players by a long shot.

I've not played EA's game very much, so if you honestly tell me that's the case, then I give you credit for really trying it. I still think that IF the game has any depth, you'll need at least more than half a year to get to get to know it somewhat well. Now if the game doesn't have depth, then that's it.

I suspect PES still has the upper hand, but if EA revert their habit of completely changing the game from year to year and instead decide to refine it, they might have an absolute winner by 2009 or 2010.

Look im not saying FIFA 08 is bad, far from it... I enjoyed it, but you can't do quite as much as PES in terms of things... I mean super cancel alone is so vital to PES, can't believe FIFA haven't stolen this but I believe soon FIFA will rule the roost of football and then Konami will die out once they can match PES.

PES is not next gen in terms of graphics but the animations are superb. FIFA has some silly moments when playing against friends... when you flick the ball over someones head... its VERY hard to defend... my mate did it against me three times in a row.. lol it was quite funny but I was like... wtf... thats almost impossible to defend because when your player is near the ball you'll notice hes attracted to it and you can't do anything other than stay in your position or goto the ball... if you goto the ball when doing this manoveur he lobs you, if you stay still... any degree to the left or right of you and hes past you... providing he has a player with alot of strength like Drogba.

Don't believe me? Go into Arena... kick the ball at the goalie... let him throw it out or parry it and then when your within about 2 meters you can't divert your course... so you cant run past the ball... i know you wouldn't want to but the same goes for defending flicks over the head and its too easy to do... especially because you can lift the ball off the ground anytime you want using the trick stick and its easy to pull off.

The one thing I don't get about Konami is why have they gone backwards from ISS?

I mean ISS had it ALL.

You could juggle the ball just by standing still and holding the lob button.

You had finese shot and the ability to curl it whichever way you wanted... hell, you could even add backspin so the ball stayed on the pitch when booting it up field.

You had total manual shots at the press of another 2 buttons, which would allow you to control the height of the shot, dip of the shot and curl...

Aerial Challenges, press A+B and you would nudge the other jumper with you and the ball would miss both players sometimes. So for instance if I had crouch upfront and the ball was in the air going to rooney at the near post... I could aerial challenge the defender with Rooney and let the ball goto Crouch who would easily win the next header unless he was aerial challenged by the defender.

ANYWAYS... back to subject...

FIFA is good and I'd give it a 90% rating. I think PES will get a 90% rating too imo, but for FAR different reasons.

PES (i've only played the demo so these ratings might change mkay)
gameplay: 9.6 (can still be improved imo, adding aftertouch, aerial challenges, rain, improved league format, money instead of points etc etc)
presentation: 6
sound: 4
graphics: 7.5 (players faces are incredibly good, crowd is really poor though in demo but i heard this gets blurred out so it doesnt look so bad)

FIFA
gameplay: 8
presentation: 9
sound: 10
graphics: 8.5 (some player faces are terrible, the crowd at a FEW (very few) stadiums are lifeless, but other than that... graphics are superb)

 

[SpoonyPizzas]

asdf

I don't think the game should ever reach the point where it is a copy of "PES style". And if the attacking team has players who are better at heading, then they should win a lot in the box.

I wouldn't pay so much attention to online records. Have you seen FIFA fans playing FIFA 08? They suck, mostly, they run around all the time and don't pass the ball very much. And if by the "good" players you mean those who win a lot, well, the players who get the most wins in online PES are NOT what I consider "the best" players by a long shot.

I've not played EA's game very much, so if you honestly tell me that's the case, then I give you credit for really trying it. I still think that IF the game has any depth, you'll need at least more than half a year to get to get to know it somewhat well. Now if the game doesn't have depth, then that's it.

I suspect PES still has the upper hand, but if EA revert their habit of completely changing the game from year to year and instead decide to refine it, they might have an absolute winner by 2009 or 2010.

Look im not saying FIFA 08 is bad, far from it... I enjoyed it, but you can't do quite as much as PES in terms of things... I mean super cancel alone is so vital to PES, can't believe FIFA haven't stolen this but I believe soon FIFA will rule the roost of football and then Konami will die out once they can match PES.

PES is not next gen in terms of graphics but the animations are superb. FIFA has some silly moments when playing against friends... when you flick the ball over someones head... its VERY hard to defend... my mate did it against me three times in a row.. lol it was quite funny but I was like... wtf... thats almost impossible to defend because when your player is near the ball you'll notice hes attracted to it and you can't do anything other than stay in your position or goto the ball... if you goto the ball when doing this manoveur he lobs you, if you stay still... any degree to the left or right of you and hes past you... providing he has a player with alot of strength like Drogba.

Don't believe me? Go into Arena... kick the ball at the goalie... let him throw it out or parry it and then when your within about 2 meters you can't divert your course... so you cant run past the ball... i know you wouldn't want to but the same goes for defending flicks over the head and its too easy to do... especially because you can lift the ball off the ground anytime you want using the trick stick and its easy to pull off.

The one thing I don't get about Konami is why have they gone backwards from ISS?

I mean ISS had it ALL.

You could juggle the ball just by standing still and holding the lob button.

You had finese shot and the ability to curl it whichever way you wanted... hell, you could even add backspin so the ball stayed on the pitch when booting it up field.

You had total manual shots at the press of another 2 buttons, which would allow you to control the height of the shot, dip of the shot and curl...

Aerial Challenges, press A+B and you would nudge the other jumper with you and the ball would miss both players sometimes. So for instance if I had crouch upfront and the ball was in the air going to rooney at the near post... I could aerial challenge the defender with Rooney and let the ball goto Crouch who would easily win the next header unless he was aerial challenged by the defender.

ANYWAYS... back to subject...

FIFA is good and I'd give it a 90% rating. I think PES will get a 90% rating too imo, but for FAR different reasons.

PES (i've only played the demo so these ratings might change mkay)
gameplay: 9.6 (can still be improved imo, adding aftertouch, aerial challenges, rain, improved league format, money instead of points etc etc)
presentation: 6
sound: 4
graphics: 7.5 (players faces are incredibly good, crowd is really poor though in demo but i heard this gets blurred out so it doesnt look so bad)

FIFA
gameplay: 8
presentation: 9
sound: 10
graphics: 8.5 (some player faces are terrible, the crowd at a FEW (very few) stadiums are lifeless, but other than that... graphics are superb)

 

[Diao]

got sucked into FIFA again this year, i want to burn it already its so crap!!!

 

[reddevils]

i hardly score cross goals on FIFA

i think u just need to get better rather then playin on professional meaning u dont get any better

i started a manager mode on world class and i did draw ALOT but i kept playing and after the january transfer window i went on an awesome winning streak (like 12 wins in a row where i hardly scored crossed goals) and won the title by 2 points, it felt great and that was the first time EVER i have really fought to win a league on a game.

even on PES i would win leagues by 6-15 points even though the individual matches were more fun the challenge for winning the title wasnt good enough(PES) hope we get closer leagues on PES2008