FIFA 14 demo review - It's not easy any more

Next, we have protect the ball. FIFA 14, as mentioned earlier, no longer relies completely on pace. You need strength as well. This directly equates to the fact that the Messis and Neymars are going to have a harder time against the Vidics and Terrys.

There are two ways how ‘protect the ball’ can be used. One, while accelerating at top speed, you can put yourself in between the pressurizing defender and the ball. This would help you keep the ball while at the same time, allow you to keep it going at the same speed.

Another scenario is when you’re looking to pass it to your forward, who in turn is using his strength attributes to put himself between the ball and the defender trying to mark him. He can receive the ball and either use precision movement to get away from that area, or bring other players into play.

To summarize, ‘protect the ball’ is basically another way to keep hold of possession and dictating the tempo at will.

Finally, we have teammate intelligence. It is not something I have much to comment on, but the feature has a direct effect on both defending and attacking.

In attacking, when combined with protect the ball, it can open up holes that help create much more opportunities. Players will make much better runs, giving you more opportunities to score and create chances.

When it comes to defence, defenders are much better at tracking back and pressurizing. Upon playing the demo, you can instantly realise that the AI is more willing to get stuck in by tackling and pressurizing right when you receive the ball. EA has given an example on how they have revamped the man-marking system:

This is pretty much all I understood after playing 15-20 games on how EA have tried to improve the game from last year’s edition.

The FIFA gaming community is divided into two. One side cries for realism, while the other prefers the fun part over it. The realists have something to look forward to this year, as EA rebuilds its entire game-play system.

The game isn’t easy, it’s quite challenging. You actually need to know what to do at specific situations to master it. This is the main reason why many have complained about the new features.

The fact that they are not willing to get settled into the realistic features and make it more ‘fun’ oriented, points out to the fact that they have had it easy so far. I’m in no way enunciating that the game is perfect, but EA is trying to bring a realistic experience of the beautiful game in our hands.

It’s not boring. It’s harder and more challenging. You need to step up your game, and improve your quality. Exciting times lie ahead, as the world awaits the game’s release.

What are your thoughts on the game? Leave a comment, tweet it to me and let me know!

Buy FIFA 14 here -> http://s-k.cm/18T3SW0