What’s the story?
In a recent interview with Dream Team Gaming, EA SPORTS’ lead gameplay producer Sam Rivera has promised that steps have been taken to improve upon the shortcomings of FIFA 17.
One of the biggest issues was with FIFA Ultimate Team’s online connectivity that caused lagging during matches and games ended abruptly. Rivera said that there have been decisions made in the past about putting servers around the world.
“So, now what we are doing is that there is a group of people just specifically working on connectivity – and they are working very hard to try and provide the best experience.
“Obviously because of geographical reasons, it’s not easy but we are aware that some people are experiencing bad things – especially with competitive gaming.”
The EA producer also talked about the Nintendo Switch version revealing that there was a big team of people working on it and that the gameplay would be fun and different.
In case you didn’t know...
FIFA Ultimate Team began as an add-on feature in the FIFA 09 edition. The FUT enabled players to build their own dream team and the feature has since undergone a range of substantial changes.
The heart of the matter
According to Rivera, the internet connection may not be the only thing contributing to lag during the game. The TV could also be affecting the gameplay.
Some of the ways to improve the gameplay while playing on TV are -
If playing on a TV, chances are it’s got a host of flashy picture processors switched on which can affect input delay. Most TVs have a ‘Gaming’ preset usually found in the ‘Picture’ section of the ‘Settings’ menu.
‘Game’ mode works by turning off a load of these processors such as ‘Motion Blur control’ and ‘Noise Reduction’ which can lower lag by upto 50%.
Turning off the ‘Eco mode’ and reducing the backlight can create a much more detailed imagery, enhancing the overall experience and also improving the contrast
Make sure that the console signal is progressive rather than interlaced. If it is interlaced then the console signal will have an “i” after it, 1080i. If it’s progressive, then a ‘p’ after it, ‘1080p’.
EA producer Andrei Lazaresco talked to Eurogamer about how FIFA 18 made use of Nintendo Switch Nvidia Maxwell-based Tegra X1 chip by using physical-based rendering. He spoke about how the Ultimate Team would feature on Nintendo for the first time to be played on the go - on a plane, on a bus or even from a hotspot.
What’s next?
It is also expected that FIFA 18 will have a custom interface for adding players, although no details have been announced.
EA has also revealed that FIFA 18 would be coming out on Xbox 360 and PS3 but would not feature The Journey mode and would be a ‘Gold’ version that will have updates in the rosters. The game would run on Ignite, a system which has been used since the ‘16 edition.
FIFA 18 is set to be released in September.
Author’s take
FIFA 17 was a brilliant game in many ways but was far from perfect. With the game scheduled release coming close, FIFA 18 is already generating a lot of buzz and the revelation of an improved Ultimate Team will only make waiting for the game’s release more difficult.
