- Realistic, silky-smooth player
animations
- Lag-free online gaming plays just as good as offline play
- As usual, the best crowd involvement in any sports game
around, with the wonderful soccer chants constantly filling the
stadiums with the vocal pride of ardent fans
- For fans of the sport, a great simulation of the real game of
“football”
- For those not so engrossed with
the sport, goal scoring is a rarity, making it too close to the
real game of “football”
- Totally frustrating to get carded almost every time you use
the sliding tackle to get the ball away from opponents
- I know some teams in the actual World Cup are better than
others, but many are given too much of an advantage on the video
game pitch
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FIFA
World Cup Germany 2006
Score: 8.3 / 10
It happens only once every four years and
is the biggest sporting event in the world everywhere except the United
States. Millions (maybe even billions) will be completely transfixed on
the events transpiring the next month in the soccer (or football, to
most of planet Earth) pitches of Germany, as the World Cup tournament
will crown a new, truly world champion. And once again, Electronic Arts
is releasing a video game that captures the fanatical spirit of the
World Cup with FIFA World Cup Germany 2006.
There won’t be many casual soccer fans that will find this title totally
exciting, because it is frustratingly too much like the real game with
little scoring. But to the rest of the gamers out there that actually
love soccer and will be watching each and every second of their
respective nation’s team at play in Germany the next few weeks, FIFA
World Cup Germany 2006 perfectly, in typical EA Sports fashion, portrays
a realistic game of soccer with the engulfing aura of the World Cup as a
What probably is FIFA World Cup Germany 2006’s biggest blessing and
curse is that it really is a great simulation of the game of soccer,
particularly the brand of soccer played during the World Cup. That is,
highly defensive, low-scoring affairs that keeps fans of each team on
the edge of their seats for 90 minutes. Those that are real soccer fans
(which is almost everybody outside of the
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U.S.) will fully appreciate this aspect of
FIFA World Cup Germany 2006. But casual soccer fans will be frustrated
with the lack of offensive output and may not get much gaming
satisfaction, despite FIFA World Cup Germany 2006’s realistic approach
to soccer in gaming form.
In addition to the simulation quality of FIFA World Cup Germany 2006,
let me focus on what’s here for the hardcore soccer fan instead of the
casual soccer fan. First off, since this is the official game of the
World Cup, EA has the license to include each and every team that
qualified for the World Cup and all the superstar players on those
national teams known around the globe (but who wouldn’t get noticed on
an American city street even if they were running down it on fire).
Those superstars are given the royal treatment, as FIFA World Cup
Germany 2006 has very good character modeling that gives the players a
more true-to-life appearance (although I’m just taking EA’s word for
that visual authenticity, because I have no idea who 99.9% of these
players are or what they really look like). Visually, FIFA World Cup
Germany 2006 is overall very good, with the most impressive graphical
facet being the spectacular animations of the players while on the
field. They move and react with life-like authenticity that really at
times can make it seem that you’re watching a real World Cup game unfurl
in all its magnificent spectacle right before your gaming eyes.
Adding to that sense of realism, FIFA World Cup Germany 2006 has
spectacular usage of crowd involvement in the game. I’ve always, back
from the days of playing EA’s soccer title on the Sega Genesis, been
impressed with the crowd’s authentic audio “soccer chant” performance
that is by far one of the top two (possibly leapfrogged only by EA’s
NCAA football titles with band-enhanced cheering crowds) greatest uses
of involved crowds in a sports video game.
Just like the real teams, the top-ranked squads in the world are the
toughest to beat in FIFA World Cup Germany 2006, sometimes too tough. I
usually played with the American team, which in the game is ranked 12th
(although it’s fifth-ranked by FIFA). When I played any of the top-tier
teams, especially the number-two Czech team, they were given almost
superhuman skills on the field, nearly impossible to get past
offensively and just as hard to defend.
FIFA World Cup Germany 2006’s controls are generally really good, but
there are so many moves to learn, that it will take a while and many,
many games under your belt before you start to get a grasp on the array
of different offensive and defensive moves necessary to learn before you
can become a championship-caliber player. Once you master the controls,
then you may have a chance to deviate away from the “usual” low-scoring
games that will dominate your early scoreboard results.
One major control annoyance you’ll encounter when you first start
playing FIFA World Cup Germany 2006 is the use of the sliding tackle. By
using this move defensively, you’ll sweep the ball away from an opposing
player practically every time. But it can be too effective at getting
the ball, because nine times out of 10, you’ll incur the carding wrath
of the referee when your sliding tackle knocks down the player you just
took the ball away from. Keep on using the sliding tackle, and expect to
see plenty of yellow and red cards. But once you get more adept at the
FIFA World Cup Germany 2006’s controls, the desire to use the sliding
tackle as a last resort to get the ball is much less tempting, as you
can rely more on your better understanding of the other defensive
controls that will become more second-nature with more and more playing
time.
Online play is a big winner for FIFA World Cup Germany 2006. The game
runs just as well (with no lag) online as does an offline game. There is
a Tournament mode for up to eight players, a good test of your gaming
skills. Another online mode is The Lounge, sort of a tourney mode, but
with a few little nuances. You can play a Winner Stays On match, where
the winner keeps playing until they lose, or a Best vs. Worst contest,
with the top team in your Lounge going up against the worst.
I’ll admit I’m the typical American sports fan that places the World Cup
way down on my interest list of sporting events. National Football
League football is the only football that the average U.S. sports
fanatic has any interest in, placing the World Cup somewhere after the
National Hockey League and Arena Football, not too many spots above
Olympic curling. But regardless, I am able to realize that FIFA World
Cup Germany 2006 is a stellar soccer game that will be absolutely
enjoyed by those that actually have a real interest in the World Cup and
soccer. A true simulation of soccer with all the hoopla of competing for
the only real “world” championship with excellent online play kicks FIFA
World Cup Germany 2006 into the net of quality video gaming soccer.
