And heck, if the visuals keep improving at this rate, it won’t be long before we can’t tell the difference between the two. The FIFA brand, with its curated endorsements and recognizable faces, is an indelible part of the football fan’s arsenal and a very real extension of the real game. If anything, it’s fitting: this is a celebration of the sport and the excitement it brings of its celebrity and pageantry. After the stodginess of FIFA 17, that’s fine by me. In the end, expect FIFA 18 to offer up goals aplenty. They’re yet another sweetener in the FUT merry-go-round, and their ratings will be a source of lively debate. Each “Icon” is represented by a card at three separate stages of their career (with a different rating in each card to boot). “FUT Icons”, meanwhile, lets you add iconic players (such as Ronaldo) to your squad. In “Squad Battles”, you play against community-built squads controlled by AI characters, which is great if you’re pressed for time and don’t have the zeal to compete day in day out. “Seasons” is your bread and butter, but “FUT” is the gourmet dish and is buttressed by a new mode called Squad Battles, that acts as a singleplayer alternative to “FUT Champions”. Online, “Seasons” mode returns alongside the ever-popular “ FIFA Ultimate Team”. There’s no dialogue during these exchanges but it’s exactly the sort of escapism a soccer fan is after, and even if the novelty wears off, you can delegate transfers to your second-in-command. In Career mode, the visual improvements have allowed EA to flex even more muscle, letting us in behind the curtain as managers, players, and agents come together to hash out transfer deals during carefully-orchestrated cutscenes. By the same token, those end-of-season trophy presentations suddenly look the part, replete with exploding confetti and cheering crowds. Then there are the small things, like hitting a perfect finesse shot and seeing your player’s back foot curl. Lighting is better, the picture is crisper and subtle motion blur adds a different sheen during goal celebrations. Facial animations and detail are improved, and the presence of sweat is more realistic as the match wears on. Several times my flatmates walked past the screen and thought a real match was on the go before realizing otherwise. FIFA has always been good at pushing the technical boundaries but this feels like an evolutionary leap forward and, dare I say it, one step closer to the “uncanny valley”.
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