The savages of the 90s
When, in the winter of 1993, the first pixelated FIFA players rushed to tube TVs powered by Mega Drive consoles and shortly after the 3DO version spun the graphics screw again, only a few experts realized what a billion-dollar multinational brand was. of dollars EA’s Canada the office has it in the pipeline. Incidentally, 1993 also means: Rehagel’s Werder Bremen is reigning German champion, also thanks to its outstanding playmaker Andreas Herzog. At FC Bayern, Colombian newcomer Adolfo Valencia is on the hunt for goals, which we remember today especially for a particularly shameful anecdote from Lothar Matthäus. Italian Juve star Roberto Baggio became world footballer – almost at the same time as FIFA International Soccer was launched – about seven months before shooting the most important penalty of his career in the sky above Pasadena and crowning Brazil world champion. Shortly before, Wattenscheid and VfB Leipzig were relegated from the German top division of men’s football. Wattenscheid 09 (today Regionalliga West) and VfB Leipzig (today as 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig in the Regionalliga Nordost)! How long ago was the 1993/94 season!
Lina Magull on the penalty. The FC Bayern star takes the pill when the circle around the ball is at a minimum.
Nearly 30 years and Bayern’s 20 leagues later, EA presents a fairly positive conclusion to its FIFA era, before the series gleefully continues next year as EA Sports FC. Let’s start with the most obvious innovation: the finally improved integration of women’s football. Regular guest Kylian Mbappé and – brand new – Australian Sam Kerr, who plays for Chelsea, look at me from the virtual cover of my Ultimate Edition. I was expecting FIFA 23 doesn’t have a story mode yet, but missing some sort of playable wellness intro (last year with Mbappé) is a shame. So Kerr and Mbappé take me by the hand and explain how FIFA works. Anyone who has never played EA’s virtual football, or hasn’t played it in a long time, can expect a series of explanatory games with bonus activities and a special “high-tech” camera that is enhanced with tutorial overlays.
After starting, the “FIFA coach” overlays are enabled by default. They give little tips to newbies.
Kerr is one of the hundreds of kickers who kick the ball in FIFA 23: those who, like me, have followed the women’s European Championships in England will immediately recognize the stars of the tournament: the exultant gesture of Poppi, the physical dominance of Wendie Renard or the English stars Hemp and white have been carefully carried over into the game. 18 national teams and two leagues (England and France) have entered the women’s section of FIFA 23. These are two more leagues than last year, but obviously still too little. I would have liked to question VfL Wolfsburg’s personal show in the women’s Bundesliga or bring the women of my favorite team, FC Barcelona onto the pitch. In FUT or career modes, the same rules apply as for the Orthodox monastic republic of Mount Athos in eastern Greece: no women are allowed! So we can say: the new championships, the large modeled posters – in the second tier the similarities with the real athletes are already minor – as well as the presence of Kerr in the menu and on the cover are an important step in the right direction. At the same time, however, there is still a lot of work ahead of the Canadian development team.
Roberto Carlos would be proud
It brings color into the game, but there is little new: Volta in the FIFA 23 version.
You may have guessed: the new power of women was the first boom from the title of my article, the second is much more literal. Because the combination of two shoulder buttons and a shot button provides the new “powerful shot” in FIFA 23. It has it all: it takes a lot longer to load and, thanks to manual aiming, he likes to run many meters beyond the box. It doesn’t matter if Terodde is on the trigger or a technical noble like Neymar Jr. But hey, even with the new power shot, the PSG star can’t shoot far from target like his recent TikTok ad for the Brazilian president of extreme. right Bolsonaro was wrong …
By the way: the upcoming World Cup in the desert (approved by Franz-Beckenbauer!) In Qatar, which will surely happen without slave labor, is obviously also part of the all-round happy package of FIFA 23, but not at this point in the time, the virtually playable men’s finals will be given later. EA has greatly expanded cross-play – this doesn’t apply to the popular Pro Club mode, for example, but to so many other places I’d like to mention EA’s official information: “FIFA 23 releases on PS5, Xbox Series X | S and PC are cross-play compatible. FIFA 23 versions for PS4 and Xbox One are also compatible with each other. Cross-play is coming to FUT Division Rivals (excluding co-op), FUT Champions, FUT Ultimate Online Draft, FUT Online Friendlies (excluding cooperative seasons), FUT Matches-a-Friend, Online Friendlies, Online Seasons (excluding cooperative seasons) and the competitive virtual Bundesliga mode. ”
