Right. Well since EA royally screwed this up for some, me included, I jumped onto EA Play and played the 10 hour trial, which IS the PS5 version. Quick feelings below is anyone actually cares:
Graphically, lovely. 4k looks great, most (not all) faces are accurate and the hair tech is a good show of improvement, as far as console power goes. The crowd and stadiums really pop with the new lighting, however if the whole "Getting off the bus, walking down the tunnel" is your thing, you will be disappointed. Would be good to see this more, but as far as I can see, this was JUST for the opening game (Edit: according to pitchside reporter
DonJorginho
, it does appear to be in career mode) The opening cinematic for games are the same as the ps4 version, I havent seen it since, not even for derby's. In this instance, it all falls a bit flat and falls back to "Oh, this is the same
" a bit disappointing. Like the new camera though. Opens up the pitch and makes planning a counter attack easier. However, I can see how it might be Marmite for some,bit like the TV broadcast cam is.
Sound seems to be improved. Youll never walk alone at Anfield really pumps out the speakers and the fans sing and sway along. Not sure its "Better" but seems louder and clearer.
Gameplay. Well, bar a few minor changes its the same, but not. The little animations make the difference as far as feeling like a real game goes, but beneath it all, its just FIFA as we know it. The small extra touches as a player brings the ball down is nice and fluid, but watching them then collide with a defender and clumsily fall over is still as jarring as ever. Somethings never change. Teams feel more like their counter parts. I grinded out a 2-0 win against a resilient Leeds, but came up short in a 3-3 thriller against a very well organised Sp*rs. All the cutscenes seem the same, bar a new (I think) corner cut scene, a new (I think) moment where the fans surge forwards after a goal and the very welcome last minute goal celebrations, where the team, subs and all, surround the scorer as the Crowd goes wild and the cameraman struggles to keep up with the Passion. Not revolutionary, just evolutionary, which is to be expected at this stage of the generation.
Dualsense. Disappointing for me. Feels great as players tackle and jostle for the ball, but I don't really know how they work regarding stamina. I get that they are supposed to be harder to press as stamina goes down, but seems to be no Rhyme or reason to it sometimes. Sometimes is almost every player, then 10 seconds later, none of them are struggling. Then, just a few might have it again. Seems either it needs tweaking, or I'm not paying enough attention.
The quick cards are useful. Probably about 10 seconds from a cold start, instant if already in game. It really does show the SSD off. On a side note, RIP to the mini games before kick off. Is so blazing fast it is LITERALLY straight into the cinematics. Nice.
All in all, if you have FIFA, this is a nice, polished update. If you want it or THINK you want it because its "Next Gen" you may well be disappointed. It really does fill me with optimism that next year will be, if the engine is right, a real turing point away from staleness last gen. PES will be interesting too.
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Cheers Geoff"