Review: FIFA 07 (PS2)

Few seasons are loved as much at Gamestyle Towers as autumn. The glorious shades of gold and crimson in the trees, the gentle crackle of the bonfire, the torrential downpours, the laughter of knife-toting, GTA-trained psycho teens heading out to blow up someone's dog with stolen fireworks... nothing says "stay in with a video game" quite like it. The old traditions are well loved here: burning effigies of political dissidents, setting off large amounts of explosives, and of course, the annual FIFA instalment. It provokes familiar sentiments to those of Guy Fawke's Night - anticipation, excitement, and the inevitable worry that it'll turn out to be a damp squib.

Fortunately, FIFA fans and series newcomers alike won't be disappointed. All the usual FIFA polish is here: the innumerable teams, the varied play modes and the elegant and attractive front-end are all present, even if menu navigation is occasionally clumsy. In game, that elegance is somewhat lost; mostly thanks to the host hardware's aging technology. Players still resemble a squad of plastic-skinned drones, and the crowd has yet to leap out of two blurry dimensions, but it holds itself together. The inoffensive bank of songs that make up this year's EA Trax rounds off the core package with a sense that this is a title trying to sell itself to the player, long after they've left the store.

The new additions this year are welcome and not unpleasant. Manager Mode has been nipped, tucked and expanded - PSP owners can now transfer their careers onto Sony's handheld and continue hiring and firing players on the move, for example. Despite a few niggling goofs (eg. while you can switch from observing a simulated match at the touchline to actually controlling your chosen team, you can't swap back without quitting and forfeiting the match) it makes for an entertaining distraction. Online-enabled PS2 owners (yes, all four of you) can enjoy optional podcasts from the development team, and Soccernet (ESPN's football news site) provides a score ticker during menus.

That connectivity doesn't come without a price, however. Unmentioned in the manual, the sign-up process for FIFA '07's online mode requires you to either stump up a one-off payment, or permit EA to send your contact details to Soccernet in exchange for "sponsored" play. It's hard not to see this move as holding your private details to ransom. Regardless, online play is consistent, relatively smooth and functional, if uninspiring. Few players seem over-interested in organising tournament play, and with matches limited to one player per side, it feels a little too like playing a particularly organic offline game to be notable.

Much of what can be written about the single-player game will be familiar to players of FIFA '06: it's a solid emulation of football, if often sluggish. A welcome addition this year is a new control option, obviously inspired by a famous Japanese football game franchise, which will make things a little bit smoother for ship jumpers. AI remains consistent if less than awe-inspiring; player control is smooth enough to give the illusion of fluidity, though the spell is often broken by the sense that your best bet is to dial in your kicks before the ball reaches you. Superficial issues remain: commentary is consistent if bland, and you'll swiftly either turn it off or tune it out. While the choice of ITV's Clive Tyldesley and Sky favourite Andy Gray is an excellent one, playing back pre-recorded sound bites is rapidly finding its limitations.

Again, it's hard to write much about this year's FIFA that will be new to those following the series, and harder still to pick obvious faults with the title. If only that trademark familiarity didn't breed contempt at the annual updates - still less of a leap and more of a step. The embarrassing stumbles that once blighted EA Sports' flagship are a distant memory; the possibilities opened up by next-gen consoles should allow the series to blossom into something new and fundamentally better. Few will be disappointed with FIFA '07, but 14 games in, shouldn't we expect more than that?

Rating: 7 / 10

Words by Colin Whiteside