Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 vs FIFA Soccer 09: GameZig Exclusive!

The battle of the year has already begun as the two football titans of the gameworld go head to head for this year’s claim as the champ of football simulation. EA SPORTS FIFA 09 goes up against Konami’s PES2009 in a battle of grit, visuals, brand new features, and gameplay. In this battle PES2009 got a late start and is the underdog falling short to FIFA 09, reminiscent of last years battle when FIFA 08 beat PES2008 to the one million sales brink. Konami has pulled their socks up and is expected to be a large hit in Europe (especially the UK) where they almost had double the sales compared to FIFA in 2008.

The EA SPORTS FIFA always gives hard strikes in sales however as the prominent and most dominant soccer sim, and FIFA 09 has already made an impact with their launch in the UK last week with sales up 37.5% over last year’s launch. Showing flair, this makes them the third fastest selling game on the Xbox 360 granting the popular sports title a comfortable resting chair in the British top-spot. With more than 1.2 million copies sold they placed over Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and Ubisoft’s Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway. Only time will tell as Pro Evolution Soccer titles have been smoking off the shelves yesterday (October 16th) with their launch here in the United States.

(Editor’s Note: Go checkout Mii’s in action in the FIFA 09 Wii video in the Console Trailers section)

::::::GRIT::::::

FIFA Soccer ‘09

It is hear where the game title shows their strength and determination to please loyal game players. EA SPORTS has been listening to their fans, giving them what was missing from last year’s installment, thus it has been stated from David Rutter (producer) that there are over 250 improvements on the game! The Be-A-Pro mode allowed an in-depth perspective of one soccer star during gameplay, where the camera was up close and personal with the player and allowed a first hand perspective of what it’s like to play in a pro game. Its ‘Gears Of War’ style camera gave a great dynamic affect and a great sound design of stadium depth was also implemented for the overall ‘blow-your mind’ cherry on top. However to many fans’ demise, it was only FIFA 08’s Playstation 2 version that allowed the well known Be-A-Pro mode to be adapted into a season rather than just in exhibition. Not to disappoint, FIFA Soccer 09 is EA’s best soccer offering to date featuring game modes such as Be A Pro: Seasons, 10 vs. 10 Online Team Play, FIFA 09 “Clubs” and the adidas Live Season service. Aside from these great improvements EA has also brought in Australia’s A-League to satisfy many adoring fans. Along with having the ability to edit the strategies of individual players, these new installments should keep all the fans smiling over their controllers rather than frowning in disappointment.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

With PES scrambling to match sales and provide their unique experience with more fans, they have expanded onto different consoles, in a way, has become their smartest move yet. Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has revealed key gameplay additions to its forthcoming PES 2009 title for Wii. Scheduled for release in Spring 2009, the new game will retain the intuitive ‘point and click’ interface used to control both the player in possession of the ball and to send those around him on to runs into space. However, a new ‘traditional’ control system using either a Wii Remote or Classic controller has also been implemented. Like that of any competion in the game industry they have a stunning new surprise that may leave EA follower’s jaw dropped to the ground. Yes, if you haven’t heard it yet you’ll hear it here first, PES 2009 will feature a new game mode called Be A Legend. You may call it a cheap shot, however it’s another smart and necessary move that will indeed keep the battle tight — this game mode will be much like FIFA 08’s Be-A-Pro game mode. Keeping up in step with game modes, the Wii version will also feature the ever-popular Master League for the first time on this format plus the return of an enhanced Champions Road competition, an enhanced Edit Mode, more online gameplay possibilities, and a Mii Training sub-game system.Their Champions Road tournament allows players to take their chosen team and compete in league competitions all over the world. The idea of the Champions Road tournament is to come top in every league, and build a team by receiving players from recently defeated sides.

::::::Visuals::::::

Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

It is no surprise that the enhancements in the graphics are present, the players are much smoother, and the likeness of each character (even the less known ones) are something to respect. However in comparison to FIFA 08 and 09s graphics, the PES staff has much of no sleep and working hard to do in order to catch up. The ball is much smoother as the animation in transition from maneuver to maneuver among players. The ball physics has been tweek for better performance, and there are now 19 stadiums as apposed to 15 from last year’s installment of the Xbox360, PS3, and PC versions. With help of the focus camera and other nice effects, PES Soccer 2009 has a lot of eye candy for game players. The celebrations are nothing to miss either.

FIFA Soccer ‘09

Which would bring us to FIFA 09… and their respected attention to detail. One great example is their improvement on the weather and time. Rain and snow can be switched on and off before games, which affects whether players wear gloves. Games can be played at either day, dusk or night, with the game eventually turning to night during games beginning at dusk, adding to the realistic feel of evening matches. It’s no wonder why FIFA Soccer 09 is arguably the most realistic football sim. For the stadium list, there is an overwhelming number that has me stunned to count — over 60 stadiums for the Xbox360, PS3, and PC versions.

::::::NEW FEATURES::::::

FIFA Soccer ‘09

One of the new modes that EA is proud of is the Custom Team Tactics feature. This feature brings each team closer to the strategies they use in the real world. These tactics are adjustable for player pleasure.  A set of 11 sliders and further options broken down into Attack and Defense gives plenty of lieghway to allow a player to specifically customize the way the team plays. Attacking is then broken down further into “Build Up” and “Chance Creation” sliders.

The new Adidas Live Season feature will dynamically update player form and attributes each week in-game based on the player’s last game to reflect real-world ups and downs. The Live Season is a premium service that will be available on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC and covers six leagues – Barclay’s Premier League, La Liga BBVA, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, Serie A and Mexican Primera Division. Gamers have access to one league of their choice as a free trial that runs from the moment they activate the service to the end of the 2008-2009 season, while purchasing extra leagues will cost them. According to Gamespot the Adidas Live Season updates are expensive. Early to tell however, and the Next-Gen console’s reliance on Online Gameplay will tell how these new modes have affected sales.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

As mentioned before PES has come a long long way locking deals and working kinks in order to rid themselves of generic or fictional players and team names. However, thanks to their great gameplay, loyal fans disregard the in-authentic versions of real teams and leagues. However, with the coming back with great vengence, Konami finaly sealed a four-year agreement to feature UEFA’s Champions League competition in the game. Even more awesome, The Dutch Eredivisie and French Ligue 1 will both be represented in their entirety, with full kits, player rosters and affiliated elements. Clubs such like FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, FC Porto, Liverpool and Manchester United, will also be official. Others like Zenit St. Petersbourg and Brondby IF, amongst others are included with that addition. Konami has also received rights to host PES 2009 with national teams like the Netherlands, England, Italy, and Northern Ireland.

::::::GAMEPLAY::::::

Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

Last but not least is the gameplay aspect. Truly, the most important part of the battle altogether is the gameplay and this is what the Pro Evolution Series is most known for. Without further ado, we will dive into what they have to offer with this year’s installment. Source from wikipedia informs, that with smarter AI system your team mates will be constantly seeking out open space, taking intelligent lines toward the goal and on defense and also actively calling for the ball. Another new addition is the readjustments for ball movements. PES 2009 has new air resistance calculations for the trajectory of the ball. The heaviness of the ground also impacts the gameplay. There will also be new friction routines to affect ball movement in terms of ground conditions, backspin routines are calculated so that ball slows accordingly, and the bounce of the ball can be used more effectively: players can flick the ball up to tee a shot, or to lift it over a defender’s trailing leg. Skills are now integrated more into the game. If a player has the ability, they will be able to perform deft turns. There will also be adjusted controls to make close control more intuitive. Great improvements in ball control, passing and your teammates reactions are more in tune with how teammates react in real life. All new Manual Passing and there is no slowdown in replays or matches.

FIFA Soccer ‘09

Most of FIFA’s new features happen to be in the animation and AI department. The three biggest areas of gameplay improvement you’ll see are in responsiveness, physical play, and their effect through attributes. David Rutter explains, “We’ve revamped our animations and animation technology to make sure every gamer-controlled action, including dribbling, running, tackling, heading, passing, and shooting, are much more responsive. Physical play and attributes were top of our agenda, too. For example, the team really felt that there wasn’t enough difference between small, pacey players, and large, strong players. This year you’ll need to become more familiar with the individual strengths and weaknesses of the players you have at your disposal and what they are capable of in real life. Fast players can nip in and out of tackles much faster than hulking defenders, but the little guys are much easier to muscle off the ball.” Referees will be better at determining whether legs are planted or trailing. Which in turn means with the right timing, tackling for the ball could cause a player to go down or skip out of it authentically. David also adds that midair collisions and stumbling during runnning really add a great sense of realism.

The crowd reactions make a big impact upon realism in gameplay, as they react to decisions made in and out of game, like substitution, fouls, collisions, etc. The crowd can be seen reacting as well, making that another improved feature for FIFA. Crowd reactions aren’t the only reactions improved, the goal tenders happen to react to and make better decisions upon the position of players and the ball in play. Positioning is essentially important for goalkeeping. Goalies are more attentive to intercept the ball in certain situations especially through-balls. This would only make passing more technical, therefore FIFA has enabled skilled players to curl passes and crosses. The passing power bar has greatly improved precision passing, and also allows scope for some glorious one touch passing combinations. Furthermore, keepers can change their mind mid-dive when they realize they’ve made a mistake.

The FIFA Soundtrack is nothing to overlook either. Every year, they have added some of the most exclusive independent and major record label signed artist, providing a diverse array of quality music from around globe, however, last year’s installment was nothing to brag about. EA is proud of their new soundtrack and has posted their track list practically anywhere searchable on the web. Track Link

Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

With their strength now in numbers, Pro Evolution Soccer can rely on other platforms to deliver as well. For the Wii, an improved defense system will allow players to close down their opposition with more precision using the Z button, while a new targeting system sees the player steering where they place the ball when shooting. Coupled with better AI for the CPU-controlled players and opposition, the result is a more free-flowing and faster paced simulation. Set pieces have also been reworked, with more precision on free kicks and a wider range of corners than in the previous game.

Cooperative gameplay is a given for the Wii version as well. hound is keen to emphasise the teamwork ethos of the PES series, and has added a second control system for co-op play. One player will use the familiar Nunchuck and Wii Remote system to control their player and drag players into space, with the second adopting a more traditional PES controller to control individual players.

Using a Wii Remote held sideways or a classic controller, the secondary player can control the game in a manner familiar to existing versions of PES for other formats. Thus, they can control using familiar PES controls while their co-op player orchestrates their player and the rest of the team using the bespoke Wii system.

Gameplay has been improved for the Xbox360 and PS3 versions with key additions as an improved Teamvision system, tactics change according to situation, better off-the-ball movement such as running to receive passes and the AI recognizing strategies that works accumulating data on an ongoing basis within Master League and League modes. Another new addition is the readjustments for ball movements. The trusty source from Wikipedia says: “PES 2009 has new air resistance calculations for the trajectory of the ball. The heaviness of the ground also impacts the gameplay. There will also be new friction routines to affect ball movement in terms of ground conditions, backspin routines are calculated so that ball slows accordingly, and the bounce of the ball can be used more effectively: players can flick the ball up to tee a shot, or to lift it over a defender’s trailing leg. Skills are now integrated more into the game. If a player has the ability, they will be able to perform deft turns. There will also be adjusted controls to make close control more intuitive. All new Manual Passing and there is no slowdown in replays or matches.”

So which is better. To be honest, it’s too early to tell. Only you can influence the impact on either, or both games. Check out these videos to see what’s in store when you buy EA Sports FIFA Soccer 09 and Pro Evolution Soccer 2009.

<——-VS——->

~Z

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