Customer Reviews

FIFA Soccer 09 All-Play

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Fifa almost got everything right, but the one mistake that they made (not differentiating between short and long passes) is enough to take this game from nearly perfect to merely mediocre.

Besides the addition of the comprehensive and stellar manager mode, the primary difference between this game and the former version on the Wii console is the introduction of point and play controls. Such controls revolutionize video-game football. For example, no longer must you be frustrated by continually selecting the wrong (computer assigned) man on defense; merely point to any defender on the screen, and you become that person. No longer must you become irate that your pass went inexplicably to wrong place; point to a place on the screen, and you pass to that point, whipping in the perfect cross. (Crossing the ball into the box is much more realistic and user-friendly compared to the soft, floating, pointless crosses of the 08 version.) With this point and play control, Fifa 09 for the Wii takes advantage of the Wii's possibilities in all new ways.

However, it's unfathomable that Fifa didn't test the game on any potential consumers. My little nephew would immediately realize that there's no way to differentiate a ground pass from an air pass. There's only one button with which to pass the ball, the A button, and that button is the same for every kind of pass. Want to knock it over the forward's head for him to run onto the ball? Too bad, you'll pass it on the ground. Want to slot an incisive through ball between two defenders to your midfielder? Too bad, you'll pop it up in the air. Thank you Fifa: thanks to your myopia, I've had to revert to using the Gamecube controller (Use the Gamecube controller, and the controls are perfect.), stripping the Wii of all its Wii-ness.

To think, had Fifa just had my toddler nephew test the game, the company could have assigned A button as ground pass and B button as air pass; the result would have been one of the best football games ever. A shame indeed.

The FIFA 09 for Wii is almost two games in one. One part of it is the usual FIFA soccer with all the teams and options FIFA franchise has developed over the years. The other part is the special Footii Party designed to be played with personalized Miis created by you. Footii Party is fun to a degree. It all depends on how many people there are to have the party with. If you are all by yourself, you may quckly get bored with it. But don't forget that the other part of the game with all the great teams still exists and you can go back to play that. Plus there is the online game play which adds extra competition (Footii Party is not an online option, too bad).

The Bad.

I think that every review needs some straight talk. I hate my online experience so far because I have not been able to complete 60% of the games I've played. I keep getting the connection error in the middle of the game. Maybe it's my WiFi connection that does this, but all my computers (3 of them) hardly ever have problems connecting to my wireless network. So maybe it's my Wii Console.

The other thing is that I am have been struggling with the Wii remote control in this game. They give you two options: Advanced Play and All-Play. In All-Play, the CPU decides the moves for you and all you have to do is dribble, pass, shoot, run (the player with the ball only), defend. In Advanced Play, you decide how the whole thing goes. Due to my inexperience with the Wii remote, I find both options particularly difficult to master. I therefore decided to buy the classic controller simply because I have played FIFA on Xbox before without problems. The classical controller works great but it only works in the Advanced Mode.

Note that if you play online with the classic controler, all your games will be in Advanced Mode. Many people online use the Wii remote so they play in ALL-Play mode. My guess is that the two modes are not compatible which is why I keep losing connection with my opponents (although I tried to play with my Wii remote and I also lost connection several times).

This is the best fifa I've ever played. What makes it so good is the advanced controls. It gives you a better control of the team and where you'll send the pass, where the players run and where to shoot. It of course has some flaws, and some of them drive me crazy sometimes; like I feel that the shots don't go where I want them sometimes, or I send a high pass and it makes a shot with the head but very weak so it screws the shot practically giving it to the goal keeper, instead of kicking it... I guess it might be a matter of practice or something we have to deal with.

Overall it is a great game. It is realistic and has various options for in-game movements of the players. Also the way you shoot can give you more control because you can make the ball spin as you rotate the wii remote.

Other important fact is the lots of different ways to play as you can play in the manager mode, you can play leagues, cups, online games, special challenges and other fun games like the cartoonish soccer that you can see in the screenshots, keep ups, one game of shooting (which I haven't played more that twice to be honest) and table soccer (which is great!).

If you want a soccer game for hours and hours of fun and challenge, you should get this one (at least that's my case).

I have been playing FIFA games for many years dating back to '98 on a variety of consoles. I can say that without a doubt this is the most horrible expereince I've ever had by far. The team at EA Sports should be ashamed at presenting this as a legit Wii game. Where to begin...
GLITCHES! In the game and the commentary! I have had free kicks from the center circle go in, and sometimes my screen will phase out to black all of a sudden and it will be a goal kick for no apparent reason. And now the most annoying thing ever - after a long shot, many times the announcer will say that the player has injured himself and should come off! What!?!? Come on EA, how much did you play test this game, huh? A half hour at midnight after a drink or two? Or did you have 5 yr. olds play test it?
The controls are designed to give the user two options - all-play or advanced play. Advanced play is the most annoying feature as you literally have to point and click, point and click, point and click to where you want the ball to go. Granted this does offer a bit more control, it feels nothing like a flowing soccer match at all. All-play seems a bit easier and is designed for more "rookie" type of players. However, the computer plays as if it has additional moves and can make incredible curling shots and precise runs that you cannot.

Speaking of which, the difficulty settings are a joke - WAY too hard! Let me give you an example - I played a match set on "semi-pro" which is about a "medium" setting after I had patiently played for hours on the lower settings to get the hang of things. I played as Liverpool (one of the top dominant English teams) vs Cobh Ramblers (a crappy team from the Irish league). I used typical tactics and tried my hardest to score goals while also playing a all-around solid game including sound defense. I was defeated 4-2 with all 4 goals for the Ramblers being sensational, unrealistic long-distance strikes that obviously are impossible or curling twisting masterpieces that even the best real life players only rarely score, nevermind some no-name players for a poor one star team. This result is like your little brother's little league team beating the Yankees - it would just never happen - even in a video game.

The worst aspect of the all-play style is when you are defending. You can make a challenge for the ball which usually will not result in a foul but may leave the ball wide open for another opposing player to simply walk up to, take control, and move past your player - or you can slide tackle and be assured of a yellow or red - and still have the same result. This defending problem is shameful and simply highlights another fault in the playtesting area. Many times I have stopped an oncoming attacker only to have one of his teammates simply walk up to the ball and score.

Set pieces are very difficult as are crosses and corners. The instruction manual gives you minimal information in these areas. Your only choice is to play through a "soccer academy" option which did nothing to help me. Very frustrating.

Stay away from this one, I wish I can get my money back but I've lost the receipt. Not fun and full of poor game play and design. It doesn't even feel like soccer when you are playing. Buy something else. I cannot believe I wasted fifty bucks on this piece of junk....

I am totally dissatisfied with this game. I was a big fan of FIFA 08 and was very excited to play 09. However, the biggest glitch (at least for the wii) is that the game invariable disconnects during online play. This happens EVERY TIME there is a goal kick, and happens often during other points during play. It is ridiculous.

The defensive players also seem to move more slowly, and take one step in the wrong direction prior to moving into the right spot, although this may just be a learning curve for me.

The disconnection during online play destroys the game for me, as I primarily like to play online against others.

The points and pass is a cool idea, but they should have gotten the game right. I do not recommend this game at all.

The product offer you a lot options to enjoy and to share with yours friends.

Fifa 09 is an extremely addictive soccer game. They really did there homework on this one. Here are some pros and cons from my experiences.

Pros:
-All of the real players from clubs around the world with accurate skill and special tricks.
-Advanced play allows you to use the Wii Remote to select where you want to send a through ball for a player. This makes the game constantly changing and you can develop better and better passing strategies.
-Several levels of difficulty that keep computer teams honest while making the game more difficult (e.g. same speed with better passes and tricks from AI). The first time through the Premier League with Manchester United I did not win the whole thing because I tied the last game of the season!
CONS-
-No "World Cup" style scenario or UEFA Champions League
-My girlfriend doesn't care for it because I like it so much...HA!

I have been a long time Fifa player. No matter if your playing it on 360, psp, playstation, or wii, Fifa is an outstanding game. There are a number of things that make the Wii version stand out from the rest. First, the 8 on 8 footie games. You can actually use your mii during the game. Second, the foosball table. This is a very fun addition. Overall, you can't control player's runs, but for the average player, you don't need that level of control. Have fun, pass the ball, and shoot. This is a great buy for the Wii. GOALLLLLL!

The all play is the only real redeaming feature of this game, and after about 4 months I haven't picked it up again yet. The story line is drab & kind of hard to understand (I like soccer games, not real life soccer). worth it if you have a wii and young kids that are smart. Not saying i'm lacking a few marbles. Just all new players to this game SHOULD play the tutorial which takes about 20-30 minutes.

i bought this for my step son who really loves to play soccer and the various soccer games. He really enjoys it.