2002 fifa world cup review

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Average Ratings

Addiction Level	9.1/10
Graphics	10/10
Value for Money	8.6/10
Reviewer Rating	8.6/10
Overall Rating	8.8/10

80% Recommended4 out of 5 Reviews

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By avi. on 17th Jun 2002

avi.'s Ratings

Addiction Level	9/10
Value for money	9/10
Overall value	8/10
avi.'s recommendation

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General Comments

Hi
I am a very big fan of EA Sports and especially FIFA and Cricket series. I will use "FIFA" here to refer to FIFA the game and not FIFA the federation.
In this mail I would like to give you an analysis of all your FIFA games as viewed by a typical customer like me.
I started playing FIFA from the year 98 with FIFA Road to World Cup 98 and frankly speaking I haven't thereafter played a better game on my pc. It still, even 4 years later tops the chart of my all-time favorite games. The kind of atmosphere and the feel that was built around the game, its presentation style, the huge information database, easy game play, the animations, the soundtracks and a lot of flexibility in the game turned it into anyone's hot favorite. But I was immensely disappointed with the subsequent sequels in FIFA 99 and FIFA 2000. Neither matched up to its predecessor due to several reasons like the lack of feel, things got repetitive, tougher game play i.e. one needed more keys to play and tackle effectively whereas in FIFA98 only A, S & D were enough. And in generally more concentration was on baseless hype and show rather than on actual game play.
I had completely lost my interest in FIFA when FIFA 2001 came up. I liked this version but not as much as 98. Now I'm finally hooked on to FIFA 2002 for the past two weeks and I feel that this is the best version out of the four but still falls a little short of the original FIFA 98. Below I am giving you a few tips and advices on how to make a better FIFA game: -

The graphics have definitely improved over the last years and with every new FIFA they just get better and more realistic. This is one field where EA are doing great.
Though the FIFA 2002 feel is good try to improve it a little more. What I mean is that try to make the user feel that he is no outsider but just one of the footballers. Just create a whole new world of soccer. Match the soundtracks with the presentation style e.g. like in FIFA98 the World Cup mascot playing hide and seek while in the menu did the trick. Create a worldly feel of its own. Remember soccer is the world's largest religion not a game.
One of the best things about FIFA 98 was the ability to choose more than one teams at one time for any season or world cup. Like we could play Italian league by choosing AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus , Lazio, Fiorentina all at the same time. In all the subsequent sequels this option was missing and this is the biggest drawback of FIFAs from 99 to 2002. I hoped this feature would be incorporated in FIFA 2002 but it wasn't. Please add this feature in your future FIFAs or just release game patches for the same. It helps one to get absorbed in the soccer world and feel that he is a part of the whole tournament and not just a single team.
Another feature missing was the Training feature, which provided a very healthy behind the scenes environment and a good platform to practice and perfect one's skills.
The huge information databank of FIFA 98 is also missing. In FIFA 2002 there are many teams with players without name and referred to by their numbers. For example in Ecuador no player has a name. Having a sound research on the latest player names and incorporating the same makes the game much more original.
The Game play should not either be too easy or too tough. Innovative logic should be present in game engines. Keys used should be kept to the minimum. In almost all FIFAs once you master the skills you can beat the opponent easily. I have reached scores of 18-0 while playing against a twice-strong team (in FIFA 2001 and all the earlier ones. I haven't yet mastered FIFA 2002.) The only solution is innovative logic and no to get repeated.
The best feature of FIFA2002 is that it allows you to remap keys according to your convenience.
FIFA 98 included stadiums and stadium animations from around the globe, which were great.
Please try to include as many teams as possible. Like we in India hate it when India isn't included. These teams are included only in the World cup editions.
Another great feature in the new FIFAs is the tournament creation center.

All in all FIFA2002 with a better info base and the ability to choose more than one teams would be the ideal FIFA. I still remember how FIFA98 bowled everyone who saw and played it. It was a revolution.

Well these were my frank opinions and advices. I'm sure there are many more people who feel the same. If the opinions of typical gameplaying customers like us matters then please do write back and let me know what you have to say. Also tell me about any patches or fixes available on the net.

Thank you

avi

Total Respect: +3