My first review for XBS was FIFA Street, I thought EA had really dropped the ball on that one. It was an honest but somewhat brutal review. It’s now about a year later and FIFA Street 2 is out and when I first heard that they were releasing it, I thought oh man — not again. The whole street series has been a huge hit for the EA Big Brand. I did mention in the first review that there were several things in need of tweaks. So I popped in the game and started playing and soon found out that EA either listened to my review (hey I can dream) or EA really wanted to deliver a Street style of FIFA for the fans. Read the full FIFA Street 2 review and see why it’s a fun game for fans of Soccer.

Gameplay

The basic format is the same as in FIFA Street. You play as a four man team while working your way up to being the captain of the team. At first you have limited amount of Skill Billz. These are used when creating your character at the start of the game and to buy attribute points and other items later on. Once you earn the title of Captain, you will need to pay the other team members to keep them happy and on the team. This makes it interesting and makes sense why you will want to earn and pull out your best tricks during the Rule the Street career mode. Right away the FIFA Street shows that it is better and deeper than the first one. While it still has some frustrating mechanics and little details that seem to reoccur, the overall gameplay is faster and just plain fun. You will face several different matches in career mode which all make sense and are explained. Yet most have the same basic goal, no pun intended. You don’t just want to score, but you want to pull off the tricks and earn the gamebreakers to score the largest amount of skill Billz and move on to the next game.

The tricks are a bit tougher to pull off but more importantly they actually look like they fit this time around. While the trick stick has been improved and works great, it has a few issues like last year’s version. Really once you get into the game and start to play, the few flaws are not as noticeable. EA was able to improve a series I thought had no chance of making it and that is why I review games instead of creating them I guess.

So the “trick stick” is fixed as are overall controls. Even the players’ looks are cleaned-up as well as the overall presentation of the action. There was one thing EA seemed to miss or just seems off and that is the camera. You have the option to set it different angles like vertical or horizontal. The vertical view should have offered a closer in your face view. Instead the camera shrinks the action down and it makes the gameplay look small and distant. I have always been big on feeling the realistic side of the sport, extreme or not. This view reminds gamers that they are controlling the action and not in it. It is easy enough to fix though by just leaving the camera at the default setting. I think EA was onto something with the other settings and, hopefully, they will get it corrected if FIFA Street 3 rolls out the door.

The A.I is smarter but still at times will go directly at the same players each time. This makes the cut scenes and animations seem boring when in fact it’s just a case of the A.I always repeating the same plays while they switch. It’s not enough and will be something anyone will notice. Also you’re controlling all four players on the team so it does not make sense to have two of them who work well together. Then have one average player that is always falling in key plays and is out of range to pull them off. the A.I is tricky but it is just one big thing that EA needs to tweak even more for the next one. While playing you can change the team members up, get new ones and the overall play is decent. It does not get old feeling as fast but has a limited amount of play time. An online mode would have greatly added to the sequel and would have been fun to play online with some friends.

Control / Playability

While still using the basic Street format, EA did tweak the controls a little. You won’t need to reach for the black or white buttons during gameplay. I never had problems with controls that used it but I have heard other gamers complain about that. You will need to learn the way the trick stick works. Flicking it will keep the ball going forward pushing up will cause the ball to flop and then sets up for a another trick. Overall the controls are laid out well and the learning curve is about the same as the other Street titles. You will want to score a goal fast by nature, but in FIFA Street you need to remember tricks and flashy plays fill up the gamebreaker meter faster and this is the whole point and way to score really big. The combination of flash and more solid soccer moves makes FIFA Street 2 seem to make sense and work.

Graphics / Presentation

Graphically, the game is improved no doubt about it but still a bit limited. They use a mix of well-known soccer players and fictional ones. Of course the well-known players seem to look better but then again they would want to. It seems to show that the game can look good, but then it appears the looks of other areas were not considered important. The tricks look very cool but at times when the camera decides to do a bit of trickery of its own, it can get annoying. Unlike the last attempt, the venues look more realistic and except for the very limited tool and options in creating your player, it is a major improvement.

Audio

I poked fun at the fact the last game had a Jamaican announcer. I still think while he really stood out, he did a great job just not for this type of game. They changed things up and for the most part again a great job. Now the only complaint or distraction is they have three pre-set radio stations. Each has a DJ that loves to talk after each song. Any good DJ knows when to stop talking so you know where I am going with this. A nice idea but very much like Burnout Takedown 3, the DJ took away from the game and most went to a custom soundtrack. Here it can be adjusted and it sounds okay for awhile but will get on anyone’s nerves, yet the music is a great selection. I really can’t believe I just said that since one of my gripes in any sports game has been the choice of music. The rest of the sounds are well done and add enough to make you feel in the street mode.

Replay Value

The sophomore year of FIFA Street is a good one but not perfect. It has plenty of games and the change up that makes you in charge of the team and the bills is an added challenge. They threw in a ton of items to unlock and try and own. Challenging gameplay and some cool tricks makes it worth playing for fans of the sport. Those not into soccer may like it after learning the tricks and the over-the-top game style of play is reason enough to play it.

Overall Score

Overall Score: 7.4/10 [not an average]

Additional Comments

I enjoyed playing FIFA Street 2. It has a few issues but is fun and that is what makes a game worth playing. I never thought after the first attempt I could be open minded but this is a major improvement. If EA can make some adjustments with the camera and tighten up the A.I, FIFA Street may just be another major franchise hit for them.

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