So you want to be a football player? The only way you will be one if you play kicker. To all our American friends, football is where you KICK the ball. Enter FIFA 2001...
From FIFA 1995 on Genesis, this game came a long way to the championship of football simulation. I want to write an essay, but the progress EA made with FIFA series is unparallel. My words to you are:
Aye:
1) FIFA license - yes, I stress again, real names make the difference! If you are a hardcore football fan, you will be pleased to relate your performance to famous greats. If you are a beginner, this is a good time to learn names like Figo, Rivaldo, Shevchenko, Del Piero, so when you won't be alone at the next pay-per-view showing of World Cup.
2) Graphics, my goodness, graphics - this is essential. From 2D simplicity of FIFA 95 to awe-inspiring FIFA 2001, you will be astonished at the progress graphics made in 6 years! IF you have a decent graphics card, it will be close to Final Fantasy movie cinematics, if you know what I mean. The players are flawless (thanks to anti-aliasing of my voodoo5), you can even see the spikes and sole pattern on cleats. When you score a goal, the replay camera sometimes moves around the frozen scene like in "The Matrix", making it all look very cool. Players have facial expressions, they yell, grin, smile, etc.
3) Commentary - the guys with English accent follow the game pretty well, and they say most of the players' names correctly. This gives a real TV-like feel.
4) The teams - a variety of teams are present for league play (17 leagues) and international play (about 40 teams). Finally, they got the Russian team more or less right!
5) The crowd - they chant in supports of their team and wave flags. The flags are for the countries that are playing.
6) Gameplay - all is very straightforward. It is best to play with a gamepad like Microsoft SideWinder with 10 buttons, but keyboard is OK. You can go in any direction, pass, lob, spin, jink, jump, head the ball, push, tackle, bicycle kick, fake, etc. A great selection of skills is available with a good mapping of buttons.
Note: I have Voodoo5 5500 PCI graphics card, it was not a choice for the card below.
Nay:
1) No Russian league - OK, this is my old grudge with EA. How can a league that has teams in UEFA Cup semi-finals twice in a row and in the Champions' League beating on Arsenal and whose national team was the only one that beat France at St.Denis since 1998 not get represented and be substituted by Greek, Japanese, or, God forbid, Major League Soccer? Shame, shame, shame! I hope they take care of it next year.
2) Major League Soccer - I don't get it, is MLS popular or something? This is probably the worst professional league in the world, and EA choose it to advertise their game? I think MLS paid EA for this. If you buy this game, it shouldn't be because of MLS (although you can play this league if you wish), but to check out GOOD teams and players.
3) Missing teams - there were more european club teams before and availability of other Cups. I don't know what happened, but there is not much selection in terms of teams whose leagues are not present.
Bottom line:
For a computer football game, this is a must have. FIFA 2001's level is unsurpassed, and you will have a good time. I recommend playing with international teams for beginners to gain good control skills, then move onto league play.
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