It's got a foot like a traction engine!Ball Ball Ball, Footy Footy Footy
I'll make no apologies for not knowing a heck of a lot about football. As one of the "Wimps, Wets and Weirdos" at school, P.E footie sessions were for the meat-brains. Even today, if someone pointed me at a photo of the Tottenham Hotspur team kit for 2008 / 2009, I wouldn't be able to differentiate it from Accrington Stanley's. Ask me who's in the line-up for Manchester United's 2008/2009 season team and I'll just shrug my shoulders and say "Whah?" As for watching televised footie? Life's too blimmin' short for that sort of malarkey.
That doesn't mean I don't enjoy a good footie game - and this year the battle lines between Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer and EA's FIFA '09 have been more tightly drawn than ever before.
Most console versions of FIFA 2009 have already been very well received and the player consensus seems to be that EA have edged into the lead in producing the most essential football title to be had on consoles.
How does the Wii version stack up?
With the Wii already sporting one of the best versions of Pro Evolution Soccer, with an innovative take on the control system, giving players more precision to place the ball where they want it than ever before, FIFA already has a mountain to climb. The good news is, it's got its spiky hiking boots on and it's not only going to scale that mountain but it's going to sprint up the side of it, pipping Pro Evolution Soccer to the placing of the flag on the summit.
Crap mountaineering analogies aside, FIFA 09 All Play (to give it the proper title) is absolutely chock full of footie goodness whether you're a stats-mangling footie hoebag or (like me) just someone who enjoys a bloody good game.
Look out! It's Scary Rooney!
There are more game modes and options present in FIFA 09 All Play than you can shake a Wiimote at. Diving straight into the action with the game's extremely cute arcade mode, you'll get your first experience of what several high profile soccer stars would look like if someone stuck a bicycle pump into their ears and inflated their heads to 400 PSi. The Mii representations of the likes of Rooney, Ronaldinho etc are absolutely fantastic and hilarious so before you settle down to the serious business of taking your chosen team to the top of the league it's worth taking a look at the Wii version's "Mii Mode".
This "Footii Match (groan)" Mode is fantastically approachable and definitely the best mode for beginners or casual gamers to get to grips with. The control system takes all the hassle out of running around the pitch and allows the player to purely concentrate on passing and shooting, meaning that practically anyone of any age can get involved in a game and get a lot of satisfaction out of even this simplest iteration of the sport.
Meanwhile, back in the real world
There is, of course, a proper game of football in here too. The "full" version of FIFA Soccer '09 does an absolutely brilliant job of shoehorning decent player and team graphics and top-notch animation into the Wii's tiddly innards. If the Wii is your sole gaming platform (you poor sod) you have nothing to complain about here, because the action is every bit as intense and as smooth as the more powerful console versions.
Controls here are a little more fully featured giving you a plethora of choices between Wiimote / Nunchuck or classic pad if you so wish. I opted for player control with the Nunchuck, while pointing at the screen with the Wiimote for ball placement and this really works fantastically well, dare I say it, more polished than Pro Evo's similar control method.
As with Pro Evo '09, FIFA '09 really refines the way you control the player with a very Sensi-like feel to the way you can play through balls and run-ons. Like I said, no apologies if I'm not getting the technical terms correct here, but that's the way the cookie crumbles.
Things are so detailed that you'll really clash with other players if you're daft enough to try and run through them, so expect to be yellow-carded frequently when you first tackle (ho ho) the game's finer points.
Header to Header
The acid test of any footie game is to bribe another human player into joining you. Even though the Wii version of the game features a decent network play option (surprisingly with very little lag), there's a whole lot more fun to be had when you're within elbowing room of your opponent.
Head to head on the same screen is the way to go and the game moves from being a lot of fun to being an essential post-pub pursuit, firmly tripping up just about every single other Wii title out there to become the most fun you can have with your Wii without being arrested for indecency.
The only real quibbles I have with FIFA 09 All Play are the usual ones. The commentary is as stupidly retarded as it always is in any Footie game. Thankfully you can switch it off and just get on with the job at hand. The other quibble is that the tutorial and practice modes are a bit rubbish and assume that you're some sort of footie-game-playing android, but within the space of a few games you'll suddenly 'click' with the main control method and the game will exude class and satisfaction in equal amounts.
All in all, the choice is clear for this year at least. The smart money is going on FIFA '09 due to the dizzying number of improvements, tweaks and extra features EA have shoehorned into the game, even with the Wii version. Thoroughly recommended even if you are a Cinderella gamer, and run away from the ball at every opportunity.
Bungie vows never to follow the Activision route and charge extra for online multiplayer
(1) (30/07) 
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#1 - billdoor - on 27/10/2008 at 13:03 wrote:
#2 - peej - on 27/10/2008 at 13:09 wrote:
I think EA have done wonders on the Wii tbh, it's a bloody good version of the beautiful game
#3 - Trip SkyWay - on 27/10/2008 at 14:08 wrote:
#4 - peej - on 27/10/2008 at 14:10 wrote:
Dunno if this'll help but here's a comparison vid
Shows both modes.
#5 - Trip SkyWay - on 27/10/2008 at 14:25 wrote:
#6 - peej - on 27/10/2008 at 14:41 wrote:
If there's a game that's perfectly geared to non-footie types who actually like playing footie games, then this is it - but there's also plenty of fun to be had for serious football heads who want something a little more than just a FIFA Street 3-alike.
#7 - Syrok - on 27/10/2008 at 15:58 wrote:
#8 - Binky - on 28/10/2008 at 15:43 wrote:
#9 - Binky - on 28/10/2008 at 15:44 wrote:
#10 - peej - on 28/10/2008 at 15:53 wrote:
#11 - duncan - on 28/10/2008 at 22:48 wrote:
Wasn't that one of the monkeys in Monkeyball?
This is the one time having a US wii is a pain in the arse.
#12 - peej - on 29/10/2008 at 07:49 wrote:
Seriously though, that mode is actually a lot of fun. Sure, the footie purists who give a flying toss about Redknapp's move to Spurs will be up in arms playing anything other than a proper rendition of footie, but those of us (you?) who like games will love the cutesy pie all play version just as much as the "good" one