
Originally Posted by
SportsGamer
UEFA Euro 2008 has been announced, and more and more news begins to lead about EA's upcoming soccer (football) title. Missing from the release is PC, XBox, and Wii versions of the game. It will be released for the PS2, PS3, PSP, and XBox 360. Many critics have wondered why EA has decided to release another soccer title? Especially considering this soccer title uses the same gameplay engine as FIFA does. It seems understandable, critics say, to release a title like FIFA Street, because that's a totally different game. Why not just build the Euro 2008 Championship into FIFA 08? Some say it's EA being greedy. I, however, believe that this mid-year release of Euro 2008 is a welcomed change and a great idea.
Basically, UEFA Euro 2008 is FIFA 09 beta. I know EA won't exactly say that, but it's true. UEFA Euro 2008 plays on the same game engine as FIFA, but there have already been some significant improvements made. I love this idea. You can get some feedback on new features now, and then decide how to improve FIFA 09 using the appropriate improvements. Last year's UEFA title, UEFA Champions League, was an amazing title. It was an improvement on FIFA 07 without question. However, there were still a few bugs in the game such as the dreaded through ball that simply froze defenders while attackers slid behind the defense. FIFA 08 was then an improvement over the UEFA Champions League.
So it's safe to assume that EA has been able to utilize a mid-season launch of a new soccer title to help improve and innovate on their previous FIFA title. Furthermore, after several months of playing FIFA consistently, it gets a little stale. This is not in any way a knock on the game, but it's human nature. I'm ready for a change. I'm ready for something new. I'm ready for UEFA Euro 2008. I want to see what the producers are working on to improve the already great title. I want to feel the excitement of the Euro 2008. I can't wait. The features I'm most excited about are the addition of weather, enhanced penalty kicks, and the EURO Online Knockout Draw. Now we can play in 16-person quick tournaments which somehow gives games online a new level of intensity.