Every year, tons of fans and players look forward to the release of FIFA with updated teams and player ratings along with gameplay improvements.

While every new iteration of the game comes with its fair share of improvements and new learning curves, this year’s edition of the game may take some getting used to.

To start off, here are some things that FIFA 18 brings to the table.

Image: EA

Graphics

First thing first, we need to take a moment to appreciate the fact that FIFA 18 looks even more realistic than ever – players and even managers look incredibly similar to life.

Shadows and lighting are extremely detailed, it looks surreal. The Frostbite engine deserves immense credit for making the graphics look amazingly real.

Image: Xbox

Gameplay

Every year, FIFA makes a change in their gameplay mechanics which takes some getting used to. While not all of them positive, this year’s changes look certain to improve the game in the long run.

For instance, the turning mechanics for players after receiving the ball in FIFA 18 feels a tad bit heavy, but perfectly mimics life-like movements.

When it comes down to sprinting, it starts off slow and picks up fast, which relates to how sprinting in real life works. The passing is also much easier to intercept and through balls are much more straight forward to pull off. It’s easier to pick of your team mate and send a through ball his way without getting intercepted.

Additionally, you now have a quick sub option allowing the game to quickly suggest replacements for players, without going through the hassle of entering the pause menu.

With 15 new skills added to the game, the flow of pulling off a trick or two feels much more natural than before. It’s almost as if the developers decided to get rid of those annoying moments where you spam your joy stick to do a skill but nothing happens.

Player/team celebrations are way more dramatic, making the feeling of scoring a goal way more satisfying. There are many more minor tweaks to the gameplay including strategizing your defence, but you need to experience the Gameplay first-hand to appreciate the amazing work done on FIFA 18.

Image: Futhead

Game Modes

Career mode is back with a more realistic transfer window and player negotiation. After a successful transfer, you get to see a cinematic press conference of your newly signed player, another aspect that bring the realism of FIFA 18 to a whole new level.

FIFA Ultimate Team is also back, allowing you to form a team with different players by opening trading card packs. Each pack you open will determine the players you get in your squad.

As with most trading card games, better players are harder to come by and cost more in Coins in the transfer market. If you’re unfamiliar with the game mode, it’s certainly worth a try and there’s no better time to get started than in FIFA 18.

Image: FourFourTwo

The Journey

Alex Hunter is back for a new season with more exciting cinematic decisions to make. Having made a name for yourself in FIFA 17, the pressure is on this time. Every step and decision you make will affect your gameplay and endgame.

Without trying to spoil much of the story, Alex Hunter goes through a failed transfer to Real Madrid which led him to play in the MLS, and now he has to completely climb back to where he belongs in the football world. Playing in the MLS also allows Alex Hunter to reconnect with his father.

Alex is also almost fully customisable, with options allowing you to edit his hairstyle, add tattoos, choose the clothes he wears and his favourite pair of adidas football boots.

In conclusion

All in all, FIFA never fails to deliver, and this year FIFA 18 has definitely topped previous years earning a rating of 9.0.

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