FIFA 18
Breaking Down the 2018 FIFA World Cup DLC
It was a curious run-up to this year’s World Cup DLC release. Uncertainty about EA actually releasing a standalone World Cup mode created an environment filled with rumors and speculation. After the success of FIFA World Cup 2010 and 2014, many of us, including myself, had high expectations as we were really looking forward to getting our hands on a video game representation of the world’s most popular sporting event. Now that it’s out, it’s time to see if it lived up to the hype.
Modes
As far as modes are concerned, this World Cup DLC is a little bit of a letdown. While I’ve had a ton of fun playing offline tournaments and online seasons, the two modes I was most looking forward to, Captain Your Country and a true qualification mode, were not included. While some may be quick to blame Ultimate Team as EA Canada’s primary focus, I believe it might have been asking too much to add these omissions for a free update. That being said, the ability to customize offline tournaments and complete in the knockout rounds through an online tournament offer plenty of excitement to even the casual fan who look to get their footy fix once every four years. One additional mode that should have been included is the ability to create a custom online tournament. While it’s fun to play one-off matches versus your buddies online, the days of going over to a friend’s house to play a tournament are long gone. Love it or hate it, Ultimate Team is here to stay and EA Canada put the majority of their game mode focus on it. With a promise of updated ratings based on live match performances and a double pack incentive for those of us who enjoy suspense, EA smartly is focusing their attention on their core base.
Visuals/Presentation/Commentary
Visually, FIFA 18’s World Cup DLC is nothing short of stunning. With the inclusion of all 12 authentic Russian stadiums featured this summer during the tournament, this update does a great job of capturing the essence and pageantry of football on the grandest of stages. Overlays including new pre-match graphics for lineups and in-match statistics are nicely done, incorporating Russian flair to give you the feeling that you’re actually there. Unfortunately, when the camera pans to the crowd you will notice the same individuals who were present at all of your FIFA 18 matches made the trip with the only difference being their faces painted in the colors of their home country — as well as donning the latest national kits. Speaking of kits, the majority of the updated kits made it into the game with a few errors, most noticeably Germany’s away shorts being green instead of white. This is unacceptable considering Germany is the current cup holder. Hopefully as we get closer to the actual tournament, EA will correct these issues. If you enjoyed FIFA 18’s graphical style when it comes to match lighting, you will mostly be satisfied with this update. Conversely, if the day lighting and stadium shadows annoyed you, you will find this update to be on par with those expectations. Lastly, commentary hasn’t been updated to incorporate new storylines so you’ll hear the same generic content that has plagued the series for years.
Rosters
The rosters released with this DLC are a bit strange as most countries included in this update do not have the finalized squads. Perhaps as squads are officially declared in the days leading up to the tournament, EA will send out an update and correct this error. Another curious aspect to the rosters are the lack of face updates and pictures that seemingly did not carry over from the main game. Players like Germany’s Marco Reus, yes the same Marco Reus who donned the cover of FIFA 17 is strangely missing his face in the game. Ratings also do not seem to have been updated to reflect the latest season results although I’m still holding out hope for the Ultimate Team ratings/roster updates to carry over to all modes.
Gameplay
Unsurprisingly gameplay is largely unchanged, meaning that if you enjoyed the most recent gameplay patch you will enjoy this game. With such a vast difference between national sides like Germany and say Saudi Arabia, you might be fooled into thinking you’re seeing things that aren’t there but it’s mostly just down to a massive gulf in ratings between the two sides. Realistically, we cannot expect to see any updates to gameplay until FIFA 19 is released.
Conclusion
FIFA 18’s World Cup DLC falls short of EA’s previous World Cup releases, which is a real shame. The prior two World Cup games provided endless hours of excitement and challenges with its full qualification, memorable moments and Captain your Country modes. While this DLC will suffice for a quick fix of international footy, those who did not purchase FIFA 18 are better off skipping this update unless you can find FIFA 18 for a reasonable price.
And actually, there is some new commentary stories, telling some stuff about teams' campaigns in 2014 and the qualifiers which is very nice. But Martin Tyler's comment about him being sad for South America, Chile out of the World Cup yada yada is overused to the point I would call it a bug, it's triggered in almost every single game, including matches without anyone from South America.
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They will never forget the humiliation, and if they should, the Germans will remind them of it. Revenge is their only salvation. :wedgie:
I heard that german away shorts will actually be green due to FIFA kit regularities.
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Hahaha.. we actually make fun about it since that game.. jokes like "everyday is a different 7x1" is kinda normal here lol
Haha ditto. When it happened it was tough, but today it's just a joke. People are much more emotional towards their clubs than the national team anyway.
And we don't need a revenge, we have 2002.
And we don't need a revenge, we have 2002.
Yes they do!.
It's a ghost that lies deeply buried in them today. Imagine the psychological aspect if they meet in Russia ?. It is pure self-denial, and what rubbish with claiming clubs produces more feeling than a national team?!, Come on man thats... :34:
It's a ghost that lies deeply buried in them today. Imagine the psychological aspect if they meet in Russia ?. It is pure self-denial, and what rubbish with claiming clubs produces more feeling than a national team?!, Come on man thats... :34:
That's actually true, a lot of people do not care about the national team anymore and complain about the clubs losing players to the national team. The political scenario and the fact that Brazil do not produce players like Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo anymore made the people lose interest in the national team. It's sad, but it's true
And we won the Olympics for the first time against Germany, so, we already had our revenge lol
And we won the Olympics for the first time against Germany, so, we already had our revenge lol
I respect if you on your country's behalf says we've moved on, and won Olympics which means a lot in football context !?!, oh my god,lol. But the lack of interest could be reverted to what happened in 14, have you thought about it ?.
But what I absolutely do not approve is to deny a lot of emotions for their national team, at least as big as a club team. There is nothing that can connect a country like a world cup. And as I read the context, we are not just talking about Brazil.
C'mon EA. That stupid sound byte shouldn't be a glitch in the game period (I've had it happen with Man U, PSG, West Ham, and many others... even in the Journey...) but how did you let it get into the WC mode?
C'mon EA. That stupid sound byte shouldn't be a glitch in the game period (I've had it happen with Man U, PSG, West Ham, and many others... even in the Journey...) but how did you let it get into the WC mode?
Sorry :lol:
Man, you don't know the context and what is happening now in Brazil. Part of the population didn't wanted the world cup to be here in 14 and are not interested in football or the national team. Politics are ruining everything here and the country is a mess.
Of course that 14 did something to people lose interest in the national team, but the picture is bigger than that. We started losing interest in the moment that our best players started to go younger and younger to europe for money. Brazil love football and our idols, but we don't have any idol here for so long.. and we did not produce great football players anymore... the moment that players like Ronaldo, Kaká, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Adriano and many others appears again we will probably get connected again
But you probably have a degree in psychology and know better than us
We played Germany two times since that game, won both and even if we beat them in the final, that 7x1 will not be erased. I moved on about that match (I like Germany and was supporting them during the tournament to) and every game is another game. I hope to meet Germany, Argentina, Spain and have great games... the problem about 14 wasn't lose, the problem is that since 2002, our national team don't have the spirit that make we support them.. 14 was the ice on the cake.. but the cake was being cooked since at least 06
Of course that 14 did something to people lose interest in the national team, but the picture is bigger than that. We started losing interest in the moment that our best players started to go younger and younger to europe for money. Brazil love football and our idols, but we don't have any idol here for so long.. and we did not produce great football players anymore... the moment that players like Ronaldo, Kaká, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Adriano and many others appears again we will probably get connected again
But you probably have a degree in psychology and know better than us
No, I do not know your country's social condition, but the reference is only in relation to the aspect of the upcoming World Cup and what the means psychologically for Brazil what happened in 14?. Try to relax - we only discuss I have great respect for your country's football history, hope it shines through ?, and do not want a social debate about your country's state, it's not the right place. :whitsmile
Polls reveal that 65% of the Brazilians say they don't care at all for this World Cup (I'm not among them, fwiw). A little bit because of the 7-1, but the current state of the country as a whole has a bigger parcel on this, imo.
I disagree with this. Neymar is an idol, even if his personality is somewhat detestable.
Strongly disagree with this. Our squad is stellar. Alisson and Firmino had a fantastic season, Casemiro is a beast, Coutinho is genius and Marcelo is pretty much the best full back in the world. Willian is one of the best wingers on England and he is our reserve. And we can't even pick between Firmino and Gabriel Jesus without a debate. This is not even counting Dani Alves, who is injured. We're very well served.
Yes, I can agree with that. Neymar is a terrific player, but his personality get people to hate him and that's the reason I said we don't have idols
Our squad is really good, no doubt about it. We have good players in every position. Marcelo is the best full back in the world. But I would not select any of those players ahead of the guys I mentioned before. Firmino and Jesus are both good players and with a lot of potential.. but we can't put them in the same conversation as Ronaldo Fenômeno, Ronaldinho Gaúcho and even Adriano.
That's the point, we have very good players but they are not at the level that we had before
I'm cool man. I was just saying that without knowing what is happening here you don't know why the people are not caring to the wolrd cup, because the problem is not just soccer right now. Of course 14 was bad, but the interest was already low four years ago.
I love the world cup and I really hope that this time Brazil do better than the last three.. if we lose, but playing good football, I think that the people will start to support the Seleção again.
Our squad is really good, no doubt about it. We have good players in every position. Marcelo is the best full back in the world. But I would not select any of those players ahead of the guys I mentioned before. Firmino and Jesus are both good players and with a lot of potential.. but we can't put them in the same conversation as Ronaldo Fenômeno, Ronaldinho Gaúcho and even Adriano.
That's the point, we have very good players but they are not at the level that we had before
Excuse me, but it's pitiful whimpering.:brickwall You have one of the world's best teams and a wealth of talents that develop in your country in spite of the issues you're mention. But the eternal comparisons with the legends of the past in relation to today's players, I think it is simplistic and nostalgic. Just like who is the world's best football player of all time ?. My claim is that if you played a match with 2018 vs classic (the time when the classics were at there best) your new players in 2018 would smash them more than 7-1. Think most people here have classical legends, or teams, but to unite them with the present is like uniting a ferrari with a Tesla, the primers for a debate are not present.
If I was talking about Pelé, Garrincha, Rivelino I would agree with you.. I'm talking about players that played in the last 15 years that was better than what Brazil have now. And I really disagree that 2018 would beat this legends in their primes.
Just remember that Brazil wasn't going to World Cup if we did not changed our coach during the south america qualifying
Just remember that Brazil wasn't going to World Cup if we did not changed our coach during the south america qualifying
Wildly speculative. At the end, Brazil qualified on first by a good margin. And if you're gonna put the merits on the coach alone, you could say the previous results happened only because Dunga sucked.
This is definitely not the best squad we had in history, but it's far from being one of our worst.
It isn't the case, IMO, but if Brazilians don't support the team because the players "aren't good enough", then maybe they should rethink their expectations.
This is definitely not the best squad we had in history, but it's far from being one of our worst.
It isn't the case, IMO, but if Brazilians don't support the team because the players "aren't good enough", then maybe they should rethink their expectations.
It's speculative as saying that 2018 players would beat "classic players" worse than 7x1. But it's a fact that Dunga sucked and Brazil was playing really bad and with chances of not get to the finals with him
I never said it's the worst. I'm not saying this team is garbage because we have a lot of talent there. I'm saying that is not the same level of 10/15 years ago.
And I think most people don't support Brazil because the level of the players and because we don't see this players playing anymore. Look at the "next stars" Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, they don't have 20 yet and probably will go to Europe before their 20th aniversary. We don't have time to connect with the players and people get to lose interest. I will really support Brazil in this and all world cups, but I know a lot of people that won't
EVERY GAME :/
It didn't update squads as far as I know because Sane was still on Germany.