FIFA 22 withholds exciting next-gen features from PC players, hardly develops in terms of gameplay and even loses teams. Now it’s time to pay the piper.
If the FIFA series were a Bundesliga club, it would almost certainly be FC Bayern Munich. And then its sporting director would have to put up with some unpleasant questions this season: Why were no big-name new signings made when there were departures? Why are league rivals making themselves fit for the future with radical changes, or are the clubs of other sports pulling away in terms of attractiveness? Where are all the merchandise and TV millions going? And what is the FIFA 22 amateur team doing here?
In our example, the missing newcomers would be exciting new game modes (think of some, EA!) or a finally consistent integration of women’s football. The departures would be the many national teams and the two top Italian clubs Lazio Roma and Atalanta Bergamo, which – like Juventus Torino and AS Roma last year – are no longer included in the licence package.
The rival club, with the perhaps controversial yet boldly radical realignment would be Konami’s eFootball brand. And the club from the other sport would be the NBA 2K series – because here, at least graphically, a lot has been done on next-gen consoles. The millions and millions from the marketing rights would of course be the horrendous sums that the giant publisher Electronic Arts squeezes out of its cash cow Ultimate Team every year and quite obviously does not pump 1:1 into the next FIFA.
The amateur team is still missing – well, this can obviously only be the current PC version! Because actually, analogous to football, a name like “FIFA 22 Amateure” or “FIFA 22 II” would be appropriate for what EA presents us PC players this year.
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Same old excuse
The new FIFA just looks graphically outdated on the computer, the players look pale and no more like their real-life counterparts than last year. If you look at the PlayStation 5 (which I was able to do thanks to a test version), you’ll be amazed at how much sharper, more vivid, more detailed and ultimately more intense FIFA 22 comes across there.
On the other hand, EA is using the same flat excuse as before to put PC players off: “If we had included HyperMotion technology and the features of the gripping matchday experience on PC, the minimum requirements would have increased, so a large proportion of players would not have been able to run the game.”
It’s just stupid when tens of other manufacturers solve this well-known problem better and the game runs on an engine (Frostbite) that DICE’s Patrick Bach had described in the past as especially scalable So that you can see for yourself, we have put together 20 screenshots from the PC version for you in our image gallery:
Small steps forward
Fortunately, the PC version of FIFA 22 is not completely without innovations: EA already announced in advance that, among other things, improved goalkeepers, more realistic ball physics and new sprinting abilities are in the game. In the next paragraph, I will explain how this affects the pitch. But before that, for the sake of completeness, I’d like to give you a (jealous) preview of the Next-Gen-exclusive innovations that EA has grouped under the catchword “HyperMotion”: There are, for example, thousands of new animations, heavier duels, more human interactions or a tactically better AI.
But how does FIFA 22 play on the PC? Still really good. That sounds platitudinous, but fun gameplay and great gameplay don’t suddenly go bad within twelve months. The “creative runs” and “player fixing” are still clever, powerful tools for the offensive, the “agile dribbling” once again ensures smooth dances and feints in tight spaces.
Turbos & Goalkeeper
General the game speed is a bit slower than in FIFA 21, which makes quite a few athletes a bit more ponderous and the gameplay more realistic. On the other hand, the new explosive sprints provide more speed on the first metres – nimble high-speed players thus enjoy the advantage they have in reality on the pitch. Basically, the offensive is again at an advantage in FIFA 22, goal festivals are not uncommon and striker stars tend to shine more easily than defender stretchers.
New player change options, namely the “icon change”, should provide more comfort in defence. If you press the right stick in defence, small directional icons are displayed above the four best-positioned teammates and you can quickly switch to the desired player by selecting a direction; in practice, I found this to take some getting used to, but in general the option is welcome.
This is how the next-gen version plays
Not always well-sounding feature names hide noticeable changes in practice, but the lack of all the “HyperMotion” innovations is extremely noticeable in the PC version of FIFA 22. After a complete weekend with the PC version of FIFA 22, I start the PS5 version and almost have to rub my eyes.
All those graphic details in the close-ups of the players (hair, tattoos, jerseys), the more nicely reacting goal net, the more dynamic positioning of the athletes and, of course, the more realistic, heavier animations seem like they’re from another game.
This conveys the energy of the sport better, goals and duels feel richer or rougher; I also like the weight of the virtual ball better in the Next Gen version. Is it all window dressing and graphics magic? No. Thanks to these upgrades, FIFA 22 plays much better on a PS5, looks more modern and feels more like a successor that gamers are willing to pay the full price for.
Volta for the third
FIFA’s street football Volta also gets a few new additions in the 22 version: On the pitch, the kick feels even trickier and more informal – the latter is surely due to EA removing the chemistry system between players.
Depending on the size of the team and the rules (for example, futsal, which is played with an out), cool, fast-paced games can be played in which skilled players really tear their opponents apart. On the other hand, the tendency to stumble and the sometimes slapstick-like collisions annoy me. And then there’s the look: Why do almost all Volta athletes have to look like hipster Sims or the hacker gang from Watch Dogs 2?
rings
Squash
Four goals
Colour fields
Football tennis
I think it’s good that the self-created avatar has a bit more going for it from the start, but it’s a pity that the Volta story is omitted. It was already manageable in FIFA 21 – but in the end it was a little added value for single players.
The new “play with your friends” focus is underlined by the mini-games of the Volta arcade mode; strangely, this game variant is only available at the weekend. Here, four online players battle it out in colourful football mini-games that remind me of the (20-year-old) training disciplines from Virtua Tennis.
Sometimes all the athletes shoot through rings to score points, sometimes you dribble over fields to colour them in; in the next round you bounce the ball around the court in tennis and squash-like mini-games. It looks nice and is fun with friends, but I don’t find the individual disciplines particularly sophisticated.
Career opportunities in FIFA 22
The changes in the career mode are quite manageable, but they do exist: You can now create your own club from scratch, including name, crest, kits and co., then also customise the stadium and decide on a league. It’s nice to be able to do that – but it’s not a big hit.
In addition to improving a self-created player via the skill tree, there are now almost 30 so-called “advantages” that you unlock during the course of the game; you can then pimp your player with up to three of them. These advantages are automatically triggered when a certain condition is fulfilled (for example, a goal assist) – among other things, you can expect improved passing values, more precise crosses or stronger standard executions. Other, more defensive gimmicks are a defensive boost when you are the last man or a faster run out of the keeper.
Depending on whether you start your career with a star, a self-made kicker or with a coach focus, various subtleties await, some of which are familiar from previous years: the seamless transition from the simulation presented like in a manager game to the intervention on the pitch is once again very pleasant, here you can save a lot of time and only intervene if your own team falls behind.
A new feature is the option to sit on the bench when performances fluctuate and to be substituted late as a joker – this reduces the time window in which you can shine, but on the other hand reflects reality more accurately than before.
The new scenes from the dressing room, which are shown after the match, can be seen as a small plus for the atmosphere, but they are not particularly stylish on the PC. I like the many statistics and detailed heat maps that visualise my influence on the pitch.
Last but not least, I’m pleased with the new display of “Expected Goals” scores after the final whistle. Those who study football in depth will be familiar with this indicator from sophisticated match analyses. The expected goals model shows how many good chances a team had and whether it was above or below average in its finishing.
And what’s going on in FUT?
Of course, I also tested the extremely popular Ultimate Team mode, which is riddled with Pay2Win mechanics. It is quite complex, especially for beginners, but EA also has a few helpful tutorials at the start.
The scheme is familiar: You start with a no-name squad, earn virtual credits by playing hard (or buy them with real money), use them to get virtual card packs and hope to find good players for your dream team. It has to be at least gold if you want to stand a chance online – against players who immediately spend half their monthly wages on new card packs.
Admit: If you spend “only” 20 euros or invest the FIFA Points included in the Ultimate Edition, you will soon have a team filled with well-known players. But then you’ll find typical 80s candidates there: In my case, for example, it was Gladbach’s Stindl, the aged Belgian Nainggolan, ex-Bayern pro Dante or Italy’s European Championship joker Belotti. Instead of Messi, Mbappé, Lewandowski, Lukaku or Ronaldo.
Generally, FUT in FIFA 22 strives to be more beginner-friendly: the popular Division Rivals mode now has checkpoints that make defeats less painful, and the new “public co-op player search” allows casual two-on-two matches in which you don’t compete with your own FUT squad.
Furthermore, there are the FUT Champions, which conclude with the Champions Finals at the weekend, as well as week-based bonuses for frequent players. New to the stadium customisations are special choreos behind the home team’s goal and VIP area design.
In the ingame shop you can get the new packs as usual with FUT points or FIFA Points, the latter can be bought with real money. For example, 100 FIFA Points cost 99 cents, so a “Premium Gold Pack” costs 1.50 euros. If you want to pay only with FUT points instead (7,500 for said pack), you’ll have to play a few matches.
Of course, you can also use the FUT-internal transfer market, but the temptation to take the shortcut with real money is, as always, great. As in the previous year, you can see how much time you have invested or how many FIFA Points you have earned under the settings item “Playing time”. According to our Pay2Win rating criteria, we deduct five points from the actual rating for these mechanics.
License attrition?
FIFA remains top of the class in terms of licences in its 22 iteration. EA advertises “17,000 players, 700 teams and 100 stadiums”. At the same time, however, the number of available national teams has been reduced considerably: while there has been a small increase in the number of female national teams (17 instead of 16), the men’s teams have lost ground – instead of 49 last year, there are now only 33. Prominent losses include Switzerland, Colombia and Cameroon.
In fact, almost all regions outside Europe suffered losses. From the South American CONMEBOL association, for example, only Argentina and Brazil are still present, the latter with name, crest and jersey, but not with the well-known players.
In reality, star-studded teams such as Chile, Colombia or Uruguay are conspicuous by their absence in FIFA 22. Together with the meagre yield from Asia (China!) and the lack of African teams, a virtual World Cup in FIFA 22 becomes a farce. This does not reflect the diversity of the football world in any way and, with its European focus, seems terribly out of date.
There are also departures in the Italian Serie A: Lazio Rom now competes as “Lazio” under a false logo, and the Gosens club Atalanta Bergamo is also left out; together with the losses from last year (Juventus Turin, AS Rome) and the upcoming omission of SSC Napoli in FIFA 23, this is not a pleasant prospect for lovers of the first Italian league.
Things look better elsewhere: From Germany, the three top divisions are included, England fans even get four and the Indian Super League celebrates its premiere in FIFA 22.
Much in it, including much that is known
Now I have written half a novel about the subtleties and innovations of FIFA 22, but at the same time I accuse the game of technical dullness and too much similarity to its direct predecessor. Does that fit together or is the connoisseur’s view too critical? I mean “no”, because the mere dragging along of proven modes, the improvement here and there, the introduction of several small improvements is not enough this year.
The career mode is largely the same, Volta has been trimmed of the story, FUT remains Pay2Win and on the pitch you have to look closely to notice the playful innovations. Combined with the weak visuals and the lack of significant next-gen improvements, we can’t help but give the PC version of FIFA 22 a noticeably lower rating.
However, I still have one perhaps comforting FIFA info for PC players of the “others have it worse” brand: Nintendo Switch players only get the FIFA 22 Legacy Edition, a 40 Euro squad and kit update of FIFA 21, which in turn was a squad and kit update of FIFA 20. And that, you guessed it, was a Legacy Update of FIFA 19. So a PC downgrade almost seems like a trifle …
FIFA 22 costs about 60 Euros and will be available on 1 October. You need an Origin account to play, even if you buy the game on Steam. We have checked for you how Electronic Arts treats data protection at Origin. Subscribers of EA Play Pro can download FIFA 22 without additional costs.
