 Game Review - 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for Xbox 360
By Christo van Gemert
With the 2010 World Cup nearly a week old, and three more weeks of competition awaiting us, now seems like the right time to remind folks about the fantastically fun 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa from EA. We already had a short review of the game played on Wii, but this is an update from an Xbox 360 perspective.
As purveyors of the Fifa licence, Electronic Arts has always given us a game based around the tournament, with special modes and updated squads not found in the more global, yearly release of its Fifa games.
Being the World Cup for the people, EA’s take on the 2010 competition in videogame format has a few surprises. First up, there’s a two-button controller mode. This allows first-time players to easily get stuck into the action without needing to learn complicated button combinations. More advanced players can easily switch to the traditional four-button control mode, with experts and pros having the option to go full-manual by turning off a range of passing, shooting and tackling assists.
Next up, there’s the World Cup mode, where players can play through the entire tournament as any number of teams. Whether you decide to captain South Africa, or five other teams, a whole weekend can be arranged around having a virtual tournament. Just invite friends, and order pizza, or else it’ll be pretty dull.
A really, really awesome touch is the inclusion of live data. Players can download real-time squad information, to play as the exact team that went to pitch in a World Cup match. Additionally, but oddly hidden in the menus, is a mode where setpieces and crucial moments from 2010 games can be relived - a bit of escapism for those still reeling from South Africa’s loss to Uruguay. Go back and show that ref how it was supposed to go down.
Helping to keep the happy mood is a great World Cup soundtrack, along with African-themed menus and colours. The local World Cup stadia are amazingly accurate in the game, while each digitised player resembles his real-life likeness.
It’s not perfect, but it’s a lot friendlier and easier to get into than the more serious Fifa games, which are a favourite with football fans. If you’re a bit of a gamer and a bit of a football fan, those two pastimes can meet in this game.
It's a great way for new fans to get into the Fifa series, with the simple control mode and live updates, despite some graphical slowdowns and frustrating artificial intelligence.
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