Game reviews: 2010 FIFA World Cup

Perhaps the cleverest thing about EA’s World Cup tie-in is how it manages to effectively service two discrete groups: soccer fans who aren’t necessarily gamers, and hardcore footy sim enthusiasts. It does this primarily by offering a pair of control systems: the usual layout that enables a host of advanced moves, and a two-button version that lets you do the basics.

Try any of that two-button stuff online, of course, and you’re gonna get owned by some nine-year-old playing in Turkmenistan. Sit down with some modestly skilled mates, however, and you can have a blast.

There are plenty of on- and offline game modes to help with that. You can jump straight in with one of the 32 teams that qualified for this year’s World Cup – including the All Whites – or pick from any of 199 international sides and make your way through qualifying and friendlies, before having a crack at the cup itself.

Most intriguing is the abominably titled Coca-Cola Zeroâ„¢ Story of the Finals For 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africaâ„¢. That deeply uncool name masks a deeply cool game mode. Within hours of games finishing at the real World Cup, EA will post updates that let you replay and perhaps alter the result of the game you’ve just watched. That’s going to take some serious technical voodoo and the possibility of stuff-ups is high, but kudos to EA for trying something genuinely innovative

Richard Betts

PLATFORM REVIEWED: Xbox 360 PLAYERS: 1-4 RATING: G GENRE: Sports SCORE: 4 STARS