Review: Pro Evo v FIFA

Online

The future may be online, but I've always been pretty ambivalent about this area of gaming. Previously I'd contented myself with doling out thrashings to my housemates, but I'd been assured that playing someone half-way round the world could be just as fun. Setting up a match on Pro Evo was pretty simple, but my games were frequently spoilt by slow-down.

FIFA's online game was just as easy to set-up but it again suffered from lag issues, which I'm guessing was the main cause of my team's bad defending. However, I should probably add that other users have reported nolag problems on either game, so it could well be down to my own internet connection.

Commentary/sound

Like that old sweater you just can't bring yourself to throw out Pro Evo's commentary has always been comfortingly awful – and it remains so.

Lines are repeated ad nauseum until you find yourself parroting phrases like: "that goes back to the old debate about referees who haven't played the game at the highest level" even when you're not playing the game.

Pleasingly, Konami have splashed the cash and brought in "proper" music so now you can have the Klaxons and Keane serenade you as you alter your line-up.

FIFA's commentary is marginally better than Pro Evo's – like being punched in the face as opposed to getting run over. Andy Gray and Martin Tyler do their best to try and sound interested but as you play the game more and more, the repetitiveness kicks in. For future releases maybe EA should just do away with this feature and use their gargantuan playlist to fill the gap.

Playability

In the interest of full disclosure I should say that this is my first proper go on a FIFA game since I emptied my post office account to buy the very first version in the early 90s.

Admittedly I've dabbled in a couple of releases, but found them pretty infuriating, especially when compared to Konami's sublime efforts.

So it comes as a bit of a shock to find myself warming to this latest instalment. The feature that stands out immediately is thee 360 degree control system.

It enables you – with a little practice – to open up that extra yard of space in which to unleash that killer through ball. Play seems slower when compared with Pro Evo and some may prefer the more clinical feel, but after a while I was hankering for the slick passing and frenetic pace of Pro Evo.

There are other quibbles too: EA still hasn't totally nailed the ball physics as passes, shots and crosses feel curiously light; more infuriating is the ridiculous amount of curl players manage to put on crosses, even Phil Bardsley produces Kaka-like balls into the box.

Pro Evo is a step up from last years game, which contrary to critical opinion was still a decent effort.

They've brought in something similar to FIFA's 360 system, which - although not quite as good as EA's effort - helps free-up the whole pitch.

Other improvements are really minor tweaks: goalkeepers have a wider range of shot-stopping techniques and it is now harder to dribble the ball around the opposition with Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.

So which should you buy?

Deciding which game to buy, ultimately comes down to your style of play.

If you like quick, fun exciting games then I'd say go for Pro Evo, if on the other hand you favour a more studied, technical game then FIFA would be your best bet.

Both games come with an abundance of extra game modes and will no doubt provide hours of enjoyment, but as detailed above both suffer from nagging faults.

Put a gun to my head and I'd choose Pro Evo but this could all change over the next few months as I become reacquainted with FIFA.