| Introduction
FIFA 2004 is EA's second installment of its FIFA
licensed soccer game for the GBA. Last year's edition,
FIFA 2003, received pretty good reviews, and wisely
enough, EA has maintained the same developers, Exient
UK, to helm the 2004 edition. According to the feature
list, the "action in FIFA 2004 is deeper than ever
with advanced levels of player detail and responsiveness."
Well, this remains to be seen of course, and so without
further ado, let's get on with the review.
GamePlay
When you start the game, you are given the following
options: Friendly, Multiplayer Mode, Competitions, Options
and Nintendo GameCube Link. I couldn't try the GameCube
link options, but I'm told that it unlocks hidden teams
and competitions (possibly the ones that are locked
off at the start i.e. Americas Club Championship, International
Cup & Ladder Tournament). I'm also unable to try
the multiplayer mode, although according to the manual,
it supports two players over a link cable.
FIFA 2004 doesn't lack options, and there are indeed
plenty to configure the game as you wish. There are
4 levels of AI skill and the good thing is that you
can set it up individually. For example, if the goalkeeper's
skill level suck but the defense is fine, you can adjust
them individually to balance it out. Great! Another
option allows you to turn "wind" on or off
which effects your lobs and high kicks (an option which
isn't available on the home console or PC version).
There are also options for which overlays you want displayed
and whether you want the music and sound effects turned
on or off. Lastly, there are the control options, which
lets you choose between 2 layouts of controls. You can
also if you want, turn on or off "auto switch",
a feature which sets it up so that the AI chooses which
player you control based on your location and proximity
to the ball. One thing I noticed was that the option
for the longest half time available is only twenty minutes
and not the standard 45 minutes. Soccer purist shouldn't
be disappointed, however, because as I will explain
later, the pace of action in FIFA 2004 more than makes
up for the shorter half times.
For a quick game, the Friendly option is your best
bet. Here you will be able to control any one of the
over 300 teams available (from the 16 featured leagues,
plus other world class clubs and the international sides)
for a single match. It is in the Competitions mode,
however, where the real challenge and fun of soccer
begins. Here you can play in one of the 16 licensed
leagues or in one of the 2 cups which represent the
FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League. There is also
3 locked cups, as mentioned earlier, which are unlocked
via the GameCube Linkup. There are 2 battery save slots
for your competitions to be saved in and the saves are
automatic after each match. One great thing I noticed
about the completions mode is the ability to watch the
highlights from other matches in your league from that
week of play. What a great idea and also a big bonus
for GBA owners since this is another feature that's
not available in the home console or PC version.
FIFA 2003 for the GBA is well known for its high
paced soccer action and I'm glad to say that this is
also true for the 2004 edition. The fast arcade style
elements really make for exciting soccer and as I said
earlier on, the 25 minute half times are thus much more
suited to this style of play.
Control
The controls for FIFA 2004 have been tweaked and
are now more precise and responsive. Free kicks and
goal kicks for example are targeted by the R button,
so you don't have to guess the correct trajectory or
where your players are. The AI too seems improved and
will gives you a good challenge when placed on "Professional"
mode, although talented GBA soccer players might want
to try the AI on "World Class" mode. In my
opinion, for a more authentic match, players should
choose to keep the goalkeeper's AI skill either on "Professional"
or "World Class" mode, if not, scoring goals
will be all too easy (kudos again to the developers
for allowing individual AI skill levels). All in all,
I only have one minor complaint about the controls in
FIFA 2004. When you're really close to another player
and pressing the conservative tackle button, it's hard
to tell when you are in control of the ball and if you
are, the ball gets shot down the field. I think the
developers could have fixed this by simply shading in
the player indicator showing that you have control of
the ball.
Graphics
The menu system has changed a lot since last year's
release and is now updated to reflect the changes made
to the PC and Console versions. On the GBA, the menus
now looks slicker and easier to navigate. In-game graphics
have also been updated for 2004 and are now cleaner
and nicer to look at, including the in-game score clock
and player indicator. Another thing I noticed that the
GBA version has and the home console and PC version
don't, is a score clock that actually tells you how
much stoppage time you'll be playing. Player animation
in FIFA 2004 is also well done and even though it's
only maximum 20 pixels per player, they still look good
and well defined enough to clearly tell what is it they're
doing on the pitch.
Sound & Music
The sound and music in FIFA 2004 is simply great!
Everything works nicely to heighten the playing experience
and this includes the little clips of football chants
and perfectly timed sound effects. Packed in this little
cartridge, you will find the four officially licensed
music tracks that are also found in the EA Trax on the
home console and PC versions. Despite the compression,
the sound quality of these tracks is amazing.
Final Comments
Soccer aficionados might argue that the arcade style
of FIFA 2004 is a let down. In my opinion, EA actually
did well to make it that way for the GBA. After all,
the GBA is a portable platform with a small screen and
not at all suited for a soccer game with loads of statistics,
in-depth micro-management and true-to-life soccer rules
and play mechanics. A soccer game that's easy to pick-up
and play is what most people want in a portable platform
and FIFA 2004 is exactly what the doctor ordered. Aside
from this, FIFA 2004 also boasts other great features
like real players, real teams, good graphics, solid
controls, multiplayer and a variable AI that's challenging
enough to keep you interested. In my review, I've also
discovered three features for the GBA version that's
not available for the home console or PC version. So
what more could you ask for? Soccer buffs and even first
timers will like FIFA 2004. I did and I'm sure you will
too.
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