How big can football get? Pretty darn big, I tell you.
Modes - 9.5
Fifa10 definitely adds a lot of new ways to play the game to it's already pretty impressive options. Manager Mode has been improved greatly, for instance you can now see how interested a player is in moving to your club. This, and several other changes have made this mode more realistic than before. There's also the Virtual Pro Mode. At first I thought this was just gonna be like Be A Pro Mode, but man, was I wrong. The Virtual Pro is more like a player, rather than a Mode on itself. You create one player, and you can play with him in pretty much each mode, unlocking achievements to improve his ratings, or unlock certain things, like new shoes etc. You can decide to upload a picture of yourself and have your face put on this player. That's great fun, but the tools to do so are a bit awkward, and the website (www.eafootballworld.com) doesn't work that well. For instance, I still don't have my face in the game, even though I got the game on September 30th. A friend of mine has though, and once you get it right, it truly does look amazing. There's a lot of stuff to do with this personal player, and the rewards really make you want to. Even though it's kind of hard not to do everything with that one player. I for one sure do.
Gameplay - 10.0
The gameplay in Fifa10 isn't exactly revolutionary. The only great addition here is the 360 movement. I don't really feel that much of a difference, but then again, I haven't played Fifa in ages since I missed 09. The game does have a good 'flow'. The movements are all nicely animated. Furthermore, the AI has been increased, and there are a lot of new, Skilled ways to do stuff. These are all explained in tutorial movies, for instance Skill Dribbling, etc. It all adds to the reality of the game. Also, the build of players has a more important role this time around. If you take, for instance, a small, light player, he will have incredible speed, whereas a heavier, longer player obviously has the physical advantage if those two were to clash. It also makes sure that pretty much each and every player feels different. Once again, more reality. There aren't that many flaws in the gameplay of this installment, although I have heard a lot of people complain that the referee gets hit by the ball way too much. I however haven't experienced any problems with the geezer. Except for a few cards of course. And despite the gameplay being as great as it is, I still can't take free kicks. I really should practice some more on those...
Graphics - 8.0
The graphics in Fifa are top-notch, as always. The player animations are fluently, and a lot of players really look like their real-life counterpart. The supporters still looks like crap, though. There's not really much more to say.
Sound - 8.0
EA Trax. For some reason, they always deliver great music. Mostly unknown music, but I have seen a few songs become hits after being used in an EA game. What Planet You On? for instance, after being used in Fifa08. It's no different this time around, because the music is great. There are some weird songs in there, and some sound a lot alike, so it's not the greatest playlist ever, but it's alright. The commentary still doesn't make sense most of the time though. I don't really know about the English commentary, since I've listened to the Dutch mostly, but when I grew tired of that and switched to English, I regretted it after hearing them say that "The force was with them today." as a reply to my team winning 3 to 0. I mean, c'mon. A Star Wars reference in a football game? Anywho, the Dutch is weird. They just start random conversations. And they tend to say a lot of the same things. For instance when a keeper grabs the ball. You do not wanna know how many times I've heard them say that they always keep their breathe in at moments like that, 'cause you never know whether the keeper's got the ball, or the player, and whether the match's just gonna play on, or that they're gonna see a penalty. At first, it's fun to hear these things, 'cause they're new, but they're used way too much, and just get annoying.
Other
The menu. That's all I can think of to mention here. Many say that it's too crowded or something, but I think it's OK. It looks great too though, especially since the colors change to those of your favorite club, which you set in your profile.
Verdict
(9.5 + 10.0 + 8.0 + 8.0) : 4 = 8.8, which makes for a 9.0.