I have tried EA Sports FIFA world 2014 Beta for about a month.
You can play the game online vs other opponent or in “single player seasons” mode.
I have tried “single player seasons” mode for approx 300 hours. In short, it was the most frustrating 300 hours that i have experienced in 40 years of gaming.
You start the game in Division 10 and work your way up to Division 1. You play 10 match per season vs 10 different teams. You can get relegated / hold your division / get promoted according to your results. Their is no standing system like in real life. You just get 3 points for a win a 1 point for a draw. If you get enough points you get promoted to next division.
You make coins and XP for playing match. You can use coins to purchase players on the transfer market or buy “players pack” from the store.
Teams you play against are rated by skill level: Amateur, Semi-Pro, Pro, World Class and Legendary. In each level, teams are ranked from 1 to 5 stars.
Players have 6 stats: Pace, Drive, Shoot, Pass, Defense and Header rated from 0 to 100. They are ranked by colors (Bronze, Silver, Gold) according to their overall skill level. Bronze player overall rating range from 0 to 65, Silver 65 to 75 and Gold 75 to 100.
At Amateur level, you simply destroy any team you play against. Teams are very weak. I got an average of 10 goals per match vs Amateur team. It is like a practice level.
At Semi-Pro, the opposing teams are playing much better. You have to play good soccer if you want to win. Adequate competitive level. Fun to play.
At Pro level, teams are much stronger. They play nearly perfect soccer. It is very hard to win a match. Their defense is impeccable and their tackling ability is amazing! When they defend, they build a 8 man box around the 20 yards line that make it very difficult to even get a shot on goal. They are very hard to tackle and i could never outrun the ball carrier to challenge him and win the ball, even running at full speed with my fastest player. The other player always run faster.
At World class level, they dominate. Tackling them require laser-guided precision. I was chasing the ball most of the match. I could barely enter their zone. As soon as i touch the ball, i was instantly surrounded and tackle by 2 or 3 players before i could even cross the center line. Most of the pass i was trying were swiftly intercepted.
At Legendary, I could barely touch the ball. When i did, i had 3 players instantly surrounding me with lightning speed, chasing and harassing me non-stop, until they easily tackle me and win the ball. I could not even keep the ball for more then 10 seconds! It was like playing against a team of super stars!
Their are multiple complains about the overpowered AI on the forum but Origin/EA Sports has not done anything yet to fix the situation.
The referee is totally unfair. My players were getting crushed to the ground and tackle to the point of getting injured (They made me eat grass more than once) and the referee just let the play go on. On the other hand, i was almost always getting called for a foul when i tackle. Almost EVERY call he make is in favor of the opponent.There are also many complains on the forum about the referee but once again Origin/EA Sports has not done anything yet to fix the situation.
Another problem is the only way to purchase a specific player is via the transfer market. Sadly like most online game, the market price are controlled by a bunch of peoples. The best players (like Messi, Iniesta, Ronaldo) are selling for 2 millions coins. Problem is i was getting 200 coins for playing a match. In other words, i would need to play 10,000 match before i can purchase 1 of them! Playing with a dream team is indeed... just a dream !
I have purchased “players pack” sold in the store (100,000 coins each) but it is random so you rarely get a good player. In fact, out of 5 packs, i only got 1 player that i wanted on my team.
In short, i am very disappointed. The game need a lot of improvement. Origin/EA Sports need to fix the overpowered opponent & referee issue asap to make the game playable. Unfortunately, i am afraid the damage has already been done.
The most popular thread in the Forum had only 38 comments made by 5 or 6 players. Origin/ EA Sports claim that 2M peoples have downloaded the game, if this is true then it mean that only 0.0003% of those players are posting their opinions on the Forum. It seem that most of those who have tried or are still trying the beta dont even care anymore.