Games for Lunch: UEFA Euro 2008
In a nutshell: Football as 99% of the world knows it.
5/30/2008 6:07 PM | 0 Comments | Page 1 of 3
Developer: EA Canada
Publisher: EA Sports
Release Date: May 20, 2008
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), PS2, PSP, Xbox 360, PC
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site
0:00 I've actually never played a soccer video game before unless you count
Super Mario Strikers -- and you really shouldn't, as that game has fireballs and turtle shells and stuff. I did play some little league soccer in my youth, though, so I know how the game works. You try and put the ball in the net, right?
0:01 This minute spent downloading a seemingly mandatory 68 MB version 1.02 update for the game.
0:10 The past 10 minutes spent the same way as minute 0:01.
0:11 The UEFA logo comes flying in with some peppy music over snowy peaks and a fast-moving, cloudy sky. "Hello I'm Clyde Tillsy(?) and it's my pleasure to introduce you to EA Sports'
UEFA Euro 2008." He explains that you can earn points when you win games (more points for games you aren't expected to win), and these points are used online to represent your nation in an online leaderboard. Hooray for nationalism! "Good luck, and perhaps you can be the champion gamer, or part of the champion nation of gamers, in
UEFA Euro 2008."
0:14 So I have to pick the nation that I'll represent in the online leaderboards. Interestingly, I can play as any country I want, but this pick for who I "represent" is irrevocable after I make it. Not being from Europe myself, I pick Liechtenstein, with its half-star rating and population of 35,000 people, mainly because I feel bad for it. Also, it's fun to say. Lick-ten-shtine!
0:16 Playing around in the options, I see the game has a "position indicator" to tell me where my player should be to help the team, and a "threat indicator" showing which opposing players I need to cover. Nice!
0:18 Learning the controls in the options screen. I can pull off a fake shot by pressing O, then X plus the left stick. Oh, yeah, I'm gonna be pulling those off a lot.
0:19 For a game that's just about kicking the ball, there's an amazing variety of different types of passes, kicks and such. I'm sure I'll forget how to do the vast majority immediately after I start. Oh, well, I guess I'll learn as I go.
0:20 I choose Amateur difficulty, and jump into the "Story of Qualifying" mode. This is my "chance to relive the highs and lows of the qualifying round of
UEFA Euro 2008." As If I lived them the first time.
0:21 My first task is to hold on to a 2-0 lead Romania had over Bulgaria with 10 minutes left. I hope I can manage that. In real life, Bulgaria came back to tie!
0:22 Whoops -- it seems I have to actually play as Bulgaria! OK, this is gonna be a mess, but let's go.
0:24 Initial impressions -- everyone looks really tiny, but amazingly realistic. The animations on the players are fantastic from this far out -- they really look like they're playing the ball rather than just running around and having the ball attached to them. Everyone moves so smoothly, it's like watching a real match. Makes me wish I had an HDTV. The graphics look quite a bit worse when they zoom in on the players after a missed shot, though -- the frame rate gets all jumpy and the players look all lumpy. Ugh.
