Career mode has become the ugly duckling of the FIFA parade in many ways. It has not been given the loving touch it used to get. Once it was FIFA’s premier game mode, the one everyone played as soon they put their disk into their Xbox for the first time. It gave you the chance to take control of a club, to build them in your image and to be everything from trainer, to negotiator, to player, to club legend. It really helped FIFA to tighten their grip on the market, especially when compared with PES master league, which while fun, lacked the realism that made FIFA’s career mode so brilliant.
However it has since been overtaken, partly by EA’s The Journey, a game mode that is as much a film as a football game but more by Ultimate Team, which is now such a money spinner for EA, that it is no surprise that it has become their number one priority. They have even expanded it out to your mobile, you can play FIFA and organise your Ultimate Team on your mobile.
Mobile gaming is now becoming a way to complement playing on your Xbox rather than competing with your time. Mobile games are getting much better be they football, first person shooters or even casino games. FIFA is wonderful, but we all need a break sometimes and there are so many superb games to try on your mobile, from Call of Duty to FIFA to mobile blackjack that we are living in a golden age of mobile games.
Despite the rise of Ultimate team, Career mode still has some tricks up its sleeve and remains the number one choice for those of us whose internet does not always allow them to play online, as ultimate team requires. They updated the transfer system this year to make it more like real life and more in your control. There are now objectives that you have to meet, making it feel more like you are a real manager. You can hold training sessions and watch as your players improve and become better than you could have imagined.
These changes have brought more people back to career mode, with people choosing to play with a variety of different teams at different levels and budgets. Some like to start at the top and try and stay there, while others prefer to take on lower division teams and take them up the leagues. One of the hardest parts of the game is searching for players.
There are so many duds that it can easy to blow a clubs budget, especially since scouting is more in depth than ever. In order to help out, we thought it would be good to put forward three names. Three players who can improve your career mode squad instantly. One for a League One or Two side, another for a Championship team or lower Premier League side and then finally for a side aiming right for the top.
Lower League side: Ellis Harrison, Striker (500k-750k)
This might take up a fair bit of your budget but trust me, Harrison is well well worth it. The Bristol Rovers striker is lightning quick, a great finisher with both feet and is young enough at 23 that, if you get promoted, he will continue to grow and improve to be at the level you need him to be. He is usually happy to leave too as he is not always starting for Rovers and you can get his wages to be around £2,000 a week. He is a gem that gets better and better an is a guarantee of goals as he has that treasured FIFA commodity, pace.
Top Championship or Lower Premier League: Rico Henry, Left Back, (£ 4 million)
The Brentford left back is astonishingly good, he is so pacy and powerful that you might even consider putting him in left midfield. He can tear through defences while also keeping up with any quick wingers or strikers your opponent has. He is rated at just 68 when the game starts but with a potential of 84, the 19 year old is a near must by for anyone who needs a left back.
Top Premier League: Tom Davies, CM (£17.6 million release clause)
The wonderkid midfielder starts the game well enough but as he goes on, he becomes one of the best English midfielders in the game. Great passing, supreme vision and brilliant stamina combine to make him a must buy, especially when you consider he has a release clause so you are guaranteed to get him if you offer good enough wages.
