EA Sports. It’s in the game. Love or loathe, you can’t deny the chills that phrase sends down the spine time after time, year after year. And it’s the yearly instalment of FIFA that is the latest title to utter those words, with the release of FIFA 21 on Xbox One, PS4 and PC today!
Well, that is the case for the Champions Edition and the Ultimate Edition of the game – those who will be playing the base Standard Edition must wait until Friday 9th October to get their hands on EA’s new updated Career Mode, the second-coming of Volta and, of course, the titan that is Ultimate Team. Oh, and Pro Clubs is once again there for endless fun with mates. It is fun, yeah?
Headlined by wonderkid Kylian Mbappe this time round, FIFA 21 – going up against eFootball PES 2021 Season Upgrade – is once again powered by the Frostbite Engine in the looks department, and as such comes with the crisp visuals we have come to expect from the series. And that’s pretty much the score for FIFA 21, if you’ll pardon the pun – it’s more of the same visually, audio-wise and in regards to game modes, but that’s doesn’t stop many of us coming back year after year for our football fix.
Perhaps the biggest upgrade has gone into Career Mode, with the most exciting of the added features being the opportunity to oversee how the match plays out – Football Manager-style – and then seamlessly enter the action at pivotal moments to influence the final result. In combination with squad training, new options for transfers and a new ‘Match Sharpness’ rating for each player, which will determine how they will perform at critical moments matches, Career Mode looks to have the perfect blend of tactics and gameplay: there is now no reason at all to not see Forest Green Rovers lift the Champions League trophy.
FUT is also getting some new additions to freshen up the experience, including a fully customised stadium to show off to any challengers to your Division Rivals title, and the opportunity to play with a friend online in co-op Squad Battles, Division Rivals and other modes. The introduction of co-op and Community Events looks to make FUT 21 the most social of FUT experiences in recent years.
Now, let’s talk editions, and FIFA 21 has quite a few at a variety of price points with some bonus extras thrown in. The Champions Edition, setting you back £79.99 (or £71.99 if you are a subscriber to EA Access) will provide you with up to 12 Rare Gold Packs in FUT – one per week for 12 weeks – as well as some FUT cosmetics, a Mbappe loan item and also a Career Mode Homegrown Talent: a youth player with the potential to be a big name in your Career Mode.
But if you really want to burn a hole in your wallet, the Ultimate Edition – priced at £89.99 (EA Access members get it at £80.99) doubles your package with 24 Rare Gold Packs in Ultimate Team – you lucky buggers!
There is, of course, the option of the Standard Edition, which releases on Friday 9th October for £59.99, or £53.99 for EA Access members – pre-order this one, and you’ll also have access to a couple of extra goodies. Every edition of FIFA 21 also comes with Dual Entitlement (EA’s fancy name for Smart Delivery), which means that you can upgrade to the Xbox Series X|S or PS5 edition of the game when it releases.
Oh yeah, and the usual FUT 21 FIFA Points are available in various guises – running from 100 points for £0.71 right up to a mammoth 12000 for £71.99. For those looking for freebies, the Portuguese (Brazil), Dutch and Spanish in-game commentary packs are available to take home.
Phew! That’s a lot of FIFA, but you can be damn sure we will be out on the pitch at the first opportunity, growing our Ultimate Teams, swearing at each other on Pro Clubs, and becoming the next best thing on Career Mode – all in order to create one hell of a review of FIFA 21 on Xbox One – see you guys out there!
Game Description:
FIFA 21 Dual Entitlement includes Xbox One X and Xbox Series X|S games. Win as one in EA SPORTS™ FIFA 21 with new ways to team up and express yourself on the street and in the stadium. Powered by Frostbite™, FIFA 21 raises the game with fresh features: • Enjoy even bigger victories together in VOLTA FOOTBALL SQUADS and FIFA Ultimate Team™ Co-Op. • Feel a new level of gameplay realism that rewards you for your creativity and control. • Manage every moment in FIFA 21 Career Mode with new innovations that create additional depth in matches, transfers and training. • Experience unrivaled authenticity that gives you the most true-to-life experience of The World’s Game including the UEFA Champions League and CONMEBOL Libertadores.
