FIFA 10: Ultimate Team

EA come back with the follow up to FIFA 09’s addictive Ultimate Team add-on, and this time they’ve added some new features and ironed out any creases that were there before. Amongst the new features are:

a new auction feature, new layout for team chemistry, and a number of major changes.

The game starts with a nice treat for anyone who brought FIFA 09 Ultimate Team – 2 free Gold packs to get your new team on the way! Then you are taken to the new look store, where you can still buy the bronze, silver and gold packs, but now there are two tiers within each colour so that you can get players that are in the better ranges of each one. Contracts are still an issue, but they are more reasonable than previously.

Players of the same nationality, and who play in the same league, now get bonuses for playing in positions near each other, and this improves the all important team chemistry. Apparently. What the team chemistry does I’m yet to find out. Each player now has their own preferred position, and as the commentator’s constantly remind you in match, play them in a formation that they don’t like and they won’t be happy.

Gone from the 09 edition is the collection and in its place is a new auction system, where you can buy or sell players in an ebay style event. In theory you bid against thousands of people, but there is little evidence of that. Prices range from 20,000 coins for players like Torres, but you can find bargains, for example I managed to get Fabio Aurelio for 1,500.

Competitions have sometimes unreasonable entry requirements – like 6 players of the same nationality in the team. This has led to the development of the chance to build more than one squad from the same players, making team management easier to keep track of. For those interested, more leagues and players are added, and of course none of this affects the stunning gameplay of FIFA 10.

This years edition is also cheaper than 09’s was, and at just 400 Microsoft Points, well worth it in my opinion.