In an announcement that's hardly going to surprise anyone except the man who's been living under a giant rock, 20,000 leagues under the sea, on another planet, EA have announced that another iteration in the hugely popular FIFA franchise will be launching this year, in the form of the invetively named FIFA 12. This year, however, there is a bit of a twist, as it marks the first time the series has seen a release on the 3DS.
It's somewhat fitting then, that details about any of the other versions are few and far between at the moment, as the 3DS edition has taken centre stage. Promising over 500 officially licensed teams, and over 50 real life leagues and competitions, it sounds like the first FIFA game on the 3DS will be no slouch, with the licensing power of EA bringing the same authenticity the console games enjoy.
We know this one - it's Wayne Rooney.
It's not just the teams and competitions, either, as the vast majority of the modes from the 360 game being transferred across, too. Whether you're putting your managerial hat on in Career Mode, which lets you take control of a club through several years worth of seasons, creating a digital version of yourself in Be A Pro, as you work your way up through the ranks, in the attempt to steer your footballing career from obscurity to stardom, every major mode from the console version sees its inclusion here.
Interestingly, the 3DS version will be getting some exclusive modes of its own, too, when it launches later this year. Easily the strangest sounding of these is the 3D Street Mode, which lets you take part in 5 on 5 street football matches, that take place on a "curved pitch", to take advantage of the 3DS's 3D effects. We'll presume that won't mean that the ball just keeps rolling when no-one's near it, though. Also added for the 3DS version is a much welcome tutorial mode, which takes players through the basics of learning how to play.
The game's unique "curving pitch". Imagine Animal Crossing, mixed with FIFA, and you're halfway there.
By far the biggest addition for the 3DS version, however, is the inclusion of touch screen controls. While the information at the moment isn't all that precise as to how this is going to work, we do know that now, during free kicks, you'll be able to draw a line across the touch screen to show where you want the ball to go, letting you curve, chip, and deposit the ball with ease.
While it's certainly an impressive set of features for the game's 3DS debut, we are slightly concerned about the direction the game's going to take. We love the more casual, fun-based approach that FIFA's always taken on the Nintendo consoles, and hopefully, this will continue that trend - more FIFA 11 Wii, than FIFA 11 360. We'll be bringing you more as soon as we get it.
FIFA 12 on the 3DS is scheduled for release this "Fall". That's American for "October".
