EA Sports is preparing to release its annual FIFA 22 football vintage. This one seems full of promise since it is the first real episode marked by the seal of the new-gen (yes, FIFA 21 does not count!). We want as proof the multitude of small promises “innovations” which are implemented in this new opus.
The reveal will surely not have escaped the notice of many, and if he had been stingy in gameplay sequences, he had the merit of highlighting the biggest feature that will accompany the release of this canonical episode, namely the “HyperMotion technology“. Beyond the official discovery, we had a presentation on a pre-beta and here our first opinion.
The new-gen feature that sends dreams …
What is this pompous commercial name full of promise, Jean-Michel Commentary will tell me. Well in fact, behind this name, far from being overused, hides an anthology of small additions meant to harness the power of new-gen consoles (yes, HyperMotion is exclusive to this generation of consoles). And you’re in luck as we are now able to present them to you in detail thanks to the information we have gathered directly from the publisher.
We have seen that the work done on this side is really impressive, the transitions during the animations are much more convincing.
EA Vancouver has now been developing for more than 3 years a technology capable of accurately transcribe the movements of the players in a high intensity opposition called HyperMotion. How does it work in practice? It’s very simple, 22 players wear a special outfit, called Xsens, then the 2 teams compete. From there, the developers worked to collect the data to transcribe it in-game. To give you a little idea, in total, FIFA 22 counts 4000 new animations, that is 3 times more than the previous opus.
On top of that, the title picks through 8.7 million screenshots of these matches played to create the animations in real time, thanks in particular to the new “ML-Flux” algorithm / machine learning. This development concerns the game with and without the ball, including aerial play, tackles, controls, strikes… And indeed, we have seen that the work done on this side is really impressive. Transitions during animations are much more convincing (for example, you will no longer have this unsightly little moment when your player blocks his animation in the middle of the race to control the ball, this will now be done in an extremely credible and realistic manner) and the rougher aerial duels (it must be said that on this point, FIFA was lagging behind the competition). Even the guards have a new lease of life.
But that’s not all, AI behavior has also been reviewed. During the defensive phases, She is much more compact, and in offensive phases, your teammates will be able to make more decisions. There are also new possibilities for customization, tactics and offensive and defensive strategies during the match. In fact, with the controller in hand, we always have this unpleasant feeling that our playing partners are offering way too many solutions and that the attackers are far too advantaged by their technical ease and speed. It helps to give this feeling of witnessing a permanent attack-defense to the detriment of the construction in midfield.
… but an opus haunted by the ghosts of the past?
Do you want more? Well know that bullet physics has also been revised taking into account speed, the state of the ground and even real mechanical stresses (the ball tends to jump a lot more for example). The only downside to this welcome improvement, during our gaming sessions, we noticed that the transmissions are still too assisted by default and easily find takers. It even happens sometimes that we pass to the wrong player (no doubt, however, that it is a simple matter of adjustment). Also note a overhaul of guardian behavior, they also have many new very appreciable animations (as the capture of a balloon in 2 stages, the duels, aerial flights). It also tends to make them become real impassable walls. In any case, this little bit of fresh air is pleasant even if certain gestures are still sometimes lacking in naturalness.
We always have this unpleasant feeling that our teammates are offering way too many solutions and that the attackers have too much advantage due to their technical ease and speed.
Regarding the graphic aspect, from what we have seen, we remain on the same bases as those proposed in the previous opus, except that we will be entitled to many staging additions. Some players seem to have been reworked as well, the menus have been refined to provide more clarity, statistics turn out to be much more relevant and precise. We are also promised an even more prominent atmosphere and more credible public reactions, like the yellow wall of Dortmund which jumps of a single man to encourage his team.
On the content side, there is also something new here, and not the least since a feature that has been requested for years is finally making its appearance. Indeed, it will now be possible to create your team in Career mode (jersey, badge, lawn, stadium, almost everything goes there). What to accentuate a little more the immersion during your endless sessions of play. EA still has the exploitation rights for the Champion’s League as well as for the Copa Libertadores, only the Serie A seems to be really lacking … choosy however when we know that FIFA 22 represents more than 17,000 players spread across more than 700 teams, through 30 different leagues, for more than 90 stadiums. There is really something to find happiness.
Of course, your favorite modes are always present, namely Volta, FUT and Pro Clubs modes. We therefore seem to be building on the foundations of previous years, but new content will of course be offered and the performance of IRL players in the various competitions during the year will be taken into account. Also note the arrival of new cards named FIFA Ultimate Team Heroes that celebrate new football legends.
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