FIFA 18 is around the corner, and we’re here to share all key information about the upcoming addition to the soccer series. This year, a series of new features, tweaks and changes are likely around the corner.
The E3 Press Conference spilled the beans on a lot of the game’s details, from gameplay footage across consoles to a new form of Ultimate Team.
FIFA 18: Icons
Icons will be replacing Legends, the Ultimate Team game mode that lets you collect players outside of the active player rosters, including the old, retired legends of the soccer scene. EA announced a few new additions to the lineup this year, including Diego Maradonna, Ronaldo Nazári, Lev Yashin, Pele and Thierry Henry.
The mode will be available across all platforms, including the Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Switch.
EA Sports finished their announcement about Icons by stating: “The Best of the Best are coming to FIFA 18 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. More details on ICONS to be revealed soon.”
FIFA 18: Story Mode, Trailers and Features
The Journey 2 returns, and Alex Hunter is back! This year follows the iconic protagonist after his first successful year of winning the FA Cup and if he chooses to leave or return to the pro scene.
We also got to see a little bit of new gameplay footage, with FIFA showing off the improved FrostBite engine animations and graphics.
Some other key new features include:
- Improved crowds, commentary and stadiums to create a more vibrant and immersive atmosphere
- Better penalty system
- Better visuals, especially on faces
- Dribbling mechanics improved to help slow dribblers control their speed
- More interesting player personalities on and off the field
- Quick subs that let you sub players in and out during pause moments
FIFA 18: Nintendo Switch
The Nintendo Switch version of FIFA 18 will be different than it is on other platforms this year. During EA Play 2017, EA showcased a number of features on the Switch, including the Ultimate Team, kick off, skill games, career mode, Women’s International Cup and local seasons.
The Ultimate Team will feature squad building challenges, seasons play, tournaments and draft.
Players can play on Switch in the docked, handheld or tabletop mode, with local multiplayer connection for Local Seasons and several controller options.
FIFA 18 can be run in 1080p on the TV and in 720p on the handheld device.
As of the 6th, we learned FIFA 18 won’t have a story mode featuring Alex Hunter nor will Frostbite Engine be supported on the Nintendo Switch version, falling more in line with the versions for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
And since FIFA 18 won’t get more than some roster changes and stat updates on older consoles and the Switch, the title may not be worth buying if you haven’t purchased a new console or own a high-powered PC yet.
“EA Sports’ FIFA on Nintendo Switch will be the most immersive, social, and authentic sports game ever created for Nintendo players,” Söderlund said. “It will deliver the FIFA experience custom-built for Nintendo Switch so you can play anywhere, play with anyone, and play how you want to play.”
The quality of the game will be exemplary of how EA goes forward with Switch games in the future, but from what we know, it looks like FIFA 17 re-skinned.
FIFA 18: release date, beta, demo, cover star and pre-order info
FIFA 18 is expected to release on September 29, 2017. We haven’t gotten any info about a beta or a demo, but we expect them to release a demo for free to download a couple weeks before the release date like they did last year.
Cristiano Ronaldo dominated the showing as the cover star of FIFA, shown in the reveal trailer we saw before the conference:
We’re expecting Ronaldo to be one of the highest-rated players in the game since FIFA featured him on the cover, and he’s won so many awards in the past year, including the FIFA World Player of the Year Award.
We’ll finally be able to play FIFA 18 on September 29th on any platform. A standard and Ronaldo Edition of the game are expected to come out on the PS4 and Xbox One, but Switch users will only be able to get the standard edition.
The Standard Edition comes with a Christiano Ronaldo 5-Match FUT Loan, five Jump Premium Gold Packs (one per week over five weeks)
The Ronaldo Edition comes with everything in the Standard Edition, three days of Early Access and 15 extra Jumbo Premium Gold Packs (1 per week over 20 weeks).
The Icon Edition comes with everything in the previous two editions, a Ronaldo Nazário Icon 5-Match FUT Loan, 20 extra Jumbo Premium Gold Packs (now 2 per week over 20 weeks) and 20 Team of the Week Loan Player Packs (One 3-match TOTW Loan PLayer per week over 20 weeks).
We’ll keep you guys updated on any new developments we hear about the game!
