FIFA '97

Infobox VG| title = FIFA 97


developer = EA Canada
publisher = Electronic Arts
designer =
engine =
released = June 24 1996
genre = Sports
modes = Single player, Multiplayer, Multiplayer online
ratings =
platforms = Sega Saturn, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy, SNES, PlayStation, Sega Mega Drive
media = Cartridge, CD-ROM
requirements =
input =
preceded by =
followed by =

"FIFA 97" (also known as FIFA Soccer 97) is a video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts based around the game of football (soccer). It was released for the PC on 24 June 1996 and versions for PlayStation, SNES, Sega Mega Drive and Sega Saturn followed.

FIFA 97 was the fourth game in the FIFA Series and the second to use the Virtual Stadium engine. Unlike the first game to use the engine, FIFA 97 features polygonal players as opposed to the 2D sprites used in FIFA Soccer '96. The engine however received complaints for being sluggish in the PC and PlayStation versions.

David Ginola (then a Newcastle United player) graced the cover of the game in the European market. He also was used for motion capture for the polygonal models in the game. Bebeto (the Brazilian striker) was featured on the cover for the Americas and Asia-Pacific markets.

Game features

The main new feature of the game other than the motion capture was the indoor football mode. There were six ways to play the game, including outdoor and indoor, as well as action and simulaton modes. 32-bit AI was used, as well as motion blending technology which led to some of the sharpest graphics in any football game of the time. Here, it was possible to play six-a-side football in an indoor arena with the ball bouncing off the walls meaning there is no throw-ins and therefore a much higher paced game. Leagues available in the game included the English, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Scottish and Malaysian leagues and sides, as well as the American A-League clubs with fictional teams, composed of the game's creators such as Bruce McMillan and Penny Lee. Commentary is provided by John Motson and Andy Gray whilst the presenter is Des Lynam. Multiplayer games are also possible with up to 20-players via. LAN and 8-players using modem. The game trailer's tagline was "FIFA 97, it will blow you away."Most European domestic leagues were featured in the game, including the English Premier League, but only teams from each nation's highest division were playable. The English clubs featured in the game were those who played in the 1995-96 Premier League.It was also possible to field custom teams made up of players from various real teams. However,these teams could only be played with in friendly matches.

Commentary

The game's commentary included the names of the majority of players on the game, and the names of the teams were also said by John Motson. Several errors plagued the game's commentary, such as John Millar of Heart of Midlothian FC being referred to as Joe Miller, who in fact plays for Aberdeen FC on the game. Also, at times when a goal kick was awarded, the commentator would say that the kick had been given to the opposing team. Another similar error was that a kick-off would be referred to as a cross, as well as a goal in the first minute being described as a goal "that would win it surely". Such errors did not detract from the level of enjoyment while playing the game, and if anything added humour which became a trademark of the game.

Reviews

Both Play Magazine in Issue 15 and Official UK PlayStation Magazine in Issue 15 rated the PlayStation version of the game similarly with a score of 70% and 7/10 respectively. Play when comparing it with FIFA 96 commented that it was "Graphically better, but plays worse". Gamespot scored the PC version 8.2/10.

Trivia

*FIFA 64, the first FIFA game to appear on the Nintendo 64 was based on FIFA 97Fact|date=April 2008.
*The game also had several Football teams in the USA league with players who were members of the production team [Fifa 97 main production team at gamefaqs - http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/genesis/data/563324.html] ; for example, commentator John Motson was featured as a defender and animator David DeMorest was a midfielder. Statistically, however, the best player on the game was Nick Wloydka, who was an employee of EA Canada and was Assistant Producer for FIFA 97 at the time. He went on to produce WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth and 2002 FIFA World Cup [Nick Wloydka filmography: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1552671/] .

Notes