Unusually late in the year, came with Title Update 14 a patch in FIFA 22, which changed some of the gameplay of the defenders. The action radius of these reduced, the wild actions of the ninja defenders should no longer be possible

A supposed test run for the next part of the series confirmed in kicker eSport talks with gameplay design director Kantcho Doskov during the FIFA 23 Producer Showcase in Vancouver

Rewarding defending desired

“We wanted to make defending as engaging as possible,” Doskov elaborates, “In FIFA 22, we received feedback that the actual button for tackling didn’t need to be used often at all. You could just focus on positional play and the game automatically tackled. That’s okay for many, but it doesn’t feel as rewarding. That’s why we’ve already changed that in FIFA 22.”

In FIFA 23 should be a rewarding feeling after winning the ball now possible. In the same course it went the AI defenders to the collar. They had often been given too much leeway to block a shot, for example.

The consequence – the ninja kick – should no longer be possible in FIFA 23. A more authentic, more thoughtful defending of the AI is rather the way to success. The authenticity should also be preserved in the problem with the ghost defenders.

Ghost players partly wanted

“Due to the physical changes within FIFA 23, the ball will bounce off the players’ bodies,” Doskov said. In FIFA 22 it happened again and again that passes slipped through players or defenders slipped through the goalkeeper

However, EA SPORTS does not want to completely abandon the ability to let balls slide through player body parts in the future: “To be honest, there are moments when we still allow the ball to slide through players. We want to avoid frustration with passes when they’re very close situations,” says EA’s gameplay producer.

He said the game should be kept fluid by these small glitches when the body is barely touched. “FIFA professionals have actually requested this mechanic. The referee will also continue to be invisible to prevent irritation or bounces in the game. We are intentionally integrating these things to make the game more fun.”

In our first impression of FIFA 23, a more authentic image of defending actually presented itself. In how far this shows over the whole game and the whole – Season , however, the following title updates will have to prove