Before buying this game, I had not played soccer games in a while. However, I must say that this game is pretty good overall, and it brings together realistic soccer gameplay and strategy, a great season mode, and, of course, great graphics. This game is also great fun (if you like soccer, that is) when playing with friends, as heated battles are sure to erupt when playing two-versus-two. The actual gameplay component of the game is like that of most other soccer games; however, it is easy to manipulate your players using different buttons, such as making them sprint while receiving a pass or giving a through-ball. What makes this game better than most other soccer games is the fact that one can actually play qualifier games for and, hopefully, on soccer's grandest stage: the World Cup in Germany. Of course, if you do not enjoy soccer, this idea may not be too pleasing to you. Any soccer fan, though, will appreciate the magnitude of playing in front of a stadium filled with tens and hundreds of thousands of fans during the World Cup. I do have a couple of complaints, mostly about gameplay. It is very hard for beginners to beat the computer, and the computer is usually able to master trick moves that users have trouble performing even in practice. This was frustrating for me especially, as I found myself yelling at players to do something their opponents had no trouble in doing. My other complaint is that the game is based almost completely on European leagues; in order to play as a country in any other part of the world, you have to custom-make your own qualifier groups. Also, though almost every European team is present, many African, Asian, and South American teams are not present. Other than these flaws, if you like the game of soccer (and if you live in Europe or the U.S., these reasons probably won't be problems), I recommend renting this game first to see if you like it.
