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In a move that will shock no one, EA Sports (it’s in the game) has announced FIFA 22. It’ll launch on October 1st for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Stadia... which is still a thing, apparently.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappé will be the game’s cover star once again. Meaning he joins Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as players who have graced the cover in consecutive years.
Kick-Off
The FIFA 22 trailer focuses on the new HyperMotion technology. FIFA 22 will use to better capture the sport and player movement more authentically through machine learning. Here’s the official blurb: “Powered by HyperMotion, FIFA 22 combines “Advanced 11v11 Match Capture” and proprietary machine learning technology to deliver the most realistic, fluid, and responsive football experience for next-gen consoles and Stadia, unlocking the raw emotion, passion and physicality of the world’s game.” However, HyperMotion is only available on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Stadia.
EA performed motion capture on 22 professional footballers. Not only that but EA’s own machine learning tools are capable of “learning” from in excess of 8.7 million frames of “advanced match capture” to create new animations in real-time. This will apply to shots, passes, and crosses. According to EA HyperMotion “transforms how players move on and off the ball”. Hopefully, Italian players grabbing rival players by the shirt, dragging them to the ground and getting away with it won’t be a feature.
What a Goal!
FIFA 22 will also have multiple modes, including Career, Volta, Pro Clubs, and the wallet-emptying FIFA Ultimate Team. EA stated players can look forward to “more consistency and distinct personalities” for goalies with the goalkeeper system seeing a “complete rebuild.”
Career mode, meanwhile, has a new Create a Club feature while the Volta mode has “reimagined gameplay.” For FIFA Ultimate Team, FIFA 22 introduces Ultimate Team Heroes. EA says that they are “completely new items that represent the stories and glory of cult players and fan favourites.”
FIFA 22 will feature more than 17,000 players and 700 teams in the game. There will also be 90+ stadiums and more than 30 leagues. The game is the only one to feature the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League, the UEFA Europa Conference League, the Premier League, Bundesliga, and more. EA will release more details on FIFA 22 overall this summer.