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By Rob (14th Apr 2008)

The FIFA video game series, a perennial favourite among soccer fans across the world, trades stadiums for street ball with the release of FIFA Street 3 for PlayStation 3. The latest edition maintains the same casual entertainment value as the first two coupled with a whole new array of unrealistic trick moves and arcade-style gameplay. The arcade-like feel of FIFA Street 3 actually diminishes its staying power in terms of the gamers’ enjoyment, and despite what Street 3 brings to the table, it lacks a compelling game mode that will keep the gamer engaged for an extended period of time.

In FIFA Street, the gamer can immediately jump into a “streetball” contest, where they can choose from a large number of International teams, ranging anywhere from Samba Nation (Brazil) to New Zealand. They then choose five players for that team to play against five of the opposing nation’s best players. They can pick the location of the game (rooftop, samba, beach, riverside, Mediterranean, shipyard, or oil rig), time of the match, score limit, or any of several special variations. The gameplay is reasonably fun, especially in multiplayer mode. Trick moves increase your “Gamebreaker” meter, which upon filling, can guarantee you an almost certain goal as your players are gifted with almost superhuman abilities. Once you press the R1 button to use the Gamebreaker, it starts to gradually decrease. Occasionally it’s possible to pick up two or three goals using one Gamebreaker, though goals are pretty easy to score in FIFA Street 3 even without Gamebreakers. Volley and headers are easy to pull off and almost automatic goals, while shots with the ball on the ground are considerably more difficult. The goalkeepers in this game are strangely skilful with their feet, but not so much with their hands.

One thing that irritated me as I played was that it is not as physical as a title of this genre should be. Considering that its streetball, contact should be a lot more prevalent. People should be roughing the competition up right and left, though this is never really the case.

Perhaps one of the most glaring issues with FIFA Street 3 is that it is simply too easy. Even on the “Hard” difficulty setting a beginner would have a decent chance of winning. The trick moves, called “drags” are effortlessly completed and often leave defenders baffled and defeated. It’s too easy to slice through the opponent’s defence, which you can do virtually any way you choose, even by juggling the ball right past the defenders.

Pass-and-shoot combinations remain the most impressive aspect of FIFA Street gameplay. This is the one thing that will occasionally garner a cheer or a yell during the game. Lob passes are very effective, and a lot of times they will result in spectacular bicycle kicks that look amazing and demoralize your opponent.

The graphics aren’t stellar for PlayStation 3; in fact, they don’t seem like that much of an upgrade from the graphics in the first two games from the PS2. I was a little bit surprised by the players’ appearances due to their plain look and the selection of only about three different body types. The game locations are creative and intriguing, but the game looks and feels like a cartoon.

Game modes present another interesting problem in FIFA Street 3. The campaign mode, coined “FIFA Street Challenge”, isn’t deep enough. It’s a series of challenges that upon completion unlock more and more challenges until all of them are completed. Different players and teams are unlocked until there’s nothing more for the gamer to do. The challenges themselves are fairly simple, and include things like “Be the first to score five goals”, “score the most goals in five minutes”, and “score five header and volley goals”. The gamer faces street teams that consist of International players from all over the place. For example, one street team may consist of David Villa (Spain), Tim Cahill (Australia), Clint Dempsey (USA), Gattuso (Italy), and Paul Robinson (England). The street teams get more skilled as the gamer gets deeper into Challenge mode.

Other modes are pretty entertaining, such as Head to Head, where you and a friend pick a country whose roster consists of about ten players. The players line-up side by side and you and your friend pick teams of 5, just like how it used to be on the playground. This mode was my favourite part of the game; it reminded me more than anything else what it was really like to play soccer in the streets.
The music and audio is another strong point. One thing that the makers of the FIFA video games always like to do is compile an eclectic mix of international music for each game, and this is no exception. The music is a smorgasbord of techno and dance music from all over the world, and it complements the fluid arcade-style gameplay very well. The music continues to play throughout not only the menus but also the matches themselves, heightening the atmosphere a little bit.

The best way to enhance the experience of FIFA Street 3 is to play with a friend. That way, when one person pulls off an incredibly sick move, they won’t have to trash talk the TV; they can just look across the room and tell their buddy how they just got owned.
The problem is, there’s really no reason to invest in this, because if you’re a fan of the regular FIFA series, it is already so much better than FIFA Street 3because this just doesn’t match the original in intensity, playability, or depth.

So, this is a fun change of pace from the ordinary FIFA series, but unless you live in a house with a load of guys who are into this sort of game, it doesn’t really warrant a purchase. At best, it might be a good game to rent on a rainy day. It’s mildly entertaining, but the entertainment value dulls with time and after awhile, it will be a game that never gets taken out of its case.