2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (video game)

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2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
North American cover art
Developer(s)EA Canada (PS3, Xbox 360 & iOS)[3]
HB Studios (Wii & PSP)
Publisher(s)EA Sports
SeriesFIFA World Cup
Platform(s)PlayStation Portable
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360
Wii
iOS
Release
iOS
  • NZ: 29 April 2010[2]
  • NA: 28 June 2010
Genre(s)Sports
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa is the official video game for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, published by EA Sports[1] and available on iOS and all major seventh-generation platforms except the Nintendo DS. Announced in January 2010 during an interview with one of the producers of the game, it was released 27 April 2010 in North America.[1] 199 of the 204 teams that took part in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification are included in the game.

Gameplay[edit]

The method of taking a penalty kick was altered in the game. In the player's display in the bottom-left, the coloured bar below the name represents the accuracy, while the green bar above represents the power (PS3/Xbox 360 versions only). This feature was thereafter adopted for future FIFA titles up until FIFA 17.

Players choose a team from the 199 nations available and compete against the computer or against other players through online gaming services PlayStation Network or Xbox Live. All 10 official World Cup stadiums are available for play.[4]

EA has announced that there will be gameplay improvements over FIFA 10, such as a higher rate of player fatigue for matches at higher altitudes, with an advantage to a home team who plays at a higher altitude against an away team who does not. EA has also announced that players can get injured outside international matches.[5]

EA has also announced that the "Captain Your Country" mode will return, similar to the "Be a Pro" mode[6] and that FIFA 10 owners can import their Virtual Pro for this purpose and then earn CYC Accomplishments and attribute boosts.[6] The game's penalty kick mechanism has been changed for their outcome to better reflect the player's own composure. In addition, the game's online multiplayer lobby system has been limited to unranked head-to-head matches.[6] As in 2006 FIFA World Cup, a "scenario" mode is included with 55 playable scenarios from past World Cup matches. Scenarios from the 2010 World Cup are also playable with an online update.[7]

The Wii version of the game features more stylised graphics and utilises a nuanced physics system to allow for more casual, arcade-style gameplay. This version supports multiple control schemes, including the Classic Controller. Exclusively in this version, players are required to use quick-time events to save free kicks or penalty shots, or to win possession of the ball after goal kicks and corner kicks. It is also possible for multiple players to take control of one team in that version.

The game includes Clive Tyldesley and Andy Townsend as the commentators, who provide insight into both sides during matches.[8]

Teams and venues[edit]

The 199 national football teams included in the game, shaded in green

The included teams were confirmed by Electronic Arts on 17 February 2010.[9] The game contains 199 of the 204 national teams that took part in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification phase. Electronic Arts stated that they have included every team that FIFA have permitted them to use, with some others not being allowed for "various reasons".[9] The five teams that were in the draw for World Cup qualifying but are not included in the game are the Central African Republic, Eritrea and São Tomé and Príncipe from Africa and Asian teams Bhutan and Guam. All five withdrew from the qualifying stage before it began. Additionally, the game does not feature Brunei, Laos, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, who did not participate in World Cup qualification.

The game includes all 10 venues used at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, as well as stadiums from each qualifying region and a range of "generic" stadiums.[3][10]

Background[edit]

Development[edit]

2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa was in development for 12 months,[11] and had two separate teams working on it: gameplay team and core team. The gameplay team was led by Gary Patterson, the creative director for FIFA games. Meanwhile, the core team designed the game modes and audio/visual presentation, among other things. EA Sports wanted to shape World Cup in a way that it would be able to match FIFA 10. They decided to release it as a standalone game, rather than downloadable content, citing the size, scope and the uniqueness of the covered event.[12]

Because the game focused on a single event, EA Sports was trying to secure a complete authenticity by working with FIFA and the host nation.[13] Several members went to South Africa and recorded the vuvuzela noise during actual football games, in order to capture the atmosphere over there. Adding to the variety, each nation got its own fully rendered crowd in-game.[14] The developers were also influenced by African themes in other areas, such as the soundtrack and menus.[13]

Release[edit]

The game was announced on 26 January 2010, in a GameSpot interview with the line producer of the game, Simon Humber,[1] with a slated release date for 27 April 2010 in North America, and 30 April 2010, in Asia and Europe.[3]

A playable demo was released for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on 8 April 2010.[15] It includes Italy and Spain as the playable teams,[15] and the ability to upload video replays to EA Football World.[16]

Soundtrack[edit]

The 2010 FIFA World Cup soundtrack comprises 28 tracks by artists from 21 countries. According to Electronic Arts it is intended to be a soundtrack that "celebrates the cultural vibrancy of the first FIFA World Cup to be held in Africa".[16] The headline track is "Wavin' Flag (Coca-Cola Celebration Mix)" by K'naan.[15]

Reception[edit]

The game was met with positive to mixed reception. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it a score of 83.43% and 83 out of 100 for the Xbox 360 version;[36][40] 82.82% and 82 out of 100 for the PlayStation 3 version;[34][38] 71.50% and 69 out of 100 for the PSP version;[35][39] 69% and 70 out of 100 for the Wii version;[37][41] and 62.50% for the iOS version.[33]

Sales[edit]

As of May 2010, the game sold nearly 2 million units worldwide.[42]

Legacy[edit]

As of 2022, the game is generally considered to be the best of the modern EA Sports FIFA World Cup video games, as well as one of the greatest football games of all time.[43] [44]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Ekberg, Brian (26 January 2010). "FIFA World Cup 2010 Q&A With Simon Humber". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  2. ^ Keith Andrew (29 April 2010). "FIFA World Cup 2010 kicks off on App Store". www.pocketgamer.com. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "EA Celebrates 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa(TM) with Exclusive Release of Officially Licensed Videogame". Electronic Arts. 27 January 2010. Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
  4. ^ Workman, Robert (19 February 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Preview". GameDaily. Archived from the original on 23 February 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  5. ^ SamsArmy (20 February 2010). "Will players get injured while with their clubs?". EA Forums. Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  6. ^ a b c Humber, Simon (4 March 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup: Producer Blog #2". Electronic Arts. Archived from the original on 7 March 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  7. ^ Aranda, Ramon (18 March 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (Xbox 360, PS3) Preview". 411Mania. Archived from the original on 11 January 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  8. ^ Meikleham, David (9 February 2010). "Why 2010 FIFA World Cup is the best football game yet". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 20 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  9. ^ a b Humber, Simon (18 February 2010). "199 Teams Listed". EA Forums. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  10. ^ Humber, Simon (7 April 2010). "Stadia List". EA Forums. Archived from the original on 12 April 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  11. ^ Garratt, Patrick (29 March 2010). "Interview: 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa's Simon Humber". VG247. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  12. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (8 February 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Interview". VideoGamer. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  13. ^ a b Dolge, Adam (2 April 2010). "Interview: FIFA 2010 World Cup South Africa". PlayStation Universe. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  14. ^ Saltzman, Marc (21 May 2010). "5 things you didn't know about 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 22 November 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  15. ^ a b c Ingham, Tim (7 April 2010). "FIFA World Cup 2010 demo released tomorrow". Computer and Video Games. Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  16. ^ a b "EA's 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Music Soundtrack Sets the Stage for Soccer Glory". Market Watch. 7 April 2010. Archived from the original on 12 April 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  17. ^ Leray, Joseph (28 April 2010). "Review: 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (X360)". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  18. ^ a b Bramwell, Tom (23 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (PS3, X360)". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 27 October 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  19. ^ a b Kato, Matthew (May 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (PS3, X360): FIFA World Cup is the easy way to qualify". Game Informer. No. 205. p. 98. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  20. ^ a b Akerman, Nick (30 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (PS3, X360)". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  21. ^ a b Calvert, Justin (28 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (PS3, X360)". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 13 June 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  22. ^ Cocker, Guy (19 May 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (PSP)". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 31 January 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  23. ^ Calvert, Justin (4 May 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (Wii)". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  24. ^ "2010 FIFA World Cup: South Africa Review (X360)". GameTrailers. 27 April 2010. Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  25. ^ Lafferty, Michael (9 May 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa PS3 Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 29 August 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  26. ^ Akerman, Nick (28 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (Wii)". GameZone. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  27. ^ Buchanan, Levi (13 May 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (iPhone)". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  28. ^ a b Robinson, Martin (22 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa UK Review (PS3, X360)". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  29. ^ a b Ahearn, Nate (26 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (PS3, X360)". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  30. ^ Ahearn, Nate (29 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (PSP)". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  31. ^ Ahearn, Nate (28 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Review (Wii)". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  32. ^ Cowen, Nick (30 April 2010). "2010 FIFA World Cup [South Africa] video game review (X360)". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  33. ^ a b "FIFA World Cup 2010 for iOS (iPhone/iPad)". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  34. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  35. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for PSP". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  36. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for Xbox 360". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  37. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for Wii". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  38. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 27 August 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  39. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for PSP Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  40. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  41. ^ a b "2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa for Wii Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 4 November 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  42. ^ Magrino, Tom (11 May 2010). "EA's full-year loss hits $677 million, FIFA 10 sells 10 million". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 14 May 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  43. ^ "The Best FIFA World Cup Games of All Time". Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  44. ^ "Ranking the 7 Official World Cup Video Games". 5 June 2014. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.

External links[edit]

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