“Fool me once,” the famous phrase goes, “shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
With FIFA 22, EA is attempting to fool us thrice, and although we haven't been able to find any official ruling on what this means, we’ve come to the conclusion that it basically rolls back to “shame on you” again.
“Well, that’s not entirely fair, Nintendo Life,” we (maybe) hear you say. “EA makes it perfectly clear that FIFA 22 on the Switch is a Legacy Edition. It’s not trying to fool you at all, it’s being very up-front about what you’re getting.”
Yes, okay, you’re right. Perhaps we should have put more effort into getting this intro right. But at the end of the day, if EA isn’t willing to put any effort into FIFA on the Switch, why should we try to show it up? That would just be arrogant of us.
FIFA 22 is the third Legacy Edition on Switch. What this means is that it’s basically the Switch version of FIFA 19, with the team squads and kits replaced. But wait, that's not all! A drum roll, if you will.
As we’ve stated in previous reviews, FIFA 19 was a barely improved version of FIFA 18, which itself was essentially a port of that year’s Xbox 360 and PS3 Legacy Editions. Confused? Allow us to summarise for you. The Switch version of FIFA 22 is essentially the Xbox 360 version of FIFA 17.
Let us put it another, more colourful way. Remember Kaka, Pirlo and Totti? They’re all in FIFA’s Ultimate Team mode these days as ‘Icons’, legendary players who have since retired but can be recruited as special additions to your squad. The version of FIFA that FIFA 22 on Switch is based on is so old that Kaka, Pirlo and Totti were just normal players in it.
Not that you can realistically get them in Ultimate Team now, of course, because the Switch version of Ultimate Team is such a ghost town that at the time of writing there were around 25,000 players and items being sold on its transfer market screen, versus 2.2 million on Xbox (and likely even more on PlayStation, given it usually sells more on those formats).
It’s little wonder, of course. Ultimate Team hasn’t been changed in the slightest since the first FIFA game on the Switch (FIFA 18), with not a single extra mode or feature included in that time. How could EA possibly expect players to care about a mode that hasn’t had a shred of work done to it in nearly half a decade?
Have a glance at Ultimate Team on other systems, and you’ll see that players are getting revamped versions of the Division Rivals and FUT Champions modes. The Switch hasn’t even received the original versions of them yet, while other formats are declaring them outdated.
Of course, this complaint isn’t strictly limited to Ultimate Team, it’s the case across the board. The Career mode is now so prehistoric they could probably extract DNA from it and clone a raptor, while everything else has been left untouched for so many years we’re surprised EA didn’t add ‘dusty’ to its list of weather options.
The annoying thing is that, as we’ve touched on every time we review FIFA on the Switch, the core game itself is still very good. It was fun when it was FIFA 17 two console generations ago and time hasn’t rendered it unplayable all of a sudden.
We aren’t even unrealistic enough to expect that EA would somehow be able to bring the game up to speed with the next-gen versions. If the snazzy new Hypermotion buzzword EA is pushing in its multi-million dollar TV ad can only be pulled off on a PS5 or Xbox Series X, that’s perfectly fine. Let them have their silky smooth animations, those show-offs.
But EA should have thrown us Switch owners a bone, and by that we don’t mean tying a string around the same bone, pulling it back and throwing it to us again the following year. People are buying this game, they deserve to have their loyalty rewarded with some sort of new feature, anything at all.
That isn’t hyperbole or guesswork on our part, either. At the time of writing, FIFA 22 is the number one top selling Switch game on Amazon UK. By that metric at this very moment – and granted, it won’t last for long – more people are buying FIFA 22 on Switch than any other game. Think about the permutations of that. It was also announced that on its launch weekend, 5% of FIFA 22 sales in the UK were the Switch version, which is still a lot when you consider how many copies that is.
Football-mad, Switch-owning kids everywhere will be getting FIFA 22 for Christmas and realising it’s the same as the one they got last year. Their Christmas is going to end up being about as fun as the one the Cratchets had in A Christmas Carol. And we don’t mean the happy “God bless us everyone” Christmas, we mean the one where Tiny Tim died.
It’s a matter of respect, frankly. The Switch version may be cheaper than the others but $40 / £35 is still a lot of money for some people, especially if those people already bought FIFA 21. For those poor sods, they’re paying a healthy sum for what’s essentially a roster update.
Some may argue that because FIFA 21 was $50 / £45 and this time EA has knocked ten bucks off the price, we should go easier on it. Others would say that, hey, at least EA actually released something, unlike Konami who won’t even bring its new eFootball game to the Switch, even though it’s on mobile (not that we’re missing out there, of course, but it’s the principle of the thing).
We’re sorry, but we don’t buy into that Stockholm Syndrome. We refuse to be fed stale food and think “well, at least it’s nice of them to feed us at all”. This is now the fifth time Switch owners have been treated like second-class citizens, and the third time we haven’t even been given the courtesy of a single tweak to the game itself.
Enough is enough. Do not buy this game. If you must have a football game on the Switch, buy an old used copy of FIFA 20, or 19 or 18. They’re all the same thing. Sure, the rosters will be out of date, but in case you hadn’t already picked up on the point we’ve been subtly making throughout this review, the whole bloody game’s out of date anyway.
Last year we said FIFA 21 was “the straw that breaks the camel's back”. This can only mean that FIFA 22 is chucking piles of straw on a dead camel. And if that’s the sort of behaviour you support then, as the phrase goes, shame on you.
Conclusion
FIFA 22 marks the third time EA has given us FIFA 19 with a different shirt on. It may clearly state Legacy Edition on the title, but being kicked in the groin isn't any less painful if your assailant tells you they're going to do it in advance. Once again, EA has insulted Switch owners by giving them the version it usually releases on dead systems. Do not accept it.
Comments 113
Welp. Cant say I’m not surprised. Another terrible “sequel” by EA.
@scully1888 There's still going to be people arguing over your review score in this comment section..."You're wrong! This should be a 1!!!!??!?!??!!!"
Will it possible for a negative review for FIFA 25?
at this point you are paying £40 a year for new menu colours
I really hope people don’t buy this at least on switch EA need to get the message but they will
Deserves nothing more than a ZERO, seeing as that’s how much effort was put in.
what a classic EA move 🥴
'Mon the Hoops.
I think if people don't buy this, they're just going to blame fans and not bring FIFA to Switch at all anymore. That's probably what they're waiting for.
Electronic A$%€÷(€$.
Regardless, it will sell well in the UK as it always does.
It’s number two on the European eShop, much to my surprise, and the UK physical Switch sales are much more than EA deserve considering their laziness.
Them still releasing Legacy Editions and pretending it’s a quality product has almost as much cheek as Neil Lennon sitting as a pundit laying into Celtic.
It's coming to Rome.
@Meteoroid the irony is that for a lot of people that’s also a con lol
Hey NL, I think you should consider that affiliate links on such terrible games are disabled. Obviously, it must be part of your deal with Amazon to include one in every review - but it kinda feels out of place here
@AmplifyMJ Trouble is, Nintendo is selling so many bucketloads of Switches right now, and FIFA is such a popular franchise, that there are enough people buying their first Switch FIFA game to make it sell that well. And as the first FIFA game you'll ever play on Switch, it's... fine.
Buy it at the season's end! I have picked up FIFA 20 for $5.99 at BestBuy. FIFA 21 for $7.99 on Amazon.
Just to play a few games with friends online.
It is a horrible simulation, but it is fun to play with friends.
If anyone is old enough to remember NFL 2K5....that game whooped Madden's tail. EA bought up the licenses and took their ball and went home, not allowing anyone to play.
This is what happens when you preorder games and buy these pitiful sequels year after year.
Be patient and wait for the mid-season discount.
Day one.
No NL, nothing more to say
If they do this again, do like IGN did, copy and paste the same review from the last year, changing only a few words.
At the end of the day, as long as EA succeeds in conning people out of their money year after year, they’re gonna keep pulling this.
I think you put more effort into writing this review than EA did making this game.
If people are dumb enough to keep buying it then there's no reason for them to stop I guess. They're getting a lot of free money for doing literally nothing.
@Gs69 They will argue the hardware can't push their Frostbite engine which it can, fully, based on this EA blog.
Just get it together and scale down the resolution!
https://www.ea.com/frostbite/news/bringing-frostbite-to-nintendo-switch#:~:text=The%20Plants%20vs.,power%20of%20the%20Frostbite%20engine.
@Yosher I'd be perfectly happy with EA never releasing another game of any sort on any system that I own for the rest of time to be honest. Not like I ever buy them anyway.
Fifa is fun on local multiplayer, so you got to have a Fifa on your system, but one is enough.
If you get a cheap 2 years old version, you have the same fun as the full price current one.
@victordamazio I've had enough in the past with a former IGN writer borrowing my FIFA review without having to steal their ideas, haha!
EA for Extremely Appalling!
Fool me once, shame on you, but teach a man to fool me, and I'll be fooled for the rest of my life.
Ctrl-C, Ctrl-V
@Stnkygrngo it probably is possible but I think EA see the switch as an afterthought and don’t wanna invest time and money into it they just want money for nothing basically just a roster update, they are jokers
5 Euros would be a fair price, I would buy it for that price.
Another year another highly entertaining Fifa Switch review, thank you so much, Chris! The line about Tiny Tim had me in complete hysterics. Is this review more entertaining than Fifa 22? Who can say but it has certainly brightened my day.
0/5 rating from me abysmal.
The game is released as the annual insult to Nintendo gamers. I miss it when they cared for the Nintendo FIFA releases in the early Wii and perhaps mid Wii era? Maybe some would even debate that? Many moons ago anyway. I'm sorry about Celtic FC too, Chris, LOL
It got a 2 because it was playable haha, even if it is a ripoff of itself being a ripoff of iteself being a ripoff of itself. Can't believe EA can justify ignoring the switch to their shareholders
Still got FIFA 18, still enjoy it now and again. Couldn't care less about the teams/squads as all the players look fairly interchangeable the majority of the time you're playing anyway, regardless of platform. (Be honest, if the HUD was off and the commentary wasn't running, would you be able to pick out the players with the normal camera mode?) To me that's the best version on the Switch as it came with the free 2018 World Cup dlc, which was fairly substantial.
It's always funny to read the FIFA reviews, just to see how lazy EA is. And it's surprising the game is selling on the Switch, there's this hunger on the system, and neither EA or Konami are doing anything to feed the Switch audience.
@BenAV I wouldn't care if they did that either, but they still have some actual good games once in a blue moon. The only EA game I bought in the last 10 years or so was Need for Speed Hot Pursuit on Switch, which is a decent title. But also a port of an old game so I dunno if you'd even count that.
How many times...
2/10 seems a bit high.
Give us the SNES versions on Switch then, EA, if you can’t be bothered to give us a decent game. With updated rosters, etc.
I wish they just made a “FIFA Switch” title. Just one and kept updating it with the latest rosters. You can keep in all the micro transactions from Ultimate Team, but at least the game’s online wouldn’t be a ghost town. Eh, but people still pay the full $60 for the same game so EA will keep rereleasing the same game at full price. Sad.
You know, I'd love to have Madden on the Switch, but not if this is the route they would go with the series.
Back of the net! Shame it was an own goal though....
Well done on NL for not bending over for the corporate bigwigs. Really hope the general public take notice and vote with their purses.
What I find most contemptible about this release is that EA continues to leave language packs (such as Arabic and Polish) off the cartridge even though it would all fit on a 16GB cart.
I really hate the practice of leaving out language support from carts even if they're not languages that I am particularly interested in, because there may come a time that a game is released with alternate languages that I may be interested in, and I would be crushed if such a physical release would require a separate DLC download for such functionality rather than being built-in.
With all that said though, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 had very little in the way of new content (the visual style was also indistinguishable from the first game) and yet that received the same rating (8/10) as its predecessor. What gives? Why wasn't that bashed for being ridiculously derivative? Don't get me wrong, I'm one of the dummy-dumb-dumbs who bought the game, but I wouldn't exactly endorse it either, and if I were to cut the score down by virtue of its derivativeness, then Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 should also be given an abysmal score.
While EA's treatment of FIFA on Switch sucks, at least it's available in its entirety on the cartridge (unlike certain other annual sports games) and at least they're being upfront about the lack of new content (if nothing else). The "legacy edition" releases generally plummet in price quickly enough for those interested in the updated rosters/kits/stadiums.
I just wish that EA added SOMETHING new to differentiate each entry from the last. Would it kill them to add a Mii mode like they did for the Wii instalments back in the day?
I wish switch for legacy edition nhl, nfl and fight night games
A question from someone who last played FIFA on N64 (FIFA98 I think)
Even if this FIFA was up to date with the version on PS and XBOX, what new features would have?
I'm not trolling, I really have no idea what different could you have in a new Football game other than updating the roster and the graphics.
I occasionally played newer FIFA with friends (and with newer I mean 2006 and 2012 lol) and they all seems like the same game but with better graphic.
@Silly_G isn't PPT 2 story mode worth it? I know the modes are pretty much the same but I hoped at least story mode would be different
Electronic Arse more like.
@GoldenSunRM you only need to buy one sports game per sport in each generation because as you said you are only really paying for a new lick of paint and roster changes.
@John_Deacon : I did play and complete (max stars in everything) the story modes of both games, but I wouldn't recommend the story modes in and of themselves, which is completely nonsensical and forgettable (and PPT2 even disregards whatever "events" occurred in the first game, with everybody having forgotten one another).
It's otherwise fine if you like Tetris, Puyo Puyo or both. It took me until PPT2 to get the hang of Puyo Puyo (and I'm still pretty rubbish at it), but I'd recommend it to those who like the games in and of themselves, not necessarily for the story modes.
Switch is the best selling console out there.
EA's behaviour is testament to the inability of people to admit they've made a mistake.
2/10 is such a high score, should have been negative really, can’t even flush the game case down the toilet so that’s enough to make the game’s score negative
Proud of you guys for giving a harsh and honest review! EA deserves the critical blowback for this!
It amazes me they aren't willing to put this little effort into Switch Madden as well.
Me trying to explain to my friends not to waste £40 on the EXACT SAME GAME!
My friends: iT's a neW gAme!
wow go EA the only thing worse is that disaster konami just released
@scottishwildcat that’s very true as well
@nessisonett Poor Lennon, can’t even be safe on NintendoLife :,(
"Last year we said FIFA 21 was “the straw that breaks the camel's back”. This can only mean that FIFA 22 is chucking piles of straw on a dead camel."
Great stuff
Here's an idea for an end-of-year article: a compilation of the past year's best Scully-isms.
Saw 9 copies for the Switch at CeX (not in UK) today.
Says enough.
@GoldenSunRM In the other console versions there are story modes with cutscenes and stuff. Like in FIFA 20 there's Volta Football where you play 3-a-side and 5-a-side and play in different types of pitches- some with walls around them and tiny little goals- and you can play those separate to the story mode as well.
It means you can play 5-a-side with the international teams and that's quite fun.
Anyway each proper release has something different like that, as well as the graphical/gameplay changes and the Switch version just has the standard manager/player career modes.
For someone who owns only a Switch and none of the previous Fifa on it, why not? It is the only "real" football game on the Switch, and with a pretty decent gameplay. Graphics are what they are, but at least running with a solid 60 fps. I really doubt you'd get more than 30 fps with a game looking close to even the Xbox One S version. I personally own a Switch and a One X. Have tried the One X version and it looks exactly the same than the free Fifa 21 on the gamepass, doesn't include the main new features, doesn't include any graphics improvements at all. I used to play PES until last year, no way I'll play this terrible EFootball sh*t, can't find a Series X, receiving my Switch Oled this week, I don't own any previous Switch versions of the game, and I'm not ready to pay 40-45£ for the One version of Fifa 22: so all things considered, I am seriously tempted to get it on my Switch! I've found the physical game for £27 and I think it will be worth it on the couch/bed handheld with the Oled screen! I'll still have Fifa 21, PES 21 on my gamepass when I'll want some more detailed graphics.
Just get an older year version for the Switch. I bought FIFA 19 for a fiver for the Switch and it's the exact same game- just different names and faces
@beuiz As I never bought any of them on the Switch, I don't really mind paying 25-30£ for it as (I know it might infuriate some) the game worth it for this price. I need to play with the updated squads, stats and I don't want to spend ages in the options to update everything manually (I do miss the time when I was simply copying/pasting an option file in PES...). The Oled screen will make it a little less ugly than it is, and again, the gameplay is still pretty decent.
I think the reviews should give 2 scores : one for the ones who already own a previous version of it and/or have another console (in that case the 2/10 is well deserved), and one for the ones who don't own any version of the previous games and/or don't have any other console (then a 6 or a 7/10 would be more appropriate IMO).
So, no spoiler alert for Christmas Carol? WTF?
I didn't excuse this sort of thing on PS Vita. I won't excuse it on Switch.
How many of us remember World Cup Carnival ZX Spectrum from 1986? That was an infamous example of a publisher taking an existing game and trying to pass it off as a new product.
I hope ISS64 gets added to the N64 section of Switch.online.
I only read these for the footballer puns at the top.
Can't blame EA for releasing the same game every year when you get deluded fools who keep funding it. Stop buying FIFA on switch
Another year, another FIFA.
It's never going to be a heavy seller on Switch even if they tried to match current gen. I can't blame EA for not putting the effort in, it's more the price scheming that gets me.
Honestly this seems more like a meta critic user review than a publication review. You can’t say the core game is still very good and then give it 2 out 10. Does this then become a 9 out of 10 game next year when the new one comes out and this one drops to like a fiver or whatever?
If you don’t already have a FIFA game on switch I’m sure you’ll have a blast playing this one. But if your not made of money, just get a slightly older one for cheaper. I’ve got FIFA 20 on switch, it’s a great game.
@GoldenSunRM To the casual player, not much. It’s generally game play tweaks, better animations improved AI and what not, I would say the main things the switch version misses out on is the modes. I don’t believe it’s got the FIFA street mode and Ultimate team is lacking a lot. Plus because they’ve released the same version with barely an update, people are all playing different versions so the online competition is pretty rubbish.
I paid £17.50 as I have last years version.
Think I can cope with that price, for updated teams.
Everyone who buys this is an idiot, it's as simple as that
I never really got the appeal of sports games in general to be honest: They're all basically the same game, just with slightly changed rosters every few months or so.
Im just gonna wait and hope for mario strikers. 😊
Guess I'm an idiot then! 😬
Soccer sucks anyway( yes I know this will trigger most of the people here, I don’t care)
Legally obliged to put fifa out on the switch, its a shame as they must make a few quid but it wouldn't hurt to make some improvements. I have 18, which includes the WC, and bought 20 when it was digital for £11, and that will do. Remember when they actually changed stuff up? Fifa 97, with indoor tournaments, road to WC 98 etc. Even the PS/Xbone are cash grabs on ultimate team.
Wouldn't mind a hockey game though, no sign of that hitting the switch.
I had no intention to buy this game, but figured the review would be entertaining. Did not disappoint.
Its already No.2 on the UK eShop. People with more money than sense
There was a footie game on the Amiga where you could kick someone's head off. That was a fun game.
Sensible Software also did a cover disk cross-over of Cannon Fodder and Sensi Soccer where you could score a goal by machine gunning someone over the line.
Both of them probably still play well.
Fantastic review, @scully1888
It’s the only good football game in portable mode. I bought every fifa from switch, it’s actually a very good game if you travel with friends/family and they love a quick game in local co op. The new kits are looking great, also updating the season with teams in ucl. I don’t really understand all the hate. Yeah could be better, but if you love portable football with teams, kits up to date, this is the only good choice. Peace.
Cookie cutter games every year, not interesting at all.
Also, EA now = Everything Abysmal.
I have seen bargain bins full of this games
I'd just buy an older one for alot cheaper but they take the older ones off the store once the new one comes out so it's full price or nothing
This is why the most played football games are still the old PES games. My footie game of choice is still PES 2013 on my 3DS XL.
If EA just offered me a £15 season pass every year with a year of transfer updates I'd be probably begrudgingly accept that but they take the piss. Well at least Hart and Mccarthy were easy enough to transfer over.
All these comments are just typical "EA bad" and "I dont want EA on my platform" nonsense you hear from every other Nintendo faithful, and its as tiring as EAs rehashed releases.
You're all here acting like it is some horrible, underhanded thing they are doing, but they are extremely upfront about what it is, and have a reduced price to reflect it. And to be fair, like the actual review says that I'm sure people read, the game itself is still fine, at worst perfectly serviceable especially on the go. The extreme reactions from people don't really seem warranted at all.
They definitely know what they are doing here though. Review a game that doesn't need it to an audience that doesn't want it, then you all flock in and congratulate them for giving it a 2 while they get the ad revenue. It's a good strategy.
Does it even work for ea? I mean, what a waste of plastic.
The attrocious state of football games on Switch can be fixed in four words:
Sensible World of Soccer.
More EA trash coming out of the oven. What a joke of a company.
Should Rangers fans deduct 1 more point for Celtic being in it?
Yet people still buy it by the bucket load!
Will they never learn.
It says 2022 on the box, that's enough for people to buy it.
I stick to PES 2018, still amazing.
The only way to end this is don’t buy it.
I guess I do not feel bad for never really moving past NHL 94
Could EA make a console worthy game with an upgraded Swich?
I'm phasing out after MD until a Pro arrives unless a good trilogy and MP4 arrives and will be good!
I still play the original, FIFA 2017, whatever it was, along with the free World Cup DLC. Look, if people keep buying the product, EA will continue making it.
I wish we had a Madden game with $40 roster updates….
So Ea have effectively copy and pasted a 2017 Fifa game from the 360 with updated rosters, but can't be arsed to drop the Mass Effect games onto a cart with even a slight resolution boost that would sell probably just as much, if not more? What a fantastic company 👌
@Gs69 Unfortunately, it's a perpetual downward spiral. The last game didn't sell as well on Switch as on the other systems, so EA doesn't think they can afford to put much effort into the next year's Switch version, which means the Switch version of that game doesn't sell well, and so on.
EA has never learned that their games would actually sell much better on Nintendo systems if they actually put money and quality effort into those versions of the games first, or they're just too scared to take that kind of moderate monetary risk.
@Bakfug you sound like a right barrel of laughs.
Thanks for pointing out Celtic are still in it. Always a joy to pick Rangers and enjoy a nice easy game of humping the hoops. But then, I guess you could pick Livingston, Hearts or, well, anyone really, and have an easy time against Scotland's sixth best team...
@Meteoroid it was funny, nut my Roma is't in fifa anymore (excluisive to PES), so even that isn'ty a pro for me anymore..
@BulbasaurusRex agree 100% it’s a bad situation, remembering back to the GameCube days they actually used to put effort into some of the sports games like nba street adding Mario characters into it made them even more fun but I can’t see them ever doing anything like that again
At least now they say what's new on the cover.
By the way, how do Brits pronounce Celtics?
Keltics or Seltics?
Fifa is pretty much same game every year anyway, regardless of which console it is on
I was basically expecting a handheld soccer game, and it seems like that’s what I’m getting. I didn’t exactly have a problem with that.
@MrGawain they cannot be bothered to collect that cash for some reason..
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