I was so disappointed with FIFA 14 Xbox 360, but on Xbox One it is amazingly and unexplained different. It just feels so much better in every way. I ended up getting it free with the day one Xbox One and im so glad I did since I would never of bought it and been able to experience the difference. Would recommend everyone who had given up on it, like myself, to give it another chance on FIFA 14 Xbox one.

 

If you do make the step up, you will be happy to hear that online stats and Ultimate Teams will stay intact, though perhaps less pleased to hear the Be a Pro and FIFA Interactive World Cup game modes get the boot for the next-gen version. Since then however, the Xbox One and Xbox 360 versions have added Ultimate Team Legends to the mix, an exclusive feature for Xbox. This throws in some of the world’s greatest players - and Freddie Ljungberg - as collectable cards, who you can then choose for your Ultimate Team squad. You’ll have to earn them mind, as they only appear in UT packs that contain Gold Rare card slots, so we don’t think PS4 owners (or PS3 come to that) are missing out too much.

 

That's by no means a bad thing, however. Naturally all the team lists, player names and kits have been updated to the current season, but the gameplay mechanics will seem instantly familiar. Goals still come thick and fast, even now that the ball frequently bounces out of play from aerial passes and AI defenders react more quickly to approaching strikers. They don't immediately fly in with a sliding tackle either, staying on their feet for longer and putting up more of a wall which puts greater emphasis on passing rather than dodging defenders.

 

In many other respects, FIFA 14 on Xbox One is the same as the current generation version. As well as Manager and Player Career modes, the incredibly addictive Ultimate Team mode also makes a return. Building a team of superstars from the ground up from a deck of tradeable cards, matching their statistics to create a greater sense of team chemistry and making trades with other gamers to get the best possible team is great fun and very deep.

 

Speaking of Ultimate Team, when you open up a Gold Rare pack it’s now possible that you’ll come across a Legendary Player, all of whom are exclusive to the Xbox 360 and Xbox One versions of the game. Players like Ruud Gullit, Gianfranco Zola, Dennis Bergkamp and Gary Lineker are among the forty-plus legends who are just waiting to be discovered, and once you’ve gotten one (or more) of them on your team the game brings out updated match commentary to accommodate. And if you’re feeling really brave, you can also take part in an Ultimate Team Legend’s Challenge, which pits your own ragtag bunch of reprobates against a team that’s comprised exclusively of some of the best footballers who’ve ever walked the earth. Good luck with that.

 

FIFA 14 was always a good game and despite being a less well-rounded package than last year it’s not necessarily a worse one than FIFA 13. That’s especially true of the next gen versions, where the positive gameplay changes outweigh the loss of the other options. But it does mean that although this is the best version of the game, it is not the definitive one it could have been.