Tag: FIFA 22

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FIFA

Norwich City Crowned as 2021/22 ePremier League Champions

Norwich City have been crowned the 2021/22 ePremier League Champions, with Damien ‘Damie’ Augustyniak and Jack ‘GoalPoacher_’ Wignall winning the title for the Canaries! The EA SPORTS™ FIFA 22 finals were held in-person for the first time in three years, and was broadcasted live on Sky Sports and EA’s Twitch channel. The tournament was a thrilling journey that concluded in an even more exciting climax!

On Saturday, March 26th, GoalPoacher_ and Damie went unbeaten in four matches to top Group D, billed the ‘Group of Death’. Then in Sunday’s knockout fixtures, a fine performance from Damie was enough to see the pair beat Chelsea 5-2 on aggregate in the quarter-finals. The Norwich duo had already proved to be a dream team, and hoped to carry that momentum into the semi-finals. Damie played out a tense 0-0 draw against last year’s runner-up Olle “Ollelito” Arbin, creating a bit of suspense ahead of GoalPoacher_’s matchup. A 2-1 victory for Goalpoacher_ over Mitchell Hayward saw the Canaries overcome Leeds United to progress to the Grand Final.

Damie and Goalpoacher_ would go on to defeat Brentford duo Sam ‘SamBrwster’ Brewster and Peace ‘czohino’ Chirwa in Sunday evening’s Grand Final, thanks to a 5-1 aggregate victory. After clinching the title, Damie reflected on his journey to the gold, saying:

“Words can’t describe how I’m feeling right now. The standard of player this year went up a level, so it feels a bit surreal to call myself an ePremier League Champion. I’m so proud to lift the trophy, for the first ever time, and I’m pleased that the hard work has paid off.”

Goalpoacher_ also shared his thoughts, saying:

“This is my first ePremier League title and lifting the trophy is a moment that I’ll never forget. It has been a tough tournament, but I feel that Damien and I worked well as a team and, together, managed to progress past any opponent who stood in our way. I was always confident that we’d have a chance, but to go and win the tournament is a dream come true.”

LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 27: Jack Wignall (L) and Damien Augustyniak of Norwich City celebrate their victory over Brentfordin the Final of the ePremier League Grand Finals at Here East on March 27, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Christopher Lee/Getty Images for ePremier League)

The winning pair also picked up a £30,000 first prize for their efforts, totaling £15,000 per player. Both Damie and Goalpoacher_ have also earned spots in the EA SPORTS™ FIFA 22 Global Series European Playoffs! Premier League Commercial Director Will Brass congratulates Norwich City and anticipates another season of competition, saying, “We look forward to the next season of the ePremier League, providing clubs with a unique opportunity to engage with their fans, and viewers…

For more information visit e.premierleague.com.

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FIFA

FIFA Streamer Castro1021 Has FUT Coin Distribution Ban Lifted By EA

Castro1021 Reacts to Being Banned from FUT Trade Market

Edwin Castro, better known as Castro_2021, is one of the FIFA community’s most popular content creators; with 3.3 million Twitch followers. He was streaming FIFA 22 live to thousands when an “Important Notice” screen popped up, informing him he had been permanently banned from the FUT transfer market for “FUT Coin distribution.” Castro was visibly and audibly as shocked, upset, and confused as his audience.

The aftermath included many players coming out about their own experiences, saying they too had been wrongfully banned for FUT Coin distribution. Castro’s theory is that him dropping a large amount of FIFA points on Black Friday, and purchasing FUT Red Player Picks cards possibly triggered an automated enforcement system. These kinds of card are earned through Weekend League matches, and players aren’t suppose to be able to trade them. However, there is no mechanism in place to keep them from being sold, nor did Castro abuse any meta-factors to do so. Castro’s FIFA play is broadcasted on a public platform, so any attempts to engage in FUT Coin distribution would be easily detected, and a manual review would have stopped this ban from ever happening.

This is clearly becoming a prevalent problem within the games community, with Castro’s high profile case drawing extra attention to it. One user on EA’s official answers forum, claimed to have a received a ban for FUT Coin distribution, despite never playing the FIFA Ultimate Team game mode. A community manager for EA responded, stating that the terms of service team had investigated the ban manually and upheld the decision. There’s still speculation that the initial ban system is automated, and cases of wrongful bans keep popping up everyday. Lucky for Castro, he’s a public figure and had his ban reviewed and overturned pretty swiftly; but the average FIFA player without that luxury is still waiting for a resolution to this problem.

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FIFA

Mason Greenwood FIFA 22 Stats Revamped After Stellar Performance to Start the 2021/22 Season

Mason Greenwood's FIFA 22 Stat Upgrade

In the latest FIFA 22 squad update, Manchester United’s young forward, Mason Greenwood, has received a boost to his in-game stats. Greenwood has surprised many with his strong form, having scored four goals in nine Premiere League appearances for United so far. The 20-year-old is proving to be a bright prospect, and his team isn’t the only one who’s taken notice to it! EA Sports has kept an eye on the Englishmen’s performance since the start of the season, and the plan is for his in-game player to accurately represent his elevated form.

View Some of Mason Greenwood’s Highlights

Greenwood’s overall rating received a one point bump, going from 78 to 79. His potential rating saw the same increase, going from 89 to 90. This may not seem like a lot, but these numbers are a result of various increases in ability stats. Greenwood’s curve and volley saw a two point increase, and they now sit at 78 and 70 respectively. His positioning stat rose from 79 to 82, while his reactions stat went up by one from 77 to 78. The biggest stat bump went to his defensive awareness rating, which gained five points from 35 to 40.

The squad update also gave Greenwood a boost to his skill move rating, which means he now possesses four-star skill moves and a five-star weak foot. FIFA players will not only be more apt to playing with him, but this makes Manchester United that much more of a stacked roster. The team is already home to stars like Christiano Ronaldo, who is one of only four players on United who best Greenwood’s boost to four-star skill moves. Greenwood, however, remains the only player for his club with a five-star weak foot. Greenwood’s continued improvement spells great things for his United and FIFA players who will undoubtedly take advantage of the improved ratings.

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FIFA

EA Sports Considering a FIFA Rebrand: How Will This Affect Players?

FIFA EA Sports Logo
EA Sports FIFA

EA Sports released a statement on their website detailing the future of football and the FIFA series. The developer is considering renaming the series and rebranding the games going forward. On a business level this make sense, but what does this mean for players?

FIFA is essentially synonymous with football games at this point, and fans of the series may have grown attached to the name. However, EA Sports has plans to expand the games in a way that can get pigeonholed by continually bearing the name of one particular association. In their statement, EA explains a bit about this vision, saying:

“We continually invest in the partnerships and licenses that are most meaningful to players… The breadth of our partnerships and our ecosystem of licensed content will enable us to continue to bring unrivaled authenticity in our EA SPORTS football games”

FIFA may be EA’s most high-profile partnership, but they license over 700 teams and more than 30 leagues from around the world. There’s also interest in expanding the inclusion of women’s and grassroots football. EA feels as if the FIFA name does not accurately represent the broader vision for the future of the series.

What this means is that players can look forward to an even larger scale game with new content. That includes more leagues, a deeper dive into women’s football, as well as the different depictions and licenses that come along with that. There may be a nostalgia aspect to the FIFA name, but it’ll be traded for the ability to play in new locations and with new players as the game expands. Business wise, this change has been a long time coming; with many who feel the games have done more for the actual association than licensing the name ever did for EA. From a players perspective the name doesn’t matter as much, but the direction in which this means the series is going definitely does.

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FIFA

This FIFA 22 Beta Review Reveals Highly Impactful Changes to Gameplay

FIFA 22 Game Cover
Game cover for FIFA 22

Gaming YouTuber, Vizeh, was able to access the FIFA 22 closed beta and revealed a lot information for FIFA players. Two of the most important aspects he touched on was the noticeable difference in game physics, and a huge change to off-chemistry gameplay. He described the players as feeling “heavy” when controlled, while the ball felt extremely “light.” He also confirms that using players off-chemistry actually impacts the way they perform.

When playing the beta, Vizeh was able to experience controlling high level dribblers, like 98-rated Neymar, as well as lower level ball handlers. There seemed to be no difference in the “heavy” mechanics he experienced across different players. In contrast, the ball seemed to ricochet wildly, travel 30 yards, and bounce up to seven times a half. According to Vizeh, these mechanics make it more challenging to execute passes and hurts the overall game feel. This translates to difficult dribbling and inconsistent physics during gameplay.

He also play-tested using players off-chemistry, and the impact this has on the game in FIFA 22‘s beta is far ahead of where is was in previous editions. Plugging in players anywhere seemed to have little to no consequence in past FIFA‘s. This year, playing a right back or left back at center is not as affective as it once was; quite the opposite actually. Vizeh describes being able to feel the difference in how these players moved with the ball and the lack of comfortability in their new positions. These changes will not only impact gameplay, but could affect the FIFA esports scene as well.

If the mechanics Vizeh described exist in the final version of the game, it could lead to more fast-paced matches with frequent possession switches. It’s likely that the odd and sometimes random off-chemistry lineups players created in past years will start to disappear quickly as the games developers lean into a more realistic style of play. It will be interesting to see the communities reaction to these changes when FIFA 22 releases on October 1st.