FIFA Street 2 has created 10 new locations from around the world that capture the spirit and culture of street soccer. The development looked for locations where street soccer is thriving, and then tried to re-create these places in the game. The result is that FIFA Street 2 has five venues that are true-to-life and rich with detail and five other new locations that are either inspired or based on several venues within a region and combined into one.
The five authentic locations are Westway Sports Centre in London, Barra Beach in Brazil, Marseille in France, Amsterdam and New York. The development team found street soccer thriving on the lower east side of New York and created a venue in the game that is 70 percent authentic. It showcases New York with the evening sun setting and buildings casting shadows over the playing surface. Some of the surrounding buildings have been altered for legal reasons.
Each authentic location was chosen for a specific reason. Brazil is considered the birthplace of some of the most talented players in the world and Barra Beach is where some of Brazil’s top stars play in the off-season. The Westway Sports Centre in London is recognized as one of the real hot beds for street soccer, drawing players from all over Europe. French star Zidane developed his skills at Marseille, some of the most competitive tournaments in the world are played in Amsterdam, and New York is one of the up-and-coming places to play street soccer in the U.S.
A team of people spent three to four months replicating each location to capture the venues in their true-to-life form. The development team took hundreds of detailed photographs, referenced topography maps and made sound recording at each location to get even the smallest details right. Then, to bring each location to life, the developers created a different audio experience at each locale. So PA announcers speak the native language and music represents the culture of that area.
As far as gameplay goes, in FIFA Street 2 players will have full interaction with the environment. That means walls and fences will shake or sway when the ball ricochets off it to give users a more believable experience. The venues are all different sizes and each playing surface affects gameplay in a different way, giving users more variety. For example, a narrow playing surface will force users to develop their Trick-Stick skills while a larger playing surface, like New York, creates a more strategic game where there is greater emphasis on passing and team work.
FIFA Street 2, developed by EA Canada in Vancouver, B.C., is scheduled to ship February 28, on the PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, and PSP.
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