2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa

Worse still are the crowd animations

Worse still are the crowd animations. EA has reduced football fans the world over to little more than gawping, guppy-mouthed bags of flesh, prone to raving incessantly in invisible custard. OK, so perhaps that’s not too far removed from the typical England fan.

Looks like a bad kick off

The only substantial addition to the Fifa experience is an optional, simplified two-button control setting. EA obviously hopes World Cup hysteria will entice non-gamers to pick up a control pad during half-time intervals, and perhaps even see your granny on the score sheet. But in practice this functionality is broken, as the computer-assisted passing rarely agrees with your intention.

Of course, most of these criticisms can be levelled at the entire Fifa series. EA has always been comfortable with charging top-dollar for minor improvements in annual iterations. But 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa feels like a rip-off too far, especially given Fifa 11 will be released within six months. And while it won’t be the only rip-off we’ll see branded in official World Cup colours this year, it’s one I can’t recommend at the premium price point.