The soccer game FIFA is one of Electronic Arts' biggest franchises, especially outside the U.S. The latest iteration, FIFA 13, sold 4.5 million copies in its first 5 days; EA called it the biggest launch in the history of sports games.
It's one of the last games that Electronic Arts is still releasing on Nintendo's aging Wii hardware. But buyers of this year's footy sim got a nasty surprise: EA didn't bother developing a new version. On Wii, FIFA 13 is identical to last year's FIFA 12.
Yes, the uniforms and players have been updated to match this year's rosters, the website Nintendo Gamer reported. But otherwise, it's a re-release of the same game with a new number on the box: The same gameplay modes, character models, graphics, menu screens, dialogue. And the same $50 price tag.
It doesn't stop there: Other fans of the sport say that FIFA 13 on PlayStation Vita is essentially identical to FIFA Football, the game that Electronic Arts released six months prior, at the launch of the new Sony gaming handheld.
EA is selling old products to unsuspecting consumers at a premium price, and fans are confused and angry.
"What exactly is different from 12 besides the pathetic attempt at recreating United's tablecloth kits?" asked one FIFA fan in a comment on a YouTube video of FIFA 13 gameplay footage.
"This is what we waited for?" added another. "EA, put some effort in to your Wii games."
In contrast, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of FIFA 13 have received universal critical acclaim.
"The development team has unlocked the potential that FIFA 12 only hinted at," wrote the U.K.'s Guardian.
In a comment emailed to Wired, an Electronic Arts spokesperson mostly dodged the question, saying that FIFA 13 has "the same great gameplay" and that EA "felt it was important to continue to offer fans the opportunity to play an authentic football experience on Wii."
The spokesperson did confirm that there are no new modes or features in FIFA 13 for Wii. The game does, however, feature the new licensed soundtrack that is also found in all other releases of FIFA 13.
There doesn't seem to be any money in making Wii games anymore. Most publishers, including Nintendo, have by and large cleared their release slates as sales of both the hardware, released in 2006, and the software have dropped dramatically.
The perennially popular sports games have generally had longer tails at the end of console lifecycles. EA produced its Madden football games for the Sega Genesis machine through 1998, long after it had become obsolete.
"Year on year, Wii has just dropped, and clearly we don't make games for it anymore," Electronic Arts chief operating officer Peter Moore said in a recent interview with Wired.
If Electronic Arts isn't going to make new Wii games, it shouldn't sell old ones as new.
