Although i do agree with most of your points Mel, i still honestly believe its down to personal choice at the end of the day.
Yes i have also felt the same level of dissapointment and rage that you have, over previous Fifa releases.
I have been buying fifa since it was first released on Sega Megadive (95-96 i think)
And up untill the last couple of years i feel that EA have done a pretty decent job.
Yes i know there as been a few poor releases, and i also feel that it,s about time that EA took the game to another level now.
Another thing to take into consideration is the level of how seriously people take these games, in terms of realism.
For example, i personaly really love football and did used to play a lot when i was younger.
But i have always treated fifa and most other video games i own, as just a means of escapism.
Just to chill out after work , or a laugh with a few beers with the lads on a friday or saturday night.
It was football (in a way)... It had all of the Real teams & players ... Neat graphics & commentry ... And that,s all that mattered. ( Nothing will beat watching or playing the game for real ) And that is a fact... I will say that i feel the game should have progressed more in the, nearly 10 years that EA have been making it. Seems to be a case of, 1 step forward.. 2 steps back, in recent years.
But tbh, i had actualy made Fifa05 my last purchase, depending on the level of effort put into the game. But due to the fact that the gameplay & ball physics have improved in 05, also the the fact that most of the flaws still in 05 have been corrected or improved in UCL, i have decided to give Fifa06 a chance.
This will depend on my thoughts of the Demo, and the final release in october. If i,m not happy with the amount of effort & commitment, i will (Honestly) replace Fifa for TIF 2006.
Nah, only kidding PES5, because even i don,t like million dollar companies taking the p*** out of me... (or my money)
PES4 is a Good game and i do enjoy playing it. I can also see the improvements in gameplay over Fifa. (i think the shooting system is excellent)
Although i still feel that the gameplay graphics are as arcade looking now, as i did when i first played ISS Pro, many moons ago.
But that doesn,t stop me from giving friends a game or 5... Or having a bash on the demo i have on my PC, from time to time.
As deftones says, it is good to have a change , regardless of how much you may prefer 1 game to another. Besides, i do enjoy the challenge...
I just don,t see this Huge gulf between PES4 & Fifa05,s gameplay, and i see even less between PES & UCL.
I will admit that PES does Edge it, but only slightly, imo.
But each to his/her own, i say... They are both great games for footy fans, and gamers a like.
So lets just enjoy them, and stop this childish bickering...