Football (please, don't call it soccer...) lovers around the globe rejoice since we have what could be the best and most complete FIFA game in the series, in the form of FIFA 19. After the last iteration being considered by many as "FIFA 17.1" and not FIFA 18, EA took matters into its own hands and revamped the game like no one expected, with new game modes, new gameplay mechanics, and new licenses.

Like every other FIFA game of this decade, FIFA 19 clearly focuses on FIFA Ultimate Team, the most popular game mode of them all. If you like competing against other players to see who can build the top squad, be it by winning tons of matches or by spending real money to buy dozens of packs, then you'll sooner or later experience first hand every new feature of the game. If you don't want to deal with potential pay2win or you don't consider yourself good enough to enter the FUT scene, then you still have plenty of things to do... although some things are still the same as previous years, only with another color palette.

If you don't like football, then this game clearly isn't for you.

FIFA 19 is a game full of little details that make our lives easier when compared to previous iterations, and that's a lot to say considering EA's reputation. For those playing offline, the new KIck-Off modes represent a twist to a casual experience, letting you choose the rules to play by and adding a lot of replay value to it since it's not just grinding match after match. There's also the chance to play the final act to The Journey, a story mode that started with Alex Hunter but now offers us the chance to control 3 different characters ala Grand Theft Auto V. Like we said before, the other offline modes were left aside so you won't see much improvement there, other than playing Career mode with a little more realistic touch, thanks to La Liga Santander's licensing.

What really shines in FIFA 19 is Ultimate Team, now with a lot of changes. Squad Battles is still there, but now there's also Division Rivals, an online mode that not only gives you sweet weekly rewards but also lets you earn points to qualify to the Weekend League, also known as FUT Champions. If you used to struggle with Daily Knockout Tournaments, now it's easier for you since all you need is to grind 2000 points. Once qualified you can play the Weekend League whenever it suits you better, knowing that monthly rewards are now weekly rewards, and 40-matches marathons are now only 30-matches marathons.

Whatever the case, you can also expect a big shout out to the UEFA Champions League now that FIFA has the official license. You can either pick a team from the current roster or organize your own Champions League to play offline, and still look forward to the brand new CL cards in FUT!

This is a game that will blow your mind with photorealistic models of stars like Neymar Jr. or Cristiano Ronaldo, all of them faithful in every detail, but you can still find generic faces here and there, kind of throwing away all of the above. Sure, it's nice to score a screamer with CR7 and watch him celebrate with his teammates, but then you see him hugging someone you only recognize by reading his name on his jersey...

This year we also have new animations to make the gameplay smoother and more accurate, from skill moves to goalkeepers' reactions, something very much needed and always appreciated. However, some other animations still look stiff and unpolished, especially regarding facial expressions.

FIFA 19 menus look beautiful and clean too, and another thing that definitely catches the eye is the UEFA Champions League introduction, a very colorful presentation that plays next to the catchy anthem. The same level of affection went to The Journey, an interactive movie full of awkward, cheesy and cringeworthy moments, but also with a lot of well-crafted scenes.

FIFA 19 counts with a cool soundtrack for you to discover, representing a wide musical offer from around the world. Maybe Childish Gambino, LSD (Labyrinth, SIA, Diplo), Death Cab for Cutie and Gorillaz are the most popular artists featured here, but after a few hours playing you'll find yourself singing or humming to bands you never heard of before... just like with every FIFA game!

When it comes to The Journey, the soundtrack takes a dramatic tone thanks to the famous composer Hans Zimmer, and that's when you know FIFA 19 is not joking. How many other games score an Academy Award winner for a secondary game mode?

In-game, there's the addition of a few more chants that make things more immersive during a match, but the regular matches commentary and sound effects are mostly the same. While Alan Smith and Martin Tyler are still on the game, the UEFA Champions League features Derek Rae and former Arsenal player Lee Dixon. Speaking of the most important clubs competition of the world, is there anything that pumps you up more than the UEFA Champions League Anthem?!

Die Meister! Die Besten! Les Grandes Équipes! The Champions!

Well, well, well... time to talk about the gameplay, something that truly differentiates FIFA 19 from previous games.

The first thing you'll see is the revamped Kick-Off mode, now with better statistics regarding your friendly matches and a lot of new possibilities. Rather than sticking to the rules we all know and love, you can also play games where every goal from outside the box counts as 2, or games where you can only score from a volley or a header. In fact, you can also play with friends who don't even know how to play! Just go to "No Rules" and so whatever it takes to take the ball from your opponent and score. If you like regular matches, you can go straight to playing a cup final or simulate the whole UEFA Champions League.

The other recommended mode is obviously The Journey, with Alex Hunter now playing for the world famous Real Madrid while his sister Kim tries her luck in the Women's World Cup and his friend Danny becomes his rival in the UEFA Champions League. There's plenty of drama from the very moment you launch the first game, an epic recreation of Jim Hunter's 100th career goal back in the 60's. This retro style is a nice feat that we wish could last a little longer, giving us the opportunity to play in a muddy pitch, with classic ad-less kits. Gameplay-wise, the predictable story of The Journey becomes more interesting thanks to its 3 main characters, alternating some football games with training mini-games, cutscenes, and cliffhangers.

As you may already know, the best part of FIFA 19 is the Ultimate Team mode, one where you create your dream team to compete online or against the AI. This time around, playing game after game feels more rewarding than before thanks to Division Rivals, a constant competition where you go head to head against other players competing not only for weekly rewards but for a chance to qualify to the Weekend League. Yes, now you don't have to play Daily Knockout Tournaments and score 4 wins in a row; all you need are 2000 points to get the chance to participate in FUT Champions, whenever you have the time to play 30 matches over a weekend (the same goes for PC, now with 30 matches instead of 25, and finally with better rewards). This new method means that even if you suck at the game, sooner or later you'll earn enough to test your might against every other player, and winning 11/30 matches automatically qualifies you for the next weekend. Division Rivals also gives you the chance to win red IF cards weekly and not monthly! In fact, every week you can choose your reward, be it a certain amount of tradable packs, double the packs but untradable ones, or lesser quality packs and a good sum of coins.

In terms of cards, there are new prices for special Player Pick Packs, where you get to choose 1 player from 5 random options between a certain range, kind of like a FUT Draft. There are also new shiny and beautiful blue cards for the UEFA Champions League, which you can win thanks to Squad Building Challenges or as weekly rewards, and will give you a nice +1 to every stat. But none of those additions affect the gameplay as much as FIFA 19's most important changes: the significant nerf to players' pace, and the new Timed Finishing mechanics.

FIFA 17 and FIFA 18 felt like a running simulator, and games were frequently won by the one with the fastest players. Now FIFA 19 changed that by making almost every player a tad slower, giving more importance to other stats but also repricing some abandoned cracks like Toni Kroos. On top of that, now every defender is able to catch up against fastest attackers like Aubameyang or Mbappé given the proper context.

After hundreds of hours playing FIFA 19, we can definitely say that this is arguably the best FIFA game of them all, with a fair share of new modes, closing the story mode that started in FIFA 17, and scoring the official license for the most important clubs tournament in the world. So far we feel that FIFA 19 is more strategic than ever and tactics really play a major role, which brings us to the new Custom Tactics feature, that lets you change how you play (formation, tactics, player positions, etc.) with just a press of a button.

Since FUT Champions hasn't even started yet, there's always the chance for a patch that changes a few things in regards to gameplay mechanics, but we're confident that it won't break the game... just because EA wouldn't fall twice on the same stone as FIFA 18, right? All we know is that FIFA 19 further stretches the gap between FIFA and PES, and it's only getting started.

All in all, we FUT fans can’t complain about FIFA 19, and we’re sure there are a lot of surprises waiting for us around the corner. We have new Icons, new teams, new game modes, new real stadiums, new player faces, the last chapter to The Journey, and good music. Now all we need is enough luck to unpack OTW Cristiano Ronaldo or Prime Johan Cruyff...

If you like to compete online you should get FIFA 19 for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, but you can also have a blast playing it on PC. If you don’t care about graphics or lack of online players, you can also grab the Nintendo Switch version and take it on the go!