FIFA 23 Legacy Review
This year is 2022, and as expected, EA has brought a new FIFA edition to Nintendo Switch. But something seems off, a new edition?
Honestly, I could just copy my review from two years ago, but doing so would make me no different from EA. However, there's something I feel compelled to mimic EA in doing, and that's reiterating their statement on their website.
Indeed, for four consecutive years, EA Sports hasn't delivered a genuinely new FIFA edition for Nintendo Switch.
On the game's official website, it states, "FIFA 23 Legacy Edition will maintain the gameplay from FIFA 22 without any new developments or improvements."
Let me remind you, here's what FIFA 22 announced: "FIFA 22 Legacy Edition will keep the gameplay from FIFA 21 without any new developments or improvements."
And I could go on, all the way back to FIFA 20, but honestly, I'd run out of breath.
Even FIFA 19 on the Switch wasn't a top-notch FIFA game right from the start. Despite updating the graphics to somewhat match those on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, it still felt like a repetitive and easily boring experience. So, it's understandable that after four consecutive years, the frustration has reached unprecedented levels.
Apart from the obligatory updates like squad rosters, jerseys, or TV broadcast overlays, the only thing you get in FIFA 23 is a new menu interface. I've actually mentioned this in a review a year ago.
Damn, thanks to EA, I've now become someone who just repeats the same old stuff.
Honestly, this is probably the last FIFA edition where EA uses the FIFA name, and I hope they would add some extra flavor as a token of appreciation for milking gamers for so long. But no, you won't find anything new here. The things fans were looking forward to are just things other platforms already had; it's not like we're begging EA for some groundbreaking improvements for the Switch version. So, Futsal Volta mode, nope. Career mode, nope. Everything you get is the same old traditional kick-off and the usual blood-sucking FUT.
Perhaps, at this point, expectations for FIFA on the Switch have hit rock bottom, and EA still shows no signs of change. If you've bought any FIFA edition on the Switch in the past five years, there's honestly no reason to buy it again.
VERDICT
With EA's licensing of the FIFA brand set to end next year, we can expect changes in this iconic football series, even in the Switch's neglected version. Gamers have every right to expect this. However, with what EA is currently doing, I don't see any legacy being left behind. FIFA will come to an end, and it's disheartening to see FIFA 23 Legacy concluding like this. Perhaps EA wants to leave a rather sad and disappointing legacy?
I don't know for sure, but it's highly likely that next year, I'll have to read the line, "EA Sports FC 24 Legacy will maintain the gameplay from FIFA 23 without any new developments or improvements."
A capitalist madness, I tell you.
