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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated the PC version of FIFA 14 in Video Games

Jun 19, 2019

FIFA 14

Sports

7.5

(2 Ratings)

Video Game Rating

With the worldwide impact of FIFA at an all-time high, EA Sports has captured the majesty of the sport of Soccer with the amazing FIFA 14. The game is available for the PC, Playstation 3, and Xbox 360 systems and is due soon for the next generation consoles.

While I played Soccer in High School I will admit that my knowledge of the professional game is limited as names such as Pele, Beckham, and Donovan are the players that I would be able to identify the easiest. Regardless of your level of skill and experience, FIFA 14 has something for you from eye-popping graphics to the most realistic action and player options of any soccer game to date.

Some of the best changes are in the A.I. of your players as they now make much smarter and more tactical runs that allow players far more options when devising their tactics. Players also have better options to accelerate and shield the ball which is very good as the defense has improved and players will have to make sure to put some thought into their attacks and passing and not rely simply on blasting as many shots as they can on goal.

On the subject of passing this is my biggest frustration with the game as I found it often hard to be accurate and that passes were often slow which allowed defenders to get back in time to thwart my strategies.

Thankfully the improved shooting mechanics that allow players to adjust stride, approach, and angle combined with improved ball physics and you have far more options than before on how to attack the goal and in time, get your shots in the back of the net.

As in the real sport, the refs can be a pain as they can really raise your ire by calling fouls in a questionable fashion but that is simply part of the game.

Players can match up against another players online via the Seasons Mode or Custom Match to allow players to test their skills against other players online.

While fans are always going to find something to complain about or nit-pick in every sporting simulation, FIFA 14 is a step forward for the franchise and is well worth adding to your collection.

http://sknr.net/2013/11/05/fifa-14/

Kudos

Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Echoes in Books

Jan 23, 2020

<b><i>I received this book for free from Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.</i></b>
<h2><strong>Three words: Hackers. Go. Missing.</strong></h2>
I'm not talking baby hackers who have no clue what they're doing and slipped up badly I'm talking top of the ladder ones.

Mallory Park is a hacker who moderates The Forum, a message board where hackers are anonymous, crack down on the dirty secrets of companies, and leak them out to the world anonymously. She's extremely motivated and passionate about her work, and likes to have control she's independent, wants to do her own thing, and based on her background, it definitely fits her character. Mallory, however...

Just comes out cold. Apathetic. Indifferent. She doesn't really have any clue what to do with herself because hacking IS who she is. She is also extremely brilliant (I would love to have her math skills right now in Calculus...), hates being touched (much like me...), and is as awkward as David 1 and David 2 (one of them is a <a title="The Sorcerer's Apprentice review" href="http://www.bookwyrmingthoughts.com/movie-review-the-sorcerers-apprentice"; target="_blank" rel="noopener tag">Physics major</a> and the other is <a title="Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson review" href="http://www.bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-steelheart-by-brandon-sanderson"; target="_blank" rel="noopener tag">terrible with metaphors</a>).

While I like Mallory, I think Mallory came more out of her shell when she meets Warden. Warden is very cheery, optimistic, and hilarious he's really just one of those adorable nerds who would love to squish hug. And despite the fact he is introduced as Mallory's online friend from The Forum, I can hear his voice and see his facial expressions leaping off the screen at Mallory.

There's so much anticipation and danger (and Warden's humor laced throughout) as Mallory gets closer to finding out about the missing hackers, but in the long run, <em>Echoes</em> really just teaches about online safety in a similar, yet different way compared to other books related to online safety.

But you should really just read it for Warden's humor.

<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/arc-review-echoes-by-laura-tisda/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>