NOTE:  THIS REVIEW IS BASED ON THE XBOX 360 VERSION.  THE WII VERSION OFFERS A VERY DIFFERENT GAMEPLAY EXPERIENCE, AND WE WILL BE PROVIDING A REVIEW OF THAT VERSION AT A LATER DATE.

From the moment you turn on EA Sports' 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, your family will feel like it's a part of the pomp and pageantry of the World Cup.  The game features a variety of control options, including a simple two-button system, or variations of the more complex multiple button system which allows for different types of passes or attacks..

The world music and announcer's accounts provide a nice backdrop to a gameplay experience that can be enjoyed many ways.  Your family might enjoy jumping right into a match while choosing any country of the world to represent, or you might like to play out the World Cup as it is set, taking control of whatever you teams you want as the tournament progresses day by day.  There also are neat "qualifying scenarios" for each continent which recreate actual circumstances in the World Cup qualifying matches, which you must try and recreate.

Even on the simplest control setting, your family won't be FIFA masters the first time they play.  There's a lot you'll need to slowly learn about dribbling, passing, when to shoot, as well as how to play when you don't have the ball.  After four to six games, most will probably have a pretty good feel for successful strategies.

And while the various control schemes are a bit of an equalizer when it comes to getting multiple age groups to play against each other, in general, the more experienced gamers will probably fare better than newcomers.

When selecting your country, you actually navigate a globe to find different places on the map.  This is actually somewhat educational, and is an exteremely enjoyable way to choose your team.  Another educational benefit of a game like this is an education on flags of the world.

The actual soccer action is presented with extremely realistic graphics and animations, so that someone who just glances at the TV might actually think there's a real soccer game going on!

Just like in real soccer, a typical game between two well matched players will see a lot of back and forth action, a handful of exciting scoring opportunities and a few goals.  In games where one player has more experience than another, the more experienced one will likely dominate posession, which could lead to a spiral of frustration for kids who haven't quite mastered the game.

If your family plays games together and is at all interested in the World Cup soccer tournament, then we definitely recommend FIFA 2010 World Cup South Africa for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3.  With it's multiple modes and mix of competitive and cooperative gameplay styles, the game offers great replay value, although it is usually best enjoyed by players of similar skill levels.

INFORMATION FROM COMPANY FACT SHEET
 
Celebrate the single largest sporting event on the planet with the only official and exclusively licensed videogame on Wii™ for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. Experience an action-packed, easy-to-play football game that brings friends together in their living rooms to compete for the 2010 FIFA World Cup with EA SPORTS 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™.

Take on the challenge of leading your home nation in the official 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament, from the group stage through the knockout rounds to a virtual re-creation of the championship final. Presented in an art style that celebrates the cultural vibrancy of the first FIFA World Cup to be held in Africa and in true-to-life detail, including confetti rain, streamers, & fireworks, 2010 FIFA World Cup features all 10 official licensed stadia in South Africa and all 199 national teams that took part in qualification. The stage is set for 32 friends to compete for the chance to be crowned 2010 FIFA World Cup champion. Score the goal that lifts your nation to victory and mark the occasion with user-controlled celebrations.

Travel around the world to take on all 32 nations competing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in head-to-head challenges in Zakumi’s Dream Team. Start your journey with random players and then build your team by stealing an opposition player after each victory. Win a challenge and pick a player until you have conquered the world and built Zakumi’s Dream Team.  Plus, take your team to a friend’s house on your Wii Remote.

Compete in a multiplayer, knockout-style tournament against up to 3 friends in Global Elimination. Draft and strategically select countries to play as, create alliances and gang-up on rivals until only one player is crowned champion.

2010 FIFA World Cup features non-stop football action that pits you against friends or the CPU in head-to-head challenges utilizing the Strike It System. Shake the Wii Remote perfectly in order to either score or defend free-kicks, penalties, and corners, creating frantic competition on the pitch. Even goal kicks have been enhanced to showcase one-on-one battles.

Key Features
• Win the 2010 FIFA World Cup — Compete as one of 199 teams in a virtual reproduction of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. Represent your favourite country and play in any of the 10 official stadiums that come to life with the pageantry and festivity of the official tournament.  
• Play the Official Tournament with Friends — You and up to 31 friends can re-create the official tournament. Choose a country and advance through the tournament by taking on and defeating your friends one at a time to write your own history.
• Spectacular Presentation: 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ comes to life in spectacular fashion with a South African art style designed for Wii that captures the emotion and pageantry of the official tournament, including all 10 official licensed stadia. Experience confetti cannons, streamers, flags and fireworks as if you were in South Africa.
• Global Elimination Tournament — Compete in Global Elimination, a multiplayer, knockout-style tournament against up to three friends. Draft and strategically select countries to play as, create alliances and gang-up on rivals until only one player is declared the winner.
• Build Zakumi’s Dream Team —Take on all 32 countries who have qualified for the World Cup in head-to-head matches with challenges. Begin with random players and then steal your opponents’ players after each victory. Win a challenge and pick a player until you have conquered the world.  Take your Dream Team to a friend’s house on your Wii Remote.
• Strike It System— Non-stop football action pits you against friends in head-to-head challenges utilizing the Strike It System. Shake the Wii-mote perfectly in order to either score or defend free-kicks, penalties, and corners, creating frantic action on the pitch.
• User-controlled Celebrations —Score a goal and then use the +Control Pad to pull off celebrations and admire your performance via a new close-in camera that really delivers the emotion of each goal scored.
• Earn Awards— For the first time on Wii, earn awards by scoring goals or completing tasks.
• Pick-up-and- Play Controls— New, accessible control scheme option enables even newcomers to videogames to compete for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Choose to play the style that best suits your skills, from All-Play for novices to Pro Control for experienced players.
• Authentic Stadiums — Compete in all 10 official stadiums of 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™.