Ben Wilson digs into the story of gaming’s biggest sports series – as told by those who made it happen
FIFAas you know it is dead. From autumn 2023 the omnipresent football series will be superseded by EA Sports FC, with an as-yetunconfirmed developer picking up where the publishing giant left off. It’s been a rollercoaster three decades since FIFA International Soccer arrived on Sega Mega Drive in December 1993 – but perhaps the most incredible detail of all is that bosses at EA initially wanted to call the company’s new footie sim something else entirely.
“There was a large discussion about what to call what we were initially referring to as EA Soccer,” says original lead designer Bruce McMillan. “The North American distribution company was lukewarm on ‘Soccer’ for that market and thought the only way it would sell was if it was called Team USA. My boss, Bing Gordon, came to Vancouver to discuss the matter. Bing’s a good guy and believes in people’s passion. He said ‘It’s your product, you created it, you know this sport and this experience, what is your decision?’ I said FIFA. It would go to the top of the UK charts and stay there for an entire year, only to be bumped to number two by its sequel, FIFA 95.”
Indeed, the first FIFA was 1993’s best-selling game, despite it being released a mere 12 days before the calendar ticked into 1994. Original producer Matt Webster was shocked by the brand-new game’s success. “The reception was way beyond our expectations. Remember that at the time we were going up against the real heavyweights in football games with Sensible Soccer and Kick Off. We were due to go head-to-head against the console version off Goal – Dino Dini’s follow-up to the latter – and apparently the early buzz for FIFA led to them delaying their street date.”
PLAYSTATION BEGINNINGS
FIFA’s first decade on PlayStation proved to be one of great rivalry – what better incentive to raise its game?
B ythe time it debuted on PS1 with FIFA 96 the series had emphatically seen off the former big two, and undergone considerable change of its own. The fake players from the initial game had been replaced by real licenses, with over 3,000 genuine names featured. FIFA’s reputation as a juggernaut, with accurate kits and teams from all around the world,
