EA Sports could have been forgiven for looking over their shoulders this year, with a vocal pre-release marketing campaign from Konami announcing PES 2013 as the best Pro Evo game in a long time and denouncing their rivals as crafty, deceitful devils. But those games aren't for EA Sports, and thankfully the sports game giants have focused instead on creating the kind of balance between realism and entertainment that has taken FIFA 13 to the next level. Unlike PES, FIFA rarely feels like the developers are trying out new things - last year the defensive system was criticised a little for its newness and its lack of polish (and realism) and the rebuilt dribbling and control systems could have gone the same way this time out, but EA Sports already knew they were on to a winner with the dribbling system thanks to the success of FIFA Street. And the effect on the pitch is a great one, encouraging the player to be more adventurous, rather than simply avoiding the opponents' containment by passing around like a toothless Barcelona. But at the same time, as with the excellent control system, FIFA 13's dribbling system encourages a tactical approach and one of finesse - mistime a control and the ball will frustratingly bobble out of reach, and give the opponent too much sight of the ball and the tightened defensive system will punish you. There are no immediate rewards and players no longer feel supernaturally good at effortlessly trapping the ball - which is why the new Skill Games are a welcome inclusion, and spending time learning the nuances of control and dribbling is a recommendation to get the most out of the game. Everything feels an awful lot more fluid and more realistic at the same time, with the revamped AI of opponents and team-mates making tactical concerns for how the team works together a lot more pressing a concern than before. In FIFA 12, the AI limitations meant it was often more rewarding to run yourself or bring another player in to pass around the defence rather than play through it but this time the revamp to the attacking AI means there are a lot more available options, with team-mates making intelligent runs in support. http://youtu.be/UcKg8LpXh58 Thankfully EA Sports have rebuilt the impact engine, addressing fan concerns over the often hilarious collisions of last year and adding more authentic player collisions, and more authenticity in the way the player interacts with the ball and the way attackers and defenders jostle for the ball. The increased physicality means the jostling never ends up being over-extended or frustrating, with a resolution coming swiftly as it would in a real match, and the only cost comes when goalkeepers come to claim balls in crowded penalty areas, leading to almost fatal looking impacts between players. That's the only slightly comical hangover from last year's farce, and EA Sports should be commended for eradicating the issue almost entirely and without much fanfare. Click next to reveal our thoughts on the game's additional modes, as well as the overall verdict on FIFA 13...