It holds the record for the fastest-selling video game ever and Lionel Messi is the face of the franchise. Ever since FIFA International Soccer launched back in 1993 fans have regularly heaped praise on EA for the realistic gameplay, belting soundtracks and inventive options like FUT that have set the standard in sports gaming. Equally fans have criticised the developers EA Sports for the lack of depth and seemingly incremental tweaks, while needless changes to things like defending have frustrated even the most carefree players. Fans simply want a more true to life gaming experience and despite more than two decades of honest, constructive feedback it's clear that what many love about the game isn't always going to be in "the game". From moments of controversy to tweaks so blindingly obvious even the most short-sighted of referees could see, as FIFA 16 heads for the shelves here is a list of ten changes that die-hard gamers have so far been denied.
10. Play As The Referee
In FIFA 15 professional referees were added to the sporting title for the first time. Martin Atkinson, Phil Dowd and Mike Dean joined fictional favourites Scott McBeanie, Hayden Pennyfeather and Derek Milborrow in what many fans thought might one day put the fluorescent men in their hands. A chance to run the line and dish out cards would be excellent. What better way to spend an evening by officiating your way up the leagues for a chance to blow the whistle for kick-off at a cup final? Referees aren't robots, they're human and the odd mistake happens. Decisions you make could be scored against AI during a game just like the player performance rating and your personality and interpretation of the rules would influence action on the pitch. Strikers could get the benefit of doubt during those hair-line offside calls and you would finally have the power to decide whether it was ball to hand or hand to ball. But wait... Do you seriously think that FIFA would ever let YOU control the beautiful game? Silly fools. You have nowhere near enough money to buy influence like that. Referees will get new animations in FIFA 16 following the addition of vanishing spray for free kicks but sadly you've got as much chance of playing as Ludger Falck as England have of ever hosting a World Cup again.