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There are two fundamental issues with FIFA 14 on current-generation consoles that seem to obscure all other discussion about it. The first is that aerial through-balls can be used to bypass the opposition's midfield with alarming frequency. The second is that the majority of matches feature at least one cheap headed goal. The rest of the game is good fun, if only marginally better than FIFA 13, but that's scant consolation when the other guy gets a free goal in the last minute and it knocks you out of the gold cup.Aerial through-balls sometimes have a flatter trajectory on next-gen consoles - a result of new contextual animations that see players kicking and controlling the ball in a multitude of additional ways - but otherwise remain stupidly potent. If you're new to FIFA, here's a tip for free goals: hold down the left bumper at kick-off and pass the ball back to a midfielder, watch your striker sprint up the pitch, and then play a lofted through-ball towards him. It shouldn't take more than a handful of attempts before you're giving yourself a free goal-scoring opportunity every other time you start a match.
That's quite bad, then, but on the plus side EA has done something about the headers. The problem on current-gen - even after three patches - is that even tiny players can score towering headers from corners and crosses without the attacking player needing to worry much about positioning or timing. Defending players, meanwhile, often find themselves controlling the wrong player, caught under the flight of the ball or just unable to jump. On next-gen, this isn't what happens.
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