Football, not exactly a man's game anymore. We have footballers sticking their makeup on, dressing smartly in their kits, smiling for the cameras and posing like pop stars and fashion models. Gone are the days where fouls were bone wrenchingly exciting, now they wave their hands in the air and in a camp accent "referee, he tripped me up!" Of course, I'm not talking about those well 'ard local teams, but the big matches, where Beckham comes in with his latest hairstyle - come on mate, you're here to score a goal, not with the ladies! I could do the same in this respect. "Referee, EA have made another football game!" and they have, which, on paper looks just the same as FIFAFIFA 2005. It's got to be a cash in, right?

Well, I think you'd be very wrong to tar UEFA Champions League 2004-2005 with the same brush as FIFAFIFA 2005. The differences are so small that if you look at screenshots, or look at a list of features, you probably wouldn't be able to recognise, but diving in deeper will reveal a layer of footballing beauty. Of course, the hard decision some of you will have to make is whether to buy this game if you already have FIFA 2005 - and if you can get your head around EA's cheek, I'm sure that this game is well worth your wonger.

The first thing you'll notice when you power the game up is the basic looking menu, the lack of modes that are actually hidden neatly away and the fantastic music running in the background. EA have always hit the nail on the head when it comes to music; UEFA is no exception. In fact, EA have excelled themselves when it comes down to the sound department. When you're in the menu structure, EA Trax is playing, coming out with some fantastic, relaxing, jazzy tunes full of instruments and class. I get into a musical frenzy when tracks like these come on; it's like EA have taken a chance with some classic yet very jazzy and foremost catchy tunes, instead of that pap they call rap. [Mine is a rap with a capital C, it's as bad as bad can possibly be! Rappin' Ed]

But the sheer genius in the sound comes from the season mode, with EA Radio - similar but yet very different to EA Radio Big on the SSX series. EA radio plays a fine selection of tracks and the radio presenter comes on, talks and takes calls from people with opinions - some cheer you on, some talk down at you, others just make general chit chat, which can often be highly comical. It's properly done too, so the callers don't sound like voice actors reading from a script, they sound uncannily like the general public, using slang words, stuttering and covering thinking parts with the odd 'ermm'. Northerners, Southerners, Jordies, they're are all here, sounding extremely realistic.

The season mode is the main part of the gameplay. First of all you are able to actually create your manager, much like create-a-skater mode in the Tony Hawk games, or create a player mode in Tiger Woods 2005. You can customise your manager quite well, from the clothes he wears to how old he looks! Your manager pops up from time to time when you're playing a match and you can see him move about on your screen with 'picture in picture' - so you might see your manager walk up and down the pitch, with the look of anticipation, worry and fear on his face. Sometimes he points and shouts - all in all, it's done very well.

The season mode isn't just match after match; there's quite a bit of depth to it and lots of variation. You can select your formations, tweak a few options here and there, look at the scrapbook (which logs information about your matches) and you'll occasionally be asked to sell and buy players. Doesn't sound too exciting, but the fun lies in the events, where you are asked to pull off specific things, other than just winning the match. For everything you manage to do in the match, you get bonus points which can be used to buy new things. For example, you might be asked to use a certain formation and score two goals - doing so awards you points and allows you to advance. Some objectives aren't compulsory but it's always nice to complete as many side tasks as you can, to rack up those points.

The gameplay more or less consists of mission driven gameplay, which is something I really like to see in football games - most just make you play to win but UEFA lets you play to have fun and that's what really matters. Of course, the gameplay is just as rewarding as the last football title; the feeling of scoring a goal will always be one of the most satisfying experiences a game can offer, especially when you watch the slow-motion replay, just to see how much pressure you were able to take without bottling out. The gameplay feels quite fluid but it seems to be missing that FIFA 2005 one-touch control system that I well and truly loved a few months back. Saying that, there's nothing quite like going back to the old school by tapping the appropriate buttons to pass - you don't see the king of football - Pro Evolution - using a fancy control set!

Other modes are more of the same, with a Champions League, a Tournament mode, a nifty Home and Away mode (which sees you play both home and away) and then the best mode ever - Situation mode. This mode allows you to tweak loads of settings, to create yourself a situation to complete. For example, you're down two goals in the second half and you need to beat your opposition in a short amount of time. You can really put the pressure on, or make a situation for a friend to complete. With a flexible mode like Situation, the lasting appeal is bound to be high.

As mentioned above, the sound in this game is awesome - the music, the radio, everything oozes quality. Aside from that, the commentary is really good, with names being called as the ball transfers to different players and the various football noises strike me as loud, clear and well mastered. The graphics are above average really, the menu system is clean, clear and simple but the in-game graphics can't really be compared directly to FIFA 2005's smoothness, which is odd. Sometimes the pitch can appear a little grainy and at times of sun, shadows of the stadium are cast on the pitch, which are pretty detailed but distract on numerous occasions. At one point I thought I'd reached the end of the pitch where the dark shadow began - which lost me the match. Other than that, your manager appears on screen looking detailed and the crowds are well animated, with realistic looking stadiums; it's just a shame that a few things get in the way, preventing full sunbeams shining on the graphics.

UEFA Champions League 2004-2005 is a great footballing title, with lots of features standing right out from the crowd, waving a genius flag. The sound, the objective-based gameplay and the situation maker all strike me as new and exciting. With an online mode, UEFA Champions will appeal to a lot of people but I can't help thinking that this is just another attempt to net some more revenue. I'd have rather seen a FIFA 2006 with all this and more - which would have made a title worthy to rival the next Pro Evolution. I definitely would recommend this over FIFA 2005, despite the higher score I gave FIFA in the heat of the moment when competing directly with Pro Evolution 4. If EA starve us of the next FIFA and merge these two titles together then we're going to have a true champion on our hands!

Reviewed by Dexter Pearson for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).