There have always been great rivals throughout the brief history of the videogame industry - Mario and Sonic, Virtua Fighter and Tekken and more recently the likes of Splinter Cell and Metal Gear Solid have been fighting it out for the attention of the masses. However, for anyone who holds the slightest interest in football, the greatest rivalry in recent years has without doubt been between EA's FIFA and Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer. Although FIFA has enjoyed very healthy sales, it has always lacked in the kind of critical acclaim that is lavished upon Pro Evo each time a new iteration is released. Although quite often solid enough games, especially in the case of FIFA 06, which really pushed the series forward, EA have always come out second best to Konami, regardless of the fact that FIFA boasts the kind of licensing and high end presentation that Pro Evo can only dream of. The fact of the matter is, FIFA has always been beautiful at a distance, only for the cracks to appear the closer you get, which has always been in great contrast to Pro Evo, which appears to be the ugly sister of the two at first glance, only for its true beauty to shine through once you get in and take a long, hard look. This however, at least to a large extent, has changed with the latest and without question greatest instalment of the FIFA series to date.

Although the differences between FIFA 07 and its predecessor are not particularly obvious as soon on starting up the game, it becomes apparent that the subtle changes made for this year's iteration have a huge impact on the gameplay once you realise the nuances of the new physics and controls that have been implemented. The major change in FIFA 07's gameplay comes in the form of all-new ball physics, which when combined with the substantial increase in player animations means that it plays a much smoother game of football than in previous years, with matches now feeling as though they're determined by your actions rather than by pre-ordained animations that need to run their course once they have begun. Okay, so FIFA is doing little more than unashamedly stealing every aspect of Pro Evo's gameplay in an attempt to completely rehash the feel of its classier counterpart while still pushing its trump card of ridiculous levels of licensing combined with the kind of presentation that Sky Sports would be proud of. This may sound a little sneaky on EA's part, and believe me it is, but the fact is however that gamers have always wanted to bring the two great strengths of each franchise together in one title and although Pro Evo is improving in regards to presentation and licensing each year, FIFA 07 has definitely come the closest to bringing the most positive aspects of each game together in one title.

In previous instalments of the FIFA franchise, the fluency of the match was always determined by the player animations rather than the movement of the ball, which has led to FIFA lacking in the unpredictability that is such a large part of football. It has also meant that passing and shooting in previous years were a matter of vaguely aiming in the right direction and pressing the button with little regard to the player's positioning in relation to ball, thus making FIFA feel simple and basic, especially when compared to the fluidity of animation and unpredictability that has always been a staple of Pro Evo's gameplay and subsequent success. FIFA 07 however, in its continuing attempts to recreate Pro Evo's gameplay mechanics, has finally created a football experience worthy of comparison with its great rival.

One of the first major improvements you are likely to notice is in the way that the players run with the ball. Instead of being stuck to the player's foot as if by magic, the ball now acts a lot more realistically when you accelerate and decelerate. This makes the game a lot more tactical and certainly adds to the emphasis on passing and looking for gaps rather than continuously running at defenders. When it comes to passing around the field, you now have to plan your actions more carefully, as each pass is greatly affected by the player's position in relation to the ball and in terms of distance to your intended target, once again adding to the tactical aspect while you twist and turn to find the right angles for that killer pass. To make things easier however, players not controlled by you are now a lot more adept at making off-the-ball runs. You can still manually trigger runs, but generally players do their best to find space for you to pass into, thus making it easier for you to keep your mind on taking the ball and positioning your player correctly before slicing open the defence with a pinpoint pass.

Much in the same vein as passing, shooting has also been made more difficult with the much maligned sweet spots all but eradicated. It is still a little too easy to score from a distance, but generally you will find yourself having to carve open real space to score. Again, like passing, your chances of a clean strike are affected by factors such as the positioning and balance of the player, as well as whether you are taking the shot first time or whether you have taken the ball under control beforehand. This generally means that when you start playing FIFA 07 you're likely to find yourself shooting into the stands until you get to grips with what is needed to successfully strike the ball. However, once players become more accustomed with the nuances of shooting, it is soon apparent that scoring, although a little more difficult than in previous instalments, still isn't as tough or demanding as in Pro Evo. Although the keepers in FIFA 07 save their fair share of both long range and short range shots, they still have a tendency to parry rather than catch, often leaving the opportunity for players following up to tap the ball into an empty net. Regardless of this minor niggle, there is certainly a greater sense of accomplishment garnered when scoring a spectacular or well worked goal than there was in any of the previous FIFA titles. A 'finesse shot' has also now been added to each player's repertoire, which allows a cleaner, more precise, yet less powerful shot at goal. Although far from perfectly implemented, it does give another option when given the chance to shoot.

Although passing now plays a larger part in FIFA 07, this doesn't mean that the opportunity to embarrass the opposition with silky skills is a thing of the past. The trick stick makes its return, but with new mechanics and a much more refined feeling of risk versus reward. Although defenders are at as much risk as ever at being beaten by trick moves, the actual process of completing one has become a lot more skill-based and a lot less forgiving. The controls for skill moves now require Street Fighter style swivels of the right thumbstick, therefore adding a sense of skill to the proceedings. The trick moves, like passing and shooting, are again affected by the player's position in relation to the ball, this however allows for some very exciting moments when such a move is pulled off, thus leaving the defender for dead and generally demoralized.

Players being demoralized or on the other hand lifted by events on the field are also no longer a simple matter of how you or your friend may be feeling while playing. FIFA 07 has now added a momentum meter, which means that the games swing back and forth a lot more like they do in real life. Although it is hard to say how well this has been implemented, it is without doubt a clever new addition to the football genre, with huge possibilities for refinement and improvement in future titles in the series.

As you would expect from a FIFA game, the presentation throughout is second to none. Licensing has been taken up a level yet again, with the inclusion of fully licensed kits and player names for all the usual teams, as well as those from the Championship and Series B etc. All the major stadiums are again included, with even Wembley making a surprise appearance. This level of authenticity adds a real sense of atmosphere to the proceedings and is still very much FIFA's trump card in its battle with Pro Evo.

Again keeping to FIFA's high standards, the graphics throughout are very strong and generally hold up well against those of the Xbox 360 version. Although a little fuzzy up close on replays and introductions, the game looks great when in motion, with much crisper and more natural looking animations throughout, combined with TV-like presentation across the board.

The biggest improvement however certainly comes in the audio department; give FIFA 07 the Dolby surround treatment and you will be treated with the closest feeling to actually being at a football match as you're ever likely to get. For a start, the commentary from Andy Gray and Clive Tyldesly is hugely improved over the already impressive FIFA 06 commentary, with repetition cut down to a large extent. The relation between what the commentators say and what is actually happening is also a lot closer and certainly light years ahead of any other football game on the market. It's not just the commentating that has improved either, with crowd audio also much better than previous instalments. The crowd now reacts very realistically to what is occurring on the pitch. If you are the home team, expect your actions to be duly jeered or met with rapturous applause, depending on how you are playing. Other nice touches such as cheers for every pass when winning by a large margin or silence once a goal has been conceded again capture the feel and atmosphere of a real game perfectly and certainly adds to an already very competent package.

When it comes to starting a game, you're greeted by an abundance of options, including the usual quick match, a huge array of fully licensed cup competitions and leagues, plus a chance to hit the training ground to practice those all-important skills and tactics. The more interesting additions to the usual compilation come firstly in the return of management mode and the quite outstanding online FIFA lounge and interactive leagues, which certainly take online football gaming to a whole new level.

Management mode allows you to take a team of your choice to glory, not only by playing the game as usual, but also through the control of every aspect of the club's decisions, from team sponsors to club finances ala Championship Manager. Although not hugely detailed, it certainly adds another level to the process of leading your team through the season, as you find yourself looking to keep the board happy while nurturing new talent for the future through specific training regimes and minutes on the pitch for younger, less experienced players.

Although entertaining, the real highlight off the pitch comes in the online mode. The FIFA lounge returns, which allows a group of players to leave and return to matches while their results against each other are still tracked and entered into a league table. This allows for a continuous yet relaxed way to compete with a group of friends online. The major improvement however comes in the form of the all-new interactive leagues. These allow you to choose a team from the English Premiership, France's Ligue 1, Germany's Bundesliga or quite strangely Mexico's top flight division. These interactive leagues allow for players to be pitted against each other using the same schedule as used in the real leagues. This certainly gives the online matches even greater meaning and as the results affect your team's standing within the league, you find yourself more determined than usual not to be turned over, especially by local rivals. Of course, if all this sounds a little too much, you can simply resort to quick online matches that pit you against a random online player using the teams of your choice. FIFA certainly lends itself well to online play, with a balanced mix of tactical football and fast-paced action, which runs smoothly with little sign of lag.

Although it's not obvious to begin with, FIFA 07 is a huge step in the right direction for the series, with nearly every new addition adding positively to the game as a whole. Although still not quite as refined or smooth as Pro Evo, FIFA 07 is certainly kicking at the heels of its great competitor. Although likely to be the last instalment of the FIFA franchise on current generation consoles, EA can be happy with the fact that they have certainly saved the best for last, while giving next-gen FIFA titles the perfect foundation with which to keep the pressure on Pro Evo and push the series towards even bigger and better things.

Reviewed by Liam Pritchard for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).