Let’s be blunt, shall we?  Probably the only reason UEFA Euro 2008 won’t sell nearly as much as it should is because it isn’t called FIFA.  I mean, UEFA hardly rolls off the tongue, now does it? If you’re a fan of the Futbol, then chances are there is some European country out there you’d be happy to root for.  There had better be, because true to its name Euro 2008 is all about that hotly contested tournament of some of the best soccer teams on the planet.

Are you ready for some… soccer?

Electronic Arts is no stranger to the sport, and much like its big brother FIFA, Euro 2008 contains all the pageantry you would expect in a soccer title.  It’s a nice looking game that plays smoothly.  There’s only a little graphical chop and it only occurs during the pre-game cinematics.  While the 16 teams competing in the real Euro 2008 have already been slotted, the video game version lets you play from scratch from the qualifying rounds up through the final match.

Gameplay will be familiar to anyone who messed around with FIFA 07.  EA has really stepped up with the control schemes here.  For the amateur, the basic set of offensive and defensive maneuvers are all pretty easy to pull off.  Once you’re ready for more control (and a greater challenge), you’ll find that a quick pull of the left trigger opens up a whole set of skill moves that you can use while dribbling the ball.  When you finally manage to score a goal, Euro 2008 lets you choose the stupid shenanigans you want your player to engage in as he prances around the field.  Cute.

Aye Aye Captain!

Returning from FIFA 07 is the “Be a Pro” mode which allows you to play from one position for an entire match.  In Euro 2008, they have also added an enhanced version called “Captain Your Country”.  In this mode you pick a pro player (or create your own) and you with up to four of your friends play out the tournament.  Throughout each match, the game monitors how well you’re doing and assigns you a score in real-time.  After each match is complete, scores are compared, and the top players earn the possibility of captaining the team.  You also use points earned to upgrade that stats of your player.  It’s a fun “cooperative yet competitive” mode that puts a neat little spin on your standard “Be a Pro”.

Nationalism Sucks!

The same praise can’t be said for the “Battle of the Nations” feature.  Built to coincide with the actual Euro 2008 taking place in June, Battle of the Nations let’s players pick a favorite team to support.  Once your team is chosen, any matches you play in nearly any mode in the game will contribute points to your favorite team in an online leaderboard.  The thing is, you can play a match as any team and your points still go to your chosen favorite.  It not only feels dumb, but it encourages players to game the system as you can score lots of points simply by playing a low ranked team against a high ranked one.

In addition, participation in Battle of the Nations requires that you sign up for EA’s own special online service (complete with a registration, a new password, and a bunch of marketing crap you’ll immediately want to opt out of.)  This is particularly irksome because Xbox Live is supposed to render this kind of thing moot.  Here’s a little tip, EA.  I pay for Xbox Live so I won’t have to deal with this stuff.  So cut it out.

Goal!

Fortunately, you can completely ignore this ‘feature’ and play the rest of the game without missing a thing.  And really that’s the strength of Euro 2008.  It’s a very polished, playable soccer game.  The play by play is solid, the AI is challenging, and there are lots of options which allow you to tweak the experience to your liking.  Play the game and ditch the Battle of the Nations. Euro 2008 is a great holdout until FIFA 09 arrives.

Review by: Greg Bemis