FIFA 12 : TFL tackles season III with a switch to manual mode

Tradition Sports Online’s teeming community of sim-style soccer gamers has reinvented itself for Season III of the Tradition Futbol League, introducing all-manual controls. In FIFA 12, the default online play control scheme is set to “assisted” which basically allows for a large amount of human error in both shot taking and passing without it being reflected in the gameplay. The TFL was already on “semi-assisted” controls for league matches, taking things a step further with the controls and demanding much sharper and more precise stick skills from the members.

In Season III, we’re going all manual. Every miniscule turn of the joystick affects the angle and roll of your passes. The split second of additional time you hold down the shot button affects the trajectory and pace of your shot. Nothing is adjusted/fixed/remedied for you. What you do on the pitch is what you created with your bare hands. And it’s friggin sweet.

We’ve also defaulted to a “Slow” game speed setting. This slows down the acceleration of the players and the ball to more realistic levels. In effect it makes the pitch bigger. Some passes you couldn’t dream of making due to “rocket-defenders” you can now make. And when you make that killer cross field through ball on manual, where you know the computer didn’t assist you in the slightest bit……excuse me while I wipe up this drool. Ask @elprez98, he remembers my reaction when I hit one on his Portland Timbers.

The game flows much more organically, like a real professional football match. Players make mistakes where they should, their ratings are truly reflected in their play, and taking advantage of your chances is at a premium. To put it simply, it’s sim-heaven.

New Members (and some old faces)

Possibly one of the growing pains learned from the first two seasons was the importance of overall league chemistry. What’s a TFL player like? Who contributes to the league? And who, quite frankly, should take a hike?

Season II was what I like to call “moving day” for a lot of the league. Lots of guys who didn’t need to be here no longer are, some new fresh and eager members took root, and even some of the old heads who took time off are now dusting off their controllers.

What does that mean for Season III? A tighter-knit community, strong contribution from membership, and (no promises Rich) less headaches for the leadership.

Added Flavor

Running with the same team for 10 weeks of a season plus more if you qualify for the Champions League (I never do..) doesn’t come close to satisfying the average TFL member’s craving for FIFA. Wanting a new edge to the site, TFL leadership created a league to mirror the MLS.

Our MLS follows the exact schedule of the real thing, accelerated to flow twice as quickly. 1 month of real life games is completed in 2 weeks on the site. Each MLS team is accounted for by a TFL member. We keep track of injuries, with a number generator deciding the length of time that the player is to be sidelined. Players are suspended for being sent off for accumulating too many yellows, and live rosters are kept up to date with the latest in real world transfers and trades. Oh, and of course, it’s all manual/slow matches for everyone.

EA also recently announced the release of a DLC for the upcoming European Championships, so players who have FIFA 12 don’t need to run out and buy a while new EURO game as we have had to do in recent years. This awesome bit of news has spurred TFL leadership to begin planning our very own version of EURO to take place soon. Stay tuned for more news on this.

Recap

As you can see, TFL is still running strong. This year the league will be running from release to release, which is nearly unheard of for FIFA.

I’d be remiss without mentioning all the hard work put in by our dictato-ehrm… Leader, The Richuation and all of those who were involved in making this the best FIFA league you can find. Without them, all the bragging I just did in this article wouldn’t be possible.

Stop by the forums sometime and see us in all our glory. For better or worse, we never disappoint and always entertain.

~ Merih