The FIFA series is almost ending, and its final FIFA title release has yet to live up to its high expectations. The anticipated FIFA World Cup mode to the new chemistry style in Ultimate Team failed to impress hardcore FIFA players. The lack of features and better experiences for all types of players is what the FIFA community demands but still needs to receive. Recently, every year FIFA players hoped for improvement in each new game after being disappointed by the previous one. The hope is towards the upcoming EA Sports FC game coming this year, but what made this year's game so lackluster at a very early stage since its release? 

10. Passing 

The simple task of passing can be functional at any moment.

Many FIFA players demand less assistance from the AI and make commands like passing more manually in the game. Not all types of passing work how it supposes to perform. One pass that has been nerfed on specific occasions is the through-ball pass.

To perform the through-ball pass, you would press the triangle button on the PlayStation or the Y button on Xbox. The through-ball would occasionally work when passing in front of you, but when a player on the pitch is slightly unbalanced, the pass doesn't work or is performed weakly. 

It can often be frustrating because a small margin of unbalancing from a player can ruin an attack or cause a mistake from the defense. Frequently, gamers also experience a delay in passing, which can cause errors at the back or during chance creation in the attack.

TO FIX IT, you will have to be patient when passing during the game and not rush into attacks. Risk passing at the back welcomes danger, as passing in the game can be unpredictable. Try not to play ridiculous passes that seem unrealistic to pull off, like passing when you aren't facing your teammate.

9. Switching

Can I please switch my players when I attack and defend? FIFA: No.

One of the most frustrating things a FIFA gamer has to face is the delay or unresponsiveness of switching players. Uncertainty isn't fun; it creates a rage moment during competitive online games.

When player switching works, it makes it easier for the gamer to stop an attack from an opponent or put them in a great opportunity. Many casual players who need to learn how to do right stick switching can often experience plays where they can only do a little because their team is already exposed or the attack is gone.

TO FIX IT, right stick switching is what many competitive FIFA gamers use to be in more control of their players on the pitch. Right stick switching requires you to use the right analog stick and press the R1 or RB button. Typically, you must press the L1 button on PlayStation or LB on Xbox to switch players.

Another way to fix this issue is to head toward the Customize tab on the home screen of FIFA 23. From there, go to Settings and scroll down to Right Stick Switching. For most gamers, it is set as Adaptive, but it is recommended to change it to Classic for quicker switching.

8. Pro Clubs

Why have crossplay when it can`t be in the mode where friends can with each other?

A mode desperate for innovations and demanding more from the FIFA community has remained dull. What made an uproar so loud this year was the introduction of cross-play into the game for the first time.

Many FIFA fans believed that cross-play could be in the Pro Clubs mode but was instead only used in Ultimate Team. Cross-play can only occur in Division Rivals, FUT Champions, FUT Draft, FUT Online Friendlies, FUT Play a Friend, and Online Seasons. 

TO FIX IT: you can play seasons again in Pro Clubs against and with your fellow console game members. Although there would be a wide range of opponents with cross-play, the new perks and its link with Volta can still have players get on with friends. 

Despite the small innovations this year, Pro Clubs needs cross-play to become a new playable game mode for current FIFA gamers and newcomers.

7. META Players

You will get tired of seeing these players in Ultimate Team.

Over the past years in Ultimate Team, there would be very OP players many gamers would use to save coins or simply because players can't afford to buy the best cards. 

A player like Haaland is classified as a META player because he is strong and fast. This type of player is a Lengthy player who starts slow and builds up speed quickly. The pace is still a factor many hardcore players look for, as well as the physical stats.

The competitive game modes in FIFA 23 consisted of similar squads filled with Lengthy players, which was an advantage over other players who needed to become more familiar with META players. 

TO FIX IT: you would have needed pacey defenders to catch up with these overpowered attackers and midfielders. There was a recent patch in FIFA where Lengthy players are less overpowered than mentioned. 

Now the META is explosive players who are short but have high levels of agility and balance. Lengthy players aren't a problem; now it's an equal playing field.

6. Too Many Rewards (FUT)

Even a beginner can have insane cards! 

Every Ultimate Team player wants to build the best squads for competitive online games. FIFA 20 started season objectives, leading players to perform a specific task to get rewards throughout the football season. More rewards have been awarded to players. 

Today in FIFA 23, the season objectives have improved so much that many players to play the game consistently receive rewards that either give them the same players or rewards that wouldn't change their team.

It is very rare to pack an Icon or special cards like the Team of the Year players, which results in many players having the same squad. The hype for these promotions is different from what it was before.

TO FIX IT, either higher rated players should be harder to obtain with better pack luck or fewer objectives rewarding players. The objectives could be packs, more draft entries, and coins so gamers can choose who to recruit for their squads. 

5. Chemistry 

We need chemistry to improve the team, and it got even more complicated for casuals and hardcore gamers!

Since the start of Ultimate Team, the Chemistry system has stayed the same until this year's edition. The old chemistry system had three types of links between players. The red link has no chemistry, the yellow link has little chemistry, and the green link has full chemistry,

Chemistry affected players' performances in-game and restricted gamers from throwing the best cards in one team. Gamers wanted a better way to combine players from different leagues into one team because of the chemistry restriction.

Instead of improving, it has been more complicated with the new system. The new system doesn't have any linking lines between players on the squads, but now we have three types of chemistry for each player.

TO FIX IT, the chemistry system should return to the way it was. Many FIFA gamers use players from the same league to avoid low chemistry between players. 

Squad Building Challenges have become harder to complete because of this new system, making that mode untouchable for some gamers.

4. SBC (Squad Building Challenges) 

Probably one of the most unused modes in all of FIFA now.

SBCs were introduced back in FIFA 17 and were a great way to get more packs or special cards within the challenges. Nowadays, SBCs are untouchable by many because of the chemistry system and its rewards. 

SBCs are the same every year, with different players as the cover of the challenge. Many FIFA gamers don't see it as a benefit to complete an SBC because it won't give you a usable player or profit. After all, the packs could be better. 

TO FIX IT, SBCs should have specific requirements for specific rewards rather than gamers risking players for an unpredictable pack. Packs are a problem for being bad and very rarely awarding good players to gamers. 

The packs in SBC should have a higher chance of pulling a higher-rated player compared to standard packs.

3. FUT Draft

This mode is actually the most pointless in Ultimate Team now.

FUT Draft was a unique feature in Ultimate Team that allowed every player to have a chance to play with new player cards for a maximum of four games. The draft isn't popular anymore because of the reward system.

The squads need more diversity; many gamers draft the same high-rated icons and cards. The draft also restricts gamers from having full chemistry in their teams. If it is only for four games maximum, you should allow playing in full chemistry. 

Players that are versatile and can play multiple positions cannot change in the draft mode, which impacts the chemistry of the player and the team.

TO FIX IT, the position modifier should be accessible in the mode. It should reward a great pack or many coins if you win the draft. Chemistry shouldn't matter in the draft, and different cards should be drafted differently. 

 FUT Draft could be the only mode in the game that offers flashback cards from old FIFA`s, which can bring gamers to play the mode.

2. License

 I want to play with all the stadiums from the licensed leagues, not a custom one.

FIFA was the game every football fan played because of its authenticity with clubs and stadiums. Its competitor PES, now known as eFootball, has started signing exclusive deals with clubs like FC Barcelona and the Milan clubs AC Milan & Inter Milan.  

Some leagues are gone, like LIGA MX, which has exclusive rights at eFootball. The deals with clubs and leagues ruin both games' experiences since one game can have a team while the other doesn't.    

League deals are not enough to get a club because EA sports have the license to La Liga but need the Barcelona stadium, which they still don't have due to the eFootball exclusive deal.

TO FIX IT, EA Sports and Konami can work on these deals since the FIFA series is ending. FIFA themselves are rumored to create their own game, while EA will remain with the leagues they currently have.   

League partnerships should be stricter on including every club in the league rather than having a few clubs having partnerships with one company like Konami or EA Sports.

1. Custom Tactics

Only a few tactics in the game are effective. The others will make you lose.

Tactics are fundamental in FIFA, but many gamers use specific tactics because of their effectiveness. The constant pressure tactic on the defensive side makes the whole team aggressive and favors whoever uses it.

Patches were needed for constant pressure to be nerfed down because teams can go the full 90 minutes pressuring the opposition with little fatigue. Now it's fixed where the team can't go all game with constant pressure, but the tactics are still effective and even more with META players.

TO FIX IT, all custom tactics should be rewarding depending on the gamers playing style. As constant pressure continues to be very popular, direct passing and forward run tactics begin to show improvement to gamers. 

 If it can continue to show different effective playing styles, FIFA can become very tactical, and the game will be based on skill, not AI dependent.

You may also be interested in the following:

• FIFA 23 Best American Players
• FIFA 23 Best African Players
• FIFA 23 Best European Players