Football is practically the national sport of Malaysia. It’s like dengue, just more insidious. Football fever hits most red-blooded males every four years (World Cup) and we have seasonal outbreaks during the major leagues as well. Symptoms of the infection include a zombie-like appearance at work (due to lack of sleep) and the sports section of the office newspaper mysteriously disappearing.
‘Tis the season again, where football fans gather at mamaks all around Malaysia. I know coz (very) loud cheering can be heard when goals are scored by the punters favorite teams. It’s the EPL 2008/2009 season and things can get so loud and raucous that a mamak 200 meters down the road can wake you up with their boisterous celebration! If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, I say.
I’m sure a lot of gamers out there have heard of the FIFA series. I have a friend who was obsessed with the game back in high school. Of course, we didn’t have broadband back then (think 33.6 k modems) but now with the massive broadband penetration, the latest iteration of the FIFA football game franchise has gone online!
Think of an online football MMO (!). It’s just something that hasn’t been done before.
I managed to get my hands on the EA SportsTM FIFA Online 2 DVD kit before it was launched. There is a bonus code in each DVD pack that gives you a special item. The Open Beta Test (OBT) is going on now so you can also download the game client at the official site.
There is a Bonus Game Item in the DVD kit, which can either give you LP (not the vinyl, or the Hokkien phrase – League Points, the in-game currency), Uniform Cards (which awards a mystery player to your team), or a Medical Kit (heals injured players). I got the medical kit with my code.
The game guides you with tutorials to familiarize yourself with the game, which would be useful for those who haven’t played a football game before. The tutorials covers the basics, attacking, defending, passing – it’s good enough for you to try your luck in a real match…preferably with a similarly ranked player so you won’t get thrashed too badly. π
EA SportsTM FIFA Online 2 plays like a football game with RPG elements. You start out with (next to) nothing, a bottom feeder, and work your way up through the leagues. You win points by winning matches and your players “level up” throughout the matches. It’s a persistent game world so all your stats are retained the next time you log on! Nifty.
The interface allows you to chat with other players on the server and arrange for matches. I’ve been talking to some of the people in the pre-game chat room and found out that a lot of them are from KL too.
I started my first match with someone who also happens to live in Kelana Jaya (imagine the coincidence) and got thoroughly trashed by him. I blame multitasking for my defeat, my phone rang while I was playing and he didn’t stop attacking despite the fact that I’m AFK. :p
The best part about EA SportsTM FIFA Online 2 is the social interaction. After my defeat, he asked if I would be interested in catching the EPL game tonight at the mamak near my place. A couple of his friends are going as well, so I’m going to drop by too and watch the game.
You can get the EA SPORTSTM FIFA Online 2 CD from 7-Eleven and Popular Bookstores starting 23rd January 2009. It’s an official licensed product of FIFA!
In conjunction with the nationwide launch, a special tournament will be held at selected Internet Cafes. Check with your friendly neighborhood cyber cafΓ© to see if they’re organizing this event.
Do you think you have what it takes? There’s also the ASEAN Championships scheduled in September 2009 with real life prizes to be won, so get your player lineup ready to beat the best of the best in our part of the world!
You’ll be playing against people from Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Taiwan in the ASEAN Championships and the winner of each country will be flown down to Singapore for an on-site match with a total prize bounty of USD 100,000. (!)
My only beef with EA SportsTM FIFA Online 2 is that I’m used to playing FPS games like Quake (ranked #42 in PGL too, back in the days) and my favorite line was “Death from above!”. Well, there’s no “above” on a football field so I can’t use my trademark taunt anymore. Oh well. Perhaps I shall resort to taking a football with me and dropping it on my new EA SportsTM FIFA Online 2 buddy’s head later.
Except I don’t know him IRL and he might not be amused. π
Ehh, it looks kinda cool, I think I wanna go get it hahahaha π
Wah! Finally …Championship Manager+Hattrick+FIFA!
Yay!! hehe
Fifa FTW!
Lol… Boys and sports, the lethal combination for ages. π
remember the statement from a stephen king novel – i forget which -? “soccer is football for smart people, football is football for a-holes.” i am glad the NFL season over here will soon be mercifully over.
tom
I WANT MORE GIRLIE POST!!!!! =PPPPP
I’ve been so busy these few days and I missed a few of your posts. Just finished reading them all.. so fast la you. very difficult to keep up with ya.
fifa sucks…
better play pro evolution soccer.
Mellissa: It’s available at 7-Eleven dy. Saw it there with promo photos. It’s DVD btw.
Nimal: Yeah, good news for those into football. π
ShaolinTiger: Dude, it’s in your blood. You’re British. π
Juice: Yeah. π
Lost a fair bit during the past few World Cups though so not betting again.
tom: Stephen King is also the name of a soccer player in MLS in your country. π
I only noticed when Beckham transferred, the US is not exactly known for soccer. π
Jade Zheng: Can, we go get ourselves pierced next week. π
eiling: Where got fast? This was written two days ago actually.
Besides, I have to train myself to write fast coz I’m a copywriter now. π
Ediη₯: FIFA is the best, dude.
International standard, can’t beat that.
Saw it at 7-eleven but i refuse to pay rm2 administration fee π
Sorry, no PC, laptop and Internet connection at home. Wait till I get those things first :p
i’ve been to a couple soccer games when their was the st. louis steamers, only about 50 people attend each time, not popular at all.
i have fifa’09 for the 360. do they have Xbox360 Live over their hb?
“I blame multitasking for my defeat, my phone rang while I was playing and he didn’t stop attacking despite the fact that I’m AFK. :p”
lol
Fifa..my favourite game!
sadly the fifa09/10 my ps2 cannot support much liao…lagging like a snail now..
I want ps3!!!!!!!!!!!!
hehe
the ladies lethal enemy . . . . . . . .lolz
chriso: Oh well, think of it as the UV spot laminating on the cover and the burning costs. π
Simon Seow: Eh, how did you post this then? Serious?
WEEN: Yes, we have XBox Live 360. π
Yeah, I was on the phone! Playing with one hand.
eric: I want a PS3 too, but it’s too expensive. My next priority is a new PC. π
foodcrazee: Haha! Nice one. π
Should have invited you to our Press Release today at Berjaya Times Square. Btw, I am working for the company that officially distributes FOL2 in Malaysia for MyCNX.
Colin T.: Interesting! You’re in the industry. Oh there was a press release today? Official launch? I just woke up not long ago. FOL2 seems like a winner!
truiuoil v
thanks for the interesting information
great information thank you
great information thank you
I can’t get this site to render right on my mobile, is it something wrong on my end?
Greetings from Varsaw. I read your blog with lots of attention. See you soon.
Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Thanks for your insight for the great written piece. I am glad I have taken the time to read this.
Kudos for the great article. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Credit for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to read this.
Many thanks for the great posting. I am glad I have taken the time to see this.
Kudos for the great article. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Many thanks for the great posting. I am glad I have taken the time to see this.
Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Appreciation for the great blog post. I am glad I have taken the time to learn this.
Thanks much for the great document. I am glad I’ve taken the time to learn this.
Thank you for the great content. I am glad I have taken the time to see this.
nice post. thanks.
I am continually browsing online for posts that can benefit me. Thx!
Great Post! Itβs very nice to read this info from someone that actually knows what they are talking about.
I have been examinating out some of your articles and it’s pretty good stuff. I will surely bookmark your site.
Very good written article. It will be valuable to anyone who employess it, as well as yours truly :). Keep doing what you are doing – for sure i will check out more posts.
Great Stuff, do you have a twitter account?
Very well written article. It will be valuable to anyone who employess it, as well as yours truly :). Keep doing what you are doing – i will definitely read more posts.
Very useful post here. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me. I will certainly be back.
I have been checking out some of your articles and i can state pretty clever stuff. I will make sure to bookmark your site.
Have you ever thought of including more movies to your weblog posts to keep the readers extra entertained? I mean I simply learn via your complete article of yours and it was quite good but since I am extra of a visual learner,I found that to be more helpful properly let me know the way it turns out! I like what you guys are all the time up too. Such intelligent work and reporting! Sustain the good works guys I’ve added you guys to my blogroll. This can be a great article thanks for sharing this informative information.. I’ll go to your blog frequently for some newest put up
Excellent post, thanks so much for sharing. Do you happen to have an RSS feed I can subscribe to?
Liked the article, actually found it while researching for another project. Would you mind if I used it for my blog?
You made a few fine points there. I did a search on the theme and found a good number of persons will agree with your blog.
I enjoyed reading this write-up, I was just wanting to know do you trade featured articles or blog posts? I am continually looking for somebody to make trades with and basically thought I might ask.
You made a few fine points there. I did a search on the topic and found nearly all folks will have the same opinion with your blog.
Interesting article. Well done, i hope to read more like this
How do you make your blog site look this awesome! Email me if you can and share your wisdom. I’d be appreciative.
You completed certain nice points there. I did a search on the subject and found mainly people will consent with your blog.
Have you considered adding some videos to your article? I think it will really enhance my understanding.
Very nice poost, i hope to read more!
Almost all of the responses on this article are weird.
Could you message me with any tips about how you made your blog look this cool, I’d be appreciative.
Empty vessels make the greatest sound.Envy has no holidays.
coole webseite, schaut doch mal bei meiner sodbrennen heilen webseite vorbei. ich wΓΌrde mich freuen. wir haben sehr viele tipps ΓΌber das sodbrennen und wie man es heilen kann
I drop a comment whenever I like a article on a website or if I have something to add to the conversation. Usually it’s triggered by the passion communicated in the article I looked at. And after this article FIFA Online 2: Football. MMO style. » sixthseal.com. I was actually moved enough to drop a thought π I do have a couple of questions for you if you tend not to mind. Is it just me or do a few of the responses appear like written by brain dead people? π And, if you are posting on additional online sites, I would like to keep up with you. Could you make a list the complete urls of your public sites like your twitter feed, Facebook page or linkedin profile?
I’ll gear this review to 2 types of people: current Zune owners who are considering an upgrade, and people trying to decide between a Zune and an iPod. (There are other players worth considering out there, like the Sony Walkman X, but I hope this gives you enough info to make an informed decision of the Zune vs players other than the iPod line as well.)
I conceive other website proprietors should take this site as an example , very clean and wonderful user genial style and design . “Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason.” by Jerry Seinfeld.
I’ll gear this review to 2 types of people: current Zune owners who are considering an upgrade, and people trying to decide between a Zune and an iPod. (There are other players worth considering out there, like the Sony Walkman X, but I hope this gives you enough info to make an informed decision of the Zune vs players other than the iPod line as well.)