On Tuesday next week, September 23rd EA Sports' FIFA 15 will make its debut. If you're thought about picking up the latest and greatest football/soccer title, there are two editions for you to consider: "Standard" and "Ultimate Team Edition".
What's the difference, you say? Beyond price, it really boils down to how much of a FIFA fan you are and how much time you have to devote. If you're a true fan and know you're going to get a great game, you might want to consider the Ultimate Edition, or if you're skeptical but want to give 'er a shot, the Standard is a cheaper option to get your feet wet, especially for the PC digital version.
Standard Edition $59.99 (or less)
Right off the bat, you'll notice the Standard Edition starts off $10 cheaper than the higher end "Ultimate Team Edition" no matter the platform. If your platform of choice is PC, digital retailer Green Man Gaming is running a 25% off promotional coupon code through Friday, September 19th, slashing a further $15 off that $59.99 MSRP.
- FIFA 15 PC Origin Key for $45 (normally $60)
- Use Coupon: 9I47I9-ZOM38L-ZGV9KW
For those on the console (which includes Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, and PS3 versions of FIFA 15) the best pick is probably Best Buy, where you'll get a bonus $10 certificate in "My Best Buy" Rewards. Players that prefer GameStop as their store of choice will get an exclusive 3 in-game celebration in lieu of the $10 rewards bonus offered at Best Buy.
Beyond the price break, here's what's included in the Standard Edition pre-order:
- 15 FUT Gold Packs
- adidas All-Star Team
15 FUT Gold Packs: Only available in the Standard Edition as a pre-order bonus. As long as you log in to redeem them, you'll receive 1 FUT Gold pack per week for 15 weeks. If you were to purchase this digital content from Origin, it would cost $15, or $1 a FUT Gold Pack.
adidas All-Star Team: In Kick-Off mode, take command of the world's top class players and compete with the best.
Ultimate Team Edition $69.99
If you're a true FIFA series fan and plan on devoting time to FIFA 15, you probably should consider the Ultimate Team Edition. While the Standard Edition pre-order gets you 15 FUT Gold Packs over 15 weeks, Ultimate gets you 40 FUT Gold Packs with one released every week – that's over 9 months of FUT Gold Packs! The only place to pick up the FIFA 15 "Ultimate Team Edition" on the PC is directly through EA's Origin Store, where you'll pay the full $69.99.
The Ultimate Team Edition is also available for the Xbox One, PS4 et al. Pre-ordering either any of the Ultimate Edition console version at Best Buy gets you a bonus $10 in "My Best Buy" Rewards. The UT edition claims to come with $40 worth of goodies, including:
- 40 FUT Gold Packs
- adidas All-Star Team
- Messi FUT Loan Player
- adidas Predator Boot Bundle
- Historic Kit
- Goal Celebrations
Messi FUT Loan Player: The game will offer a new loan-a-player feature. Specific details on loan process hasn't fully being released, but you'll have the option to put Lionel Messi on your team within the first five matches of your Ultimate Team campaign.
adidas Predator Boot Bundle: Enter product placement! If you're into football, you might know adidas Predator Boot is known for their rubber patches or strips on the top of the shoe, designed to increase friction between the boot and the ball (whether you'll actually perform better is another story). Getting the Ultimate Team Edition gets you pairs of these virtual boots from the Predator product line and the EA SPORTS Football Club Catalog.
Historic Kit: Want to play in old kits from legendary club years? The Ultimate Team Edition gets you historic club kits for a wide variety of teams.
Goal Celebrations: Ultimate Team gets you 3 additional Goal celebrations: Kiss the Wrist, Stand Tall, and Flag Kick.
Which FIFA 15 Edition Wins?
Which Edition should you pre-order? Obviously it's a subjective answer, but right now the pre-order price break on the Standard Edition for PC probably makes it the better choice if you don't care about the platform you play on (after all you can stick an Xbox controller on the PC and call it a day). Then again, if you're going to purchase FUT Gold Packs like crazy (with real cash or coins bought with cash), you probably will be better off going with the Ultimate Team Edition with $40 worth of digital product to start with.
Our personal pick is still the discounted Standard Edition or the pre-order $10 rewards from Best Buy, mostly because you'll probably never get an inform card out of the 40 FUT Gold Packs given to you in the Ultimate Team Edition – but that's just our speculation 😉
