Regarding the Nintendo Switch, it’s very easy to see how some developers/publishers treat it over other systems. If they’re a fan of the Switch, they’ll go all out to make the game shine on the system, and the results speak for themselves. If they view the console as a kind of “cash grab” via the number of people who own one, they’ll do a half-baked port or title and just hope it’s enough to cover costs. The FIFA titles did the latter, but EA Sports FC 24 might be the title that changes that perception.
In the past, there have been FIFA titles on Switch, but they were limited in both visuals and gameplay modes, sometimes feeling like an entirely different game in the worst way. But with EA Sports FC 24, it will be different, as stated by EA’s John Shepherd to IGN. In their chat, he noted that the Switch will have all modes available:
“It’s going to have all the modes. It’s more representative of the Xbox One, PS4 gameplay than it would be the PlayStation 5, latest-gen gameplay. There are a few differences, just because of the hardware, but the game’s running great.”
Granted, we have heard such chatter before, but it does appear that they’re trying to make the game shine on Switch, which is absolutely possible when teams put effort into the system. In fact, Shepherd said that while it took a while to “make things happen,” EA got their Frostbite engine to run well on the system, and that has made the team and Nintendo very happy:
“That’s been multiple years, just trying to get that working really nicely on Switch. We were reviewing it with Nintendo not too long ago. Everyone’s really excited about it. It was a collaboration not just with FC, but across EA. We had to get a lot of Frostbite support to get everything working on Switch. It’s a huge achievement, honestly.”
If this holds true, that could easily boost the title’s sales once it releases. Recall that this is the first time EA Sports has done a soccer game without the FIFA branding. They want to ensure they “shoot and score” on their first try or else fall victim to certain things. Having every system that the game is on work smoothly is a big part of that.
Only time will tell how well things play out, but at the moment, it’s looking positive.
