The guys over at FGB have had a chat with Kantcho Doskov, animator on FIFA 12 and now a gameplay producer for FIFA 13. They’ve very kindly sent us a translation.
FGB: On FIFA 12 you have the responsibility of creating the movements of the players.You’ve been past producer for FIFA 13. You take care of the full motion capture now?
Kantcho Doskov: From Fifa 08 to Fifa 12, I was an animator on the Fifa team, working on the player motions and directing the motion capture shoots. For Fifa 13, I was promoted to Gameplay Producer, where my responsibility was to design gameplay features such as First Touch Control and Complete Dribbling.
FGB: With FirstTouch Control, several situations may arise. Is the system properly calibrated?
KD: First Touch Control is one of my favorite new features in Fifa 13. It’s a game changing improvement that will make it impossible to go back to Fifa 12. In previous years, every player had near perfect control with their first touch, which was unrealistic. In Fifa 13, we evaluate the context of each and every first touch to determine how diffult it is. We analyze many different factors such as what is the incoming ball velocity, how is the ball spinning, what it the ball trajectory, is there defensive pressure, and many other things. This creates much more variety and realism in every first touch, giving you the sensation that no two matches are ever the same.
FGB: Is it too will favor larger teams?
KD: Teams like Barcelona will be able to control the ball better, just like in real life, but this does not mean they are unbeatable. It’s possible to play with lower skilled teams and do well, you just have to be a bit more careful with your first touch. For example, if a pass is very difficult to control, you can take your first touch while standing to control the ball easier. If you take it while sprinting at full speed, you take the risk of making a poor touch. Even Messi will not be able to control the most difficult passes perfectly every time, but he’ll be able to control them better than an average player in general.
FGB: The complete dribbling will greatly facilitate the realization of some dribbling.
KD: Complete Dribbling was inspired by Lionel Messi and gives you the ability to face an opponent while dribbling in any direction. We’ve created hundreds of new dribble animations that link together fluidly and give you more options when in attack. Complete Dribbling happens contextually when you’re dribbling with the ball and it can also be triggered manually by pressing the left and right triggers. When facing up to an opponent, you get into a better position to take him on 1v1, giving you the opportunity to be more dangerous on the dribble.
FGB: The attack changes a lot in FIFA 13, will it be in defense ?
KD:There have been many improvements to defending in order to balance the game. Lateral Contain, for example, gives you the freedom to move side to side when containing an opponent so that you can force him to go into a less dangerous area of the field or onto his weaker foot. Tackles and sliding tackles are now more accurate giving you a better chance to win the ball back. There is also a new type of defensive tackle where the defender uses his body to get in between the ball and the opponent to get possession of the ball. The ability to push and pull an opponent has been improved significantly so that you are now able to to do this in off the ball situations.
FGB: Can you tell us more about the new skill moves?
KD: For Fifa 13, we added several new skill moves. My favorite is a new type of fake shot where you can fake a shot and come to a stop. This can be done by requesting a fake shot without holding the left stick in any direction. Another cool new fake shot can be done by coming to a stop first, then hold LT and request a fake shot, this animation is really nice. We also added a skill move called the Reverse Elastico, this is one that Cristiano Ronaldo likes to do so it’s a 5 star skill move, you can see it in the Gamesom trailer performed by Nani.
FGB: It will also be entitled to the famous celebration Balotelli. Other new legendary celebrations they are in the program?
KD: We added two new celebrations for Balotelli, one where he crosses his arms called Why Always Me and another one called Muscle Flex which he did in Euro 2012. There are several other new celebrations such as the dance that Neymar does based on the Brazilian song called If I Catch You. We also have The Salute, Kiss the Pitch, Surfer, and many others including Ronaldo’s Thigh Point celebration.
FGB: Thanks for all your answers, we are all eager to get their hands on FIFA 13 and realize that.
KD: Thank you, it’s been a pleasure for me. I’m very excited about the release of Fifa 13, it’s the best one we’ve ever created, and I can’t wait for everyone to play it !
Thanks again to FGB for the interview.
