As I write this, the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament has finished up (congratulations to Spain), but that doesn't mean the action has to stop. EA brings us UEFA Euro 2008, a game based on the recently-completed tournament that lets us take our favorite countries and turn them into champions. However, if this game were a European national team, I'd have to say it might be The Netherlands or England — starting out strong, but always seeming to fall short when it matters most.
Alongside the expected exhibition and UEFA Euro 2008 Tournament modes, EA has a few new changes to the same old soccer game. Controls in Euro 2008 are almost identical to those of FIFA 08, with two important tweaks thrown in. First, Be A Pro mode features expanded options, allowing you to call for your teammates to shoot, lob or clear the ball. These were sorely missing from FIFA 08’s Be A Pro mode, and hopefully, they’ll be around in FIFA 09.
Second, EA has brought back gamer-controlled celebrations for after scoring a goal, and they have given you a bevy of options. Following your goal, you are given the option to run around the field celebrating by using a combination of button presses and stick movements to celebrate in a number of ways. You’re also able to control how you want to finish your celebration by holding down the left shoulder button and pressing any of the four face buttons.
The newest and most expansive mode in Euro 2008 is Captain Your Country. At its core, it seems like a mixture of Be A Pro and UEFA Euro 2008 Tournament, but Captain Your Country has a bit more substance to it. After selecting an already existing player or creating your own, you and up to three of your friends (or up to three CPU-controlled players) are left with the task of rising through the ranks to captain your national team and lead them to Euro 2008 tournament glory. You do so through playing each game, in which a status bar is displayed to tell you your score for the match. A 10 is a perfect game played, while a 0 is an abysmal game. The better you do, the more experience points you get to build your player’s skills. In addition, these points go towards a grand total that will determine your standing on the squad and if you are the captain for the upcoming match. It’s highly competitive and a nice addition that adds some offline multiplayer fun.
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