The FIFA games have the licenses to the vast majority of professional soccer teams and combined with solid gameplay mechanics the series has managed to be a hit for Electronic arts. Despite this, there have been some reservations about FIFA 21. Many fans have been concerned that the game will not innovate on existing mechanics and that elements like career mode will disappoint as it did in FIFA 20. It now seems that these concerns may be impacting sales of the game.
FIFA 21 has had mixed reviews and has not garnered the usual praise from critics, the primary focus of negativity is the lack of new features or in-game changes. It is unclear exactly why FIFA 21 has lower sales than previous iterations, but some fans believe that it is because of these quality issues. However, with the next generation of consoles on the horizon, the 42% sales downturn in the UK when compared to the launch of FIFA 20 may also tie in with new offerings that will appear in the future.
The 42% fewer sales will surprise many, as this year has seen records in terms of game sales, but the lack of purchases could be due to misunderstandings about upgrading the title. Electronic Arts have stated that free upgrades to the next generation will be available for those who purchase FIFA 21 for the current consoles, but non-FUT and Volta progress will not be carried over. Fans may not have been aware of this opportunity and others who value offline modes may wait for the next-generation release of the game.
With this said, FIFA 21 has still been incredibly successful upon release and if the next-generation of consoles see the game get a boost in sales then it will be a title that reaffirms the current practices of the franchise.
It has been reported that 2.3 million players played the trial and that the game has the third-highest concurrent players at the moment. In the UK, FIFA 21 is also the biggest game at launch this year, beating the records of The Last of Us 2 and Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Clearly, the game is not struggling to find an audience, but Electronic Arts do have a track record of setting high expectations for its titles.
If sales do not pick up with the next generation of consoles, then Electronic Arts may need to make considerable changes to the FIFA franchise. However, if the game does begin to get more traction then the focus on online gameplay is likely going to continue for many years to come.
FIFA 21 is available for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One now, with support for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S planned.
Source: Eurogamer