Yes, we used plural there: it’s not just FIFA that gets shafted on the PC by Electronic Arts. Madden NFL is another series that is just an afterthought for the publisher when it comes to Steam and Origin.

When FIFA 22 was announced, we were quick to point out that the HyperMotion technology, which is a combination of motion capture and an algorithm that was trained on 8.7 million frames, will be on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and Google Stadia, but not on PC. Then, the publisher had another jerk move that would have led to a ONE-MACHINE ACTIVATION LIMIT for FIFA 22 on PC, but they quickly backtracked, saying it was a mistake. It rather felt like them testing the waters to go even more predatory and anti-consumer. They might get updated silently post-launch to go with this approach regardless…

PCGamer reached out to Electronic Arts to ask about why the PC version of FIFA 22 is being launched without next-gen features. Last year, it was understandable, but in 2021, it’s unacceptable. We’ll quote verbatim what their reply was:

„Bringing HyperMotion technology and Immersive Match Day features to PC would have raised the minimum spec requirements and resulted in a large proportion of players unable to run the game. This would have significantly impacted our PC community who enjoy FIFA each year, with many players being excluded or forced to upgrade their machines to play the game. We are looking forward to all our PC players experiencing the gameplay advances and new season of innovation on offer in FIFA 22,” Electronic Arts wrote. They’ve done dirty for Madden NFL 22’s PC port as well.

Sure, the PC isn’t the biggest market for FIFA, but the company decided to simply release an outdated version of the game instead of benefitting those who have higher-end computers, who in turn can make use of higher performance. And going by the reveal trailer, which was nothing more than a shaky camera, it’s not sure if HyperMotion does end up doing the animations on the fly.

Let’s also not forget that UFC (the mixed martial arts) series have NEVER seen a PC port, even though Electronic Arts is now at its fourth episode. The company, which gains more and more money from the Ultimate Team casino (we mentioned this today) simply does not give a damn about the PC when it comes to its sports games.

Source: PCGamer