FIFA announces 4 new blockchain games following split with EA

Football organisation FIFA has announced its first gaming projects since ending its partnership with EA, and all of them are “future-focused” blockchain titles.

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In a statement posted to FIFA+, the organisation announced “a portfolio of new future-focused web 3.0 games to entertain and engage a wider group of fans ahead of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.”

The four games (spotted by VGC) are all blockchain-based, and FIFA says they have been designed with “the future of digital engagement in mind.”

The first title, AI League, is a “four-on-four casual football game, played between AI-controlled characters, with player input at fun and tactical moments.” Players coach and own their AI teams and can “collect and trade characters” within the game.

The second is a collaboration with Upland, a “blockchain-based metaverse” where players will be able to “collect official FIFA WorldCup digital assets” and video highlights. Third up is Matchday, a “highly engaging casual social prediction game based on football cards.”

Finally there’s “Phygtl”, which FIFA describes as a “fan engagement mobile application” that will allow players to own a “digital representation of eternal fandom.”

“This is a hugely exciting group of partnerships that we’ve entered into as we embrace a new, digitally-native football fan and engage with them in the spaces that we know they are already active within,” commented FIFA chief business officer Romy Gai. “As we continue to build our gaming strategy long into future, it’s certain that web 3.0 will have an important role to play, and this marks the start of our journey.”

FIFA and EA announced an end to their partnership back in May, making this year’s FIFA 23 the last game made as part of the collaboration.

In other gaming news, the former CEO of Slightly Mad Studios has criticised EA for its decision to shelve the Project Cars racing series.

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