EA Sports has just released the cover for its upcoming football series to succeed FIFA.
Called EA Sports FC 24, it follows on from the developer’s long-running series of FIFA games.
The Ultimate Edition cover with all 31 stars.
Some of the worst examples of uncanny faces on the cover.
FIFA 23 is the last game in the series after the gaming company’s very public divorce from the football federation.
FIFA reportedly wanted $1billion (£850million) for use of its name, branding and tournaments on EA Sports’ games, and so the two decided to part ways.
However, this doesn’t mean that EA Sports FC won’t include a huge number of famous footballers, as the Ultimate Edition cover shows.
The cover features 31 different male and female players, with Manchester United superstar Erling Haaland at the centre.
This has only pushed further rumours that Haaland will be the star of the Standard Edition cover, taking over from Kylian Mbappé’s three-year reign.
While fans are pleased to see more of their favourite players on the cover, they are a little shocked by the look.
The FIFA series is known for its high-quality covers, featuring a realistic yet stylish look.
However, the new cover slides right into the uncanny valley, where you know the players faces but something seems off.
The image looks like it’s based on in-game models, which are a lot harder to get right than traditional art.
It seems that the lighting is mostly to blame, as strangely lit areas of the faces give some players distorted features.
Rudi Völler stands out as his nose seems to disappear into his face.
The usually handsome Virgil Van Dijk looks like he has a black eye as the shade covers the right side of his face.
With such a low level of quality, it is unclear why this cover was greenlit for the world’s most popular gaming series.
We’ll have to see if it remains this way when EA Sports FC 24 releases later this year.
Written by Georgina Young on behalf of GLHF.
