FIFA 09-Be A Pro by The Game Reviews

Be A Pro: Seasons

Introduction

Be A Pro: Seasons is all about growing your player into an International Legend. Just like Be A Pro Match from the Kick-off menu, you’ll be in control of your player during games. With Be A Pro: Seasons, you’ll take your player through 4 seasons as you work to go from the Reserve Squad to the pinnacle of Club Play…becoming a Club Legend.

At the end of your 4^th season, you’ll take on the International Cup as you try to lead your country to the title and become an International Legend.

Selecting a Team

Be A Pro: Seasons begins with team selection. You’ll choose your league and then dive into the game. There are a couple of things that you will want to keep in mind when selecting your team. If you go the Create a Pro route, you will only have a minimally skilled player to start with. You can’t expect to crack the starting line up at AC Milan right out of the gate.

Instead, you will have to bide your time on the reserve squad, improve your player, and then make the starting XI. Another route you can take is to go to a smaller Club like Barnsley in the Coca-Cola Championship, or jump on an MLS squad. You’ll have a better chance of making the first team, and you can always transfer after your first season to a bigger club.

You might also want to take a look at the Custom Tactics for your team before you make your choice. If you want to play a fast, wide-open style of play, then a Mexican squad like Club America will not be your best choice.

If you don’t want to go through the process of creating a player and growing his skills, you can always pick a current Pro and take over from where he is currently.

Create A Pro

By far the most rewarding way to play Be A Pro: Seasons is to create your own player from scratch. You can make him exactly the way you want, and then have the satisfaction of watching him progress from the bench to Legend status. There are four stages to the Create A Pro process. We’ll detail each one below.

Player Info

In this section you’ll fill out the basic information about your player. Most of it is pretty self explanatory, but there are a couple of items that you will want to be aware of as you make your new pro.

The Commentary Name is the name that your player will be referred to by the in-game announcers. If hearing your name called out correctly during games is important to you, you’ll want to pick a name off this list to use as your Surname.

Picking your Nation is obviously very important when it comes to the International Cup at the end of the game. While picking a smaller football nation will enable you to make the team more quickly, come Cup time, you’ll be hampered by the talent (or lack thereof) around you.

It’s better to go with one of the big footballing nations so that you have a better chance of victory when the big prize is on the line.

You’ll also determine your position and role from this screen. Possibilities include:

Forward – Striker, Left Striker, Left Wing, Right Forward, Center Forward, Left Forward, Right Wing, Right Striker

Midfielder – Right Defensive Mid, Center Defensive Mid, Left Defensive Mid, Right Mid, Right Center Mid, Center Mid, Left Center Mid, Left Mid, Right Attacking Mid, Center Attacking Mid, Left Attacking Mid

Defender – Sweeper, Right Wing Back, Right Back, Right Center Back, Center Back, Left Center Back, Left Back, Left Wing Back

You can’t play the Goalkeeper position, but then again what fun would that be anyway?

Be sure to pay attention to your favoured foot selection as well. When you get in close to the net, you’ll want to blast it with your best foot unless you have a high Weak Foot rating.

Appearance

In this stage of player creation, you decide how your player is going to look. In addition to all of the cosmetic options at your disposal, there are a couple of key choices that do affect game play.

Pay attention to the Height and Weight attributes. Taller players will be able to win more headers, while heavier players will be stronger in challenges. You can go as small at 4’11” and as tall as 6’9”. As far as weight goes, you can be a 110-pound weakling, or a 242-pound beast.

You hairstyle will be one of the most noticeable aspects of your player during game play, so take a couple of minutes to get your “do” just right. There are numerous choices that you can make. Everything from being bald, to having a big blue Afro is possible.

Player Style

Once you have defined how you player is going to look, it’s time to gear up to hit the pitch. You can set up whether your player wears ankle tape, tucks in his shirt (or leaves it untucked), goes with long sleeves, wears gloves, or sports a sweat band.

Of course the most critical selection for football fans is which boots your player is going to wear. Create A Pro gives you a pile of choices. We’ve included a list below:

Adidas F50 Tunit – Black, Red, Yellow, Blue, Green, Silver, White
Adidas Predator ® - Black/Red, Blue, Red, White/Black, Black/Silver, Black, Flame, White, Beckham Away
Adidas Adipure – Black, Blue, Silver, White/Black, Navy, White
Diadora Maximus RTX
Diadora Brazil Alexler RTX 14
Nike Mercurial Vapor IV
Nike Ronaldinho Dois
Nike Total90 Laser II
Nike Air Legend II
Lotto Zhero Gravity Due
Reebok Sprintfit KFS – White/Red, Black
Reebok Sprintfit Lite – Silver/Black, Red
Umbro SX-Valor
Umbro Speciali – Black, White
Puma King – White
Puma V1.09 – Black/Blue, Black/Yellow
Puma V Konstrukt – Black
Hummel 6.4 PIO FGX
Mitre Revolve Pro
Numerous EA SPORTS branded boots

Attributes

This section is key to player creation. It is here that you will define your player’s abilities and how their skills can be put to use on the field. Attribute ratings points must be purchased using Exp. Points. You’ll have 10,000 to begin with.

Attributes are broken down as follows:

Attacking

Crossing
Finishing
Heading Acc.
Short Pass
Volleys
Weak Foot

Defending

Marking
Stand Tackle
Slide Tackle

Skill

Dribbling
Curve
FK Acc.
Long Pass
Ball Control

Power

Shot Power
Jumping
Stamina
Strength
Long Shots