In an official reveal trailer EA Sports lifted the lid on what’s supposed to be the final entry in the long-running FIFA series, after the world football governing body and the publisher of the world’s leading football game agreed to part ways following the eventual release of FIFA 23. One headline inclusion is that of a long-requested feature: Cross-play. In FIFA 23, players on the same platform generation will be able to play against each other in “1v1 modes”, which includes Online Friendlies and FIFA Ultimate Team (including FUT Rivals, FUT Champions and FUT Draft). This means that FIFA 23 players on PS4 and Xbox One will be able to play together, as will PS5 and Xbox Series X/S players. But players on PS4 will not be able to play with PS5 players and Xbox One players cannot play with Xbox Series X/S players. While it might seem counterintuitive that players on PlayStation and Xbox consoles can’t play together, it’s because there are different engines under-the-hood that make the versions incompatible. As well, even though it hasn’t been specifically stated, it’s unlikely that the Nintendo Switch edition will have any cross-play functionality, since it’s the “Legacy Edition”. On top of that, FIFA 23 will also feature licensed play modes for the Men’s World Cup 2022 in Qatar and the Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand. This typically includes broadcast packages for the tournaments as well as the inclusion of all of the competing national teams. FIFA 23 will also include women’s club teams for the first time. From launch, players will have access to teams from the British WSL and French D1 alongside the national team roster. This comes after the recent reveal that the FIFA 23 Ultimate Edition cover will feature both PSG star Kylian Mbappe and Chelsea hotshot Sam Kerr. For more information on the minutiae of what’s new in FIFA 23, EA Sports also dropped a detailed blog post at the same time as the trailer.
