EA has had unlimited success with both of their current Street titles, NBA Street and NFL Street. The NBA franchise has seen 3 glorious titles, with each one better than its predecessor, and the NFL series with 2 under their belt, with the same results. With the success of these titles, EA has brought it upon themselves to release a Street title in the style of soccer. Now let's face it, the FIFA series, while spawning a cult following, is not what you would call a big franchise. It does not sell by the millions, and soccer still has not caught on here in the States, as some would hope. So why would you try to "urbanize" a franchise that only gives luke warm results year after year? My guess is that the popularity of the Street series might open the floodgates for more gamers to play their authentic soccer title. Unfortunately, FIFA Street is not the title to bring soccer to the greater masses; it only insults those who enjoy the sport.

What FIFA Street does is take the qualities and over the top wackiness of the series, and gives it to soccer with underwhelming results. The presentation and likeness of the Street series is present, but the execution is sorely lacking. As a multiplayer game with four players, I may see some fun being had with this title, but the longevity of that fun lasting will be bleak considering that there is not even online play. There is nothing in particular that FIFA Street does horribly wrong; it just does not provide anything spectacular to bring it above mediocre status.

FIFA Street does some things good and some not so good when visuals are concerned. The player models have a nice look about them, providing a decent amount of detail, the problem lies in that they look so similar. Expect some solid animations due to time in the mo cap suits, but the variety of moves are pretty limited. With only 10 venues to choose from, and none of them being overwhelmingly gorgeous, you will get that stale feeling after a couple dozen games in. Lighting is handled fairly well, and the presentation has moments of originality, but overall the look of FIFA Street feels constricted and rushed.

Audio is a mess from the get go. The soundtrack, while fitting to the genre, is nothing but forgettable Latin house and hip-hop. The sound effects sound is as they were ripped directly from NBA Street. Lastly, the commentary is obnoxious and repetitive. If you do not have the volume down soon after booting this one up, you have more tolerance than I do.

Gameplay is the game's real redeeming feature. While trying to keep with the feel of authentic soccer, FIFA Street tries to add some spice to the sport and give it some flamboyant flash. The results are an entertaining sports title that plays rather solidly. The fast-paced control and smaller venues allow for more intense matchups between the goalie and the shot taker. Pulling off juggles, bicycle kicks, step overs, etc. are handled with greater ease than the authentic FIFA title. What's more, you can use the wall and other players to your advantage in pulling off passes or big shots on goal. The Game Breaker returns in FIFA Street, but the results are not as gratifying as in the other to franchises. The A.I. is not a sucker, nor is it cheap. You will definitely get competitive games from the CPU every time out, which is one of the game's biggest compliments. The game even plays well with four players on the pitch in multiplayer action. Thankfully, the game play more than makes up for the rest of the titles lackluster efforts, but is it enough for gamers to really give it a go?

FIFA Street adds enough extras to keep interest levels at simmering pace, but do not expect too much depth or complexity, especially since this is the series' first go round. It has a create a player, but it is not too involved. It has a career mode, but other than earning points for your created player, there is not much else there to hold interest. It has multiplayer for up to 4 players, but its offline only. You see where I am getting at here don't you.

In the end, FIFA Street is not the worst effort put on paper, but you have to wonder if the idea to bring soccer to the urban environment was trying a good thing too many times. I think the team needs to put its concentrated efforts into their already established titles, and perfect all of them before venturing into something that seems nothing more than a fly by night title.