Bold move from EA - Beware of DDA (Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment)

[AdahnGorion]

Bold move from EA - Also be mindful of the fact this has DDA (Dynamic difficulty adjustment)
I think it is a pretty big thing for EA to move their golden boy "pun intended" to Steam, it showcase that they want to reach even more people and join in with Valve against certain other companies. (I personally can´t fault EA at this, the fact they put their own game on another platform is in itself a consumer friendly move) I will not highlight everything you can, nor will I pass judgement on this vs other games.

That being said. I reckon alot of people (even those that have played Fifa in the past or already do on EA) don´t understand a few problematic (anti consumer) issues within the game itself (don´t worry I have positive things to say as well)

1. DDA (Dynamic difficulty adjustment)

What is it? Some might know it under other names, such as scripting or handicap, but DDA, is actually a patented feature that EA has the right to (they have denied using this in some games, like Fifa, while users have still found it in their codes)

So. Basically it is a feature that automatically modifies a games (in this case Fifa´s online mode) behaviours, features and such in real time. A good example could be, that if you are much better than your opponent, lets say you score a fast goal and dominate possesion, then the game will "on the fly" reduce stats, functionallity etc on your players.

Why is this a problem? Well it takes away the "users own skill" and makes a large portion of the game "random" or even "unfair" for the skillful player. So why is it done? It is done so that the "bad" not so good player don´t get frustrated and annoyed with the game and the good player the opposite, this means both will win and lose matches (without their own skill having much influece)

It could be good as well, if it was SP, since that would mean the AI could give good players a challange on the fly and bad players a easier less punishing time, but online play lives by "the players own merits" examples of players complaining about this features varies in all from, having goalkeeper scoring own goals, sluggish defenders, AI running away from ball or 10 shots hitting the post.

This leads us to the next things.

2. Gambling galore

If you want to play this game for its online mode, then be warned that it is filled with microtransactions. Basically you buy packs either for cash or coins you earn. While some would argue that you can get an alright team just from playing the game, it is not entirely true (why?) well because people can fork out real cash, get the best players and people using ie 50 euro, will in most cases have a team, people that spend 0 euro, will get only after many many hours of gameplay.

The packs are also a gamble, this means you could get awful players or if very very lucky a good one. People can also buy and sell on the market, but it is often abused by bots that automatically buy up or sell to gain profits.

The funny twist. While I said that you can get a good team from buying packs, it does not actually matter, you would be better off not buying anything (unless you are a total conspiracy theorist and think EA will put DDA to handicap you if not buying) because as I mentioned above, you actually don´t gain the "stats" or "much of a chance" even if you have the best team (the game will still try to make you lose, by making your own AI go against you)

Next up.

3. Gameplay and abuse

On every new Fifa, like many other games, the game will have people winning more than others, why? I just named all the stuff like DDA etc?.. well.. every iteration has exploits, a certain way to play and ways to almost always come out on top. This can be both gameplay wise and even making a bronze backup team (to give you a boost in the start)

Pace was king in some games, like better than every other stat, sometimes a certain formation would make the AI less problematic, even when hit by DDA, sometimes you can give away possesion abit, but keep the game tie, then score in the end when you have the DDA boost.. This kinda play ofc is not for all (not for me) because it means that if you don´t play a certain way, you handicap yourself, taking away the creativity and freedom that a game like this should give.

But wait.. Fifa actually have positive things as well..

4. Playing offline - (even in versus mode)
Often it is great! You don´t have the DDA (this means that the good player will win most of the time) Some people like the different SP modes as well, like Be a pro, that lets you play a custom character in a club on a specific position. Some like the manager mode (I rather play FM) but all of these are actually good value.

So if you are looking to buy this for SP or with your kids etc, then you might save yourself alot of issues and have a great time. Sadly most people do play this for the online mode and not the SP mode.


I have not touched every aspect of Fifa, nor gone into detail with all. But I feel some of these topics are important to talk about. Personally I will not touch Fifa until they remove the DDA and change or remove the gambling (We adults might not just buy alot, but teens and young adults are and it is highly problematic in my opinion, mainly because it is pure gambling)

Feel free to be constructive on feedback, both positive and negative, even share your exprience with Fifa or your opinion about their full, not just partial, but full comeback on Steam.


Have a good day all.

[Sir Noob Wulf]

Dude I am pretty sure they have a similar difficulty system in place for career mode.

I am sorry but there is no way i can accept benzema Scoring After lobbing the ball for himself and hitting it on the volley from 40 yards away in the 96th minute in a given extra time of 2 mins xD

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by Sir Noob Wulf:

Dude I am pretty sure they have a similar difficulty system in place for career mode.

I am sorry but there is no way i can accept benzema Scoring After lobbing the ball for himself and hitting it on the volley from 40 yards away in the 96th minute in a given extra time of 2 mins xD

As you might read, I am in no favour of this practice, quite the opposite. I don´t know about career, since I never played it. (I don´t actually buy this game myself, I have tried it at other places, we have alot of teens in our family atm and they do like Fifa)

[Sir Noob Wulf]

Originally posted by Darkie:

Originally posted by Sir Noob Wulf:

Dude I am pretty sure they have a similar difficulty system in place for career mode.

I am sorry but there is no way i can accept benzema Scoring After lobbing the ball for himself and hitting it on the volley from 40 yards away in the 96th minute in a given extra time of 2 mins xD

As you might read, I am in no favour of this practice, quite the opposite. I don´t know about career, since I never played it. (I don´t actually buy this game myself, I have tried it at other places, we have alot of teens in our family atm and they do like Fifa)

I am not calling you out or anything, I am just saying xD

Its a good thing you didn't buy it cuz I did and I regretted it about 3 hours later xD

More importantly I always buy these on sale and have no interest in their online casino. i woudn't even have bought fifa 20 if not for the few key improvements they did make( to their credit)

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by Sir Noob Wulf:

Originally posted by Darkie:

As you might read, I am in no favour of this practice, quite the opposite. I don´t know about career, since I never played it. (I don´t actually buy this game myself, I have tried it at other places, we have alot of teens in our family atm and they do like Fifa)

I am not calling you out or anything, I am just saying xD

Its a good thing you didn't buy it cuz I did and I regretted it about 3 hours later xD

More importantly I always buy these on sale and have no interest in their online casino. i woudn't even have bought fifa 20 if not for the few key improvements they did make( to their credit)

So basically you bought it for the only positive I listed (the SP exprience) that I can understand, not that I personally would do it, but I understand it.
If the DDA was not a thing and ganbling was removed, I would most likely buy Fifa, not to just play with the kids, but to actually play it myself. But ask any former EA "fifa" employee, and they will state the games are balanced out on how to make the most money..

Some even claim that how much you buy in the store and how much you play affects it (again I don´t list that as fact, the DDA is fact, but not this) still.. makes you think abit.

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by MuyoK:

'Bold move' Lmfao, they can see steam has far more potential for higher sales and the 'steam version' just links you right back to origin. This is misleading, this is nothing new, this is ea.

See you on the Origin launcher just like every year with Fifa.

Yes that is true, it is still linked to Origin, but it is still a bold move. I know they get advertisement for this, but Valve gets cold cash from this as well and maybe even lure in some of those "younger" users in the process.

That I don´t like certain aspects of the game itself, does not change that fact. I can also promise you that we will not be seeing eachother on the origin launcher, not becuase I actually mind that, but because I have no intention of buying this game on steam or origin, until the DDA and gambling is gone (I doubt that will ever happen, but I voiced that opinion)

But I fully repsect people that like and want Fifa. Everybody should play what makes them happy

[Sir Noob Wulf]

Originally posted by Darkie:

Originally posted by MuyoK:

'Bold move' Lmfao, they can see steam has far more potential for higher sales and the 'steam version' just links you right back to origin. This is misleading, this is nothing new, this is ea.

See you on the Origin launcher just like every year with Fifa.

Yes that is true, it is still linked to Origin, but it is still a bold move. I know they get advertisement for this, but Valve gets cold cash from this as well and maybe even lure in some of those "younger" users in the process.

That I don´t like certain aspects of the game itself, does not change that fact. I can also promise you that we will not be seeing eachother on the origin launcher, not becuase I actually mind that, but because I have no intention of buying this game on steam or origin, until the DDA and gambling is gone (I doubt that will ever happen, but I voiced that opinion)

But I fully repsect people that like and want Fifa. Everybody should play what makes them happy

Buying FIFA is kinda like getting in a bad relationship.You Know you are going to get frustrated, But you dont not have any other options.

And you know honestly I know EA will deny this, But it seems very obvious that there is a tilt in " luck" towards the players that have the better cards.

And I think it was Activision that patented a matchmaking system where they will matchmake the people who spend more money with easier opponents so that the players feel their spending was worth it. Knowing EA i woudn't be surprised if they have some version of that in their own game.

[Luís]

Idc it's so easy to have good teams you just have to grind

[Aritz Aduriz Zubeldia]

Very well said my friend, i wish people were more aware of this. DDA is frustrating, imagine playing an FPS game and the game move your aim or make you not hit your opponent just to let him shoot and kill you...you even can feel the DDA in the gameplay (AI assistance).

i am not going to buy FIFA 21 as i am fed up, the game is not fun anymore. i accept losing in R6 or F1 because my opponent is better (i can learn at least from losing in those games) wheres in FIFA most of the times u lose because of the DDA or your opponent abusing the game mechanics a playing the meta way where the AI does all the job

[Aritz Aduriz Zubeldia]

Originally posted by luisgamer:

Idc it's so easy to have good teams you just have to grind

its not about having good teams or not, its about the DDA and the gameplay which is very assisted to help the less good players.

[Friends with Benedicts]

Nice content Darkie! Unfortunately the average EA customer is not lean to learn about those things and much less to demand changes. I mean, in an era where people think they're allowed to disagree with medical authorities about a global pandemic, it's not surprising that much less important themes, like gaming, will go unchecked.

Good content nonetheless and I hope some will benefit from it.

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by luisgamer:

Idc it's so easy to have good teams you just have to grind

Originally posted by Aritz Aduriz Zubeldia:

Originally posted by luisgamer:

Idc it's so easy to have good teams you just have to grind

its not about having good teams or not, its about the DDA and the gameplay which is very assisted to help the less good players.

[Change]

Will wait for the reviews / gameplay videos. If there are any indications of Adaptive / Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment (DDA), it is gonna be a pass from me. Played FIFA 18 plenty, can't be bothered to go through the same BS again from EA.

There are clear indications of the game making your players and gameplay feel sluggish/artificially delayed (among other things like stupid animations, worse passing and shooting, hitting posts over and over, missing clear shots at goal) some matches to give lower skill players an advantage and feel good to encourage them to spend on FIFA Points.

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by Change:

Will wait for the reviews / gameplay videos. If there are any indications of Adaptive / Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment (DDA), it is gonna be a pass from me. Played FIFA 18 plenty, can't be bothered to go through the same BS again from EA.

There are clear indications of the game making your players and gameplay feel sluggish/artificially delayed (among other things like stupid animations, worse passing and shooting, hitting posts over and over, missing clear shots at goal) some matches to give lower skill players an advantage and feel good to encourage them to spend on FIFA Points.

You can be 100% certain that it has DDA. EA is using it to make as many players as possible play the game and buy packs. I even think most teens/young adults sadly don´t mind it, they get angry rage quit, then they get a new session later on and win easily and then they lose abit, then they buy packs and win.. you see the cycle?

If you truly want it to change (I do, I loved Fifa back in the early days) then you need to showcase your opinion and take a stand.. sadly with the new generation not caring, I reckon it is a lost cause for us. sadly.

[berood001]

I've played around 5000 matches and collected network data for almost every match. You can use WireShark to track the servers they are connecting you to. Their in game latency tool is inaccurate.

These are all the IP addresses of their match servers at least US East Coast. Mexico and South America just happens to use the same AWS Data Servers located at 21155 Smith Switch Road, Ashburn, VA, USA.

3.227.49.228
18.206.49.84
52.2.112.108
54.144.255.63
34.197.225.127
34.193.180.117
3.225.89.152
3.215.58.136
3.228.37.241
52.205.182.115
3.224.168.105
18.204.160.103
34.198.210.0
3.224.242.235
54.161.61.87
3.216.174.85
54.237.32.212

The issue that people call scripting and DDA, is mostly a synchronization issue because the AI controller of your players resides on your client (XBOX, PS4, PC) rather than on the server. Because of this the 10 other players on the field controlled by AI is using outdated information. EA tries to fix this by using lag compensation. Slowing down game engine cycles so that both teams AI can get similar data to make decisions on. The problem is this introduces button delay, and in some cases just makes the AI controller issue worse. Why does EA do this? Because it costs money to beef up the servers enough to run all the extra computations that the AI needs to run. So instead they hijack the resources on you console/PC to do it, with terrible results.

You can test all these IP addresses by pinging them. You should use UOTrace which is offered by EA, and you need to poll those addresses. If you are getting more than 16ms latency expect poor results the majority of the time. Even if you have a good latency, expect poor results in the form of button delay.

Note that there wont be much of a difference with FIFA 21. The Frostbite Engine is most of the problem, and they wont rebuild the Engine until the next console is well established.

I switched to PES and am having fun and feel relaxed playing now.

[AdahnGorion]

Originally posted by berood001:

I've played around 5000 matches and collected network data for almost every match. You can use WireShark to track the servers they are connecting you to. Their in game latency tool is inaccurate.

These are all the IP addresses of their match servers at least US East Coast. Mexico and South America just happens to use the same AWS Data Servers located at 21155 Smith Switch Road, Ashburn, VA, USA.

3.227.49.228
18.206.49.84
52.2.112.108
54.144.255.63
34.197.225.127
34.193.180.117
3.225.89.152
3.215.58.136
3.228.37.241
52.205.182.115
3.224.168.105
18.204.160.103
34.198.210.0
3.224.242.235
54.161.61.87
3.216.174.85
54.237.32.212

The issue that people call scripting and DDA, is mostly a synchronization issue because the AI controller of your players resides on your client (XBOX, PS4, PC) rather than on the server. Because of this the 10 other players on the field controlled by AI is using outdated information. EA tries to fix this by using lag compensation. Slowing down game engine cycles so that both teams AI can get similar data to make decisions on. The problem is this introduces button delay, and in some cases just makes the AI controller issue worse. Why does EA do this? Because it costs money to beef up the servers enough to run all the extra computations that the AI needs to run. So instead they hijack the resources on you console/PC to do it, with terrible results.

You can test all these IP addresses by pinging them. You should use UOTrace which is offered by EA, and you need to poll those addresses. If you are getting more than 16ms latency expect poor results the majority of the time. Even if you have a good latency, expect poor results in the form of button delay.

Note that there wont be much of a difference with FIFA 21. The Frostbite Engine is most of the problem, and they wont rebuild the Engine until the next console is well established.

I switched to PES and am having fun and feel relaxed playing now.

We know that it is not due to synchronization issues, but I will agree that it is a factor as well, but a synchronization issue does not make all AI run in a different direction of the ball or have your goalkeeper miss a ball slowly going towards him etc..

So while you merely list one more issue, it does not change the fact that DDA is in the game (again it is a patented feature) and it have been found in the coding. They did actually admit openly about it being in quite a few of their other sports games, just not fifa (mainly because debete about scripting, that is just DDA was a very popular topic and hurt their reputation)