FUT FM Episode 46

Hey comrades! This past year we’ve had the opportunity to have some of the best players in the world join us on the show and share some of their secrets.

If you’ve been listening from the start, you will remember the days when our very own Italian Stallion (Valerio) was racking up Top 100 finishes in FIFA 17 FUT Champions.

While he is still looking to emulate that same success in this year’s title, his consistent 34-37 win finishes make him a great FIFA player. By taking a look back at his journey, this week is all about tips ranging from gameplay to mentality from an Elite 1 player.

Formations and Custom Tactics

Whether you’re just starting off with FIFA, or you’re an experienced player, knowing your way around formations and custom tactics can help you add lethality to your game.

A good starting point can always be having a look around the community, whether through contributions on FIFA Reddits or YouTube guides, and getting a taste for the most commonly used formations.

While being aware of the most common and effective formations can help, it’s also important to play to your strengths. Valerio’s experience is a testament of that, as he began his journey learning the 41212(2), to slowly transitioning to a 4231 narrow possession based play style.

As for custom tactics, simplicity is important. You’re always better off starting off with the default settings, and gradually making changes here and there to find what suits you best. You’ll see some pros with wild custom tactics out there, but the way they got to that point is through experimentation.

So don’t be afraid on changing the slider based on what you think your team needs. Even if you’re not sure what you’re doing, you’ll learn by experimenting. Attempting to copy someone else’s tactics and style is usually not the way to improve.

Game Settings

Customization in any FIFA game goes beyond formations, custom tactics, and player choices. You can do a lot more to complement your game style by customizing your game settings.

Two key settings that you should be aware of are analog sprint, and auto switch move assistance.

Analog sprint can be set to on or off. Having it on means that your player will sprint according to how far you push your sprint trigger button (RT/R2). Having it off means no matter how hard you press the button, your player will always look to sprint at full speed.

Auto switch move assistance can be set to none, low, or high. Having it on none means that once you select a player, he will instantly move in the direction your analog stick is pointing. Having it on low, means that for a short period of time, when you select a player, he will keep moving in the direction he was going prior to you switching into him. The same goes for setting it on high, just for a longer period.

While there is no specific setting that will guarantee you to improve, finding the right setting for you can be very beneficial.

Low can be beneficial in those laggy games that make you feel like your players are stuck in mud. It also helps you not rush out defensively, so you end up defending compactly.

Meanwhile, having it on none frees you up to be more responsive to the game. This is better suited for players with excellent finger twitch skills, but perhaps lower anticipation abilities.

Failed Experiments Are Key

Whether you’re looking for the perfect player, chemistry style, formation or tactic, you will never improve without stepping out of your comfort zone when you’re unhappy with your gameplay.

Valerio has been able to hit 36-37 wins very consistently over the last couple of months, and he’s been having lots of success using the 433(5) formation. He didn’t just stumble upon it though; it gradually became a viable option after lots of trial and error.

It’s also very important to be tying this back to your strengths. The 433(5) formation may be a good one, but it also requires a certain mentality and approach to the game. If you like to play a very direct style, simply trying this without making any adjustments to how quickly you bring the ball up the field will do more harm than good.

The key is to assess your own style first. Do you like to keep the ball for long periods of time, or do you want to try to score with every attack as quickly as possible? Once you figure out where you fall on those 2 extremes, try experimenting with a formation that you think will help you achieve that.

For example, if you aim to keep possession, you’re going to want a midfield 4 or 5. If you want to always be on the attack, having 3 attacking players would enable you to make quick passing movements at the front.

As always, experimentation is important.

Training Buddies

Finding somebody of a similar skill level to play lots of practice games is the best way to improve. The more you play, the more you will figure each other out, and the more you will be forced to come up with new ways to break each other down.

It it happens that one of you eventually starts lagging behind, it’s important to call each other out, and see what led to this situation. You never want to be in a scenario where one of the two players consistently wins by a large margin over a longer period of time.

If such a situation occurs, it’s time for a new training buddy. Everyone learns at their own pace, so there’s no reason for you to stunt your own growth by playing someone way better or way worse than you.

If you can’t find time to play each other, finding someone else to review your gameplay can also be helpful. You can take turns in sending each other short reports on things that you could have done differently. Fresh eyes and brains can always lead to new discoveries.

As always, thanks for checking out FUT FM! Be sure to subscribe to the show on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, or Android, to never miss an episode.

FUT FM Episode 46 Highlights

1:51 Valerio's FIFA start

5;40 First look at formations and customs

7:29 433 experimentation

11:01 FIFA 17 T100 formations and tactics

12:10 FIFA 17 vs FIFA 18 defending

13:40 From casual to T100

14:45 importance of a mentor

16:28 FIFA18 journey begins

19:39 Settings customization

23:35 False 9 tactics

27:48 WL results depending on formation