FIFA 22 patch notes: Title Update 1 nerfs an overpowered position
Goalkeepers get nerfed big time.
FIFA 22 Title Update 1 has made its way to PC and will soon be rolling out to console platforms like PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Xbox Series X|S. While the full patch notes are extensive, offering adjustments to Division Rivals and a myriad of bug fixes across Career Mode, Ultimate Team, and more, its most significant adjustments come to goalkeepers who have been in desperate need of a nerf.
You can read the full patch notes here if you’d like to do so, but the most significant adjustments worth noting are changes to the players standing in front of the next. First, as listed in the patch notes, goalkeepers will be less effective when diving for top-corner shots taken from inside the penalty box. However, this change will only be in effect within 37 feet of the goal, which means there’s still a little daylight for shots taken from further away.
Your inside shots on goalkeepers should be more likely to go in after Title Update 1 is installed.
Also, counterbalancing this nerf is an added animation for goalkeepers when trying to stop finesse shots. In prior versions of the game, you might see a goalie stand still as these specialized kicks eek past the defender, but the added animation ensures shots like these will be stopped as long as the keeper is in a proper place to make the save.
While not as high-profile as the ongoing goalkeeper debate following the launch of FIFA 22, the patch also addresses a few other minor annoyances, like opponents being able to spam a lobbed ball pass to stall defenders through the use of a glitch. Players should also stop passing the ball after Fake Shot attempts. Any fakes you make should function normally now without random passes getting in the way. In short, FIFA 22 has been made a much better game after Title Update 1, solving some of its biggest gameplay hitches that have emerged in the hours since launch.
Are these changes to FIFA 22 enough to soothe a disgruntled post-launch fan base?
In the bigger picture, FIFA 22 has endured a mixed critical reception so far, with most outlets praising the latest installment for its more nuanced gameplay additions but feeling underwhelmed by the title’s lack of innovation and overreliance on microtransactions.
Elsewhere on the net, average gamers haven’t been quite so kind, with the title’s user review Metascore hovering around a 2.7 out of a possible 10. With more updates like Title Update 1 in the works, though, the hope is that EA Sports can turn this year’s football game into a product hardcore fans can appreciate. Especially if its foundational gameplay remains strong, this seems like a game that could live and die by the prevalence of its online play as opposed to traditional offline modes.
