Story Modes in Sports Games

We have often wondered how it would feel to play out story modes in sports games like FIFA, NBA, NHL, etc. Imagine getting the chance to relive a tale like that of Santiago Munez in the Goal! movies. Sounds great, right?

Story modes can actually help sports games to reach an even wider audience. I, for one, became a huge fan of the Fight Night series after playing the amazing story mode EA developed in Fight Night Champion. Andre Bishop's story line was an engaging experience and the climax was beautifully utilized in creating a mesmerizing scenario for the final battle. The beauty of incorporating story modes is the fact that we can live out our fantasies of playing our favorite sport with the tension and drama rather than just playing match after match, which makes it a very monotonous experience after a certain point.

NBA 2K16's Livin' Da Dream, a venture by Spike Lee, was another story mode that really took the entire intensity of the game to a whole new level. However, the story felt rushed because the writers had to cram the entirety of it into a season of 8 matches only. But, the whole experience was a rather innovative one and helps to prove the point that, if given the time and proper tools, story modes can really help usurp sports game to break the consumer barrier. 

It's about time that developers plan to actually create story modes for games like UFC or FIFA. Plot-lines, scenarios and the intensity can make it an invigorating experience like the one EA managed to capture with Fight Night Champion and Spike Lee and the NBA 2K team were very close to capturing the right feel as well. Maybe, in a few years, we actually might get to play a FIFA game with a captivating story mode but till then, we can only hope. 

Fardeen Zareef is in a war with carbohydrates but his love of Doritos overwhelms him. He also does not know how to use Twitter and loves to game. Message him your love/hate at https://www.facebook.com
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