FIFA 23 wants us to get excited about grass, and other matchday experience updates

Among the stranger things FIFA 23 has announced in its presentation updates is the all-new hyper-realistic grass system. Yes, EA Sports now has a game engine to make grass look more grass-y. 

EA just announced a wave of updates to the visuals, audio, and overall matchday experience, all of which add to the overall soccer showcase. It’s the cherry on the cake stuff, but it is stacking up to be the best-looking FIFA yet.

Missed out on the FIFA 23 news so far? Well, it’s the last FIFA before a name change, there’s a woman on the cover, Juventus are back, we got hands on with HyperMotion2, and you can finally play as Jurgen Klopp in Career Mode.

But…grass?

It’s serious business in FIFA 23. At the producer showcase at EA Vancouver last month, senior art director Fab Muoio spent a surprising amount of time talking about the all-new grass system. No longer a flat, carpet-looking field, we now have blades of moving grass that flow and degrade. Yes, it does look better.

Previously, to get a worn-looking pitch, so it looks like a plowed field on a rainy Tuesday in December, players would have to adjust a slider in the game settings, and that was your lot. With the new grass system, it breaks down as the game goes on.

A seemingly odd use of EA Sports’ resources, but with every game its objective is to make the game look and feel more like soccer, and with a more 3D pitch to play on, it achieves exactly that. It’s also worth remembering that EA Sports develops the Madden NFL series, and has a brand new PGA Tour game coming out in 2023, so new grass benefits sports fans across games. 

In our hands-on preview, it was satisfying to use the new hard slide tackle and churn up the pitch, leaving it scarred for the rest of the match. It also takes a beating if you hit a classic knee slide celebration after scoring. Groundspeople, look away…