Fifa 15 could have got a straight red card in the first minute for the video game equivalent of a professional foul – or professional foul-up at least.

EA Sports’ latest release in its long-running football sim series came close to being dismissal just after kick-off for failing to work properly.

Due to slow-moving menus and terrible lag during matches, it was unplayable on my PS4. Many other PlayStation gamers have had the same problem going by the anger vented on Twitter.

After much frustration and swearing about the incompetence of it, I rectified the issue by going into my homehub’s admin and changing the settings. Suddenly the game worked, which was great, but of course I shouldn't have had to do that.

Whatever the trouble is and whoever’s fault it is out of EA or Sony, someone dropped a clanger on the high-profile release of one of the year’s biggest games. It’s absurd customers should be disappointed in this way after spending £50-60 on a product and should have to fiddle around with their internet settings to make it work.

I’m pleased I opted to only give it a yellow card instead of a red and an early bath because once it’s working right Fifa 15 produces a man-of-the-match performance in which its silky skills shine through.

EA’s depiction of the beautiful game in the 2014/15 version of Fifa takes some getting used to, though.

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First off, controlling the ball is even more like juggling a slippery bar of soap than last year. Every contact big or small with boot, body or ground has an effect on the ball, often sending it spinning and bouncing around like a deranged pinball. It makes plotting the ball's movement trickier but does lead to some great goalmouth scrambles.

This has been coupled with players appearing to be more agile and mobile, moving about the pitch quicker than before.

These things combine to make Fifa 15's action feel faster and lighter, leaving last year’s already quick-paced and high-tempo style seem slow and heavy in comparison.

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Additionally, computer AI appears to have been ramped up. Defenders have been stopping attacks by blocking through-balls and clearing crosses more often, denying me a couple of my usual routes to goal. And attackers have been more determined and harder to defend against. I’m no Fifa expert (semi-pro is the highest level I can compete at without wanting to cry) but equally I’m not a complete slouch, so it was a surprise early on when a Southend United player danced through my defence like Lionel Messi on fast-forward mode – luckily his shot was rubbish at the end of his mazy run.

Goalkeepers are noticeably better this year, having also been given improved AI as well as a range of new animations. At times they can be slightly super-powered, pulling off unlikely mid-air catches, but overall they behave and move more realistically. As with outfield players, every touch the goalie has affects the ball - with the increased rebounds and deflections helping create those frantic goalmouth scrambles.

Another big change this year - something I've called for before - is increased player emotion. Now, rather than being mild-mannered and dispassionate, players will react to events in matches with body language and facial expressions that make their feelings much clearer.

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Everything in this year's Fifa feels more exaggerated than before, like someone has turned the dial up a notch on many of the main measures.

The effect is that matches are intense, unpredictable, exciting end-to-end affairs. Each match has its own story, and no two are ever the same.

Like I said though, the changes in style do take some getting used to. It’s a bit like the process Arsenal fans must go through every year when they see their top ex-players turning out for other sides – you’re seeing something very familiar but also quite different, and it takes a while to adjust.

As well as the changes to how the game works - which on the whole I think are an improvement from last year - the Fifa series has never looked or sounded so good.

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EA Sports' titles, including Fifa, did a great job of harnessing next-gen power last year with the attention to detail they provided that was a cut above what has been seen on PS3 and the like.

Another year on and developers have taken that to a new level. There are even more touches of flair, such as pitches degrading during matches, players' kits getting dirty, water splashing off the grass on wet days, advertising boards being animated and corner flags moving.

All 20 current Premier League stadia have been beautifully recreated, many of them appearing in the game for the first and possibly only time (make the most of it QPR and Burnley fans). The sights and sounds of each arena have been replicated, such as the Poznan at the Etihad and singing of You'll Never Walk Alone at Anfield, which really adds to the atmosphere and emotion during matches.

Game modes are largely unchanged this year, which I'm fine with as it's allowed developers time to continue improving things on the pitch rather than fiddling about to create slightly new ways to play. The usual range of modes are available including single matches, career (both as a player and manager), online multiplayer and Ultimate Team, which is where Top Trumps meets trading cards meets football simulation.

Making a welcome return this year is tournament mode, which was bizarrely absent in Fifa 14. Now I can play through the Premier League, FA Cup or various other competitions on my own or with a few friends round. Thanks EA Sports for putting this standard mode back in.

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All things considered, I think the changes this year represent a step up for the Fifa series. Not a significant one but enough to make its mark.

There isn't anything I strongly dislike about the game but there are some issues I'd like to see improved for next year's edition.

The main one of these is the in-match commentary. The norm for sports sims these days is the commentary flows with the action, is always contextual and adds to the big-match atmosphere. Sadly, none of these are true of the commentary in Fifa 15 which is delivered about as drearily as it’s possible to get from Martin Tyler and Alan Smith. Many of their lines are imported from last year, much of what they say bears no resemblance to what's just happened on the pitch and, perhaps most irritatingly of all, they have a habit of repeating pointless stats or useless bits of trivia about particular clubs over and over again within the same match. The commentary doesn't quite break the Fifa matchday experience, but it lessens the immersion by being constantly jarring.

Another thing which continues to stand out is the quality of the player models. As with other visuals in the game, they are better than last year and all the top players are fairly easily recognisable. It's good they display more emotion too, but many of the faces still have a vacant zombie-like expression in cutaways. Physically, players can be a bit floaty and fluffy. When they fall to the ground it can be like they landing on a bed of feathers rather than a more solid pitch.

There is still some work to be done before we're able to call an edition of Fifa perfect or the pinnacle of sports games, but Fifa 15 is another great effort. EA Sports has done enough to take the series forward, and there are several ways in which this year's version is better than last year - which by default makes it the most authentic and best all-round football simulation yet seen. Not flawless but it still hits the back of the net.

9 out of 10

Out now for 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One - PS4 version played