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How to get the most out of FIFA 18's The Journey
Alex Hunter returns in FIFA 18 – these top tips will help you win and have the best experience.
The Journey story mode was a great new addition to FIFA 17, but if you made the wrong decisions, the story of Alex Hunter’s rise from exit trials to Premier League star wasn’t as compelling as it could have been. Did anyone choose to play as a relegation-threatened Premier League team because you only needed a 6.5 rating to make the first 11? Yes? Then you probably would have been stuck in mid-table during the second half of the season with not much to play for.
So, to ensure you get the most out of FIFA 18’s The Journey: Hunter Returns, we have some top tips that will help you make the right decisions, win matches, earn rewards and, most importantly, have a lot of fun.
Play as a striker
You might be a left winger in real life or you might not fancy the responsibility of being the main goalscorer, but you need to have confidence in your own ability and play up front.
Yes, it is easier to score from crosses in FIFA 18 and passing the ball to your teammates will keep your rating ticking over, but you get a far bigger boost when you score a goal and it's much easier to do that if you're playing down the middle rather than out wide.
Choose a good team
Play as a top sides in the Premier League
© EA
Pick a team with a chance of winning the league. Because of the way the story plays out in Hunter Returns, it’s not as big a deal as in FIFA 17, but it’s easier to win matches and get rewards when you’re playing with better players. If you’re a Huddersfield fan, you might fancy playing as The Terriers, but there’s always Career mode for that.
Play all the training games
Playing all the training games rather than simulating them will improve your ratings, so make sure that you play them all and retry them if you don’t get an A. It is worth bearing in mind, though, that the game will take your last score. So if you’re struggling with a training game and manage to get a B with one try left, sometimes it’s best sticking with that than risking getting an F in the final attempt.
Be cool
Play it cool, Danny, play it cool...
© EA
When you have to choose a response to a question, you have three possible answers – cool, fiery or balanced. As in the first game, choosing the cool response will gain you favour with the manager and earn you more playing time, but lose you followers on Twitter (not loads, mind), while a fiery response will gain you followers.
However, this time, your responses can also earn you new gear – certain clothes, boots and hairstyles are only available if you max out your cool or fiery rating or achieve a certain amount of followers. So, don’t bother with balanced responses as you won’t max out your cool or fiery rating and earn a reward.
Then it’s up to you whether you want to be cool or fiery. If you play well in the games, fiery responses shouldn’t affect your game time, but we’d rather play it cool. Admittedly, some of the responses can be a bit media trained, but it’s better to be in the manager’s good books, right? Besides, if you max out your cool rating, you’ll get a nice Adidas hoodie. So, unless you really fancy that max fiery hairdo, be cool.
Upgrade your skills
As you play you’ll earn skill tokens which you can use to upgrade your skills as a Finisher or a Creator. If you’re playing as a striker as we suggested, use them to improve your finishing stats. If you're a CAM, you can be a Creator.
Play as a team
You can choose to play as a team or just Alex Hunter. Playing as Alex Hunter is tricky as the camera angle is different from a normal game of FIFA. It's not any easier to achieve your goals by just playing as Hunter, so we always play as a team.
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How to do a Triple Elastico in FIFA 18
Watch the video tutorial on how to do a Triple Elastico in FIFA 18. Triple Elastico demands a bit more practice to execute correctly.
How to get the most out of Alex Hunter
Alex Hunter has good pace, so that means you can make good use of through balls as he sprints into space. If the through ball isn’t on, or you’re not going to beat the defender for pace, turn back and keep hold of the ball. He’s not that good in the air, so play low crosses into the box, or, even better, pass back to him from the by-line for a simple tap in.
You can expect spoilers from here on. If you don't want to know anything about the story, be warned!
Don't worry about the key decisions (Chapter 2 onwards)
Your choices will affect your relationships
© EA
The key decisions may seem like a big deal, but they don’t affect the story. Sacking your agent at the end of Chapter 2 won’t result in a move to Real Madrid. You’ll still end up at LA Galaxy, but you just won’t see him for the rest of the game. Your future is already determined.
Chapter 3 – How to win as LA Galaxy
Win the MLS Cup with LA Galaxy
© EA
In Chapter 3, Hunter will go to LA Galaxy on loan. Gyasi Zardes is pacy, but isn’t the best finisher so it’s best to use him to set up Hunter or Giovani Dos Santos. Or Hunter could also get assists by holding the ball up and knocking it through to Dos Santos, a skill you’ll need to learn later in the game.
How to get the most out of Kim Hunter
You can play as Kim Hunter in FIFA 18
© EA
During your time at Galaxy, you’ll get to play as Alex Hunter’s half-sister Kim. She is only 16 years old, but she has already broken into the US national team squad. She is a sub and comes on to the pitch with her team 2-0 down against Germany. The goal? To get a decent rating and win the match (although a draw will get you your chapter reward).
The US team are slow and it’s hard to get the ball off Germany when you give it away, so you need to play a patient passing game. Pass the ball quickly to move the German defenders around, and, when you see a player in space, get the ball to them and score. Easy! Oh, and you can score from the opening free-kick by whipping the ball in just behind the defenders – if you’re lucky (we managed it once), Kim Hunter will sweep home from the edge of the box.
Chapter 4 – Which team should you choose?
You can play for Atlético Madrid
© EA
At the beginning of Chapter 4, you can choose to sign for Atlético Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich. Unlike your decision in the first Journey, it really doesn’t matter who you pick as they're all good. Just think about which of the three European giants you’d like to play as, which players you’d like to link up with and which league you prefer. Answer: Atlético Madrid!
Chapter 5 – How to get the most out of Danny Williams
Revive Danny Williams' career
© EA
In Chapter 5, Alex Hunter gets an injury that rules him out for months, but you can play as Danny Williams in the Premier League. Danny isn’t blessed with pace like Alex Hunter, but he is good in the air. So, when taking corners, put the ball into space in front of him and he may nod it in. You can also swing over crosses for him to score from.
A big target man, it’s worth using him to hold the ball up and bring others into play – lay the ball out wide and get in the box for those crosses or play through balls to faster teammates and bag some assists.
Chapter 6 – How to form a good strike partnership and win
Getting assists is as important as scoring
© EA
In the final chapter of The Journey, you are not only judged on your goalscoring, but your strike partnership. You have to get assists for your new teammate and build up your rating so that your understanding is rated 'telepathic'. Our advice would be to forget about that and focus on winning the game first – if you try too hard to set up your teammate, you could end up giving the ball away, failing to improve your match rating and getting subbed. So, play your normal game and it will come. With a couple of cup matches, plus the league games, you have plenty of time to get the six assists you need for your reward, and remember, your strike partner’s assists will also build up your rating.
So try and score first and then worry about the assists. The easiest way to get assists is to find space. Forcing it by trying to find your teammate when they don’t have space to run into won’t work. Play a through ball if it’s on, cut in from the flanks and play passes from the by-line for tap-ins, and if you’re right through on the keeper and your strike partner is alongside you, pass to him for an open goal.
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Play Like A Pro – how to score goals in FIFA 18
Watch this video tutorial that provides tips and tricks on how to score more goals in FIFA 18.
