FIFA 16 Release Date for PS4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC: Lionel Messi and Women’s Soccer Christine Sinclair

Jul 25, 2015 01:49 AM EDT

As far as sports games go, the FIFA franchise is one of the most popular.  Since football (or as the Americans call it, soccer) is played worldwide, the game has an appeal that is known all around the globe.  There has been some recent developments on the FIFA 16 Release Date for the PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC, as well as some new features with Lionel Messi's "no touch dribbling" and the addition of female athletes in the game and on the cover. 

According to Engadget, FIFA 16 is the first sports game that will feature female athletes on the cover. This actually wasn't a real secret, as it was announced that Lionel Messi would be on the cover, along with other players. There was a list of applicants, and some of them were female.

It was finalized that Olympic gold medalist Alex Morgan will be running alongside Messi for the United States edition, while Christine Sinclair will adorn the cover for the Canadian edition. There is even an Australian edition with Stephanie Catley. 

Yes, it would appear that the women appearing on the cover won't be available in every country, but it is a definite step for gender equality in sports.  According to Attack of the Fanboy, Christine Sinclair had this to say about the cover: "To be featured in the game and to promote women's soccer with Alex [Morgan] is really special and another exciting step for women in sports".

PC Advisor reports that the update of FIFA will have female players.  FIFA 16 features 12 Women's National Teams for the first time in the franchise history and includes game modes Match Day, an Offline Tournament, as well as Online Friendly Matches.  There will be teams from Austrailia, Brazil, Canada, China, England, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, and the United States who will represent their respective federations in several FIFA 16 game modes. 

In addition to the aforementioned features, there will be a new move based on soccer superstar Lionel Messi's "No Touch Dribbling", according to Vine Report.  The move allows the player to temporarily let the ball stand and change in direction of the stance, which fakes a turn in his run, but then changes back into a certain direction and going back into the ball.  EA Sports even had Messi come in to demonstrate his signature move so the development team could replicate it using motion capture.  This "No Touch Dribbling" move is not just exclusive to Messi, but it can be used by any player, although the success rate is still dependent on how skilled the player is. 

FIFA 16 will be available for the PC, PS4, PC, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PS3 on September 22nd in the United States.  It will arrive in the UK a few days later on the 26th.   FIFA 16 is available to pre-order now, and players can choose from standard, deluxe, and Super Deluxe editions.  The Super Deluxe Edition comes with 40 FIFA Ultimate Team Jumbo Premium Gold Packs, three FIFA Ultimate Team loan players for five games each, as well as two brand new celebrations.