By GFinity
EA Sports have released a brand new trailer for the next instalment of their eagerly anticipated football simulator, FIFA 17. However, in addition to this, EA also announced a new $1.3 million eSports initiative for their FIFA Ultimate Team franchise, the FUT Championship Series.
Players will be able to compete in a new game mode, dubbed the ‘FUT Champions’. Through each week, fans will compete within a variety of challenges and competitions, in order to earn their spot in the brand new ‘Weekend Leagues’.
Once in the ‘Weekend Leagues’, players will have the opportunity to battle for in game items such as coins or limited edition player cards, as they attempt to climb through the ranks, from Bronze to Elite. Players at the top of the FUT Champions monthly leaderboards will earn an invite to one of six Regional Finals, with the top placing finalists earning an invite to the FIFA Interactive World Cup.
VP and Chief Competition Officer, Peter Moore, believes EA Sports fans will enjoy the new eSports feature, stating; “The popularity of Ultimate Team, combined with the global nature of the most popular sports franchise on the planet, makes FIFA 17 a very exciting title for a season of competitive gaming like the one we are announcing today. We want all players to experience the thrill of competition, and we have a great season ahead for all our fans.”
FUT Champions is the latest feature announced for FIFA 17, along with improvements to the Career and Pro Clubs Mode, as well as the introduction of a story mode for the first time in the franchise’s history.
EA Sports have also confirmed that FIFA 17 will be running on its impressive Frostbite engine, and have released a gameplay trailer to show the graphical improvements the new engine has made, which can be viewed above, ahead of its September 29th UK release date.