Football fans all know the excitement or, more recently, the agony, of awaiting the newest version of the FIFA franchise, but where do they rank from the last 14 years?

If you're a Pro Evolution Soccer fan, you might view all FIFAs as one entity, but the majority of players will lament or praise each variant, often bemused by the decisions of EA. 

We've seen the addition of game modes such as The Journey, growth in the ability to mimic behaviour, and significant game changes such as team chemistry.

It seems fair enough to forgo comparing graphics, which have seen relatively consistent improvement over the years, keeping in tune with technology as a whole. The tier is more concerned with gameplay and features.

But ahead of FIFA 21's release on October 6 this year, how do the last 13 versions fair? Here goes our personal opinion.

Trash

FIFA 20

Sure, FIFA 20 saw a return of the much-loved Street Football component, but it seemed to favour attackers far too much and shifted from genuine player movement. It was lazy from EA. 

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FIFA 19

It was a step-up from FIFA 18, not that that's saying much. Much of the altered game modes felt uninspired and the game seemed to plateau slightly in terms of quality. 

FIFA 18

Patches and bugs hugely affected the Ultimate Team mode, with people having to spend money to get a decent team. 

Average

FIFA 16

It was good that FIFA finally added the women's game mode, but failed to correlate the quality and it became more difficult to play with the women's teams - not to mention how overpowered some of the players were. But it was somewhat refreshing to adapt to new strategies.

FIFA 14

Player control saw something of a dip in FIFA 14, but that change was welcome when defending pacy attackers. 

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FIFA 13 

It was a significant improvement from other versions of the game, but the gameplay and player control left room for improvement. FIFA 13 let you choose to go through the mode as a player with specific standards set by a manager, which was a good twist.

FIFA 07

A much-improved manager mode meant a strong showing from FIFA 07, which also sponsored Accrington Stanley for the 2007/08 season.

Good

FIFA 15

The cutaways and game footage was slightly worse than we'd seen before, but the AI was well executed and it allowed for some entertaining FIFA to be played. 

FIFA 11

Strength and speed gained all new focus in FIFA 11, becoming more important as gameplay shifted, particularly due to the Personality Plus feature.

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FIFA 10

Opponent AI and 360 player control was a big step forward in the FIFA games, and the Virtual Pro element gave players a new way to enjoy the game. 

FIFA 09

There was only a brief period between the Euro 2008 game and FIFA 09, but an increase in pace and more need for accuracy forced a refined version of the game, to good effect. 

Amazing

FIFA 17

FIFA 17 was just consistent. It was more reliable than other versions and gave you more control over your players. It also gave us The Journey which, not mindblowing, was a nice way for FIFA to offer more to its players.

FIFA 08

This version saw a genuine revolution for the series. There was a far more authentic understanding of pace and the improvement in added AI some much-needed depth to the gameplay.

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God

FIFA 12

The undisputed GOAT of the FIFA franchise. Realism combined with ingenuity, providing new game modes and exciting features, created FIFA's unrivalled edition so far. 

It's a shame the recent versions of the game have seen a dip, with EA overcompensating in various areas to try and capitalise on the popularity of the game modes, at the expense of the game itself. 

But the complaints are common, from erratic controls to unrealistic abilities, so it remains a wonder they're so consistent in the games. 

Of course, there's sentimentality attached to every tier and it's unlikely any two would exactly be the same. The tier is motivated by what the game truly offers, rather than expected evolutions such as sound and image quality.