FIFA 19 Title Update 4 Patch Notes | New Starheads & Gameplay Fixes

FIFA 19 title update 4 is now live on PC, with console to follow soon. Patch notes (pitch notes) including gameplay fixes on AI shot blocking, AI tackling ability, constant pressure reduction on stamina, and well-timed tackles; as well as FIFA Ultimate Team (FUT) updates, new starheads, and 2D portraits…

As many of you will be aware, the EA SPORTS FIFA team have recently received their fair share of criticism. A large number of people throughout the FUT community have voiced their frustrations with the current state of the game, mainly focusing on glaring gameplay issues and continually failing servers.

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Electronic Arts are being more transparent regarding their methods to patching issues within the game. A detailed breakdown of this latest FIFA update patch can be found below thanks to EA’s latest Pitch Notes. FIFA 19 title update 4 is currently being rolled out for all PC players (as of Tuesday, November 20, 2018), and will arrive on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 very soon!

FIFA 19 Update 4 | Constant Pressure Stamina Nerfed Before & After (80th Min)

Since FIFA 19’s release, a large number of users have complained about AI defending mechanics being overpowered, particularly in the FUT Champions Weekend League. As a result of this fourth FIFA patch update, the effectiveness of AI shot blocking and AI tackling ability has been nerfed.

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Not only this, constant pressure will now result in a greater reduction of stamina. Well-timed tackles will also result in the ball moving further away from the player in possession. Full details on FUT fixes (Division Rivals pre-match flow & voice chat), the complete list of new starheads (player faces) and 2D portraits can be found below…

More: FUT Division Rivals Rewards for FIFA 19 Ultimate Team


Gameplay

Made the following changes:

  • We have made some changes to reduce the effectiveness of defending by AI Teammates.
    • In order to make the shot blocking of a defender that is being controlled by an AI Teammate less effective, we have reduced the distance that an AI Teammate defender will stretch to block a shot.
    • In order to make the tackling of a defender that is being controlled by an AI Teammate less effective, we have reduced the distance that an AI Teammate defender will stretch when making a tackle.
      • Here is what we mean by an “AI Teammate”.
        • An AI Teammate is any player on the pitch that is not being controlled by a human, or is not the CPU AI Controlled Player.
        • AI Teammates exist in the following circumstances:
          • On a team with no human players.
            • For example, the CPU-controlled team in Squad Battles.
          • On a team with a human controlled player(s) that are not locked to specific players.
            • For example, both teams in FUT Division Rivals.
          • On a team with a human player(s) that are locked to specific players, that also has CPU teammates.
            • For example, a Pro Clubs team with less than 11 human players.
        • AI Teammates do not exist in the following circumstances:
          • On a team with human players who are all locked to specific players.
            • For example, a Pro Clubs team, with 11 human players.
  • Increased the impact to fatigue of playing with defensive pressure.
    • This change will have the biggest impact on fatigue when playing with Constant Pressure enabled in your active Game Plan or when playing with Team Press active.
    • This change will have a reduced impact to fatigue when playing with Pressure On Heavy Touch or Pressure After Possession Loss enabled in your active Game Plan.
  • To make a well-timed tackle more effective, we have increased the tendency of the ball to travel further from the dribbler after the tackle, increasing the likelihood that the dribbler will lose possession of the ball.
  • Reduced the number of first time passes that CPU AI Controlled players will make out of their defensive third of the pitch when playing on Legendary or Ultimate difficulty.
    • A refresher on what we mean by “CPU AI Controlled players”.
      • The CPU plays the game as you would, limited by the same input restrictions that a human player is.
      • This means that the CPU team has an active player, just like you do, which we call the CPU AI-controlled player.
      • A CPU AI-controlled player exists in the following circumstances:
        • On a team with no human players.
          • For example, the CPU-controlled team in Squad Battles.
        • On a team with human players who are all locked to specific players, that also has CPU teammates.
          • For example, a Pro Clubs team, with less than 11 human players, with no “ANY” player.
      • A CPU AI-controlled player does not exist in the following circumstances:
        • On a team with human players who are not locked to specific players.
          • For example, a team in FUT Champions.

Addressed the following issues:

  • Sometimes when an attacking player is trying to move towards a loose ball close to the goal, they would slow down and be unable to get to the ball effectively.
  • If the keeper knocked the ball out of play during a penalty shootout, sometimes it would result in a throw-in being taken.

FIFA Ultimate Team (FUT)

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Made the following changes:

  • We have continued to make changes to the Division Rivals pre-match flow in an effort to reduce the difficulty of some players finding a match.
    • The ‘List Members’ button is no longer shown during the pre-match flow.
  • Voice chat has been disabled in Division Rivals.

Addressed the following issues:

  • Stability issue in FUT Champions Channel after watching a replay.
    • As a result of this fix, the following issues that were resolved in a previous title update may occur again, and we are working to resolve them in a future title update when available.
      • Sometimes, player models were appearing in the background after exiting a match.
      • Sometimes, a white box would appear in the background after exiting a match.
  • Entering and leaving FUT Champions Channel multiple times would result in no replays being available for viewing.
  • The FUT Champions Points redemption window was incorrectly defaulting to ‘Redeem Entry Now’ and is now defaulting to ‘Later’.
  • Items on your Transfer Target list were displaying the Bought For price from the previous Item’s owner.

Online Modes

Addressed the following issues:

  • Sometimes receiving an error message about online stats reporting failing after completion of a Pro Clubs League or Drop-In Match.

Kick Off

Addressed the following issues:

  • Player’s sometimes getting an ‘Unable To Retrieve Your Kick Off Name’s Data’ error message when trying to play a Kick-Off match.

Visual / Presentation:

Made the following changes:

  • Starheads:
    • Added the assets for 18 new player starheads.
    • Enabled legacy assets for 24 player starheads.
      • Server-side changes are required before these starheads will be available for use in game, please follow us on Twitter (link below) for updates on when these are available.
  • Updated the 2D portraits for 2440 players.
  • Updates to a number of team kits, crests, and banners.

Addressed the following issues:

  • The UEFA Champions League Honor Badge was showing after winning the tournament 4 times instead of 5.
  • Corrected the home and away kit assignments for Wolfsberger AC.
  • Sometimes the crowd would be seen waving a large linesman’s flag instead of a team flag.

FIFA 19 Starheads Update (November 20 2018)

New Starheads

FIFA 19 Title Update 4 Starheads (Godín, Icardi, Banega & Hélder Costa)

  • Ryan Sessegnon – Fulham (Premier League)
  • Éver Banega – Sevilla FC (LaLiga Santander)
  • Danny Ward – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Mauro Icardi – Inter Milan (Serie A)
  • Nathaniel Mendez-Laing – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Tim Ream – Fulham (Premier League)
  • Cyrus Christie – Fulham (Premier League)
  • Kenneth Zohore – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Bruno Ecuélé Manga – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Hélder Costa – Wolverhampton Wanderers (Premier League)
  • Morgan Gibbs-White – Wolverhampton Wanderers (Premier League)
  • Daniele Rugani – Juventus (Serie A)
  • Greg Cunningham – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Alex Smithies – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Aboubakar Kamara – Fulham (Premier League)
  • Kortney Hause – Wolverhampton Wanderers (Premier League)
  • Souleymane Bamba – Cardiff City (Premier League)
  • Diego Godín – Atlético de Madrid (LaLiga Santander)

Legacy Starheads (Returning From Previous Titles)

  • Raúl Lizoain – AD Alcorcón (Spain Segunda A)
  • Papiss Demba Cissé – Aytemiz Alanyaspor (Süper Lig)
  • Jack Rodwell – Blackburn Rovers (EFL Championship)
  • Robbie McCourt – Bohemians (SSE Airtricity League)
  • Stephen Quinn – Burton Albion (EFL League One)
  • Youssouf Mulumbu – Celtic (Scottish Premiership)
  • David Henen – Charleroi (Pro League)
  • Jonathan Calleri – Deportivo Alavés (LaLiga Santander)
  • Alex Song – FC Sion (Switzerland Super League)
  • Ross Wallace – Fleetwood Town (EFL League One)
  • Kenza Dali – France Women (Women’s National)
  • Alessio Cerci – MKE Ankaragücü (Süper Lig)
  • Claudio Yacob – Nottingham Forest (EFL Championship)
  • Yaya Touré – Olympiacos CFP (Rest of World)
  • Àngel Rangel – Queens Park Rangers (EFL Championship)
  • Eiji Kawashima – RC Strasbourg (Ligue 1)
  • Nedum Onuoha – Real Salt Lake (MLS)
  • Martin Cranie – Sheffield United (EFL Championship)
  • Hatem Ben Arfa – Stade Rennais (Ligue 1)
  • Stéphane Mbia – Toulouse FC (Ligue 1)
  • Marvin Emnes – Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS)
  • Lee Chung-yong – VfL Bochum (2. Bundesliga)
  • Wes Hoolahan – West Bromwich Albion (EFL Championship)
  • Bakary Sako – West Bromwich Albion (EFL Championship)

Have the EA SPORTS FIFA team taken another step in the right direction with this latest FIFA update patch? We’d love to hear your thoughts and opinions on this FIFA 19 title update 4 via Twitter.

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