Penalties have been refreshed for FIFA 23, with more emphasis being placed on your penalty kicker’s Composure Attribute and how well you personally time the shot. This change is designed to make scoring penalties feel more rewarding by adding the element of timing into the process and moves away from the emphasis put on good shot placement as we’ve seen in previous iterations of the game.
Aiming the Penalty
When it comes to aiming the shot, you will notice that there isn’t a reticle anymore. This is because shots are automatically aimed within the net, about 3 feet from the posts, so all you will have to do is aim in the direction you want your shot to go in with the Left Stick and the game will do the rest.
The game will also fix your aim in position so you won’t need to hold the direction you want as the aim won’t recentre. The intent here is to allow you to focus more on timing and powering your kick.
Composure Ring
When you step up to take the penalty, the first thing you will notice is the shrinking and expanding Composure Ring, fluctuating in size around the penalty spot, just below the ball. The Composure Ring is the main component in taking penalties this year, and the accuracy of your shot is based mostly on how narrow, or how wide, the Composure Ring is when you press shoot.
The speed at which the ring contracts is based on the penalty taker’s Composure Attribute. The higher the player’s Composure Attribute, the slower the ring contracts, therefore using a player with high Composure will give you a better chance of timing your shot at the opportune moment.
Taking the Penalty
In order to take a penalty kick with great accuracy and power, you will ideally want to time your shot when the Composure Ring is at its smallest, just as it touches the perimeter of the ball, but if you want to maximise your chances of taking a successful penalty, there are a few essential things you will need to consider:
- Your player’s Penalties Attribute impacts the quality of their shot placement. The higher the Penalties Attribute the player has, the better their shot placement will be.
- Secondly, your player’s Shot Power Attribute impacts how hard the shot will be and how far to the sides of the goal the shot can reach. Although your shot will always be aimed within the frame of the goal, overpowering your shot risks missing the goal completely.
- The Finishing Attribute affects the general, overall accuracy of the shot and how proficient the player is at placing the ball into hard-to-reach places for the goalkeeper to make the save.
Additionally, Timed Finishing has been completely removed from penalties, so there is no longer any need for a second button press after locking in your shot.
As with many of the gameplay changes coming to FIFA 23 a breakdown can be found in EA's FIFA 23 Gameplay Pitch Notes Deep Dive.
So, that’s everything you need to know about how to take penalties in FIFA 23. Do you like the new changes? And will the emphasis on Composure change your squad to ensure you have a good penalty taker in it?