FIFA 14: Breaking Down Europe's Xbox One Exclusive Release-Day Deal

As an American sports video game fan, I'll do my best not to be jealous of the newest offer for FIFA 14 from Xbox One—it is exclusively for European FIFA fans.

As an avid gamer who has already pre-ordered a Day One version of the console, the task gets even tougher.

Microsoft and EA Sports announced a deal for European gamers at Gamescom that is sure to get the attention of both world football and gamers: Consumers who purchase a Day One edition of Xbox One will receive a free digital copy of FIFA 14, per Joystiq.com.

That is pretty awesome. I wonder if I can temporarily relocate to Belfast...probably not.

There was some confusion about the deal initially, as some believed the offer would be good for anyone who purchased an Xbox One. But Graeme Boyd, the social marketing manager for Xbox, took to Twitter to clear up any confusion: 

As is normally the case, consumers who move swiftly get the sweetest deal.

Including a digital copy is a great idea because it further drives home the concept of disc-less gaming. Offering a spanking new title like FIFA 14 as a digital copy on launch day only encourages fans to keep gaming this way.

Disc-less gaming is obviously the wave of the future, as producing the titles is less expensive without a physical product. At some point, having a hard copy of a game will be a rarity.

As a companion piece to the digital copy of FIFA 14, European consumers who purchase a Day One edition of Xbox One will also receive the Ultimate Team Legends card pack, per Xbox Wire.

This feature will give gamers access to legends like Pele for use in the ever-popular Ultimate Team mode.

Like most offers, this one isn't for everyone. But for those who qualify, it is a major reason to commit to the Xbox One as your choice in the next-generation console war.

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