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No online play for FIFA 12 3DS

No StreetPass or SpotPass features, either.

The Nintendo 3DS version of FIFA 12 does not feature online play, EA has confirmed.

In a press release issued this week EA said the game had "head-to-head online", which allows you to "play local online against a friend in authentic 11 versus 11 matches or five versus five street games using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection".

That caused some fans to believe the game features proper online play. Not so.

"Currently, we only have local head-to-head play, but server-based online is certainly something we would be looking at in the future," producer Matt Prior told Nintendo World Report.

The news is sure to disappoint handheld FIFA fans, and comes as a surprise: the Nintendo DS version of FIFA 11 featured online play.

Additionally, the 3DS version does not make use of the console's StreetPass or SpotPass features.

The EA Canada-developed game has new touchscreen controls, though, that allow users to shoot from the player's viewpoint using the lower touch screen and then finesse the shot. During set pieces you can draw a shot that curves the ball around walls.

The game is described as having "the largest feature set ever developed by EA Sports for a handheld football game".

The new 3D Street Football Mode implements a curved pitch and "unique" lower camera view that is said to maximise 3D planes. This, EA said, enables games to "experience the depth of the field and player movement with full 3D effects".