Despite its consistency over the years, there’s always been something missing in FIFA. Drill past the flawlessly recreated stadiums and the blemish-perfect faces, past the stacks of Ultimate Team cards and officially licensed boots and, no matter how deep you go, you never come across anything close to a footballing soul. There’s plenty of opportunity to spend money and ogle celebrity players, but remove the glitz and glamour, and the passion for the sport—the love of the game itself—is sorely missing.

It’s often easier to win fans by creating a spectacle than it is by playing the best football, and FIFA 17 continues this tradition with the inclusion of The Journey. An attempt at recreating the kind of athlete-focused narrative that 2K’s NBA franchise has had for years, The Journey tells the story of young prodigy Alex Hunter and his bid to become a superstar.

You get to choose what Hunter says to the media, his manager, and a recurring rival. Your choices lead to small alterations in how other characters view you, but the core plot beats remain fixed no matter what you do. As such, there sometimes exists an enormous disconnect between your actions and the resultant outcome. Even if you outscore everyone in the team when you’re on the pitch you won’t be treated with the kind of respect such a feat deserves until you’ve hit the relevant narrative milestone.