As you progress through The Journey, you can switch between these three characters (who EA calls Heroes) and play matches for their respective teams. That said, you will get a notification when EA thinks you should change who you're playing with since there is an "optimal, curated experience" that you can follow. That's important if you like to get the most out of the cinematic cutscenes in The Journey, or if you like to make important decisions for your Hero that'll determine your personality in the game. How you answer a question from, say, a journalist can affect how your coach views your attitude to the game.

You can make the Hunters or Williams be either "Cool," "Balanced" or "Fiery." I, for one, usually go with the last one because I like the people in the game to know that my player will be the best ever. For Hunter, how you choose his personality is crucial because his new flashy agent is keen on making him the next Cristiano Ronaldo. She wants to turn him into a brand -- not just for him to be a great footballer. We all know Ronaldo is the ultimate product shill, so Hunter is going to have a lot of work to do.

There are four total chapters in The Journey: Champions, but we were only allowed to write about the first two for now. That's good in a way because most everyone hates spoilers, and you should be given the opportunity to find out how Hunter's story unfolds. Especially since this is the end of it. It's unclear whether The Journey will return in FIFA 20: All EA Sports could tell me was that this is the end for Alex Hunter, but considering the success of its story mode, it wouldn't surprise me to see more narratives in future editions.

Aside from welcoming the Champions League and a new Journey, FIFA 19 builds on everything that's made it so fun to play for decades. Game mechanics are still smooth and players look more real than ever before -- seriously, my wife often thinks I'm watching an actual match on the TV. One of my favorite upgrades, however, is that EA Sports made the AI smarter, which means that defenders and goalkeepers are harder to beat. Similarly, but more importantly, the AI players on your team now make more efficient passes and are more proactive off the ball, making it easier to find them in space or when you have a defender all over you.

And if you want to play Champions League games outside of The Journey, of course, that's an option. Not only will it be embedded into career mode but you can play the tournament against friends or the AI. Hopefully, you can lift that big, beautiful trophy by the end of it.