Many FIFA fans might find it odd to find the words FIFA and "story mode" in the same sentence, but that's exactly what's happening with FIFA 17. For the first time you'll be able to play a cinematic, story-led FIFA mode called The Journey, where you play as a young footballer called Alex Hunter. He's an up-and-coming star from a footballing family and he's looking to sign to a Premier League team.

How well he does and what team he plays for is ultimately up to you. Your decisions, your performance and your overall story will all decide whether he's got a future as one of England's best players. And while that might seem like a strange move for the FIFA brand or EA Sports, it's a decision that's based on feedback from the fans.

"There were a couple of things that inspired us to make The Journey," explained Aaron Mchardy, Lead Gameplay Producer on FIFA 17. "We knew we needed a new mode in the game and we've been looking at that for some time. But the start of that conversation was actually some years ago.

"We'd done some research with our fans and what they were telling us was that a single player narrative-driven, cinematic-style mode is something they've been wanting, so we knew it was something that we wanted to create.

"But the big thing that unlocked the ability to do that is the move to the Frostbite engine. That technological announcement that we made today has allowed us to make content in a way that's so much more rapid than we used to be able to do. It allowed us to create The Journey."

The Journey's story won't just take place on the pitch of course. Just like a real football career, you'll be part of all of the elements of Alex Hunter's career from panicking in his bedroom back at his Grandpa's house to travelling on private jets and seeing his name on the back of a shirt for the first time.

And as for Alex himself, there's a reason why he isn't a blank slate; why EA Sports isn't giving you the option to create your own Premier League star.

"We looked at the world of football and we looked at the makeup of the leagues and the young players that were coming up. We picked a character that we think is representative of that," explained McHardy.

Hunter is mixed race, from a less-affluent background and he's obviously got a lot of passion for the sport – from the short scenes we've seen and played from The Journey so far, anyway. He's not your average video game frontman and it's certainly a good thing. But it's also a representation of the diversity of football as a sport.

"I think we're fortunate enough this year to talk about Dele Alli and Marcus Rashford and these other young guys that are coming out who are basically living what we were trying to capture with The Journey. They're all living that [journey] this season.

"When you look at Rashford in the late part of the season scoring two goals on his debut; scoring the FA Cup winner; being called up to the English National Team – that's the embodiment of what we're talking about with Alex Hunter and what he's about to embark upon with his journey. Hopefully you're able to take him through and realise that in your own way."