With the Championship Manager series mounting a resurgence of almost Manchester City-style proportions, it's time to see how the champ responds to Beautiful Game Studios' challenge.
After last year's slightly disappointing debuting 3D match engine, Sports Interactive have clearly taken many of the criticisms on board. One hundred new animations and animated crowds have been added, giving the game match day experiences that are beginning to do justice to the unrivalled realism of Football Manager 2010's engine. But a 2D pitch view and commentary options have been retained for the purists.
With the visual improvements in place, watching matches has now become an even more enjoyable experience. Viewing games in their entirety is akin to watching the real thing, while it's always clear how your tactical tweakings are influencing what's happening on the field.
The full-screen match action also possesses a collection of superb and unobtrusive shortcuts that allow you to make myriad changes without ever taking your eye off the ball. Touchline orders can now be barked at your players, and range from commands to retain possession to sitting deeper or pushing up the pitch.
While Championship Manager 2010 may have raised its game in a number of key departments, FM2010 remains in a league of its own in the field of match realism, though once again you should prepare yourself for a smattering of irritating bugs and glitches, such as the on-pitch action occasionally jamming for extended periods.
Wherever you cast your eye you discover tweaks, and while most of these are minor rather than revolutionary, FM2010 does feel more accessible than its predecessor thanks to its complete navigational overhaul and a fresh new look that employs a clear, tabbed and windowed interface not too dissimilar to FIFA Manager's. But don't let that put you off as within a couple of hours you'll start seeing the redesign's benefits, which are bolstered by streamlined and improved player guidance and an intuitive, step-by-step tactics creator. It's also easier to define player roles, eg. box-to-box or holding midfielder.
Newcomers have never been better catered for, though the game's sheer depth could still prove a stumbling block for FM virgins. Another small but useful tweak is the bolstered back room staff feedback, which lets you grill your coaches on a cornucopia of topics, such as recommendations for new scouts to opinions on how certain players can improve. This tool quickly becomes one of several invaluable aids that you use to decipher where your club's setup is succeeding and failing, and despite a few contradictions, the guidance you're given is generally very useful.
Another neat touch is the revamped news section that allows you to keep track of key football-related events from across the globe, while an excellent filter system lets you customise exactly which news stories you're fed.
On a less positive note, there are a number of balancing issues, such as your squad mewling that you're not giving them enough credit three games into pre-season, despite the fact you've sent them flowers and jam after every match as a token of your appreciation, while the team talk options remain as uninspired as ever.
There's also little evidence of improvement in the press conference department, with answers still feeling a little too obviously tiered. This is certainly the slickest FM to date: a hugely engrossing management experience that will have lawyers adding an extra box labelled 'Football Manager' to divorce forms. However, there is an underlying, niggling feeling that the game lacks enough serious innovation.
For the first time in its history, the franchise finds itself second best to Championship Manager in a number of key departments - most noticeable, training, scouting and set pieces - and while its superiority remains intact, its dominance isn't as clear cut as in previous years. Football Manager is still the best, but the chasing pack is slowly, but very surely, closing the gap.
Martin Korda
// Overview
Verdict
Still the champ!
Uppers
Match engine looks better Navigation easier Excellent feedback
Been playing the new Champ Manager leading up to the release of the Footy Manager 2010 demo. While it's certainly improved, it's still a joke of a management game, so I can't agree with the "catching up" comment. If we're talking about which franchaise has improved more with each new version, then yes, Champ Manager gets the nod, however Footy Manager doesn't really have as much to improve on, so it's natural there would be no "revolutionary" features.
with the new football manager, when watching a match, can you check the player stats quickly this time? I seem to remember I stopped playing 09 because every time you get the screen how you want it, it would flick to a key moment and reset the screen I just want to watch the game in 3d and easily see how many passes people are missing and i would buy it right now.
I think I have finally come to the conclusion that Football Manager is just too bloody hard.
It is the most complex and unrewarding game I have ever played (I'm talking about FM 2009 here) yet you still keep coming back.
It is utterly time-consuming, and with little reward, I decided to stop playing it. My team of stars with meticulously adjusted sliders could still only finish 3rd in the league.
I want games to make me feel like a god not like Steve Bruce.
yeah football manager 2009 was hard, but thats what made it enjoyable when u finally had a decent formation sorted and your team had blended.
I pretty much played the same 4-4-2 for 6 seasons and won the title in 5 of them with a team not really full of megastars, i just adjusted the formation settings and finally found one that worked for my team. Am glad that creating a tactic seems more fluid and u can see the results on the pitch this time as last years effort was very much guess work on how to get the best out of your team, i was just lucky enough to have guessed right.
I really hope the transfer system has been worked on tho, it was pretty pointless enquiring about a player last year, and u couldn't be a high class player for love nor money when we all know u can get say a Silva for around £30mil in real life £60odd still wouldnt get u a place at the negotiating table.
yeah football manager 2009 was hard, but thats what made it enjoyable when u finally had a decent formation sorted and your team had blended.
I pretty much played the same 4-4-2 for 6 seasons and won the title in 5 of them with a team not really full of megastars, i just adjusted the formation settings and finally found one that worked for my team. Am glad that creating a tactic seems more fluid and u can see the results on the pitch this time as last years effort was very much guess work on how to get the best out of your team, i was just lucky enough to have guessed right.
No way on earth is it possible to win the title 5 times in 6 seasons without cheating (reloading/replaying matches). The randomness of results sees to it that winning prolifically like that is impossible unless you have a world class player in every position and even then it is bloody hard.
There is not enough reward in FM. Even the player development is painstakingly slow and incremental. Realistic yes, but gratifying? not really.
FM2009 hard....try biased! I've put in hundreds of hours over the past 12 months playing as Manchester United and consistently finish second in the Premier League some 15 points behind bottomnal. FM2009 must be the least realistic version ever released...I mean who remembers the last time bottomnal won anything? I detect a distinct North London bias here and hope the new version is better, my ego can't take much more of this...
Of all the reviews of FM 2009, Graham Smith from PC Gamer got it right - 'The series is stagnating' 69%. I hope to god 2010 is an improvement over the last few years because I'm still playing FM 06.
The best thing SI can do IMO is release seasonal data updates and match engine tweaks instead of introducing such pointless crap like pre match press conferences with their multi choice questions. I remember playing 09 and thinking how inconsistent, frustrating & harder the series is becoming. Yes I like a challenge but it's a game and games are meant to be enjoyed.
You would think the guys at SI would have nailed FM by now considering how many versions they released since the early Champ Manager days.
Lol what a buch of whiney babies, FM2009 wasn't hard imo. Then again I'm a vet of Champ Man as I still call it, been playing since it was on floppy discs. God that makes me feel older than my 25 years!
To the one that asks for seasonal data updates, they do do that so not sure what you're moaning about.
The new one is def a cut above anything else although I did like the set pieces - when it didn't crash - from the 'other' Champ Man.
First season is done in 10, as always I pick my team United for first play. Bought Ribery for £38mill, went on an amazing run in first half of season but started flagging second half, knocked out of FA cup in semis by Chelski, knocked out of League Cup semis by Everton but pipped Chelski to league on last day and beat them for first time in the season 3-0 to win Champions League. Mainly played 4-4-2, 2 full back,2 central defender roles, ball winning mid and advanced playmaker with 2 wingers and a poacher and advanced forward. Normally set to flair and control to start games. Alternated occasionaly to 4-5-1 away and changed roles in 4-4-2 for harder games. Rooney finished on 40+ goals and Berba 30+. 5 players in team of season and Berba top scorer in Champions League.
So novices instead of moaning how hard it is, get working on your tactics and win something
Oh and go to FM britain for tactical advice if you really do struggle, SI put far more work into the tactics than you think. I would imagine you are just not very tactically minded with football as not everybody is. Football in real life requires tinkering for every game to match opposition - unless they crap - so you need to adjust accordingly in game, it's not the game that is inconsistent tahts football in real life. Barca getting beat from unknows in Europe when they are the champions, Real being beat from 3rd division nobodys in cup, Chelsea getting beat by Wigan and United getting beat by Burnley in the league...not the game, that's real life!
Oh and one extra bit for Mr. Team of Stars, that isn't how you win things...google Galacticos if you know little about football or use that example if you do. You have to find the balance, hence United having players like Fletcher, O Shea etc
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Match engine looks better
I just want to watch the game in 3d and easily see how many passes people are missing and i would buy it right now.
