Topic: Pro Evolution Soccer Series

[AndyMuller]

Not just PES itself but I actually think Konami are dead and buried in the video game landscape too.

[ToneLa]

Dude it's fucking dead! They are not going to bother developing a polished-up version for Next-gen, if the game is now focussed on casual fans and free to play, and the engine has to work cross-platform for mobile phones and PS4.

Maybe, but did you even watch that video? That was the point of the post

1) you can mod PES 2021 to amazing levels right now if you want, that video is all Liverpool too so should be a fun watch!
2) if there's a saving grace for this wreck of a new one it is the Unreal engine. Trust me, I've researched it for my own job in game development. I do think the community could save PES 2022 in theory on PC

Although it being free to play and always online = I fear they will hobble modding even in the best engine FOR modding.

At this rate, this video I put in is how my own PES 2021 is setup, give or take a few mods, and I could absolutely see keeping it around for a good long while.

[Craig Mac]

Maybe, but did you even watch that video? That was the point of the post

1) you can mod PES 2021 to amazing levels right now if you want, that video is all Liverpool too so should be a fun watch!
2) if there's a saving grace for this wreck of a new one it is the Unreal engine. Trust me, I've researched it for my own job in game development. I do think the community could save PES 2022 in theory on PC

Although it being free to play and always online = I fear they will hobble modding even in the best engine FOR modding.

At this rate, this video I put in is how my own PES 2021 is setup, give or take a few mods, and I could absolutely see keeping it around for a good long while.

That’s looks phenomenal. I am a total novice but any idea how to get my game looking like that, which mods to use how to set up etc?

[ToneLa]

<a href="http://" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://</a>

That’s looks phenomenal. I am a total novice but any idea how to get my game looking like that, which mods to use how to set up etc?

https://www.gofundme.com/f/exhgy8-knightmd039s-pc?utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet

Should say in the video description Basically..I..  looked into grabbing all the mods for free but a lot of the PES file sites are well dodgy or slow.

So I kicked a bit of cash to the fella who did that video and he sends you a link to all the mods uploaded to his Google drive. Simplest way

Still a ballache. It's not technically tricky but the mod folders are absolutely huge on your machine.

But it's why I love this series and why no matter how bad Efootball might be, I have an almost genuinely next-gen solution already

[naYoRHa2b]

Master league and such will be dlc then

I'll see what it's like since it's free and if it plays well then might pick up the ML dlc later down the line.

[jackh]

Reserving judgement until I've given it a go, but I feel like they'd have been better to change to this new model from a position of strength (i.e. after establishing themselves on the next-gen) rather than going all-in with such a big gamble from the outset.

Think I posted about this a few pages back, but on the current generation consoles they've basically repaired the damage done on the 'seventh generation' consoles (PS3 & 360) - the games have ultimately been a reward for the fans who've stuck with the series.

There's a lot of pressure on them during the year or two ahead - maintaining current form isn't going to be good enough to close their market share to FIFA, and if they arrive on the PS5 & X/S with anything like what they did in 2008 I think it spells trouble for the series because it'll un-do all of that loyalty that they've relied on whilst building up to the last couple of releases.

[lionel_messias]

Maybe, but did you even watch that video? That was the point of the post

1) you can mod PES 2021 to amazing levels right now if you want, that video is all Liverpool too so should be a fun watch!
2) if there's a saving grace for this wreck of a new one it is the Unreal engine. Trust me, I've researched it for my own job in game development. I do think the community could save PES 2022 in theory on PC

Although it being free to play and always online = I fear they will hobble modding even in the best engine FOR modding.

At this rate, this video I put in is how my own PES 2021 is setup, give or take a few mods, and I could absolutely see keeping it around for a good long while.

Yeah yeah for sure, I have seen this guy's work on those realism videos: absolutely ace. I think you are right PES 2021 will live on with mods I reckon. The work done for the PC community is phenomenal.

[lionel_messias]

Reserving judgement until I've given it a go, but I feel like they'd have been better to change to this new model from a position of strength (i.e. after establishing themselves on the next-gen) rather than going all-in with such a big gamble from the outset.

Yeah I think that's right, I reckon Konami knew they didn't have enough content OR high-quality visuals to justify a £70 next gen title, nor would they in future versions.

They have pretty much ditched the modding community now, including those who make money from streaming seasons on Twitch/YouTube etc. Their producer pretty much came out and said they are not concentrating on Player vs AI any more, more player vs player online. This surely means Master League will be bollocks or very least a rehash of last year's homework.

[ToneLa]

Yeah yeah for sure, I have seen this guy's work on those realism videos: absolutely ace. I think you are right PES 2021 will live on with mods I reckon. The work done for the PC community is phenomenal.

Cool. Its absolutely sad its looking like a wildly modded PES 2021 is going to be the best football game for years to come

But that's on Konami. While I WISH efootball will turn out great,

I'm not posting mod videos because I believe it will be! 

Fucking Konami. I hated that network test as well.

[Samie]

Dodo was a red card waiting to happen, you don't want to tangle with that nutter. Dodo's permanent mindset was Stevie G v Man Utd 38 second red card 2011. Basically a modern Goikoetxea in a wig.

Then there was Castolo, speed of an Olympic Sprinter with the eyesight of Eddie the Eagle.

PES XI, using 3-5-2 before it was cool again. What a game.

 

Minanda or Ximelez would make Zidane look like a pub league #10 mate.  Ximelez was awesome, could play across the wings or as a #10.

[Darren G]

That’s looks phenomenal. I am a total novice but any idea how to get my game looking like that, which mods to use how to set up etc?

 Go to: https://evoweb.uk

 There's a PES editing forum there with everything you need, from all of the downloads to tutorials on how to get everything installed.  You have to sign up to view the forum, providing your email, but it's safe, free, you won't get any spam etc. 

[Drinks Sangria]

Minanda or Ximelez would make Zidane look like a pub league #10 mate.  Ximelez was awesome, could play across the wings or as a #10.

Minanda. What a player. Slow as shit. Temperamental. Magician.

On a nostalgia kick for PES, there's very little good YouTube content showing the old PES's Master Leagues in action. Maybe I should do it 

I bought a copy of PES 4 for 50p at the weekend, I'm not sure if it'll play on my girlfriend's old PS3 she's dug out. Old PS2's are stupid prices to buy for some reason. I know PES 4 was considered the pinnacle, but I think the two I spent the most time on were ISS 2 and PES 3 (with Collina on the cover).

I can still reel off some of the Master League players I always used to go for, Rahmane Barry, Jay Seilna, Loni, Atiba Hutchinson, Emile Mpenza, Hatem Trabelsi, Valeri Bojinov, Vanden Borre, Gilardino and of course, the goat, Tijani Babangida.

[redan]

I remember Buying PES4 in my freshers week (or thereabouts) and I couldn’t believe how good it was, I seriously ploughed 100’s of hours into that game. The thrill of Buying a ‘name’ player for your Master League team or taking your bunch or chancers all the way to the top was a delight all whilst still being the best gameplay on any football game before or since. PES 5 and 6 were just as good just with a few added licenses I seem to remember.

[gerrardisgod]

Think it was 4 or 5, where I’d start a new ML and just always end up with Cisse and Robbie Keane up top. Unstoppable they were.

I also shudder that we were only a couple of years from actually seeing it.

[lionel_messias]

Think it was 4 or 5, where I’d start a new ML and just always end up with Cisse and Robbie Keane up top. Unstoppable they were.

I also shudder that we were only a couple of years from actually seeing it.

Loved 3, 4 and 5. It is shame what's happened to the series but to be honest, they had a very long run, and were lucky to last this long.

And PES 2021 with an option file is still very good to play. I applied an option file from PES Universe and the kits looks great. It's really fun to play as Liverpool, I signed Renato Sanches and he's bossing it in the midfield. It's not a next gen title but the gameplay is good.

At least the annual soul-searching and internet baiting of the PES long-term fan is over!

[Drinks Sangria]

Yeah beneath it all, PES 2021 is a good game, really. The on pitch stuff anyway. I wonder if PES 4 and co still play as well as they did, or if they feel rather rudimentary in comparison nowadays?

I play on xbox so don't have the option to mod current PES, but I would enable as much as I could were I able. I'd love to play current PES with the old master league structure and players from those late 90s/early 00s teams in there, even if they butchered all their names etc.

[jackh]

Think it was 4 or 5, where I’d start a new ML and just always end up with Cisse and Robbie Keane up top. Unstoppable they were.

I also shudder that we were only a couple of years from actually seeing it.

Robbie Keane was always a regular signing for us too (used to play it co-op with my mate).  Off the top of my head, I think regulars were Jaaskelainen, Cordoba, Barry, Joaquin, Deisler, Zidane, Recoba, Forssell, Keane, and Phillips.  Think we used to take turns at signings.

[ToneLa]

The new thing seems a total disaster. Konami agreed its launching as basically a demo with little content

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2021/08/konami_admits_pes_successor_efootball_will_effectively_be_a_demo_at_launch

[AndyMuller]

The new thing seems a total disaster. Konami agreed its launching as basically a demo with little content

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2021/08/konami_admits_pes_successor_efootball_will_effectively_be_a_demo_at_launch

Haha jesus christ.

[naYoRHa2b]

So it's just become another football shovelware title for app stores.

Still, I have many memories of the early days lashing one in with R Larcos, or dominating with the OP Adriano.

Maybe a revisit is due.

[lionel_messias]

The new thing seems a total disaster. Konami agreed its launching as basically a demo with little content

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2021/08/konami_admits_pes_successor_efootball_will_effectively_be_a_demo_at_launch

It's piss funny that they've had to come out and admit in public that what they are releasing a few weeks ahead of the full Fifa 2022 is basically a demo with 9 teams on it!

I mean really Konami, you could take all this to business school to demonstrate the worst things to do at every turn of marketing, PR, pissing on and then closing your brand down, everything.

All they had to do was upgrade the player models, give a lick of paint to master league, put 4K Stadia in and leave a good edit system in there for the numerous dudes who make player kits to sort out.

Instead they just hit "delete" after a bit a fumbling and some of the worst branding and video editing work anyone has every seen in video game history.

Oh well

[JerseyKloppite]

It's piss funny that they've had to come out and admit in public that what they are releasing a few weeks ahead of the full Fifa 2022 is basically a demo with 9 teams on it!

I mean really Konami, you could take all this to business school to demonstrate the worst things to do at every turn of marketing, PR, pissing on and then closing your brand down, everything.

All they had to do was upgrade the player models, give a lick of paint to master league, put 4K Stadia in and leave a good edit system in there for the numerous dudes who make player kits to sort out.

Instead they just hit "delete" after a bit a fumbling and some of the worst branding and video editing work anyone has every seen in video game history.

Oh well

Even more bizarre that they didn’t bother to release a new title last year to give themselves more time to build u to this shitshow.

[ToneLa]

PES 2021 was meant to be a stopgap non-full title BECAUSE 22 was a new engine and such a change

They've had the better part of two years to work on this

You got people like me who were ready to drop £50 or whatever for a genuine PS5 level footie experience in a new engine.  I wouldn't even expect it to be totally next gen as sports games aren't gonna ignore the PS4 install base.

They have to be mighty sure of their numbers to leave money on the table like that.

That or they had some real problems with the Unreal engine. Why isn't it ready after so long?

Is that why free to play was decided? They just HAD to get something out and it wasn't all done on time?

It's more bizarre the more you think about it.

Free to play is one thing. But now they're launching with the level of content you'd expect in a demo.

[Macphisto80]

I think free to play was in the works and was the plan from as far back as 3 or 4 years ago. As soon as they changed the name to "eFootball" the writing was on the wall, plus they'd already a FTP version out. This thing will be primarily focused on the mobile market.

[lionel_messias]

I think free to play was in the works and was the plan from as far back as 3 or 4 years ago. As soon as they changed the name to "eFootball" the writing was on the wall, plus they'd already a FTP version out. This thing will be primarily focused on the mobile market.

I see some of the kit editors and old skool PES people on Twitter and still putting content out on eFootball next gen.

Sad really. What are they clinging onto? Amazingly, the Konami producer said some of the next gen enhancements wouldn't be ready for release, of the 9 TEAM first version.

They've been having some hashcakes and a right good time in that Konami developers office last 3 years

[Drinks Sangria]

Maybe the new engine is more problematic in getting the feel right...although they completely lost the feel for it after pes 6.

FIFA took over and even they lost the plot after 13.

So step forward the new kids on the block?

https://twitter.com/andreas/status/1427891485379284996

Hmm, very interesting. It needs a massive shake up because Fifa is essentially unopposed and hasn’t been for over a decade in reality, maybe longer. Licenses do make such a difference in many people’s minds, but if they create a good enough product regardless of licence authenticity, hopefully enough people will see the quality and make it profitable enough to make it a start of something bigger.

[bradders1011]

Hmm, very interesting. It needs a massive shake up because Fifa is essentially unopposed and hasn’t been for over a decade in reality, maybe longer. Licenses do make such a difference in many people’s minds, but if they create a good enough product regardless of licence authenticity, hopefully enough people will see the quality and make it profitable enough to make it a start of something bigger.

Is it possible on modern consoles to do the Champ/Football Manager thing of allowing access to the editor and then third-parties can create 'real name' DLC?

[Drinks Sangria]

Is it possible on modern consoles to do the Champ/Football Manager thing of allowing access to the editor and then third-parties can create 'real name' DLC?

I would've thought so, PES themselves have done this on PS4. The issue is if Clubs themselves decide to attack the source, as Utd have done with Football Manager's use of their name.

[lionel_messias]

Here's another one, announced today I think: https://twitter.com/UFL_Strikerz.

Apparently in development since 2016!

By late 2022 there could be 4 football games "out" all of them free to play as Fifa will do that.

I would bet against Konami surviving this; as I don't think they have developers with passion or a vision any more.

[ToneLa]

Here's another one, announced today I think: https://twitter.com/UFL_Strikerz.

Apparently in development since 2016!

That Twitter just smacks of arsehole chancers. Tiny, meaningless snippets of text about the game... "we won't have AI like Fifa! Defending will be manual" coupled with the kind of dickhead memes you'd be loathe to use on a company account.

It might be brilliant for all I know but my guess is it's, basically,, trash.

[lionel_messias]

That Twitter just smacks of arsehole chancers. Tiny, meaningless snippets of text about the game... "we won't have AI like Fifa! Defending will be manual" coupled with the kind of dickhead memes you'd be loathe to use on a company account.

It might be brilliant for all I know but my guess is it's, basically,, trash.

Embrace the new, let's give them a chance eh! People have been saying they want a new football game for years.

[ToneLa]

Embrace the new, let's give them a chance eh! People have been saying they want a new football game for years.

What is there to embrace? A gameplay clip would help   

Would love something to come along and smash FIFA though. PES is dead, I'm not going to support another free to play game because that's why PES is dead..

But yknow. Gameplay is king

[gerrardisgod]

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-08-26-some-of-efootballs-new-gameplay-mechanics-animations-and-even-kicks-wont-be-in-at-launch

Jesus wept.

[ToneLa]

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-08-26-some-of-efootballs-new-gameplay-mechanics-animations-and-even-kicks-wont-be-in-at-launch

Jesus wept.

Holy crap on a cracker. Just what have they been doing?

[ToneLa]

September 30th release

With loads missing

https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/efootball-launches-september-30-but-is-it-ready-for-kick-off/

You'll be able to download and play eFootball 2022 at the end of the month, but several aspects of it will follow after this date in a major update which is scheduled for sometime in Autumn. The game at launch will include the eFootball World hub, from where players can play in offline or online matches (including tournaments) with a choice of nine clubs and six stadiums.

[AndyMuller]

Fuck Konami, basically.

[lionel_messias]

September 30th release

With loads missing

https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/efootball-launches-september-30-but-is-it-ready-for-kick-off/

hahaha, they'd just as well put their developers on Twitch weeeing on their workstations.

Yup, Konami have imploded and anyone who did advertising, copywriting, graphic design or anything on eFootball should probably go into hiding and
assume a new identity.

[jackh]

eFootball Preview: PES Is Dead, Long Live eFootball
Aiming for revolution, not evolution.

Football gaming is perhaps the most stagnant of all sports genres. FIFA’s pay-to-win, arcade hegemony lords it over PES’ clunky menus, but realistic gameplay. Rinse, reskin, and repeat.

But this year that’s all changing. And when I went to Konami’s Windsor HQ for a hands-on event for eFootball - yes, the PES, aka Pro Evolution Soccer moniker is dead - I was intrigued as much by the gameplay as by their vision to make this bold experiment the future of sports games.

Happily, the pre-release build I got my mitts on was excellent fun. That build was a hybrid of pre- and post-release. So some advanced gameplay mechanics that won’t be coming to the game until later this autumn (essentially, variations of shots and passes) were included, but other key features, such as PS5 haptics, were missing.

Devs mentioned the words “simulation,” “intensity,” and “physicality” multiple times. And I think that, based on what I’ve played so far, Konami has largely delivered. Each one-on-one feels like a chess match in miniature. eFootball invites you to get your shoulders - even elbows - stuck into the opposition to battle for possession, with this year’s ball feeling pleasingly untethered to your player’s foot. Football games have historically had a tendency to ‘lock on’ to the ball when at your control, but here the ball feels like a volatile, independent object that needs to be taken care of or hunted down - much like the real thing.

This invites the defending player to press high and hard, referencing modern football nicely. Jurgen Klopp would be proud. I actually think pressing is slightly overpowered in the build I played - but I expect a lot of balancing tweaks will be applied in eFootball’s weekly updates after launch. Think of pressing as a slightly overpowered SMG on Warzone. Hopefully it doesn’t get nerfed entirely, just brought down a touch.

A new feature much vaunted by Konami is the ability to quickly recycle the ball after going out for a throw, including the addition of ballboys. This is hardly ground-breaking (FIFA has had quick throws for years now) but eFootball’s quick goal kicks specifically are an exciting new weapon to exploit an opponent’s limited attention span. I myself nearly got caught out from a quick CPU restart, meaning the ball was already bypassing my midfield before I had turned back to the screen. It’s a fun system that might truly allow us to live out our Trent Alexander-Arnold/Divock Origi quick-set-pieces of dreams.

eFootball also takes aim at some of the series’ historical failings. PES 2020 (and the reskinned 2021) had particularly painful commentary, menus, and refereeing. Pleasingly, all three are much improved. While not flawless, commentary is much more invisible and immersive. Referees can still frustrate, but are much fairer than last year’s officials, who were intensely relaxed about on-pitch assault and battery.

But the big win here is in the menus. Konami has finally binned PES’ teeth-gnashingly awful aesthetics for a modern and clean system. Changing players, kits, and the weather and time of day is far less taxing than before. At their best, some menus were actually downright pretty. Again, I played a very limited demo build, so this will be put to the test when it comes to more complex game modes and team management. But so far, so good.

Another area that the eFootball team have overhauled is the camera, creating a new ‘duel’ camera system, dynamically zooming in to isolate key on-the-ball battles, before zooming out to show the full tapestry for those raking, cross-field passes. I expected this to become frustrating quickly - and if it is, you can turn it off. But I was pleasantly surprised by how refined this camera system is already. It’s a promising new tool.

Intrigued to see how all this combined into one cohesive, competitive experience, I quickly jumped into matches against the devs and got a sense of how eFootball plays in a competitive context. My possession tactics and high line were punished by my counter-attacking opponents - but, conversely, I could inventively invite their pressure and punish them. It was fun and, crucially, fair.

Questions do linger though. While this was a gameplay event, the new F2P model was the large elephant-as-service in the room. The initial offering is sparse, launching with the game on the 30th of September with just a handful of teams and a pinch of modes. The major fall update, which sees the game launching on mobile and offering a more fleshed out suite of modes, has to create a moreish offering that keeps players coming back across all major platforms (which sadly doesn’t as-yet include Switch).

Clearly, the idea is to foster the kind of competitive, cross-platform infrastructure only seen thus far in the battle-royale format. But that ambition leads to questions of its own. This is a “console-first” experience, but it seems like the PS5 is particularly favoured - especially the DualSense controller. Haptic implementation was a feature that the devs seem particularly proud of, mentioned several times. Will Xbox and last-gen players be left behind?

This could be a new dawn for football games - I really respect the ambition of the team behind the gameplay, and they’ve hit upon a core loop that hooked me in the session, and has left me wanting more. So that’s half of the job well done. But with FIFA still ever dominant, and new upstarts like UFL waiting in the wings, eFootball’s success ultimately lives or dies based upon its post-launch appeal and support. Time will tell.

https://www.ign.com/articles/efootball-preview-pes-pro-evolution-soccer-is-dead-long-live-efootball

Interesting, or puff piece?

[naYoRHa2b]

[WillG.LFC]

Been hoping for a zoomed in camera for taking on defenders for years so be interesting to see how it's implemented. Even blurring the parts of the pitch depending on a players ability (but that might be an epileptic nightmare 😆 )