Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
One for the patient...it DOES all become worthwhile., 19 Mar 2007
Fun:
Okay, let me be quick and clear. This isn't a great game.
However, like one earlier review said, it WILL grow on you.
When I picked this game up, I was in footie manager mood and Fifa 07 was losing it's shine. Create a club from scratch and build it from grass roots. Well, fair enough. Sounds good.
However, the first confusion comes when you're employing your staff. What, I need to employ a manager? But...I'm the manager aren't I? I decide the team, the training, the tactics...
But then it dawned on me that this isn't so bad. After all, who gets sacked when the team loses? The manager does. And you're not the manager.
In fact, there are only a few ways you CAN get sacked (aka, "get taken over"); the first and most incredibly irritating of which is if you fail to win your first few games, which come in the form of a playoff.
This isn't too bad in itself, but like most die-hard footie manager fans, I'm used to the normal naming of positions (GK, RB, CB, LB, CM, RM, LM, ST and so on). OM and FW and WG came as a surprise to me, and it took a little working out if I'm honest (btw, Offensive Mid, Forward, Winger).
This makes sorting your team a bit difficult, but luckily there's a "delegate to manager" option (delegate? Isn't it his job anyway?). You should get through the playoffs okay.
You then come to edit your team name, kit and so on. I made the mistake of selecting the town of Luton for my first team. Consequently, all through the game even after I'd named my team Athletic SM, the commentator referred to my team as Luton. Choose a town without a famous football team, you'll be called Home or Away team during the commentary, which is much better.
Now into the game proper you delve. Here we hit upon one main snag. The game seems to have been created by people who don't reeeeeeeeeeally know a huge amount about footie. It's just little things, but they grate on you. The worst examples of this are when you're asked to select your "kicker" (Penalty Taker, please...) and when editing tactics you can instruct your team to "go for a score". Oh my. I'll allow the use of the word Soccer instead of football for leniency.
The leagues have been split into two main leagues, Championship and Premier. You soon start to wonder whether Sega have bothered getting licencing for using team names when you find yourself playing teams like Manchester and Highbury; and nobody has their correct team badge. Fair enough I suppose, if you're going to make something where you can make your own club from scratch you may as well do it entirely. Brave move.
The music, though chirpy, will grate on your nerves after a while. Especially when you're playing a quick game, and you're listening to some high-tempo modern rubbish.
There are pauses between every option you make, which can get extremely irritating at first. You soon get used to it though, and make ready use of your TVs mute button at times.
Several people have commented on the commentary (haha? suit yourself). To be honest, it's abysmal. It's slow, jumpy, badly put together and I've no idea why it got through testing. Yes, the spanish commentator is a lot more exciting to listen to, but I'm not fluent in spanish so he could easily be accusing me of molesting goats. I distrust it.
Game engine. Atrocious. Nuff said. And when you get 1-0 up with 20mins to go, don't celebrate; because 8 times out of 10 they'll equalize in extra time. The other two times, they'll equalize then score again to win. I've been 2-0 up with 80 mins gone and lost 3-2 more than once.
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That's far and away enough bad points. Now the good.
This game allows you to control everything. Eve-ry-thin-g. Everything from your sponsors (on kit), kit suppliers, sub-sponsors (advertising hoardings round stadium). You can choose all your staff (naturally), choose responses in press interviews, make promises to players, talk to concerned players and staff, find out what your secretary likes, choose what to sell in the club shop and how many, develop new things to sell with your sponsors...it really is a phenomenal amount to do.
This is where the game excels. It doesn't throw you in the deep end. In your first season, not all options will be avaliable to you. Every few weeks your PR guy/Sales guy/Marketing guy will pop up and give you a mini-tutorial on another part of the game. You're really eased into the game, and it works wonderfully. In fact, it takes about three seasons to get everything possible out of it, and introduce you to the game fully.
If you're like me, a Sim City kinda fan, you'll love the Facilities menu. You can choose to upgrade/expand you Stadium, Ground or Clubhouse. In the Stadium section, you can build a new stadium (you start off with a farty little 8,000 seater and for a big wodge of cash you can build your new stadiums with higher capacity and so on), upgrade current stadium (add terraces, more advertising hoardings, roof, refreshments for visitors, bigger club merchandise shop etc). In the Ground you can add a second training pitch, add floodlights (improve training) and more. In the Clubhouse you can build a new clubhouse (which allows more facilities), add facilities to help your staff (financial staff, PR, Marketing and so on), youth team (study rooms, gym, cardio room) or main players (bar, sauna, weights room). Most of these are highly upgradeable.
Heaven. Bliss. Except it costs a lot of moolah.
This is a slight downside. As soon as you start the game, you'll be losing about £350,000 monthly. You have to make this back via transfers or games (which gives you £50,000 - £150,000 win bonuses depending what kind of game) via ticket sales/merchandise sales. Don't panic though! You have a youth team, which you can promote players from and instantly sell for cash.
Compassion? Be a real Chairman!
You'll follow your team through thick and thin, through the mini-plot (which is odd but a pretty interesting addition). You'll get attatched to players, see them lose form, see them regain it, win awards, and cry when you put them on the transfer list (seriously).
You'll swear at the commentary, scream at the match engine for being so pants, wish for the Next Wayne Rooney to appear in your youth team (then instantly flog him to upgrade your stadium). You'll curse the name of this game, but you won't be able to leave it alone.
If you're a long-term management game player who'll be sticking with the game for weeks and weeks, you'll grow to adore it. If you just want a quick fix...get Fifa07.
(For the record, last season I did a Luton Town. I lost most of my games, got relegated, sold all the good players to stay afloat...and my reaction was to sack the manager. Maaaaaaarvellous.)
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
Don't waste your money, 30 Oct 2006
Fun:
What an absolute waste of time and money. Very dull, very slow, the graphics are appalling. I can't believe I wasted valuable minutes of my life playing this game when I could have been pulling the fluff from my belly-button. Don't even let someone else buy you this game, it's terrible.
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