CM 2012 Questions

[Placebo]

One very important one that just came to me, the AI should have to play by the exact same rules as you when it comes to transfers, I noticed in 11:

• AI teams can sign someone on loan even if they're not listed for loan.
• AI teams can sign someone who just moved clubs recently.

And yes as mentioned we really should be able to see a list of all transfers that happen.

Something else is that right now it doesn't accurately reflect the amount of players that are released each year or move onto a new club when their contract expires, in the lower leagues especially that's often how most teams rebuild as not that much is spent on transfer fees outside of the top divisions. So not only should a lot more fringe players be released each year but we should be able to approach a player to sign for us when their current contract has only 2-3 months left, whatever the real life rule is?

Another thing, what is the point of the shortlist when it doesn't tell you now if another club is approaching a player on your shortlist? It should do that.

 

[mfmaxpower]

Piggy-backing on Placebo's thoughts on released players, conversely there needs to be an improvement in how CM generates new players. The player growth system is partly at fault but CM 11 didn't generate a realistic amount of youth players and our careers ended up being way overpopulated by senior citizens.

 

[mfmaxpower]

ALSO, can you please see if the devs will commit themselves to post-release support this year?

 

[Placebo]

conversely there needs to be an improvement in how CM generates new players.

Yeah I agree, one of the biggest problem is that the new 18 year old is calculated off the retired 38 year old's stats which means we get 18 year olds with no pace, no stamina etc. etc. physical stats from retiring players should be reset to an appropriate higher level and mental/skill stats should be reset to an appropriate lower level.

 

[Nick Cave]

I'll drop it in here as it's relevant, can you also let me have any CM bugs, no matter how minor such as the Semi's being played at home grounds and not Wembley in the FA cup. Simon has asked for a list and I want to make sure nothing is missed..

This is not for things to be added just errors in the current CM, such as still having to play three or more games in a week and domestic cups not showing in your history..

Thanks for the questions guys keep them coming, I'll post them all onto the Dev's even if I don't get or find answers on Monday...

 

[Vindaloo]

Its only a tiny issue, but why does the 'select side' screen only remember player 1's choice? We play co-op with 3 players and players 2 and 3 always have to move over to our side before every game.

 

[Nick Cave]

Its only a tiny issue, but why does the 'select side' screen only remember player 1's choice? We play co-op with 3 players and players 2 and 3 always have to move over to our side before every game.

Do you choose the option to be able to use/edit the AI team in the options while creating your CM?...

 

[romagnoli]

Might be worth making a separate thread for bugs and authenticity errors, unless you're on top of things Nick.

 

[Nick Cave]

Might be worth making a separate thread for bugs and authenticity errors, unless you're on top of things Nick.

I'll keep checking in here regularly, as they are CM specific I think it should be ok...

 

[Scorpio]

- I edited every stadium name in FIFA11 to have every real venue in my CM. That is until a squad update or patch (can't remember) erased my mammoth work in a second and they were the default stadium names again.

- My superstar player was playing almost every game and got an émail he improved his rating. After that I let him rest for a cup game and my assistant émailed me to say I should play him more often.

- Playing 4 games in a week and my assistant telling me that players need a rest...

- After many seasons, new players show up without names and the same rating for every attribute.

- I don't live in England but my guess is that it doesn't snow and rain the whole year there.

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

- Cup replays are played at the same home or away ground. So if you are at home and have to play a replay, its at home again.
- The editing being reset with an update as mentioned (really annoying and surely the stadiums can be left as they are?!)

Not sure how many more bugs there are, besides what's been mentioned in previous posts. Can we have missed many more? It's not like much else is going on in the mode.

 

[Lami]

I'm not sure this was mentioned before, so ignore if it was. Not sure if it's a bug or its just my luck, but I play a player manager CM in the Brasilian league and although I'm performing quite well, I always get offers from Brasilian teams only, never from abroad. Anyone else have the same issue?

 

[Placebo]

Yeah as Tik said there really aren't that many bugs in 11, but that's not something to praise EA for it's because they have absolutely castrated CM now it's so shallow and hollow it's laughable, yet in 11 they merged it with BAP and proclaimed it being this wonderful thing, sure if you're into BAP it is, but for those of us with no interest in BAP then 11's CM is pretty much the most castrated, shallow, hollow manager mode yet in a Fifa. And worst of all as I mentioned previously there is some stuff removed from CM which is then BAP only such as team of the year, player of the month etc.

 

[Vindaloo]

Do you choose the option to be able to use/edit the AI team in the options while creating your CM?...

I am still on the same CM campaign I started back on release day, so to be honest I don't remember seeing that option. That would explain it though, thanks Nick (again)

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

- I remember viewing the end of season leagues a while back and a couple of leagues hadn't even started any matches. I think Scotchland was one of them. Unless it's to do with actual correct dates and that would mean a couple had just recently finished...?

 

[kobayashi]

- In-season editing.
Something PES did years ago (did I really just say that!). If you're a bit of a realism nut, and want to change boots for a player or 7, will it update in your current CM?
Example: I've discovered a tough tackling defender, but am put off by them having baby blue boots, knee high socks & a snood, can I change it?

I can see this ever happening because of the way FIFA's database files are organized.

 

[mfmaxpower]

Might be worth making a separate thread for bugs and authenticity errors, unless you're on top of things Nick.

I think there's already a fairly comprehensive thread for this in the official CM forums. I haven't checked on it in months but at one point there were dozens of bugs and issues cataloged, so I wouldn't bother starting over with a new list.

 

[mfmaxpower]

I think this is the thread: http://forum.ea.com/uk/posts/list/20973.page

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

Come on Nick! Show Rutter our fury!!!

 

[Placebo]

Personally I'd say more like sadness, disappointment and disillusionment.

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

Rutter: "Who's that weaping in the corner?"
EA Rep: "It's Nick, he's just played our bestest CM ever....however he wants to kill himself"

 

[murphyr]

Just thought of another minor detail...With the (re)introduction of scouting and the Youth Academy will we be able to assign a generic commentary name to AI generated scouted or youth team players in career mode? Only a small detail but would be nice.

 

[Nick Cave]

A couple quickly off the top of my head...

• Has growth been properly implemented this time? Will 17-23 years olds develop attributes quickly (in Fifa11 players under 21 never grew a single attribute point, why?) and will 33-36 year olds decline realistically (far too many 36+ players continuing to play at the top level including way too many 40+ players)?

• 
  
  
  All new Growth model and a great new page showing all his stats and any growth or drop…
  
  

  [*]Will it respect the fact that giving young players experience in cup matches or as a sub helps them improve quite quickly early on in there careers and it shouldn't be necessary for them to play 40 matches a season just to start improving a little.

  
  
  They have totally altered it’s workings now…
  
  

  [*]International management?

  
  Nope…
  
  

  [*]Will AI teams change their formations/tactics during a match depending on the score or importance of the match?

  
  
  Didn’t get very far into a season but there are far more injuries this time around along with form and moral so I expect a lot more squad changes just through that alone. They have also improved the clubs buying intelligence but as for swapping line ups for important games I don’t know…
  
  

  [*]Will the commentary properly reflect two legged matches and not get all excited in the 2nd leg if a team takes the lead despite them being 20 goals down from the first leg? Will Tyledsley & Townsend automatically do the commentary for FA/League/European matches with Tyler/Smith doing the league matches?

  
  
  Again a tough one to answer as I didn’t get that far but the comentery is far better in my opinion and will alternate between competitions…
  
  

  [*]Will promoted teams get appropriate funds to help them survive/succeed in the new division? In all previous Fifas if you take a team from say L2 to the Prem in 4 or 5 seasons you basically have to survive in the Prem on a L2 budget.

  
  
  Passed on no answer…
  
  

  [*]Realistic board expectations? Just because I managed to get my L1 team into the Prem in 3 seasons on zero cash injection I shouldn't be expected to be Prem top 4 the next season...

  
  Passed on, no answer…
  
  

  [*]As part of the storyline aspect will there be financial ones such as Club A gets taken over by some rich dude and start spending money left right and centre? Or Club B goes badly into debt and has to dump lots of players to stay afloat (a la Portsmouth/Plymouth et al)

  
  
  There is a lot more going on news wise and you can also talk to the press. There is also more to come on that front as we found out our build was some weeks old…
  
  

  [*]Will loans be done more appropriately and have a separate transfer window?

  
  
  You can now loan anyone, this is in the TF window giving you the buy or loan option, with the usual short term or full season choices (though there is no part ex). They have also fixed the issue of not being able to buy or loan the player again afterwards, there is now the option to have first choice of buying the player when you loan him too…
  
  

  [*]When you loan a player out will you 1. be able to see how they're doing / how many matches they're playing and 2. will they gain stat improvements?

  
  
  There is a totals page as part of the new growth system under the Squad Report menu option. This shows you all games, goals, assists and infractions of all your players in all competitions…
  
  

  [*]When you put one of your kids up for loan to get experience will the appropriate level of club come in for them? Ie if your kid is an English Ovr 55 defender it should be L2 clubs coming in for him not Prem clubs, not foreign clubs.

  
  
  Hard to say, I started with Burton and loaned a young player to Plymouth and had my top striker chased by a few clubs even though he was not TF listed…
  
  

  [*]When searching for transfer targets will we still get kicked off the EA Servers everytime the search takes more than 15 seconds?

  
  
  Passed on no answer…
  
  

  [*]Will the player search system be improved? Can we save custom searches, search for height? Search for left/right foot? Search for more than two numerical attributes?

  
  
  Your last search parameters’ are now saved and you have 150 returned not 50, apart from this and a slight change in the menu set up there is nothing else I found…
  
  

  [*]Will we be able to see a player's history at a club, ie 120 appearances 24 goals over 5 years?

  
  
  I found nothing new in the My Career menu which I was not to happy about, I have passed on a list of wants’ on this in a report and we have another video link on Thursday with Simon and the team I will pass this on again…
  
  

  [*]Will a player's history at our club be ongoing so we can see their record from the start rather than just each year?

  
  
  Don’t know I have passed on…
  
  

  [*]Will we be able to view our player's total appearances/goals/assists/cards rather than having to view each single tournament, memorise their numbers and add them all up? This is Fifa not Dr. Kawashima's Brain Exercises

  
  
  
  Yes, in the new Squad Report…
  
  

  [*]Has the formation edit bug been fixed yet? This has plagued Fifa going back as far as Fifa09 and has been reported hundreds of times (this is the bug that adds GK with random names like 0004545 into the squad, corrupts the save and then locks up the 360).

  
  Passed on no answer…
  
  

  [*]Post match individual stats by player, used to include a lot more information, it's logged so why can't we see it?

  
  
  Damn I forgot to check this, I will pass on…
  
  

  [*]More accurate match ratings for players, if my forward scores a hattrick he should get at least a 9 no matter what, if my winger scores 2 and assists 1 he shouldn't lose MOTM to a defender who had no more than an average game, goals/assists should be worth way more than tackle completion percentage, especially if player growth continues to be so poorly tied to match rating.

  
  
  Needed more time to check this so I will pass on for an answer…
  
  

  [*]Why is there no player of the month, team of the week, team of the year etc if you don't play as BAP? This should be included whether you play BAP or "regular" CM.

  
  Didn’t see any, passed on no answer…
  
  

  [*]Why can't we buy a player and sell him in January if he doesn't work out? Why can't we buy a player for the future and then loan him straight out to get experience? This happens all the time in the real world.

No answer as I never got that far. Passed on…

 

[Lami]

That's not bad compared to 11.

Thanks for reporting though Nick

 

[Nick Cave]

I'd be interested to hear about:

* Player Form (surely can't be left out this year).

In, along with Morale…

* Whether the Player Bio and how player data is presented has changed from the ugly database-paste we have now.

There is the all new Squad Report screen, the stats elsewhere are now colour coded to make it easier to check…

* Any optional settings for injury rate, fatigue rate etc - can we turn them up/down (mostly up!).

Yes there are sliders for the injuries though this has also been completely revamped, none for fatigue though…

* Any form of Training or other influences on player growth?

No training, though you can make press comments on players and they now have form and morale as I stated earlier and will come to you with issues etc…

* Has any effort gone in to making the different leagues/nations/competitions feel different? The general atmosphere and feel of participating in one league is identical to any another. Some slightly different crowd sounds and scoreboard colour doesn't really cut it. Managing a minnow in League Two feels no different to managing a European giant in the Champions League, which harms the excitement of career progression and reduces longevity.

There is more use of club emblems and colour now and the crowd now wear club shirts wish is a nice touch, as for other touches it’s hard to say given the short time we have on the mode… :o(

* Has the pre-match scouting report improved at all? Any way in which the characteristics of your next opponent is communicated to you?

There is an improved calendar and on going news as well as the chance to talk to the press pre game. Unfortunately I didn’t see any pre game scout report ar anything above what we get in 11. This is on my Wants’ list though so the Dev’s have it and I will remind Simon on Thursday…

* Will you be able to filter 'superstars' who are too loyal to their club, so you don't waste time bidding on them? Or at least be able to buy them off with a ridiculous bid.

No but the way the TF system works has been tweeked so this should no longer be a cut and dried thing, I have passed this issue on to the Dev’ though…

* Will hurried last day transfers be possible, so you won't have to lose all the back-forth bidding suddenly, when the transfer hole closes.

There is the all new Transfer Deadline day, showing all the
last minuste deals going through and the total money changing hands on that day alone, it’s a great addition and gives you the chance to make those last minute splurges…

* Will it be possible to set a default captain (and having captaincy have an effect on team morale/intelligence/teamwork/refereeing)

This is the same as 11 I’m afraid though there is now team morale and form, I have passed the wish on to the Dev’s though…

* Will it be possible to save multiple line-ups with different formations (for easy access from match to match)

This is an odd one I never found this but some said it was in, I have a vid call with the Dev team on Thursday so I will ask then…

When a player is transfer listed you should be able to buy him at a reduced price, as it is now you have to pay over the asking price no matter what, even if the player never plays for the team he's on.

This was passed on Paul, though we have no answer yet…

Is morale and form back in CM?
Will players want to move to a bigger club? If so, will their morale drop if you won't sell them?
Will morale drop on players who are always on the bench?
Can we get job offers in the middle of the season instead of after every season?
Will players who are performing well want an improved contract?
Will the games be placed better on the calendar? In 11 you could get 4 games in a week.

* Yes, Both..

* There is a lot of interaction between players and the manager in 12, so things like moral and form will be affected and you will have players making demands and asking for more game time as for wanting away I don’t know as I only got a couple of months in..

* I don’t think you do get mid season job offers but added to the Dev ask list…

* Again I never got far enough but added to the ask list for Thursday…

* This was sent on a report but I have no answer yet, I will ask again on Thursday…

I think pretty much everything has been covered, so rather than be specific I am just interested in whether the mode overall is deeper with more features and an increased feeling of immersion. As it'd be near impossible for CM to regress in these areas, answering my question would take answering whether the following have been either improved or added to the mode in some form or another:

* growth - has it been improved? fixed?
* form feature added?
* scouting/youth feature added?
* training feature added?
* morale feature added?

Everything else is just icing on the cake for me, although the way transfers are done - the fact you can't buy players listed as on loan, loans don't work correctly, etc. - is also a big deal.

The mode is far better than 11 and in a way is what 11 should have been. Yes parts still need a big rebuild and there is some major additions needed but it’s at last it’s looking as though EA have the right team and the incentive to improve it.
We are passing on as much info and feedback as we can and they genuinely seem to want it so we can’t do any more than that..

*All new with an all new report screen showing all stat growth...
* Form is in…
*All new youth scout system is in…
* No training as I could find though there is a far bigger physio system this time as injuries play a bigger role…
*Morale is in…

And will the final day of the transfer period be one hour at a time of some sort so we can seal some great deal in the last hours. In FIFA11 the day would just pass like any other day which really irritated me...

The Transfer deadline day is a great addition; it improves the whole system and is great for adding a bit of drama
…

Not sure if this has been covered yet but I'd like to be able to see what transfers have been going on with other teams. Yes, I like that it gives some info on major transfers, but I'd like to be able to review everything.

You do get to see all the deadline day transfers and they do get listed as they happen and the toal amount being spent, as for a full list available after the TF window closes I don’t know, I will pass on though…

Although the main question is when will EA treat Career Mode in FIFA the same way it treats "Franchise", "Dynasty", etc. in other EA Sports games? Right now, CM mode offers no real depth... when will this mode become a priority for the series? Everything the last few versions seems to be building online multiplayer, which is fine for those who want that area expanded, but when will the CM people finally get a full featured mode?

A priority, I wish!..
Yes the CM this year has more depth and there is more going on around you, the game now reacts to your input but also goes on independently so can surprise you at times. Is it where I want it to be, no, no where near. Having said that I have far more faith in the modes future than I have before…

All the essential points have been covered for me by Placebo and others. However, will the level of customisation be improved? By this i mean will you be able to make gradual improvements to thinks like stadiums throughout your tenure at a club. Will we be able to change things like net colour to provide a wee bit more character to stadiums perhaps to reflect the home teams colours? I know that this is only a minor thing in the context of core Mode features (FFS fix player growth!!!)but it could add to the overall depth of the experience.

No ground improvements or things like nets etc that I found. On a good note there is more features and depth, we have Form and Morale, an all new growth system as well as youth scouting networks…

 

[Nick Cave]

That's not bad compared to 11.

Thanks for reporting though Nick

More to come I'm just trying to fire through the guys questions then I'll get back to the report...

 

[Nick Cave]

I've thought of a few minor things. Could just be me thinking it, but I'll mention them anyway!

- Jumping on Placebo's transfer / loan comments... when loaning a player in, would you be able to have an option to sign them permanently, or pay a small fee to loan them for a second season?
For example, you're in your 2nd season at say Charlton, with not much cash, but can't loan certain EPL players because they were loaned out in the 1st season.
(Apologies if it's already been mentioned)

You can agree a deal to buy the loan player when you take him, you can also try to loan anyone now. The problems with not being able to re loan or purchase the following year have been fixed…

- In-season editing.
Something PES did years ago (did I really just say that!). If you're a bit of a realism nut, and want to change boots for a player or 7, will it update in your current CM?
Example: I've discovered a tough tackling defender, but am put off by them having baby blue boots, knee high socks & a snood, can I change it?

I don’t think so but I have passed on to the Dev’s…

- Changing captain during the game.
If your captain gets injured or sent off, it's assigned to another player. If you sub him, it goes to the replacement player.
Again, it's only a minor issue & doesn't add anything to gameplay, but if I replaced Vidic with Smalling, I'd like to have a senior player like Rio take over the armband instead of a youngster.

Thx

It’s the same as 11 for now but again I have passed this on…

One very important one that just came to me, the AI should have to play by the exact same rules as you when it comes to transfers, I noticed in 11:

• AI teams can sign someone on loan even if they're not listed for loan.
• AI teams can sign someone who just moved clubs recently.

And yes as mentioned we really should be able to see a list of all transfers that happen.

Something else is that right now it doesn't accurately reflect the amount of players that are released each year or move onto a new club when their contract expires, in the lower leagues especially that's often how most teams rebuild as not that much is spent on transfer fees outside of the top divisions. So not only should a lot more fringe players be released each year but we should be able to approach a player to sign for us when their current contract has only 2-3 months left, whatever the real life rule is?

Another thing, what is the point of the shortlist when it doesn't tell you now if another club is approaching a player on your shortlist? It should do that.

Can’t answer these as I got no time to check or see, so I have just passed them all on, as for Transfers being shown they do get reported in the news and there is a full list popping up where the league is usually shown but I don’t think there is a separate review list though I have passed this on as a wish for the Dev’s…

Piggy-backing on Placebo's thoughts on released players, conversely there needs to be an improvement in how CM generates new players. The player growth system is partly at fault but CM 11 didn't generate a realistic amount of youth players and our careers ended up being way overpopulated by senior citizens.

I will try to find out how this works now, I assume as there is the all new Youth Scouting system the game no longer relies on regens, though I don’t know if they still happen…

ALSO, can you please see if the devs will commit themselves to post-release support this year?

*cough* sure *cough*…

 

[Nick Cave]

Cheers for those guys any I could not answer or find out about I will keep throwing at the Dev's till they tell me to do one..

Any other questions I will happily answer if I can...


(Unless it's things like what is so and so's stat's or has Rooney got hair now in which case, the answer is F...)

 

[Placebo]

Thanks for putting our questions to them, some good stuff, some bad stuff, especially on the mode breaking formation bug which has been in since Fifa08 and on the lack of AI formation changes but there's some good stuff in there.

I think in one of the previews it said your captain affects morale?

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

Nick,

Thanks for the info, missed these so maybe you know, or can ask on thursday;

- What are the sliders for? Transfer activity, Injuries, Stamina effects, player growth, etc. ? Are they for the whole game or does CM have mode related sliders?
- Has the manager history menu been sorted? Trophy avatars, correct data, etc.
- Have the job offers been improved?

Did you play a match against the AI? If so, do they still do the stupid kickoff attack everytime? Have they shown more general footballing intelligence with regard to possesion and passing?

Thanks!