Just because these guys are FIFA fans (um, like myself) doesn't mean they don't have a point. Coming from FIFA - or really, most AAA action based games these days - PES feels sluggish and unresponsive, made worse by its odd control scheme choices.
Yes, some of that slowness and heaviness is intentional and needed, but that doesn't mean there aren't issues. There simply is no footballing reason for why sometimes it takes so long for controller inputs to be executed in the game. For example, it drives me nuts how often I press shoot or pass and my player will take another touch before executing my command. Coming from FIFA this just feels like poor game design, because it is.
Then there's issues where you get locked into actions and cannot control your players.
@Chris Davies posted video showing how you're locked out of controlling your players in certain situations, clearly because the game wants something to play out in a certain predetermined way, your actions be damned. Coming from FIFA, and again most modern action games, this feels antiquated and it's why the game still gets criticized for being so assisted and "on-the-rails."
PES's gameplay is
really good, but it's almost like another Red Dead Redemption 2 where the game plays out in a superb fashion but the controls and the responsiveness and just the overall feel of interacting with the world - in this case controlling players - isn't really up to par. Hardcore PES fans - pretty much most of you - are used to this and so it's the normal, but coming from FIFA (and others games) it's a tough transition and really detracts from being able to enjoy what is the best looking and most realistic football game right now.
FIFA has borrowed heavily from PES when it makes sense. Responsiveness and freedom/control are areas that PES could learn from FIFA. If PES is going to make any kind of dent into FIFA's dominance, it'll have to, as these are major turnoffs to anyone used to playing more fast-paced, twitch-based gameplay, which is most modern day AAA titles.