I really do hate the existence of manual controls because of the way in which they tend to stop a lot of manual players from having intelligent discussion about the topic.
With the
option to use manual, semi-assisted or assisted controls, FIFA (and now PES) has divided the community up into people who simply aren't interested in each other's plight, or who think that the answer to fundamental problems with the AI is to change the controls. Guess what? The AI will still suck, and as your thumb gradually becomes more competent at pointing in certain directions, you will find yourself faced with the same problems.
PES 2011 had it right in principle, making everyone play with semi-assisted controls while also giving you the option to hold L2 to play a manual pass. Different control schemes divide the community, lead to pointless squabbles over which control scheme is most 'realistic' (which always gets confused with which is hardest instead), and gives the developers the easy way out of any criticism of the game by saying something offensively dismissive like 'Try manual controls
'.
It is ENTIRELY possible to design an assisted passing/shooting control scheme which is extremely realistic, requires skill to use effectively to build intelligent moves, and is part of a cerebral yet fun football simulation. In fact I can't imagine how a manual control scheme could ever be more authentic and 'sim' than the most realistic assisted setup humanly possible - and god knows I've spent several years trying to imagine both.
I
want there to be a natural difference between basic passers who tend to aim straight for the recipient, and more intelligent tempo-dictating players who aim slightly ahead/to the side of the recipient in order to inform the recipient's next move. I
want some players to fail to make certain passes because they haven't yet looked over their shoulder and so don't know where the recipient or the defenders are, rather than just passing in the direction I've moved my thumb. Why should shooting be manual? Why would Falcao aim 10-15 yards wide of the goal? Shouldn't he be aiming for just inside the post, and the context of the position, body posture relative to the ball, pressure, keeper position and composure of the player in the scenario itself inform how accurate the shot is?
I don't particularly mind manual in and of itself. In fact I think it's ideal for Clubs / BAP, where you control one player and your ability with your thumb doesn't transfer across to every player, and everyone on the pitch can therefore play the game with a clearly different level of vision and intelligence. In that context, aiming wide of the goal is MY fault, so manual shooting makes sense. It's not like Career mode, where I should be conveying my intent to the player on the pitch for him to then execute to the best of
his abilities. In BAP / Clubs, the player is ME. I already know my intentions, and executing them is my responsibility alone.
What I do mind is that manual still doesn't allow for the level of individuality that you
could get from an ideal assisted / semi-assisted setup, but never from the manual game without sacrificing a sense of coherency and consistency (which is essential for learning how to improve your game). But the very notion that assisted could be more realistic than it currently is will never be given the time of day by a lot of people due to a combination of pride, ignorance, stubbornness, and a genuine insistence that the player with the pad should define the exact angle and weight that professional footballers should apply to a pass,
even though their ability to correctly measure such passes is what distinguishes them.
Right now I don't think FIFA or PES has very much individuality in the passing game at all, and I have no doubt in my mind that it's because the devs have absolved themselves of all responsibility for dealing with this area of the game, tying inaccuracy to the thumb rather than to the footballer. The public will entertain themselves based on how much of a challenge the game then feels (or how amazing they appear to be at the game if they're using assisted) without noticing the difference between a Ferdinand and Phil Jones, or seeing why Mata is a more technical #10 than Rooney, or why Strootman distributes the ball better than de Jong. And that's what a football game needs in order for me to want to play it all year round.
