After playing 19 for a while this weekend, I've realised how desperate I am for 20's gameplay to be tweaked just enough to get a little more enjoyment out of it.
What I mean is, as an overall experience (and I include gameplay, with its issues), I just don't think it can be beat right now. For me, personally. I also think it mimics modern football and the rapid changes in tempo, as well as the variety of goals, better than anything else.
Last night, I played in Euro 2020 as Turkey, in a tough group. Other than the gameplay being...
A) Much too fast (and that's on slow, with pass speed turned down - this is my biggest fear for 20 because it's the thing I probably dislike the most about it), and
B) Devoid of fouls (something that I've just got used to, but after the PES demo, it's really difficult to ignore that no coming-together ever risks a foul)
(And I accept that these aren't small problems, they're major...)
It was just so varied, and it was challenging. I played Portugal on Ultimate, and they loved a dribble (not just one superstar with a "dribble card" or whatever - a lot of their midfield). My stodgy defence couldn't keep pace with them and we deservedly lost.
I played Romania on Legendary, and after scoring from a cutback through a packed box that somehow got through to Tosun to tap in, they got lucky with a long ball that I misjudged (I tried to make the defender head a ball he couldn't reach, and because he committed to it, they were gifted an easy one-on-one).
I had to beat England to progress. I even did something I've not done in a long time, and knocked the difficulty down to World Class, because I wanted to carry on in the tournament and the difficulty was proving hard enough.
I genuinely had to change tactics to suppress Sterling (which is why I wish they'd let you see a team's "predicted" line-up before a match, such a simple thing). They relied on him and Rashford too much (Rashford missed a couple of chances), and I had a one-on-one that filled me with an excitement I just don't get from PES any more (I felt like I'd really earnt it), which I tried to "finesse" (I never use that function, but I had time) and it still hit the corner flag.
(I even saved that shot as a replay, because it was so bad, it felt good - that the game was punishing me for trying to score a fancy goal with a DM, and again, you just don't see that in PES anywhere near often enough.)
It ended 0-0 and that was it, I was out. I'd left Newcastle, whose board requirements became ridiculous (not unrealistic given their current chairman), and applied for the job at Valencia, who were going through a rough patch in Spain - it then took almost an hour to sort out their squad.
The whole process - the way that the scouts work, players wanting to go, players refusing to join unless they were promised first team football (which has really screwed up the team in terms of depth, I've shifted out loads of lower-quality players but can't convince anyone better to join for a "sporadic" role), Premier League clubs coming in day after day for our best players and not taking no for an answer...
(I imagine all this on top of the new "player conversations" system, and the "dynamic attribute growth" and I mean - fuck me, it might still need a few very basic things, but it's still exciting.)
Then getting to the first matchday and being given a whole new presentation (okay, graphics came into it eventually) - even down to the lighting - and a new feel to the matches compared to the lightning pace of the Premier League. True variation.
I just don't feel any of this when playing PES (not the comparison thread I know, but I'm just saying - this is why I'm desperate for FIFA 20 to turn out okay).
