Their track record since the move to the new generation is pretty awful. That's why they went from being the biggest football game out there to selling less than a quarter of what FIFA does. It’s no good producing a game that needs to played for half a year for the penny to drop with a handful of die-hards, that won’t resurrect the games success and by that I don’t mean produce something with no depth. I respect you Jimmy, but I don’t think there is much that Konami could do that you wouldn’t manage to convince yourself was right.
My files have always made the game more difficult and challenging. Before them I would get the game, play the master league and within 2 seasons I had won everything and would then go seasons without defeat and win each competition.
Last year's game wasn't as hard as this years out of the box, but after editing the game play I was still playing it when the new one come out and struggling to win the master league with the Valencia team I had built up, some years I would win it and it would feel like an achievement, other I wouldn’t, but it was always great trying and I never won that and the champions league in the same season.
The challenging game play that you love this year, I have been putting into the game since the PS2 days.
In my current master league I am Milan, who are one of the best teams. On un-modded version of the game I would win every game with them on Super Star. Using mine, on Professional, I am facing the sack. This is because every team is made difficult to beat and can score against you even if your using the best teams, as this is football. Football isn't people not using the best teams as games against smaller clubs and dull with the other team penned into their half.
You enjoy the game using teams like Boro as you want a challenge, what I do is give this level of challenge for all teams. I could give so many instances where certain players have far more accurate stats using my files than the default konami ones as they do not really much about smaller teams, even in the premier league, but it's easier to point out that in the default game all players at small clubs are given inferior physical stats than those at big clubs . Think about that, it makes no sense. Someone that plays in Holland, cannot run as fast as someone who plays for Man Utd, someone in the Turkish league cannot be as strong as someone at Barca and someone who is banging in goals all over the place who plays for a team outside the top four in England, cannot shoot as well as one of their strikers.
If you look at fantasy football player lists for leagues, the price of players is accurate, in that players who aren’t famous that have skills for creating goals and scoring them no matter which team they play for are expensive. These players who aren’t at big teams in PES simply aren’t given decent stats. I give them the stats they should have and reduce plays like Ronaldo and Messi so that they don’t unrealistically un-balance the game
The problem is Chimps, is the core engine. People like you can spend all the god given hours and you can get the stats and individuality as close of possible. So too can the mods on the PC using ball physics tweaks, graphics etc etc.
BUT - at the end of the day unless a developer creates a game that resembles football as I see on tv, then the race is never run in my eyes.
By that I mean -
Watch a game of football on tv, how many times is the ball passed backwards and sideways? Lots. Why? To create space because teams have players in the way of getting from point A to B and to draw opposition players out of position. There is method in teams madness that they pass the ball about.
Now roll on PES and to a certain extent FIFA. CPU gets the ball, anywhere on the pitch, roll on the dribble, dribble, dribble, pass forward, pass forward, dribble, make the human have to contain, then fire a shot. It's pretty much this all the time. I throw a f'kin party every time the CPU pass the ball sideways or backwards!
I played PES6 earlier and played against Arsenal. Guess what, there were balls passed backwards, sideways, forwards, some moves were complete passing moves others were dribbles; but the game looked and played like a football game would play. You can't just pick up the ball and dribble every time, guess what, there's like players in the way and shit!?!
Chimps, your work is fantastic. So to is Yair's and Mehtab and Nesa and Jenkey. But even they, after months of tweaking cannot get the CPU to play like a team would IRL.
In PES 2012, how many times have you actually had to chase the ball around for say more than 30 seconds of Earth time? Answer - hardly ever. How is that realistic. The same goes for FIFA. FIFA has this built in 'CPU keep possession' but it is only window dressing and just is executed in the script somewhere that the CPU keeps the ball, just for effect, before it TOO can out dribble you with your unresponsive defender.
I'm being quite critical this week, because it is getting to stage where both games are just not cutting it for me.
Why is the CPU programmed to be as direct as possible ALL THE TIME?!? The coding is like this -
CPU get the ball, dribble and be as direct as possible, if human player in way, then ignore threat or loss of possession, just trundle on, continue forward, press forward, keep pressing forward, even if you have easy lateral or backwards pass, keep forward, UNTIL, ball lost....
And that's about it. The problem is the CPU and human are on TOTALLY different planets in terms of the gameplay. The CPU has this little universe going on that passing lanes are easy, but it's easier just to dribble and be direct, whilst the human is aware of possession, if they lose the ball here etc and the consequences. It was hilarious yesterday, the CPU was on the touchline and went into touch three times in a row; it would rather lose possession by dribbling stupidly into touch than give a simple pass back! I mean what is going on.
Why is PES5/6 more realistic in terms of build up play, and the CPU reacting to human movement than next gen games? PES5/6 build up play from the CPU is near flawless. The attacking/defensive balance is near flawless.
In PES2012 the CPU is programmed to be as unrealistically sharp as possible to get from their penalty box to just outside your penalty box. There is no build up play, just a straight route to your box. You (the human player) put little obstacles in their way, known as your players, but the CPU carries on regardless. The game in PES 2012 revolves basically around your penalty area, and how long you can hold them off using contain. All the steps to get to your penalty area are just drops in the ocean, a kind of inconvenient slow down for the CPU. You can't sufficiently press the CPU in this game, you can't force them back, you can't create tactics that make the 'go-long' or make them pass the ball about the back four, because the CPU is simply too good and smart for 7/8ths of the pitch. So the only tactic is to contain/hold until you choke them in and around your penalty box.
It's becoming tedious to be honest. I just played a game just now, again v Arsenal on the PC version, and the CPU passed the ball back TWICE in the whole match!!! That's just ludicrous. And this is me playing 4-5-1 to which is meant to stifle them in midfield!
Now if you ask do I enjoy playing PES this year, then the answer has been yeah, as frustrating as it's been. If you ask me are we anywhere near it resembling a game of football in terms of how the CPU reacts and builds up play, then the answer is a definitive NO.
PES 2011 had lots of faults, but at least the CPU played some football and had some build up play, and at least you could press and pressure in areas and the CPU was forced to pass the ball amongst it's back four. This year's iteration is WAY, WAY too attacking orientated, even with the brilliant tweaks of Jenkey, Chimps et al.
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But some of the goalkeeping I've seen has been brilliant.
Nah Im just joking.
