FM,, It's like trying to Manage with one arm tied behind your back!!!

I'm severely finding there seem to be far to many reasons in this game for bad performances and a lot of them are impossible to work out.

I'm West Ham. In a Cup 3rd Round Replay I go to Man City and win 2-1. Backs to the wall but I win. The following week I am away at a poor Bolton side. I dominate first half, they have 2 chances and go in 2-0 up!!!!

I hammer the players at half time and they go out and play great but we still lose 2-0. 58% possession, three times as many goal attempts, more crosses etc etc but we still lose!!!

Now surely the previous weeks win should have increased confidence? so why play so bad first half? You sort the tactic, seem to have everything in control and yet the game makes your team play like tyhey don't know eachother first half and it takes a bo******* at half time to get them going......

It's hard enough without this...

There doesn't seem to be any rewards for going out and getting a good result at all.

To be perfectly honest I am getting quite sick of these kind of rants. People saying the game is flawed or bugged because they don't get the result they think they should. Do real football managers always get the results or performances they want or expect? No, of course not. Are there statistical anomalies in real life football? Yes, of course there are.

I am not saying that the game is bug free, far from it, I am just saying that not every time something doesn't go to plan should people be calling "Bug!" It is extremely tedious and irritating

I have'nt played more than a handful of games in the last week or so, such is my discontent and those were really just little tests, in which i'd have a couple of ideas i'd want to try out?(which would dramatically fail)

Certain things i've noticed that just have me shaking my head, take for instance a Scout report on my next opponents, he tells me how he expects them to play, i play the game, dominate and win. Next game he gives me an almost identical report, we get tortured?

Also, we have all heard the saying "Its a game of two halves", but that is literally becoming fact in the most quizzical fashion. In so many matches now it seems that if one team completely dominates one half, then the opposition will completely dominate the other? this can even be said of AI v's AI games, something is'nt right?

I'm severely finding there seem to be far to many reasons in this game for bad performances and a lot of them are impossible to work out.

I'm West Ham. In a Cup 3rd Round Replay I go to Man City and win 2-1. Backs to the wall but I win. The following week I am away at a poor Bolton side. I dominate first half, they have 2 chances and go in 2-0 up!!!!

I hammer the players at half time and they go out and play great but we still lose 2-0. 58% possession, three times as many goal attempts, more crosses etc etc but we still lose!!!

Now surely the previous weeks win should have increased confidence? so why play so bad first half? You sort the tactic, seem to have everything in control and yet the game makes your team play like tyhey don't know eachother first half and it takes a bo******* at half time to get them going......

It's hard enough without this...

There doesn't seem to be any rewards for going out and getting a good result at all.

This just sounds like real football to me:confused:

sounds like football to me to, example, man united hammer inter milan 2-0 midweek at old trafford. confidence is sky high top of league and so on, liverpool come to old trafford and destroy united 4-1. do u think ferguson is saying oh my god life is bugged god is cheating me.

sounds like football to me to, example, man united hammer inter milan 2-0 midweek at old trafford. confidence is sky high top of league and so on, liverpool come to old trafford and destroy united 4-1. do u think ferguson is saying oh my god life is bugged god is cheating me.

He probably just reloads and plays again

Except Man Utd didn't play well against Inter. They were much better in Milan and Inter should've given more on Tuesday night. Add to that the Liverpool's confidence would be sky high after smashing the Spanish Champions 4-0 and the result is a little more logical.

That aside the tactical interface is what makes this game so difficult. The sliders and all their positions make it quite difficult to just pick up the game and play. I suppose that's what's getting people down especially those who played the earlier versions religiously but don't have time now due to work or whatever to put in the tactical mileage. I know I don't.

I find sussex hammers rants, he feels thee same as me, but i just dont tell everyone about it, i love you man

To be perfectly honest I am getting quite sick of these kind of rants. People saying the game is flawed or bugged because they don't get the result they think they should. Do real football managers always get the results or performances they want or expect? No, of course not. Are there statistical anomalies in real life football? Yes, of course there are.

I am not saying that the game is bug free, far from it, I am just saying that not every time something doesn't go to plan should people be calling "Bug!" It is extremely tedious and irritating

Er where exactly was I "Calling Bug"???!!!

Football is also about opinions and I have a right to put mine forward.

FM is a game, yes, its nice to have it as realistic as possible, but it's a game, it should be fun.

I am not having a rant I am merely pointing out that as it is a game by "doing the right things" you should be more rewarded, rather than being penalised for something that you can do nothing about.

I mean, if you get a great away win then confidence should play a part in your next game. If you are not rewarded for trying to do the right things and succeeding in the right things and you just lose a game due to "randomness" of the ME for instance then what is the point in actually trying to do the right things?

If confidence/tactics/team talks don't really matter due to that randomness then why bother with tactics/team talks etc? Why not just throw out a 4-4-2 every week and just hope that the ME is in a good mood!!!!!!!!

That's all I'm saying.

This is just like a United game I had. We were something like 16 games unbeaten, on an 11 game winning streak, league record for most games without conceding. On top of this we're current european and english champions. Then we lost to a liverpool side who were in terrible form, with a mental manager, at home, 4-1!!!! It was so random. It must be a glitch in the game.

Oh wait......

This is just like a United game I had. We were something like 16 games unbeaten, on an 11 game winning streak, league record for most games without conceding. On top of this we're current european and english champions. Then we lost to a liverpool side who were in terrible form, with a mental manager, at home, 4-1!!!! It was so random. It must be a glitch in the game.

Oh wait......

A Liverpool side who hammered a top European side a few days earlier and you were down to 10 men.... 11 v 10 and you lose,, Now that I can get my head round!!!! ;-)

I know you didn't say it is a bug, in so many words anyway, but the content of the OP is essentially you saying the game is flawed in some way, hence why I said you "called Bug"

I have no qualms with you putting your opinion forward, however the manner in which you posted irritated me (My opinion, as I am entitled to) and the fact that I have seen virtual facsimiles of your OP so often I felt I had to say something about it.

A Liverpool side who hammered a top European side a few days earlier and you were down to 10 men.... 11 v 10 and you lose,, Now that I can get my head round!!!! ;-)

Typical scouser, using any chance to get a dig in.

I know you didn't say it is a bug, in so many words anyway, but the content of the OP is essentially you saying the game is flawed in some way, hence why I said you "called Bug"

I have no qualms with you putting your opinion forward, however the manner in which you posted irritated me (My opinion, as I am entitled to) and the fact that I have seen virtual facsimiles of your OP so often I felt I had to say something about it.

In the future please spare us.

In the future please spare us.

I would do if other people spared us of useless rants about apparent flaws that are, more often than not, completely non existent

Typical scouser, using any chance to get a dig in.

I'm a Hammer who was actually hoping that Utd would win!!!!! ;-)

ftg87>>>>> Apologies if I irritated you. My posts are not intended as a slagging off of the game, I love it, I wouldn't play it if I didn't, they are merely an eruption of frustration which I am sure a lot experience.

Mainly down to the fact that you seem to think you have got the hang of things and then it seems that the goalposts have been moved. Not a suggestion the game is flawed just a belief that at times it punishes you more than it rewards you.

Let's face it, we have all had a last minute 30 yard effort from an opposition player with a long shot rating of 12 that flies into the top corner and yet your long shot specialist with a long shot rating of 18 hasn't got near the target that game!! Or an opposition keeper who plays a blinder and at your end a ball hits the post and it hits your keeper on the back of the head and goes in!!!

It's frustrating....

No-one is expecting to win the League in your first season as a middle of the road Club, or expecting to win 4-1 at Old Trafford ;-)

"but" if you instruct your centre back to play it short you would like him to do so rather than launch a 50 yard ball, or when you ask your CF to HUB you don't want him spinning off and running aimlessly towards goal, or your passes keep knocking off your players knees but the opposition don't misplace one!!! Or your Ass Man says "show no 10 on to the weaker foot" but no 10 then gets the winner with his left peg!!! Surely you know what I mean!!!!

The problem is with this version at the moment it's difficult to work out if a tactic which you spend hours on actually works. People say give it a few games but it's tough to judge when you win away 2-0 but yet get thumped 4-1 in the next game against weaker opposition. In the past if your striker gets a hat-trick you think "ah, I've done something right", but now he gets that hat-trick and doesn't score again for 6 games and you find yourself constantly tweaking. Or constantly tweaking your other striker but whatever you try he averages 5.4!!!

It would just be nice to be rewarded and then you can say, great my striker is fine but I need to work on DM instructions, or my LB moves but the seeming randomness just takes away that level of control you thought you had.

It pains me to see people having to have a set of 5 tactics or so. Sorry but that doesn't happen IRL. Clubs have their way of playing, they might go away with one up and play a counter or throw an extra striker on to save the game but 80% of teams in the PL play a

4-4-2, and 4-4-2 in FM has notoriously been one of the weaker formations.

Just a little bit of reward for getting something right is all I'm asking.

I am not having a rant I am merely pointing out that as it is a game by "doing the right things" you should be more rewarded, rather than being penalised for something that you can do nothing about.

I mean, if you get a great away win then confidence should play a part in your next game. If you are not rewarded for trying to do the right things and succeeding in the right things and you just lose a game due to "randomness" of the ME for instance then what is the point in actually trying to do the right things?

If confidence/tactics/team talks don't really matter due to that randomness then why bother with tactics/team talks etc? Why not just throw out a 4-4-2 every week and just hope that the ME is in a good mood!!!!!!!!

That's all I'm saying.

Forgive me if I am wrong, but it sounds like you feel you are "entitled" to win the Bolton game. That the AI manager of Bolton didn't know you just beat what I assume is a superior Man City side (on paper at least), and made his side play accordingly. Yes, your team's confidence will have been high, but perhaps it was too high.

If (for example) you tell your team "relax and the result will come" or "I expect a win" then they are not going to be as determined as other team talks, which to me is common sense. I never use these options against Prem teams unless they are real no-hopers.

So against a Bolton team (in MY game; I have no clue as to where you are in yours) I would know that they are a hard team to break down, so a slow paced, counter-attacking tactic will probably work best for me, no matter what team I am.

And I'm not quite sure what you mean by "be more rewarded". That because you beat a technically superior team in your previous game that the ME should do what, exactly? Lower Bolton's players' attributes? Turn their manager into a fool?

In my experience FM rewards managers that play the game that's in front of them. In THAT respect, at least, it's more realistic than previous versions.

if you instruct your centre back to play it short you would like him to do so rather than launch a 50 yard ball, or when you ask your CF to HUB you don't want him spinning off and running aimlessly towards goal, or your passes keep knocking off your players knees but the opposition don't misplace one!!! Or your Ass Man says "show no 10 on to the weaker foot" but no 10 then gets the winner with his left peg!!! Surely you know what I mean!!!!

The problem is with this version at the moment it's difficult to work out if a tactic which you spend hours on actually works. People say give it a few games but it's tough to judge when you win away 2-0 but yet get thumped 4-1 in the next game against weaker opposition. In the past if your striker gets a hat-trick you think "ah, I've done something right", but now he gets that hat-trick and doesn't score again for 6 games and you find yourself constantly tweaking. Or constantly tweaking your other striker but whatever you try he averages 5.4!!!

It would just be nice to be rewarded and then you can say, great my striker is fine but I need to work on DM instructions, or my LB moves but the seeming randomness just takes away that level of control you thought you had.

It pains me to see people having to have a set of 5 tactics or so. Sorry but that doesn't happen IRL. Clubs have their way of playing, they might go away with one up and play a counter or throw an extra striker on to save the game but 80% of teams in the PL play a

4-4-2, and 4-4-2 in FM has notoriously been one of the weaker formations.

It's very frustrating to constantly read that "you don't need 5 tactics in real life" and other variations on this. You are probably thinking of "formations" which is how the teams line up at the start of the match, whether 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 or 4-5-1 or whatever. A "tactic" is how you play the game, the instructions you give individuals, how to handle specific players, etc. These TACTICS change an incredible number of times during real games, whether you are chasing the game, defending a lead, or keeping it tight at 0-0.

If one team is having a lot of possession, then 10 mins in, the opposition will change their tactic a little to counter this; if this works, the first team will change theirs to counter that and regain possession; if Ronaldo scores a penalty 15mins in, Rafa will instruct Gerrard to play a little further up the pitch and make forward runs more often; you're 2-1 down at half-time, you need to go more direct, more attacking, and this will either work or leave you open to more goals; if you're 2-1 UP at half time you should know your opponants will come at you more directly, so saying "same again lads" and changing nothing is just suicidal.

So you're right about real teams not having 5 tactics - they have way, way more. An infinite number, in fact.

I have moderate success with the "default 4-4-2 attack" with my defensive line knocked back to "normal", the "default 4-4-2 defensive", again with the defensive line back to "normal", a "shut-up-shop 4-5-1" of my own design which only fails to protect my narrow lead once or twice per season, and the "default 4-5-1" tweaked to slow, counter-attack. That's really all I use, with very occasional tweaks during matches to the pace of the game and sometimes passing style.

As for your player instructions, no player will ever obey absolutely every instruction you give; if they did people would be on here complaining about how they keep giving possession away or fail to spot an obvious pass but didn't take it because of their instructions. SI will never satisfy everyone on this count.

Er where exactly was I "Calling Bug"???!!!

Football is also about opinions and I have a right to put mine forward.

FM is a game, yes, its nice to have it as realistic as possible, but it's a game, it should be fun.

I am not having a rant I am merely pointing out that as it is a game by "doing the right things" you should be more rewarded, rather than being penalised for something that you can do nothing about.

I mean, if you get a great away win then confidence should play a part in your next game. If you are not rewarded for trying to do the right things and succeeding in the right things and you just lose a game due to "randomness" of the ME for instance then what is the point in actually trying to do the right things?

If confidence/tactics/team talks don't really matter due to that randomness then why bother with tactics/team talks etc? Why not just throw out a 4-4-2 every week and just hope that the ME is in a good mood!!!!!!!!

That's all I'm saying.

I hate posts like this too!

OP, how come you are not complaining when you beat M.City on the road? Or maybe AI should have complained about losing to you in a game where they dominated your team?

Go play something else if you just want to have fun, and no realism. There are plenty of football games around that will suit your needs. Just leave this one alone please

Go play something else if you just want to have fun

This part of your post perfectly sums up the bizarre attitude of some on here. Surely as a game its' main purpose is to entertain, yet you say he should play something else if he wants to be entertained? Bizarre.

This part of your post perfectly sums up the bizarre attitude of some on here. Surely as a game its' main purpose is to entertain, yet you say he should play something else if he wants to be entertained? Bizarre.

I know Sam,, I believe some on here call them "fanboys" is it??!!! I can only assume that some have an incredible amount of free time on their hands to be a full time Manager (without pay I assume) and use these endless hours to hone their 50 versions of a tactic.

Unfortunately, I and I am sure many others don't have the time and play FM and have done for years as a relaxing pastime rather than a full time job!!!

backpackant >>>> Yes, I understand your points, but with regard to "Rafa telling Gerrard to play a little further forward etc etc" how do you actually know this? How do you not know that maybe Rafa says "right Steve, you are an experienced pro, you don't need me to tell you what to do, just go out and do what you always do"!!!

With due respect I'm a Level 2 FA Coach and I manage a real side at a good level, and I certainly don't have 6,7 or 8 ways of playing. I also certainly don't instruct all 11 players how far forward to play or as and when to dribble with the ball and I certainly don't aks them to cross rarely, mixed or often!!! You may instruct or advise a younger player on what to do "some" of the time but certainly not all of the time.

It's all about opportunity and that is probably where the game falls down in some areas, but it will do, it's a game. For example a winger IRL will cross because he gets an opportunity or an opening, whereas in the game if a winger is instructed to cross often that is why he hits a full back so much maybe?

I certainly don't "expect" to beat Bolton after I have beaten Man City but I do hope for some benefit from a good result or performance rather than a random reason out of my control that makes me lose the next game. If my team suffers because of over confidence then how do I prevent that? You can't because in team talks you can't say at the start of the game "don't be over confident from last week lads". That's all I am saying, if a random reason which you can do nothing about makes you lose a game then technically that game is un-winnable and then what is the point of playing it?

More options with team talks? Better feedback from Ass Managers?? I don't know. Certainly two areas I would change are creative freedom. Maybe replace it with an "experience" stat. That way maybe you can just "rely" on certain players to do the right thing rather than obey every single instruction you give them which I have said before you don't do IRL.

And a with the ball play and a without the ball screen for "the same tactic". IRL I play a 4-4-2 in which we utilise width when going forward but when we lose the ball we defend compact and flood the midfield. In FM you can't do that because you either choose your "normal, wide or narrow" settings before the game starts.

I would do if other people spared us of useless rants about apparent flaws that are, more often than not, completely non existent

No, really please spare us. There must be a thread more aligned with your sensibilities than this one.

The games okay, In my opinion all FM's have simulated the real game well.

You get angry because you lose when you think you should win, just like everyone. Just chill or smash something, or indeed post online about it.

This is just like a United game I had. We were something like 16 games unbeaten, on an 11 game winning streak, league record for most games without conceding. On top of this we're current european and english champions. Then we lost to a liverpool side who were in terrible form, with a mental manager, at home, 4-1!!!! It was so random. It must be a glitch in the game.

Oh wait......

Terrible form? Mental Manager? Sure Liverpool hadn't been doing too well in the premier league but that was with injury concerns to both Torres and Gerrard. When they both played against Real Madrid Raul and Higuain hardly saw the ball. Besides, having a cheap shot at Rafa because the better side won just seems a little unfair.