What keeps you going?

Hi everybody!

This is not a rant no nothing, warning those who half read my post and start attacking me:D

So... What keeps you guys going? I mean I usually cant play long saves (5 seasons max?) but for some reason I just cant get into FM10... I love FM btw and I think this version is the best one yet... I was into this Liverpool save but got sacked in season 3 (I came 2nd two years running but hadn't won any silverware and in my 3rd season I was coming 4thish in Dec and got sacked...) and after that tried no joke 5 or 6 different teams in 2 weeks. Nothing over 6 months just cant get into it... I'm Aston Villa atm and doing okay (was coming 2nd for long period now dropped down to 6th by Feb) and was really enjoying at the start but losing interest again...

So what keeps everyone going? Can anyone inspire me to continue with this game?:confused:

I always try and develop young talent and watch 16/17-year-olds become a part of the first team over time and build a good career.

Also, if you get bored at a club and you have a decent reputation, resign and look for jobs elsewhere.

Surely the whole concept of FM is designed so that you can take-over the club YOU support and guide them/build them/play them however you like. With the new editor, creating or downloading lower leagues is so easy, whatever team you support, you can manage them.

Failing that, try the french or german laegues, with a top team it's pretty easy to conquer domesticaly, keep that up for a season or two, then go for europe

having started at bottom of BSS side weymouth, i have moved upto 2nd place in league 2 after a few years. trying to move a club from the BSS to a decent level is a challenge. as it keepin the finances in order, signing the right sort of players, competing with teams who have higher budgets etc etc. while i know i can help us improve iam happy to stay. when i have took them as far as i can i will quit.

perhaps finding a challenge may help u 2?

Hmm... Acutally I had been finding this game pretty hard... No other version had I gone 2 seaons without winning anything... The usual scenario with Liverpool goes;

First Season:

One domestic club and either the League or Champions League

Second Season:

Win alot of everything

Third Season:

Smash everything

Fourth Season:

Smash everything but lose one or two things

Fifth Season:

Have uber super duper team and smash everthing, bored sh*tless quit.

Usually if I try with a Championship team:

First Season:

Promotion

Second Season:

Either Rage Quit after doing really badly or get sacked.

I am not THAT good at FM I must admit...

But personally what keeps everyone going? I definately would love to see some youngsters grow to be superstars, I guess that could be something that keeps me going...

Get out of England

Try a different country. Different challenges.

Also, it seems to me that having the game be more challenging is a good thing. Where's the fun in having an uber superduper squad in 5 years or less?

Get out of England

Yeah, come to Australia.

Play in Brazil or Wales. Both ultra competetive leagues which keeps you on your toes.

What keeps the game interesting for me is building world beating teams and sustaining it, especially when the real players start retiring or declining. Currently, my fantastic team are around the best in the business, and i have my first non real team nurturing in the background waiting for there chances.

What helps for me is having multiple saves that have different goals. I have a Lower League save, and AC Milan save (take an amazing team to amazingness), a PSG save (the one I'm playing currently) and a Brighton (new stadium ftw) I usually just load up whatever I feel like playing.....it helps if a save gets stale, just put it on the shelf until it's fresh again

Being manager of Manchester United and England and winning all there is to win in football for eternity keeps me going in this wonderful game. My aim is to be a legend while managing my beloved club Manchester United!

I'm too scared to manage outside England, Spain or Italy though... I am from Australia but is the A-League any fun? You'll never sign anyone worth signing though if you know what I mean...

i dont agree with you saying that you wont ever sign anyone worth signing, Look at robbie fowler for example. Also you might unearth a little gem and tempt him accross and nuture him in to a big star and sell him on for quite a fee. I love watching my little gems who have moved on and love to see them become world beaters. Imagine if you founf the next harry kewell, Tim Cahill or Mark Viduka!!!!!

Long term targets keep me going, the sorts of things that literally can't be achieved for a decent number of seasons. With that, I also like to see the entire careers of my players through, which can only really happen once you get beyond about 20 seasons at the top level.

Usually I'm done after I win an European Trophy with Rosenborg [5 to life, depending on how the savegame goes].

Then I can can still play a season or two just to come full circle, if possible.

Otherwise I can give a try to a Journeyman Save, but in the end I don't always feel like leaving a club where I've already begun to work on a mid-term plan.

To be honest, my main beef with FM isn't "how can I keep myself interested", but "how can I finally enjoy changing club every couple of years".

I have taken whitby to League 1 before, then my girlfriend at the time( Obv now an ex) went on the PC and it disapeared ! i took Hartlepool to back to back champions league wins ! i like starting un-employed and working up, it can take a while if you hit a rough patch , so could give you 10 seasons hard graft then you need a new goal, once you get a big job...do you stay there untill you have more titles than liverpool or Man Utd, or do you stay a couple of seasons here and there, i have found myself going back dwn the leagues to rescue someone who's been relegated, like Bolton ending up in league 1 or something, but i must admit, i have had times when i've started maybe 7 new games in a week trying to get into it...im HOOKED on my current game mind, helps when your winning.

Does anybody else suffer from second season syndrome? I mean no matter how good/bad I have done or what team I am I always get bored and delete my save in the second season but if I manage to play al the way through it then I normally get to about the 30th season then get bored

I often find it quite hard to keep going, but that's something I'm trying to work on in this incarnation.

I've found a career type game might hold the answers.

Manage more challenging clubs and set yourself goals to keep it interesting e.g. manage Ajax, try to build a team full of young Dutch talent and recreate the team of the 90's, win the CL etc etc. Winning the league might be relatively easy, which maintains the fun, but winning the CL will be difficult, which keeps it interesting and challenging.

I am so crap but... I have played since FM05 but still suck at the game I think... I can't do what everyone else does by taking a no name team to European glory... I struggle so much and when I get sacked I rage quit...

Dunno maybe I'll try a low low team... Someone with potential... Notts Co?

at the minute, its the possibiltiy of promotion, plus the rumours of a takeover to revamp my finances!

I used to have the same problem (Rarely if ever got beyond 10 seasons on 05, wasn't til 07 that I managed to sustain a save over a long period), gradually managed to be more commited to a main save. When I'm doing badly, even at successive clubs, there's the knowledge that soon I'll be able to try again somewhere and something will come up that does really well.

When I'm doing well and have been at the top (even if it doesn't mean winning every year) for a while, which hasn't been often, I see how far I can take it, see exactly how much of what I can say I won. Take a situation I'm in at the moment. Say you arrive at a club with hardly any trophies and no leagues, and within a couple of seasons (featuring a cup and a highest ever league position) you give them a title, then a couple more. naturally lack of motivation would start setting in, after all you've already done very well, but why stop at 3 or 4, I want to see how many titles (in total and in a row) I can give this club. If I decide to leave for something else which probably won't work out so well, I'll probably miss out on a fair few more feathers in my cap, especially as I didn't have any before I arrived. Had a similar situation on 09 but I just kept going and I'd have missed out on many more leagues (and a few CLs) had I decided to stop every time I felt I should.

It does take a bit of willpower I do admit, not just with consistent success but also if you feel you're not progressing as much as you should. One thing I started doing last time (and will continue doing) is to create a secondary save to go on whenever I feel like playing but don't feel like being in the same old situation. I've barely had to use mine this time (and thought up of the idea of a proper diversion save too late last time for it to get much play) but its useful for a quick go while the motivation returns, which for me it always has done very quickly. Certainly better then just switching aimlessly from save to save after a season or 2 as however little I progress on the secondary save, at least theoretically it still gives me a sense of purpose in attempting a proper career.

just need a challenge thats right for you , how about iraq? or belgium , greece or malta ...

plenty of chips to fry

I started with the top leagues playable, made Rangers the best team in the World, and have now moved to newcastle and am currently working towards bettering Rangers, which is no mean feat so far! After a few titles I'll move on again, possibly to Italy.

what gazza did really. managed celtic befor jumping ship to inter, As soon as i win champs league and then world club cup il move to another country

Usually it's beating Rangers, Linfield or Bohemians and keeping count.

I struggled initially, but started a journeyman save loading England, France & Germany. Started unemployed & got a job in France National then was approached by Macclesfield & spent 2 and a half seasons there, almost sneaking into the play offs before getting offered (and accepting) the job at Southampton who have just been relegated back to League 1. I may live to regret that though as the club is £1.5 million in debt and currently £35k per week over the wage budget!!

I don't buy and develop youth players as I know that I would get attached to them & not want to leave if/when the opportunity arrives.

My target is to win the league & champions league in all 3 countries which will take a while & therefore is keeping me interested

A good thing you can do is leave it for a few days. When you come back you will be very excited.

For your problem... just think "stupid Liverpool, we'll see who's laughing when I nick their champs league spot!".

For a great game, athletic Bilbao, basque players only allowed.