Solution to repetitive press conferences

IRL is there really a full press conference before and after every game? Okay there are post-match interviews and with Sky expanding so quickly they do tend to have press conferences for each game, but this is usuially only in England. If you look at the Scottish game, IRL there aren't press conferences before and after every game at every level.

So, in FM, why not scale down the amount that there are? We already have the facility to comment on next and previous games, speaking about managers and players.

I propose to have press conferences madatory for your first game in charge, rival clashes, "6-pointers", top 4 games and maybe games that are shown on TV.

Also on FA Cup games after the 6th round unless again it is a TV match, League Cup Games fromt eh semi-final only, and selected European ties.

This is still a lot but would reduce the monotony of have 2 per game.

If you are a PL team, playing in the Champions LEague, COmmunity Shield, FA Cup and League Cup, you could play 64 games a season, maybe more with Super Cup and Club World Championship - that would be over 120 press conferences PER SEASON !

Average of 5 questions each - 600 questions.

It's easy to see why people want to turn them off. But whent they first came into the game I bet everyone thought, "Cool, this is a good feature."

It could be but it just needs toned down.

I vote press conferences just get removed....I don't even get prompted now anyway, got it set to my assmans job

Maybe fm shouldn't use the word Press Conference. Because in lower levels there is only 1 journalist. Which would make it a normal interview? Which managers at that level do have.

I vote press conferences just get removed....I don't even get prompted now anyway.

Removing a feature because it doesn't work perfectly is just stupid imho.

Removing a feature because it doesn't work perfectly is just stupid imho.

I agree - it can be made better - if there were less of them then the affect they have on games could beincreased to make them more important to the game.

id probably enjoy press cons. more if u could give cheeky replies etc. instead of all the old cliches

What about the possibility to turn off press confs, instead of simply remove them ?

Or really improve that feature, because it's really annoying to answer some repetitive questions, like "Rumors said you want to buy *** (A rubbish player)" when you had already answered that you're really not interested for that "player". Let your ass man do the press confs is not a solution, because he sometimes have completely different opinion than yours (Even when asked a question you have already answered in a previous press conf.).

What about the possibility to turn off press confs, instead of simply remove them ?

Or really improve that feature, because it's really annoying to answer some repetitive questions, like "Rumors said you want to buy *** (A rubbish player)" when you had already answered that you're really not interested for that "player". Let your ass man do the press confs is not a solution, because he sometimes have completely different opinion than yours (Even when asked a question you have already answered in a previous press conf.).

Would you not agree that my idea would work? Have less of them?

Would you not agree that my idea would work? Have less of them?

I agree that fewer of them in strategic matches only would make them less of a chore.

remember though the impact of what you say in a press conference will affect how your team might play, so removing it would be removing a very strategic part of the game

I find that the press conferences are pretty repetitive so i sometimes let my assman do them

u dont get a press conference every game so ur estimates per season are way off, also u can send ur assistant to all the needless ones and only go to the important ones like before a final or a rival match.

i have a formula in press conferences for keeping from upsetting anyone as it seems that's the best you can hope for. i find that my ass man, no matter what his man management stats are, always says stupid things to upset the players. for instance, when i was managing fulham, without fail, he would insist that chelsea were "a lock" for the title. I wanted to say "what's the matter with you!!!! are you out of your mind? stop it!!"

Well I think that sending your Ass Man to do a press conference is one of the worst things you can do...unless they are one of the best. If you do that and do badly then you only have yourself to blame.

I don't want to see press conferences removed because I believe they are part and parcel of the game at all levels. They may be more likely to be called interviews at a lower level, like Divine One said, but they occur for every manager. I think they also occur more regularly in the real world than they do in the game. They simply don't happen before and after every match in the game.

In the real world they are repetetive, too. Just think of the interviews you see on TV. Those reporters ask the same questions week in, week out. Do you think you can win? How do you rate the performance of your striker? Was that a penalty?

I think a few things are needed:

1. Add more questions to the database of possibilities. There needs to be the same questions over and over to mirror real life, but a few more obscure questions, possibly about the manager's day to day functions etc, would add a bit of interest.

2. Broaden the range of answers. At the moment you do tend to be trying to choose the answer that best improves your team morale, but it shouldn't have so much of an impact as it appears to. I'd like to see more options to ask why a question is being asked.

I'm often asked who I think will win the world player of year. As a lower league manager it means nothing to me so I want to ask why that's important. When asked how I think an opposition player performed I want to say that I'm not concerned with the opposition's players; just mine. In a way I feel like I only ever get yes or no answers and the only possibility in between is to not answer or storm out. That doesn't fullfill my needs.

3. I'd like to see more questions about match incidents. There's been many a time I've finished a match where I've lost to a dodgy penalty and I don't even get asked about it. I also miss the way you could say how you felt you didn't like the opposition's appraoch to a match in a past FM. I often remember telling the opposition I was upset with their attitude. It made me feel better. Why can you never comment on bad tackles by the opposition that put your star striker out for a month? Many a time I get infuriated by this and never get a chance to say so.

4. I've often thought that maybe there could be a way to add your own answers that mean something. There is the box at the bottom of the press conferences screen, but it just adds a sentence to your answer. It doesn't mean anything.

I don't really know how this could be done, but perhaps a system around key words could be developed. For instance, I feel that the opposition's center back made a horror tackle on my forward that should have earned a sending off. I get the option to pick out the player's names, sending off:yes and bad tackle and the game creates an answer based on those options. I'm sure it could work.

Press conference should be improved indeed. A wider range of questions is necessary, and they could address not only players but also club staff, fans and even potential sponsors.

Plus, as it is now, the so-called "relationship with journalists" is useless. And also also useless is the panel that keeps all the interviews stored. I wonder if anyone ever care about revisiting them...

Reducing the number of conferences is a good option too.

I don't think a press conference before or after a match irl would have any effect on the result or team moral. Especially the reactions your players sometimes have to pointless questions where it makes no sense for them to react that way. Only on a rare occasion if you criticise the team or something might it have an effect.

Unless they can do it right and simulate it realistically it shouldn't be a feature, so I vote to get rid. I can't imagine anyone finds them fun or interesting.

Repetitive and pointless and I hope they are a thing of the past in the next FM. Same with team talks.

I wouldn't mind doing them if they weren't every game too. Before major cup clashes, league deciders and derby games etc, fine but not for absolutely everything.

Also, if you do insist on having too many Press Confs, can it be just for major teams like Real Madrid etc? It's insane that I had to attend a press conference every game while managing Cefn Druids or Burscough!

How about the press conference could be

Give Positive responses

Give Negative responses

Give Neutral Responses

Just simplify it.

Press conferences should just be removed.

Press conferences could be a great addition if they weren't so repetitive, they need a massive oerhaul or to be removed.

Definitely either have less (there's way too many, just have them for the really big matches), or have an option in preferences where you can disable them. I'd rather be able to disable them completely, than be forced to leave them to my assistant manager who now and again messes up and causes a drop in morale in my players.

I think you should be able to set a media strategy for the year and that will determine how you approach press conferences - so you can set how you talk about certain players, rivals etc without having to actually go to press conferences. Then when you want to change your media stategy you can. This would be way less boring, but also give you some control.

Press conferences, team talks and the game's overall communication tools could be enhanced to give us more variation. As it is now you give the same answers to the same questions and it kills both the immersion factor and the enjoyment for us that play the game. The deal with press conferences though is that it must be a really boring AND repetetive experince in real life too so if SI wants realism i guess they have it spot on as it is now.

Well I think that sending your Ass Man to do a press conference is one of the worst things you can do...unless they are one of the best. If you do that and do badly then you only have yourself to blame.

I don't want to see press conferences removed because I believe they are part and parcel of the game at all levels. They may be more likely to be called interviews at a lower level, like Divine One said, but they occur for every manager. I think they also occur more regularly in the real world than they do in the game. They simply don't happen before and after every match in the game.

In the real world they are repetetive, too. Just think of the interviews you see on TV. Those reporters ask the same questions week in, week out. Do you think you can win? How do you rate the performance of your striker? Was that a penalty?

I think a few things are needed:

1. Add more questions to the database of possibilities. There needs to be the same questions over and over to mirror real life, but a few more obscure questions, possibly about the manager's day to day functions etc, would add a bit of interest.

2. Broaden the range of answers. At the moment you do tend to be trying to choose the answer that best improves your team morale, but it shouldn't have so much of an impact as it appears to. I'd like to see more options to ask why a question is being asked.

I'm often asked who I think will win the world player of year. As a lower league manager it means nothing to me so I want to ask why that's important. When asked how I think an opposition player performed I want to say that I'm not concerned with the opposition's players; just mine. In a way I feel like I only ever get yes or no answers and the only possibility in between is to not answer or storm out. That doesn't fullfill my needs.

3. I'd like to see more questions about match incidents. There's been many a time I've finished a match where I've lost to a dodgy penalty and I don't even get asked about it. I also miss the way you could say how you felt you didn't like the opposition's appraoch to a match in a past FM. I often remember telling the opposition I was upset with their attitude. It made me feel better. Why can you never comment on bad tackles by the opposition that put your star striker out for a month? Many a time I get infuriated by this and never get a chance to say so.

4. I've often thought that maybe there could be a way to add your own answers that mean something. There is the box at the bottom of the press conferences screen, but it just adds a sentence to your answer. It doesn't mean anything.

I don't really know how this could be done, but perhaps a system around key words could be developed. For instance, I feel that the opposition's center back made a horror tackle on my forward that should have earned a sending off. I get the option to pick out the player's names, sending off:yes and bad tackle and the game creates an answer based on those options. I'm sure it could work.

Excellent post. I agree with you 100% and hope SI pays attention.

its where my assistant manager earns his wage by taking them for me.

I find that the press conferences are pretty repetitive so i sometimes let my assman do them

this but change the pretty to very and sometimes to always

Yes, they're boring. Yes, they're repetitive. And there is no way they should be removed. The OP overstates that there are confrences called before and after every game. They aren't. The History function for confrences is a good tool, IMO, when looking at what opposing managers are saying about you and your team. They give me insight about my side I find useful. I could care less about my own history, but if I'm in for a penny.....relationships with journos do have kind of an effect, as advertised. A journo you have a bad relationship does tend to concentrate on the worst possible thing he can concentrate on. But it has no noticable effect, and with the lack of variety, the journo doesn't have much to choose from. That needs to change, though I'm prepared to accept that maybe it's just an aspect that hasn't been fully implimented yet, like the Corporate Facilities placeholder we now see on the Information screen. And I agree--asking a LLM who's going to win World Footballer of the Year is dumb, especially when a poor answer upsets so many of your side. It's like the players expect me to follow the game on a world stage as a fan, as well as be their manager, and if I don't....

They do need to be expanded, however. We need the ability to comment on all controversial calls, especially when they go against us, and the players should respond to our reactions to controversy the way they did in FMs before there were conferences (appritiation for honesty, thinks his manager should support his players, etc).

There needs to be more variety, both of questions and responses. This is an on-going process, though. Since their implimentation, conferences have expanded, each year. I have faith in SI that they will continue to do so, each year.

It would be really cool if the game could parse our typed answers beyond looking for explitives, but to do so with any significance would be asking too much of the programmers, IMO. Especially with all the languages available, and the general poor use of those languages, both spelling (I'm a really bad speller) and grammar, I see on these boards every day by so many people.

Lastly, anyone who uses the assman to handle them is taking a major force for morale control out of their hands and placing it in the AIs. Unless the assman happens to be very good...no, absolutely superb... at handling the press, that one button more than any other can take a run of good form and turn it into cr@p. If he can handle it, fine. Personally, I never trust mine, and I've got one of the best in the business...

Press conferences should just be removed.

At least come up with a formative and constructive reason as to why they are so bad that they should be removed. As it is I'm sure you've said this before elsewhere and you're just making it look like you're trying to up your post count.

The OP's post was a fine, constructive one. Give him some credit by forming an educated reply.

Why not let the community come up with some questions and plausible answers. I reckon you could get a few hundred extra in this way.

I already do press conferences in the bathroom. I have no need for this feature but I always let my ass man do it. But it is a feature that should stay with FM. Dan that's a pretty cool idea and at least it wouldn't be the same boring lines every time.

Press conferences do not annoy me anymore. Yes, they're incredibly boring and by far the worst feature ever to be included in a CM/FM game, but you don't even have to read the whole questions, it takes about 2 seconds to identify which repetitive question it is and click on the answer you always choose. In exchange, you can get some morale boost. I answer 'we have excellent chances as long as we stick to our game plan' (something like that) in every press conferences and my players are reported to have reacted well almost every time which is ridiculous but we know how important morale is.

The problem with complaining that press conferences are repetitive is that irl they are repetitive. It's impossible to come up with something new for every match.

As someone has already stated, removing them would affect a lot of things that happen in the game.

I always hire an excellent ass man and let them get on with it. The ONLY time I would attend is if it was before a vital game.

However, I do make comments about other managers quite often.

I agree that press interaction is weak/boring part of the game. This being said I do not honestly expect much from SI about it. It is a very hard feature to noticeably improve. It will get better but will always be weak point of the game. Removing it at this point is probably out of question but my suggestions are;

1) easy improvement; add more questions / answers as usual

2) Add "press handling" attribute to staff screen, make it possible to select a any coach / ass manager to attend so we can hire one coach just for this purpose if we want.

3) have a screen to tell the this attending staff how to answer questions. Obviously we can not pre-answer each question but overall orders such as;

a) always avoid mind games

b) always respect opposing coach

c) always crap on opposing coach

d) decide yourself

a) do not comment on individual player requests

b) act towards individual requests

c) show no tolerance to individual comments

d) decide yourself

...

...

...

They are boring and repetitive. Worse, the impact they seem to have on the game is laughable.

On top of this, the answers are never reported as what you said and it is impossible to predict how players will react. Further, there is no way to reconicle with the players what you meant to say as opposed to what was said.

If Sir Alex says something in a press conference that gets misrepresented and upsets Rooney, do we honestly think that Sir Alex will NOT be able to say "Look Wayne, thats crap what he reported?"

Remove them. Reaslism is all well and good untill it makes the game dull and worklike.

On top of this, the answers are never reported as what you said and it is impossible to predict how players will react.

That is the way it is...people are quoted out of context and meanings inferred where none was intended all the time. And if you pay no attention over time to how players react, you'll never learn. When a manager takes over a team, he needs to get to know his players. Our means of "getting to know you" aren't as numerous as they would be in real life, so we have to pay closer attention to those pieces of input we do get. I know how each of my starting XI will respond to most any situation--except for new signings, who take a few months to "get to know"--both in team talks and press conferences. If you don't, you're not paying attention.

Further, there is no way to reconicle with the players what you meant to say as opposed to what was said.

Agreed. There needs to be more interaction. As always.

Remove them. Reaslism is all well and good untill it makes the game dull and worklike.

It's only dull and worklike because you make it that way. What? You thought the life of a manager was all glam and glory?

The one that's really annoying me at the moment is where you choose the option "there's not much chance of us coming out of this match with a win". The next question always says that you must have concerns about your team, and then the only choices you get are a selection of answers of where you think your team needs improving. But what if I'm happy with my team? Where's the "my team is perfectly fine, it's just that we're Wigan and we're away to Man Utd" option?

The one that's really annoying me at the moment is where you choose the option "there's not much chance of us coming out of this match with a win". The next question always says that you must have concerns about your team, and then the only choices you get are a selection of answers of where you think your team needs improving. But what if I'm happy with my team? Where's the "my team is perfectly fine, it's just that we're Wigan and we're away to Man Utd" option?

Yeah. More answers are needed.

And...I've never answered that. Even if I'm L2 going against EPL away, we always at least "...have a chance if we stick to our game plan." The operative word being "chance".

Yeah. More answers are needed.

And...I've never answered that. Even if I'm L2 going against EPL away, we always at least "...have a chance if we stick to our game plan." The operative word being "chance".

It's quite hard to tell what effect your answers in a press conference have had, but I've gotten good results and really good performances against top teams after playing our chances down in a press conference. It might have nothing to do with what I said but I've certainly never come to any great harm from choosing that option. Just wish I didn't have to always "no comment" the following question!

Press conferences need to be about the match above all else. Every match is unique, which in turn would make every press conference unique. SI should not concentrate on any other improvement until they make the press conferences about the major incidents in the match.

More specific questioning definitely. And also, why don't players do press conferences ? Right now they only react to what you say. I won't to react to what they say sometimes - e.g Riera/Babel going to the press unhappy about lack of playing time, Torres wanting squad improvement etc.

they are extremely repetative!!! definately think they could be reduced to just TV games maybe, but then if you are succesful i.e top 4, you play alot of games on TV, maybe Sir Alex thinks 'Oh no' it's another press conference, how repetative, i think i'll remove them from my life'

It's only dull and worklike because you make it that way. What? You thought the life of a manager was all glam and glory?

That doesn`t even make sense. How can saying 23 times that I don`t want to sign Peter Stinkby NOT be dull and worklike? And I`m not a football manager, I`m a bloke playing a PC game in his spare time. Unless SI want to give me £200,000 a year?

More questions would be very good. Hopefully this is an area SI will build on every year.

There needs to be a balance between fun and realism. I'm sure there are a lot of things which are a chore for managers which aren't in the game, so just saying this is how many a manager does in real life doesn't change the fact they are boring. They should be kept to rival clashes and cup games.

Exactly. Realism should not kill the fun of the game. I`m sure Arsene Wenger drives to work, so will FM11 have a vehicle section? Complete with congresion charge and traffic jams?

It's only dull and worklike because you make it that way. What? You thought the life of a manager was all glam and glory?

What the hell are you talking about? Are you being serious? This is a GAME. Games are supposed to be fun. If we all wanted to actually be managers we would go and do it.

When I play guitar hero I don't expect to actually pick up and play a guitar, because that would be stupid. In the same way I'm sure there is loads of stuff a real life manager does that is dull and we don't have to do for precisely that reason. For example, we don't have to balance our social live's on the game. We don't go through loads of paperwork to sign players either.

It is dull and work like, because of the limited questions, the inability to know how it will effect certain players and if you do a long game it just gets boring as hell.

If you are not going to contribute properly, don't bother.

If you are not going to contribute properly, don't bother.

Strange you say that, picking that line out of everything I have contributed to this thread, to respond to. If you're not going to respond to my posts properly, don't bother.

My point was (and remains), it has become "worklike" because that's how the poster wants to see it. Seen through my eyes, it's a glimpse--and only a glimpse--into the drudgery that a real manager faces. Yes, it's a game. It's a game called "Football Manager." It's not "Football: The Fun Side of Managing."

Strange you say that, picking that line out of everything I have contributed to this thread, to respond to. If you're not going to respond to my posts properly, don't bother.

My point was (and remains), it has become "worklike" because that's how the poster wants to see it. Seen through my eyes, it's a glimpse--and only a glimpse--into the drudgery that a real manager faces. Yes, it's a game. It's a game called "Football Manager." It's not "Football: The Fun Side of Managing."

And you choose his one to reply to.

It becomes work like the more you play. How many times I can go through the "are you excited to be at this club" and "what style of football will you be playing" and "are you going to be going into the transfer market." Same old boring questions that to be frank, I could do without.

And yes the game is called Football Manager. And to be honest, if it doesn't enhance gameplay and more people find it annoying than useful then it's not a gameplay feature.

In terms of realism, I highly doubt saying I want Ronaldo to have 17 attacking and closing down 14 etc. is realistic. It also isn't realistic to be asked the same questions every single game.

If something is a drudgery, it isn't fun, therefore, shouldn't be part of a game, at least not a crucial part.

Otherwise game companies would be releasing "Washing up Simulator" and "School Simulator", mundane tasks nobody really want to do. It doesn't sell.

It's a game called "Football Manager." It's not "Football: The Fun Side of Managing."

What???? That's precisely what it is.

It becomes work like the more you play. How many times I can go through the "are you excited to be at this club" and "what style of football will you be playing" and "are you going to be going into the transfer market." Same old boring questions that to be frank, I could do without.

As I've said a couple times before, more questions and answers are needed. SI has expanded these with each issue since they implimented the feature, and I have confidence they will continue to do so. It's an on-going process.

And yes the game is called Football Manager. And to be honest, if it doesn't enhance gameplay and more people find it annoying than useful then it's not a gameplay feature.

In terms of realism, I highly doubt saying I want Ronaldo to have 17 attacking and closing down 14 etc. is realistic. It also isn't realistic to be asked the same questions every single game.

If you haven't been keeping up with this thread, take a look...

Realism? I'd like to see a camera 6 feet above ground level in front of the dugout. Gimme WASD and mouse control of the camera. Make me click on a player in the dugout and get a menu of team talks as I tell him "Get ready to go in for X," thus having to manually warm up subs before they come in, lest they underperform and/or get hurt. Make me click on somebody running by several times to get his attention so I can issue touchline shouts. Penalize me for leaving my little box on the side of the pitch. Let me see my face reflected in my well-polished shoes if I look down.....

In short, the more realism, the better. Even if it is drudgery.

If something is a drudgery, it isn't fun, therefore, shouldn't be part of a game, at least not a crucial part.

Maybe not fun, but it is part of the experience. An important part, and one that shouldn't be ignored, IMO. But I will admit to being only one voice.

Otherwise game companies would be releasing "Washing up Simulator" and "School Simulator", mundane tasks nobody really want to do. It doesn't sell.

Actually, Postal II sold quite a few copies, and had Waiting In A Line as a vital part of the first level.....

I actually like the press conferences, but I just wish they would make more sense and not be so repetitive. It's not the questions so much as the same five answers every time. Also, the option to blast my team in the press isn't available. Everything is so "nice." Give me the option to say "THEY STINK ON ICE" or something that allows me to vent my frustration on those little bytes when they give up a 2-goal lead.