What is your general opinion on FM 2011?

I like this game, but for me there are two major bugs that must be addressed.

1) Penalties: 99% of the time my players will miss penalties, usually putting them wide of the post, no matter how confident they are at the time, what the composure is and how good their penalty taking is.

2) Before every game, the opposing manager always comes out in the press and says so and so 'must be stopped'. Every game it is the same player, and every time it drives his confidence down so low that his morale is very poor, no matter how well the team is doing. (He also plays very badly).

FM 2011 is a good game, but if these major issues are fixed, it can be a very good, if not great game. What do you think?

There are a lot bigger issues than that in the game mate but I have to say I love FM11. Even with the many many bugs in the game (which I'm sure the majority of will be fixed when 11.2 hits the inter web) I still think this is the best FM in a long long time.

Thank you SI

There are a lot bigger issues than that in the game mate

Like what? the 2nd one in particular is massively affecting my team, and to be honest I can't think of bugs that are more damaging than this one, although I'm sure you can prove me wrong.

To put it simply, FM11 is rubbish in my opinion. I think with a lot of patch work, it could be the best FM we've had. But the flaws are shocking and should never have got into the boxed version.

N.B. I said it was my opinion, before anybody gets annoyed with it.

I think next year i'll be staying away from any pre purchases of the game to see reviews of the game on here first. I havn't played fm11 for 3 weeks now due to running into the transfer bug, which in my opinion ruins the game.

Like what? the 2nd one in particular is massively affecting my team, and to be honest I can't think of bugs that are more damaging than this one, although I'm sure you can prove me wrong.

biggest bug for me is not being able to make subs, thats a game breaker for me i'd be happy with the ones u have, but ive had no issues in those areas. except the manager one, but that doesnt bother me.

I'll let you know what I think of FM 2011 when it's released in March.

I think next year i'll be staying away from any pre purchases of the game to see reviews of the game on here first. I havn't played fm11 for 3 weeks now due to running into the transfer bug, which in my opinion ruins the game.

I think 3 weeks is about the same as me. Never buying on release again, I seriosuly feel let down. Bought every CM/FM on release since 97/98 and I've seen them get progressively worst on release.

I'm taking the advice of many FM'ers...buy FM in February time when it's on the third patch.

I think 3 weeks is about the same as me. Never buying on release again, I seriosuly feel let down. Bought every CM/FM on release since 97/98 and I've seen them get progressively worst on release.

I'm taking the advice of many FM'ers...buy FM in February time when it's on the third patch.

I agree

The game has got potential.

It did not amaze me as much as FM10 did, and i had more problems with FM10 in the beginning than FM11.

FM11 just seems to have more smaller problems. FM10 had one big one for me, and that was constant crashes.

I managed to find a way to live with it, and sadly enough i still prefer FM10 with the crashes than FM11 in its current state.

I believe that FM11 will be a wonderful game eventually, just annoys me very much that i have to wait so long before it gets there

The game really has got potential but as it is now it is unplayable. where i work we must have a quick solution for a issue on the field within 24 hours so that the costumer isn't stranded bit SI doesn't seem to care or are really slow. the beta testers must have seen this issue. i bought the game this week as i though the first patches would have fixed much of it but no.

The game really has got potential but as it is now it is unplayable. where i work we must have a quick solution for a issue on the field within 24 hours so that the costumer isn't stranded bit SI doesn't seem to care or are really slow. the beta testers must have seen this issue. i bought the game this week as i though the first patches would have fixed much of it but no.

The usual reply to blaming the beta testers is that isn't their fault. They always claim that they report everything they find, and after that its up to SI.

SI's QA has been shocking the last few years , I'm sure Matt or someone will come in and claim otherwise , but getting the game out in time for Xmas every year is now the main priority , and tough luck the game is a bit of a mess. SI are lucky there are no genuine alternatives to FM , because if there was then a few more years of releasing sub par titles and that precious crown of theirs would begin to slip.

not playing this game right now, i will start a new safe when next patch is out.

atm it's just not worth playing as there are too many flaws.

still playing my fm 10.3 save which is very fun and i guess the same will happen with an 11.3 save next year, so no worries here.

The usual reply to blaming the beta testers is that isn't their fault. They always claim that they report everything they find, and after that its up to SI.

SI's QA has been shocking the last few years , I'm sure Matt or someone will come in and claim otherwise , but getting the game out in time for Xmas every year is now the main priority , and tough luck the game is a bit of a mess. SI are lucky there are no genuine alternatives to FM , because if there was then a few more years of releasing sub par titles and that precious crown of theirs would begin to slip.

You're bang on here, the QA guys are either not up to scratch or they're not getting enough time or support. I dont believe SI invest enough in pre-release testing and this has shown through time and time again, I simply cannot fathom how some of the issues are not picked up on.

I do love the game despite the problems which to be fair are reasonably limited and have been playing it solidly since release day, but like you say i think SI are getting lazy as they are currently in a one horse race.

I like this game, but for me there are two major bugs that must be addressed.

1) Penalties: 99% of the time my players will miss penalties, usually putting them wide of the post, no matter how confident they are at the time, what the composure is and how good their penalty taking is.

2) Before every game, the opposing manager always comes out in the press and says so and so 'must be stopped'. Every game it is the same player, and every time it drives his confidence down so low that his morale is very poor, no matter how well the team is doing. (He also plays very badly).

FM 2011 is a good game, but if these major issues are fixed, it can be a very good, if not great game. What do you think?

1) Do you have some statistics to back up this very high percentage of penalties missed? Personally I am finding my team scores about 75%.

2) I'll agree with this, my star striker is mentioned before nearly every match and his morale always drops. I can't respond to these comments, or even comment on their players before a game.

1) Do you have some statistics to back up this very high percentage of penalties missed? Personally I am finding my team scores about 75%.

I keep posting this lol. Doesn't really prove that the penalties are broken, but it's interesting nontheless.

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Regarding the OP, I think this years' game has been underwhelming. I had a feeling it would be when Miles was posting the blogs. It just doesn't feel very different from FM10. If anything, I would say it's somewhat worse because of the bugs, especially the nutty transfer system, unconvincing ME and morale effectiveness. I hope that after 11.3 it'll be as good as 10.3 if not better. If not, I just won't buy FM12 on release date and wait to see what the opinion is on that first.

It is a very bad game

my overall opinion of FM11?

sheer and utter garbage! It has more bugs than a week old corpse in the woods...

Everything seems to be broken, some things massively, others in minor ways but I don't think that there is any one part of the game that isn't broken in some way...

I'm at the point of throwing in the towel completely and never buying the game again - when you consider that it is the ONLY PC game that I buy and play you can probably tell how disillusioned I am this time around...

11.2 needs to be a MASSIVE improvement, or I will give up playing the game for good (and after 15 years that's a big decision to make!)

I keep posting this lol. Doesn't really prove that the penalties are broken, but it's interesting nontheless.

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Regarding the OP, I think this years' game has been underwhelming. I had a feeling it would be when Miles was posting the blogs. It just doesn't feel very different from FM10. If anything, I would say it's somewhat worse because of the bugs, especially the nutty transfer system, unconvincing ME and morale effectiveness. I hope that after 11.3 it'll be as good as 10.3 if not better. If not, I just won't buy FM12 on release date and wait to see what the opinion is on that first.

That isn't 99%...

That isn't 99%...

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that offleyhornet didn't really mean 99%, just a lot of penalties. Regardless, that many penalties missed in a shoot-out is pretty shocking.

they have said this will be improved in the next patch in the match engine feedback thread.

I have been playing since the original championship manager way back on the amiga and Id like to say that I think this game is brilliant. So its got some bugs yes but they will be ironed out. I will always be buying fm on day of release because in terms of football management, nothing else comes close !!

in terms of football management, nothing else comes close !!

And that's why the franchise has become "FIFA soccer sloppy"...

I can live with a game being buggy on release date if the new features are many and are a huge step forward/in a new direction. (see, the 3D match engine)

What I can't accept or "forgive" is when the game is plagued, year after year, by the SAME ISSUES, despite them having been reported by literally hundrers of users.

And that's why the franchise has become "FIFA soccer sloppy"...

I can live with a game being buggy on release date if the new features are many and are a huge step forward/in a new direction. (see, the 3D match engine)

What I can't accept or "forgive" is when the game is plagued, year after year, by the SAME ISSUES, despite them having been reported by literally hundrers of users.

hard to disagree with that but for me I love the game so much that these bugs just dont bother me. I keep on playing and yes once they are sorted out it does make it better but it wouldnt stop me playing the game. Trust me, the realism is probably the most important factor for me but it all gets sorted in the end !

I keep posting this lol. Doesn't really prove that the penalties are broken, but it's interesting nontheless.

Bicycle I hate to break it to you but the plural of anecdote is not evidence, and all you have there is anecdotes. How are we to know that that screenshot is only one example of an otherwise very high average penalty count. Now I will agree that my experience is that I'm converting less penalties than previously, at about 65% (rough guess here) but I wouldn't venture to give a guess as to whether that is significant or not.

I like the game, there are some minor bugs and one (as far as I can see) big one in 11.1.1. The minor bugs are things like certain options not being clickable at times and (seems to be unique to me) Alt+F9 not working. The big one is the so-called "broken transfers" bug, which in my opinion is more a case of the AI managers going too hard-line too often, and not being nuanced enough in the team-talks (if it is a case of bad coding then SI need to really pull up their socks, if it is too difficult to code properly, then SI should lessen the adverse effect of bad AI-AI interaction).

I really like the player interaction and agents, playing with one big team (Valencia) and one medium team (Anderlecht) I find that agents can often be worked around, and there is far more scope for zoning in on an acceptable compromise. Media interaction is still very scrappy, but at least a decent answer will not upset players (unlike in 09 and 10). But the lack of options in rival manager taunts is bad. The 3D overlay on the match engine is a huge improvement on last year (I see this from playing a FM10 network game with a friend).

Things I'm not sure of are regens (not gone far enough to see a pattern), set piece creator (oon't really use it) and DLR (again not far enough gone).

Things I don't like are the layouts of the player's training tab, too much info in too little space, the aforementioned rival manager taunts, a bit too much touting by agents (well it can be toned down, and I've not yet seen a player I wouldn't consider for the team I'm at) and the Belgian Pro League system (not SIs fault, sort it out Belgium!)

So in conclusion I would still give it the 8/10 that I gave it in the poll a few weeks back.

In general, I think the new features that were added this year seems quite good. However, there are some nasty bugs that are kind of destroying the fun for me. I'm sure it'll all be fixed in the end though.

1) The incredible amount of red and yellow cards are crazy, and annoys me greatly. I know some aren't experiencing this, but I just keep noticing it all the time even if I have adjusted my tactic and instructions to my players.

2) The transfer system seems to be quite odd. I haven't noticed it, but just reading about it makes me not want to play the game.

I can barely wait for 11.2 though. I'm pretty sure I'll be sucked into the game as usual if these things are fixed.

You are one of those false suppoters who don't care about quality of the game and because of whom the game is degrading as you accept it with all its bugs, flaws and cheats... Shame!

your just a troll looking for a rise, get over it mate, some folk do really enjoy this game, even if you dont.

I'll be brutally honest, the features added this year are simply unneccessary. '10 is the best in the series in my opinion and I'm loving '11 at the moment but it still isn't as much as I enjoyed '10.

Match Preparation wasn't really needed, I'd rather they work on more freedom tactically and maybe a few new roles would have sufficed. Although because I'm a "tinkerer", I dislike the feature but people who stick to one will probably think it's good.

The Agents are tedious and I'd have appreciated more realistic Values and make how they change drastically with a run of form a tad more realistic. The agents were there slightly, the only major change is that you have an "Agent Fee".

The Training "split" was needed and is a good addition but I was hoping for a "Training Creator". I also quite like the way you can focus on stuff, that's quite useful.

Just like the Press Confrences, the "Private Chats" are a great addition but need expanding although there is lots of options and it's good that I can "chat" with my players and everything I say decreases/increases morale/motivation.

If I think of anything else, I'll edit this post.

EDIT: Forgot DLR but that's because I haven't had chance to use it yet so I can't comment.

A bit disgraceful.

They mess about with totally pointless, unrealistic additions like Agents and these Conversations. Yet the transfer system is a joke, the ME is pretty poor. The Set Piece system is still very poor.

Just loads of frustrations in the game that could have been sorted instead of messing about with gimmicks

The only good addition was Individual Focus, although it doesn't even work usually. I've only once seen a player improve a stat I told him to work on.

A bit disgraceful.

They mess about with totally pointless, unrealistic additions like Agents and these Conversations. Yet the transfer system is a joke, the ME is pretty poor. The Set Piece system is still very poor.

Just loads of frustrations in the game that could have been sorted instead of messing about with gimmicks

How are agents and conversations unrealistic addons ?? agents play a big part in today's game well they have for a while now and conversations are't great i admit but a few tweaks here and there could make them very good

as for match engine yeah needs work but still very good, and if new additions were't added year after year people would moan like mad saying "whats new nothings changed for how many years etc etc "

I'd rather 1 main addition than la few "Meh" additions to be honest.

The real testers of FM are the people that buy it in November when is released. I will do like always: I wait the end of February when is already out the last patch since a couple of weeks and I will look on the forums to see if the major issues have been fixed, if there is no issues I'll buy it, if not I will save my money and spend my free time in another way.

You are one of those false suppoters who don't care about quality of the game and because of whom the game is degrading as you accept it with all its bugs, flaws and cheats... Shame!

(thanks brian shanahan & milnerpoint, i know v1adimiir is just looking for a rise) Like milnerpoint said, I just love the game. I can wait for the bugs to be sorted and still enjoy myslef playing on it.

(thanks brian shanahan & milnerpoint, i know v1adimiir is just looking for a rise) Like milnerpoint said, I just love the game. I can wait for the bugs to be sorted and still enjoy myslef playing on it.

im with you mate i think its a great version of the game, once the little bugs are sorted it will easily be the best they have ever released.

im with you mate i think its a great version of the game, once the little bugs are sorted it will easily be the best they have ever released.

I wholeheartedly agree

(thanks brian shanahan & milnerpoint, i know v1adimiir is just looking for a rise) Like milnerpoint said, I just love the game. I can wait for the bugs to be sorted and still enjoy myslef playing on it.

I love the game when it's playable. I can't accept it just because of having wonderful memories of FM2007 or anticipating of playing it bugfree in a couple of months.

I love the game when it's playable. I can't accept it just because of having wonderful memories of FM2007 or anticipating of playing it bugfree in a couple of months.

We obviously differ on our opinions of playable thats all

How are agents and conversations unrealistic addons ??

Agents: IRL, they don't act in anywhere near the same way they do on the game. Plus a manager would VERY rarely if at all interact directly with them. IRL the clubs management are much more likely to do it. Also IRL many many players are represented by their Dad or Brother. Not reflected in the game at all. It's just a bit silly. They demand way way too much at times too. Main thing though is the fact that IRL a manager would very rarely talk to them, so why is SI putting agents into the game when it is the least necessary improvement.

Conversations: If a player gets annoyed with you, he just refuses to talk to you. Wouldn't happen IRL. I cant talk to the lads as a group. Say to 7 or so of them, you are playing well. Just a bit silly the way the player can arbitrarily decide that it isnt going well and leave. And the way he can just say I'm not backing down. The general Idea is good, but needs a lot of tweaking. And again, not really necessary when considering the fact that much more important things are left missing.

Agents: IRL, they don't act in anywhere near the same way they do on the game. Plus a manager would VERY rarely if at all interact directly with them. IRL the clubs management are much more likely to do it. Also IRL many many players are represented by their Dad or Brother. Not reflected in the game at all. It's just a bit silly. They demand way way too much at times too. Main thing though is the fact that IRL a manager would very rarely talk to them, so why is SI putting agents into the game when it is the least necessary improvement.

i would very much like to see the facts to back this up, i have heard of a few players having family members but not many of them.

In reality a manager would have very little to do with contract talks in general this would be delt with by board members or managing directors, but due to the nature of the game this wouldnt really work, you have to have control over what you are spending and wages is probably the biggest aspect of this.

i would very much like to see the facts to back this up, i have heard of a few players having family members but not many of them.

In reality a manager would have very little to do with contract talks in general this would be delt with by board members or managing directors, but due to the nature of the game this wouldnt really work, you have to have control over what you are spending and wages is probably the biggest aspect of this.

I know it's just one example, but isn't John Arne Riises and Bjørn Helge Riises agent their mother?

Might be wrong.

Yeah, hold on. Let me just get my massive list of players and their agents out....

But really, most young players are represented by their parents. And lots of older ones too

I know it's just one example, but isn't John Arne Riises and Bjørn Helge Riises agent their mother?

Might be wrong.

possibly, i do think Ronaldinio's brother is his agent, and maybe Kaka? But i dont think its as wide spread as the poster was making out.

This is the first attempt at agents and whilst its not perfect i think its a good addition to the game.

Yeah, hold on. Let me just get my massive list of players and their agents out....

But really, most young players are represented by their parents. And lots of older ones too

well if you can say most you must be able to produce some examples. i dont agree at all, maybe when kids are 15/16 but in reality they will hire real agents in most instances as they will make them more money.

Also maybe years ago this was more common but again in todays world i would highly doubt it.

possibly, i do think Ronaldinio's brother is his agent, and maybe Kaka? But i dont think its as wide spread as the poster was making out.

This is the first attempt at agents and whilst its not perfect i think its a good addition to the game.

That bolded part i agree with. Although i don't know, i don't think it's too common.

About the agents being a good addition, i partly agree.

I'd say it's a good idea that is not implemented the best way, but i choose to look at it as a step to something better and more complete later.

Regarding that last line, that's something i normally don't do with games, as i think a released game should be a complete product without being an obvious stepping stone to something later.

Didn't really come out the way i wanted to, but i hope you know what i mean.

That bolded part i agree with. Although i don't know, i don't think it's too common.

About the agents being a good addition, i partly agree.

I'd say it's a good idea that is not implemented the best way, but i choose to look at it as a step to something better and more complete later.

Regarding that last line, that's something i normally don't do with games, as i think a released game should be a complete product without being an obvious stepping stone to something later.

Didn't really come out the way i wanted to, but i hope you know what i mean.

its a new feature tho, incorporating a much greater detail of interaction, i do see what your saying and please do not take this as me having a go, but every feature they add has to start somewhere, fair enough agent fee's are maybe slightly too high at times, but they will work on this for future patches, there may even be an update later this month that changes the way they work.

Thing is the same people who say dont add any new features etc would be same and first people to moan if next year there were't any new features

I really wouldn't, the game is brilliant and doesn't need any new features, I'd rather each year they work on the UI and slight fixes for Regens, Scouting etc.

its a new feature tho, incorporating a much greater detail of interaction, i do see what your saying and please do not take this as me having a go, but every feature they add has to start somewhere, fair enough agent fee's are maybe slightly too high at times, but they will work on this for future patches, there may even be an update later this month that changes the way they work.

Not taking it as you having a go.

I do agree it has to start somewhere, and it's not easy deciding when to implement it for an official release.

Although the agent feature isn't entirely new, the way they have implemented it is brand new. And it'll take a bit of time to get it right. No arguing against that, that's for sure.

Would it be possible, if they're not doing it already, to test it internally for a bit longer to make sure it works better? Not just the agents.

I mean, the more changes they do in a minimal space of time, the bigger the chances for errors. Especially when any changes to any modules might have a knock-on effect to other modules of the game.

If they would try to cut down on the amount of "new features" (still having new features, of course) released and keep testing new features unreleased for at least another year, would it help them get a more stable product?

Definitely looking forward to the patch, whenever it's coming. My biggest problem with this game is the transfer system.

For the first time, as far as i can remember, i really have no idea what to do to sell players.

Thing is the same people who say dont add any new features etc would be same and first people to moan if next year there were't any new features

I get what you're saying. And unfortunately that is probably the case.

I wouldn't complain too much myself though