Ever get the feeling for a second that the game is fixed?

I am currently managing Sunderland and have just completed my most frustrating season on FM ever. I am battling with a brilliant Arsenal side for the league title in the third season after running them close last season. We are level on points and on goals and I face Aston Villa at home on the last day of the season and they face Bolton at home, if we both win then whoever outscores the other claims the the league title. I keep the latest scores open and they win 1-0.

So in my game I had to win I am unbeaten in 21 games winning 19 and drawing 2 and I have only lost 2 games at home in the last three seasons. After 9 minutes they have a man sent off for a bad tackle so I am thinking this is going to be easy. Then Shawcross goes nuts and fouls their striker in the area and they score the penalty well N'Gog scores it. Second half starts should be easy 11 against 10 but Henderson decides to hack one of their players down 3 minutes in and gets sent off. We go on to lose 1-0 and lose the league title just a one goal win would have given us the title due to goals scored.

For a few seconds I think the game is fixed but after I calm down I realise it can't be. Does this sort of thing make you more determined to win the following season or does it bum you out big time. I have a feeling that was my chance if they keep playing like they have I will never be able to catch them.

I can understand why people think the game is fixed at times despite knowing it can't be as the AI is not that clever. Anyone else find this the most frustrating and fun game ever?

Yes, sometimes I do question this game as to whether it is fixed, once I calm down though I'm fine.

A lot of coincidental things happen in this game though

I'm almost certain the game is fixed to some extent.

The AI seems almost rubber banded. They are always within 10 points of me in the league. If I lose a few games, they lose a few games. If I go unbeaten for a while, so do they.

It's called conspiracy. All the people who can't live with randomness in live do believe weird stuff.

I'm almost certain the game is fixed to some extent.

The AI seems almost rubber banded. They are always within 10 points of me in the league. If I lose a few games, they lose a few games. If I go unbeaten for a while, so do they.

I don't believe that in the league Arsenal were 12 points ahead of me and if I had of used different players or a more attacking formation if there is one more attacking then overload 4-2-4 then I would have won the league.

/puts tinfoil hat on

I believe that higher reputation teams have a tendency to be "lucky" with long range shots.. even when they sign completly average players, there's always going to be some freaky 35 yarder to the top corner, oh and score right after you score.. and i mean literally on the kick-off immediate after you score.

/tinfoil hat off

Don't believe that the game is fixed or is out there to get you.. but it surely can be frustrating at times! That's what makes it incredibly fun as well!

It bums me out big time when it happens ome and i always stop playing for a week or so...

How often do you irl watch your team and expect them to mess something up or a sequence of events to happen and think, 'I knew this was gonna happen!'.

I guess thats the same feeling with the game,

btw the game is not fixed, the result of each game is predetermined but for every sub you make, for every little tactic part you change, the game recalculates the result. And if you want realism, Sunderland shouldn't be finishing in the top 4 let alone fighting for the title on the the last game day of the season

I just had a moment where I thought the game was against me.

Playing away Denmark with England in a European Qualifying match. Its 2015 and our team is quite significantly better than theres. We absolutely battered them, amassing 25 shots to their 5. 2-0 up, everything is looking fine and dandy, another three points in the bag.

Then, some random nobody takes on one of my players and scores some sort of screamer. Okay. Just a fluke. We should still win this... nope, my defence parts like the Red Sea and Nicklas Bendtner equalisers. Can it get any worse? You bet it can. Shawcross concedes a penalty. Bendtner steps up and makes it 3-2 Denmark giving them a totally undeserved win.

So we have 25 shots, 11 on target and only score twice. Denmark have 8 shots, 3 on target and score 3 goals. Huh. What a coincedence, eh?

While I'm stting there, fuming and resisting the urge to break something, I have to keep reminding myself that it was probably my fauilt and that something had gone wrong somewhere with my team. I don't want to, as it is very very easy to blame the game for everything, but deep down I know it was me. Probably. Maybe. Its just difficult to accept, sometimes.

Yes very much at times, in my network save in my fifth season as Liverpool I had a semi final match up against a Fiorentina side that was quite mediocre especially compared to my team that had a 4 man attack consisting of Pato, Balotelli, Pastore and Torres plus a pretty mean defence to go with it. The only standout players of real note they had were James Rodriguez, Di Silvestri, Consigli and Chygrynskiy, Jovetic was either injured or suspended.

The first leg at home thought to myself should be an easy victory and should knock a few past them to put myself in a good position for the second leg. The game started well with them pin backed for the first 20 minutes, I peppered their goal with shots and the only thing keeping them in it was a resolute Consigli seemingly stopping everything thrown at him. At about the 25 minute mark James Rodriguez got the ball out wide run down the wing and crossed it in to Gilardino, 1-0 completely against the run of play, I thought to myself it's ok my team can recover from this, then 5 minutes later the exact same move happened, even after i made plans to stop Rodiquez's runs, 2-0 down. I continued to batter them relentlessly until half time, the half ended and I was 2-0 down, after an inspirational team talk my team came out fired up and I battered them relentlessly for the remainder of the game, the game ended 2-0. I had 20 shots on target to their 2, I had 8 clear cut chances to their 1 and I had 68% of possession, I also hit the wood work 4 times to add to the injustice.

I wrote a bit too much for the first leg so for the second leg I'll cut it a bit shorter. The second leg was a bit more less sided but I still dominated and created most of the good chances, I managed to make it 2-0 and 2-2 on aggregate courtesy of a late Gerrard trademark piledriver. Extra time was all me with them clearing the ball of the line twice, ET ended and penalties it was. My last penalty came by and Gerrard had to score to keep me in it and force sudden death, he blazed it over and that was the end of my CL adventure for another year. I was rightly ****ed off as news soon came through that my opponent in the final would of been my mate who was Man Utd which would of been an epic match up.

The game isn't fixed, but the morale system can give that impression. The complacency effect means you will inevitably lose to a much weaker team which will, in turn, lead to a drop in morale which will, in turn, cause your mid-fielders to stop chasing balls and your strikers to miss all their shots because their morale is only "good" as opposed to "superb." This, in turn, leads to further declining morale until your team is basically inoperable, leaving you waiting for a match against a team that has become complacent so you can begin, hopefully, rebuilding morale. The game isn't "fixed," SI just needs to tone down the impact of morale so it doesn't operate as a de facto rubberband. The game should be about tactics, not suffering through the willful incompetence of, as one person aptly put it, "emo bitches."

I have Lukaku up front as a striker. and guess what? Despite his very good composure, he misses many one-on-ones to score. Also, in the game, out of now where, the AI takes a long shot and before you know it, they score. I also notice AI tend to do better when given one-on-ones... How frustrating can that be when you see your strikers having a good chance to score and miss!!! So many times in the game it seems composure has no effect whatsoever in one-on-ones. The referee also seem to favor the AI always. Instead of a yellow card being awarded, a freekick is awarded to you instead.

It's easy enough to check if it's fixed by saving before a match and then replaying it. That's also a good way to try out different tactics and see what effects your changes have on the field--sometimes enormously good, sometimes enormously bad. Try it without changing anything--it will rarely if ever be the exact same result.

It's all just a bunch of algorithms wrapped up in probabilities bound by a spreadsheet.

this happens in real life as well.. so im not too sure why everyone is complaining.. i tihink its the best ive played for a while..

The game isn't fixed, but the morale system can give that impression. The complacency effect means you will inevitably lose to a much weaker team which will, in turn, lead to a drop in morale which will, in turn, cause your mid-fielders to stop chasing balls and your strikers to miss all their shots because their morale is only "good" as opposed to "superb." This, in turn, leads to further declining morale until your team is basically inoperable, leaving you waiting for a match against a team that has become complacent so you can begin, hopefully, rebuilding morale. The game isn't "fixed," SI just needs to tone down the impact of morale so it doesn't operate as a de facto rubberband. The game should be about tactics, not suffering through the willful incompetence of, as one person aptly put it, "emo bitches."

Totally agree, morale is vastly overestimated in it's importance in FM.

I was one win away from the second division title with Airdrie with a few matches to go. So, Saturday afternoon and I'm 1-0 up against I don't know who at home. Besides winning I needed Dumbarton to drop points, so I'm checking how they're doing and I see some guy called King scores for them with around 10 minutes left. One minute after they score another guy called King scores for the other team (don't remember who it was) and it finished 1-1. I win the title.

Coincidence? I THINK NOT.

The game should be about tactics, not suffering through the willful incompetence of, as one person aptly put it, "emo bitches."

Scout report: Juan Hernandez is an emo bitch and will fit in well at the club.

The game isn't fixed but I can see why a lot of people feel that way.

The fact that in your second season you're challenging for the title with Sunderland shows, if anything, the game is fixed to give human managers the advantage. If the AI could speak I'm sure it would accuse you of cheating

Morale is the issue for me. As spurs, who are a very good side on FM11, abit overrated infact(in my opinion and i am a spurs fan), but i am strolling through the season. I am in mid october and i have won every game, every single one. Morale has been superb since day 1, and i think this due to team blend on high all through pre season.

Tactically, i do the bare minimum, as there is no point in pretending that my tactics actually make any difference anymore. I just set the team up positonally then snooze through the match, only opening my eyes if i feel the opposition are actually going to bother threatening my goal, which is probably once per match.

This is different to my last save pre patch 11.2, where i had to really earn my wins, and had the odd off day when i'd lose to west ham or newcastle.

The fact that in your second season you're challenging for the title with Sunderland shows, if anything, the game is fixed to give human managers the advantage. If the AI could speak I'm sure it would accuse you of cheating

Human manager has all the advantage in this game.

The fact that in your second season you're challenging for the title with Sunderland shows, if anything, the game is fixed to give human managers the advantage. If the AI could speak I'm sure it would accuse you of cheating

I agree realistically I should not be challenging with Sunderland. Just to make sure everyone understands I do not think the game is fixed I was just unlucky, human managers have all the advantages that's why there are so many unrealistic games posted on these forums. In the heat of the moment I think it is fixed but once calming down I know it is not. If anything the advantage has been mine as Arsenal were 12 points ahead of my side after just 15 games. I also think that the big teams lose too many matches throughout the season.

that is price of realism

Totally agree, morale is vastly overestimated in it's importance in FM.

I disagree, I think morale is one of the most important things in football.

Morale is important but in FM it plays too much of a part if you win three in a row and your morale is high it is quite easy to go 10 or 20 games unbeaten.

Having an amazing fourth season with QPR, trying desperately to get promotion into the Premiership. However, every season with about ten games to go. Everything goes Pete Tong, I lose at home and away to poor teams, morale goes through the floor and the red cards, penalties and crazy decisions rain on me!!! Its destined not to happen.

All the people who can't live with randomness in live do believe weird stuff.

Epic one-liner there. Take that, religion.

I think most people get the feeling sometimes that the game is rigged.

But so is real life. Bayern Munich outperforming Man U in 1999 and leading 1-0 with minutes left and conceding 2 before full time, that's rigged.

Denmark-Sweden in the European Championship last time around (I think). Last game of the group stage. Both teams would go through if the score was 2-2. Denmark leading 2-1, Sweden scoring in the last minute, both teams through, Italy out. That's rigged. (That might actually have been rigged for real lol)

Turkey had some really sick luck, I think it was last Euro championships but don't remember. They scored late in what was it, 3 games, and all goals were absolutely vital. That's so rigged.

It's a crazy game. And I don't think FM rigs me tbh. Wish I could say the same about PES in Master league..

always seem to get beat by final minute goals in cups, yet whenever trying to equalise the game coasts past the last 10 minutes, annoying.

and i conceded the same goal to real madrid in the champions league, same goal - 4 years later. i hate this game xD

that was certainly a close season, ive come even closer believe it or not. playing as liverpool i came 2nd to arsenal losing only on goal difference on the final day of the season. the previous season i lost by 1 point on the final day as well. the season after the goal difference loss i won by 2 points final day. ive had my fair share of close encounters.

Best way to be 100% sure with that, is saving the game before the match and repeating. And trust me, sometimes weird things happen, it's possible, but it's hard to believe it's just coincidence.

The AI seems almost rubber banded. They are always within 10 points of me in the league. If I lose a few games, they lose a few games. If I go unbeaten for a while, so do they.

Agree with that. And there's just too many coincidences happening all the time.

I won two consecutive titles on goal difference!!!!!

The top team was three points ahead on the last day of the season and I needed to win and them to lose; and unbelievably they lost both the times to some 89th minute goal !!

If the game is fixed, which I wouldn't completely rule out, I feel it's rigged to make the game easier for human player. I still remember winning the Champions League with Charlton Athletic in the 03/04 game in my second season and I was rubbish at the game back then. I had a strike force of Jason Euell and Emmanuel Olisadebe ffs. I have absolutely no doubt that the 03/04 edition of FM (CM as it was known back then) was rigged in favour of the human manager, and in versions since then I've always had a strong suspicion that things tend to go my way more than they do the AI. I'm not saying this as a brag, but I honestly think anyone, if they looked back objectively at how things occur during games, over a long period of time, I think you'll see that you get lucky more than the opposition. I'm just thinking in terms of situations like mishit crosses which go into the net (I think I've had that happen for me 5 times more often than I've had it happen against me). Same for scoring directly from a corner, and other things like that, last minute winners, ect.

Games started in the depths of the pyramid exposes how games are “rigged” in order to weight the probability of outcomes in one team’s favour. Higher up, it’s just better disguised. Ever seen teams repeatedly lose out on balls that are quite literally one hundred to zero in their favour?

Get a low profile team into the Prem’ and replay a match against the likes of Arsenal: 30 replay attempts will generate 28 wins for Arsenal. Fair enough you might think, but the low profile team is clearly supressed: in these defeats almost every player performs dismally, while the likes of Song (long shots 8) will score into the top corner at will from 40 yards, van Persie is converted into a superman who only needs to be given the ball in the final 40 yards to score with ease, even if a tame shot has to pass right through a keeper. (Fanboys expousing “it’s your tactics” nonsense need not apply. I’m not interested.)

The final two games of the 30 replays are the two games when your players actually performed. These will generate results. The only times your players perform like they can, they win or draw. Before the fanboys chime in, it is actually possible in the real world to play well against the “big four” and lose. Not in FM. The chances of too many low profile teams beating or drawing against the likes of Arsenal are too great if said low profile team are not handicapped and/or the high profile team is not boosted. Ergo, in these circumstances something like 14 matches out of 15 are rigged to ensure “realism” in high profile team results.

Cue the deadheads claiming “off course Arsenal will win most games”, thus demonstrating a total lack of logical reasoning.

Games started in the depths of the pyramid exposes how games are “rigged” in order to weight the probability of outcomes in one team’s favour. Higher up, it’s just better disguised. Ever seen teams repeatedly lose out on balls that are quite literally one hundred to zero in their favour?

Get a low profile team into the Prem’ and replay a match against the likes of Arsenal: 30 replay attempts will generate 28 wins for Arsenal. Fair enough you might think, but the low profile team is clearly supressed: in these defeats almost every player performs dismally, while the likes of Song (long shots 8) will score into the top corner at will from 40 yards, van Persie is converted into a superman who only needs to be given the ball in the final 40 yards to score with ease, even if a tame shot has to pass right through a keeper. (Fanboys expousing “it’s your tactics” nonsense need not apply. I’m not interested.)

The final two games of the 30 replays are the two games when your players actually performed. These will generate results. The only times your players perform like they can, they win or draw. Before the fanboys chime in, it is actually possible in the real world to play well against the “big four” and lose. Not in FM. The chances of too many low profile teams beating or drawing against the likes of Arsenal are too great if said low profile team are not handicapped and/or the high profile team is not boosted. Ergo, in these circumstances something like 14 matches out of 15 are rigged to ensure “realism” in high profile team results.

Cue the deadheads claiming “off course Arsenal will win most games”, thus demonstrating a total lack of logical reasoning.

Used FMRTE and turned WBA into squad of legends (20 in all attributes) and ‘inspired’ team which boosts morale. Also clicked ‘heal team’ which adjusts conditioning and match exercise to best possible values. Also inspired and healed Chelsea but no edits to player attributes. Then did the same for Man City.

WBA predicted 19th, Chelsea predicted 1st

AI Di Matteo in charge

Me using default TC fluid attacking 442 (no in match changes)

Man City predicted 3rd, Chelsea predicted 1st

AI Mancini in charge

Me using default TC fluid attacking 442 (no in match changes)

To me that shows reputation, match odds, media prediction (all in game measures of a team’s profile) have limited (if any) direct impact. Not scientific by any stretch of the imagination and I’m sure you and others will have counter arguments.

As always it is up to you whether or not you believe SI when they deny there is rubber banding and state that the match engine just accepts inputs with no reference to whether they are AI or Human.

While I don't think the game is rigged in any way, I do agree with poster above me in regards to the playing well and losing. Every match I lose the entire team is awful. I would love to see the other side beat me instead of my side beating themselves.

Used FMRTE and turned WBA into squad of legends (20 in all attributes) and ‘inspired’ team which boosts morale. Also clicked ‘heal team’ which adjusts conditioning and match exercise to best possible values. Also inspired and healed Chelsea but no edits to player attributes. Then did the same for Man City.

As always it is up to you whether or not you believe SI when they deny there is rubber banding and state that the match engine just accepts inputs with no reference to whether they are AI or Human.

The problem with your test is you have entered very unrealistic data into the match engine by messing about with FMRTE, FM was never designed to cope with the changes FMRTE can make to the ME and for all we know what you have done may have had a much bigger effect than just changing attributes and fitness, it could completely throw off the ME.

i understand what the OP is saying but if it were me and i'd taken arsenal to the last game of the season whilst playing as sunderland i'd be happy. Anyway, this should inspire you to come back stronger next season

I can see the OP's frustration, despite the game giving the human manager some sort of "unfair advantage" over the dreadful AI managers...

In my second year at Aalesund I was half-surprisingly leading the league, 3 points ahead of Lillestrøm (?!) with 5 games to go and one game in hand.

We threw away a win in that extra game, letting the 2-2 goal in with a penalty in injury time, then went on to lose 3-1 away to already-relegated Sarpsborg, then drew two more winnable games. Two wins in the final matches sealed the deal, but it didn't change my feeling of the game trying to make it difficult to my team..

Luckly the title rivals did even worse and lost 6 out of the final 9 games, probably providing the crappiest title run ever seen in a football competition (real or simulated).

Still, the awesome awfulness of the AI managers in smaller leagues doesn't take away from the fact my poor run of form came pretty much out of nothing, likely because I dared to tell my players I thought giving away a penalty in injury time against mid-table opposition wasn't that great...

Then things just spiraled down at an alarming speed, with morale nosediving and performances with it.

The game doesn't "cheat", but some dynamics still feel like some sort of hardcoded cheats

It's called conspiracy. All the people who can't live with randomness in live do believe weird stuff.

This ^^

(tencharacters)

I was having a great battle in the Blue Square Premier League, 5 teams could win the league.... i lost the last two games.... then i lost in the playoff final.

I was winning 2-0 then had two red cards, they win it in extra time.

So angry at this game sometimes because i definately felt that the game was not on my side for sure!

SI have always said there is no AI advantages given, and the point has been made that it would make absolutely no sense for them to program an entirely separate AI just for matches involving a human player. If you watch matches where you are no involved, say at trial days, or just pick a random match to view from your save, and you will the same exact sort of things happen when it's two AI controlled teams.

As to the OP, how can you complain that its fixed when you have Sunderland on a 19 match unbeaten run? Surely it's fixed in YOUR favor, yeah?

It's a common reaction from a player when things go against them to believe that the AI is somehow cheating. There will be dozens of times when a random number will generate a favourable outcome and the player will simply believe that it is as it should be, obviously because they are cleverer than the AI and have outsmarted it. When bad luck comes into play, there's suspicion that all is not as it should be.

I remember seeing a talk on AI by Sid Meier, where he said that they have had to code in a favourable variable into the combat system of Civ so that if the player loses a battle, the next battle is fixed in their favour as play testing showed that if a player loses two in a row, they believe that they have been cheated.

There are times when I play FM when I really have been stiffed by the AI and a wry smile breaks across my face (after the initial arm waving and furious venting, of course). I don't really see why any coder would want to deliberately instill negative feelings in the player against the game, especially when it is a long running series of titles such as FM.

I am currently managing Sunderland and have just completed my most frustrating season on FM ever. I am battling with a brilliant Arsenal side for the league title in the third season after running them close last season. We are level on points and on goals and I face Aston Villa at home on the last day of the season and they face Bolton at home, if we both win then whoever outscores the other claims the the league title. I keep the latest scores open and they win 1-0.

So in my game I had to win I am unbeaten in 21 games winning 19 and drawing 2 and I have only lost 2 games at home in the last three seasons. After 9 minutes they have a man sent off for a bad tackle so I am thinking this is going to be easy. Then Shawcross goes nuts and fouls their striker in the area and they score the penalty well N'Gog scores it. Second half starts should be easy 11 against 10 but Henderson decides to hack one of their players down 3 minutes in and gets sent off. We go on to lose 1-0 and lose the league title just a one goal win would have given us the title due to goals scored.

For a few seconds I think the game is fixed but after I calm down I realise it can't be. Does this sort of thing make you more determined to win the following season or does it bum you out big time. I have a feeling that was my chance if they keep playing like they have I will never be able to catch them.

I can understand why people think the game is fixed at times despite knowing it can't be as the AI is not that clever. Anyone else find this the most frustrating and fun game ever?

Just to make it clear to people that I do not think it is fixed it just feels like it for a few minutes. I can understand why some people come on here complaining that the game is rigged.

SI have always said there is no AI advantages given, and the point has been made that it would make absolutely no sense for them to program an entirely separate AI just for matches involving a human player. If you watch matches where you are no involved, say at trial days, or just pick a random match to view from your save, and you will the same exact sort of things happen when it's two AI controlled teams.

As to the OP, how can you complain that its fixed when you have Sunderland on a 19 match unbeaten run? Surely it's fixed in YOUR favor, yeah?

No no no no it is obvious that those 19 games were down to my tactical brilliance and man management skills, that one game however at the end was obviously fixed.(insert smiley that means I was not being serious)