A positive step forward

A couple of years ago, I discussed one very simple thing:

I real life the personality of the manager is the most important reason for his success or failure. That is not reflected in the game FM.

Of course it is not easy to build such game and I imagine it was a lot more difficult when they started back in the day. Thus, the game evolved purely on the tactics side with the eventual addition of some small, if not gimmicky, elements of "morale".

Having played the demo, I realised that FM not only understand how important personality is but also try to enhance it. It is a step forward.

However there are still two problems:

a) Because of FMs history and the amount of effort that has been put into creating this monster of tactical engine, it is hard to scrap 75% of it and make room for other elements that will add realism. I have worked with companies in the past that needed a fundamental change and I can tell you it wasn't easy.

b) The consecutive annual editions are priced as a new game. I didn't buy FM11 last year but I might buy it this year. I will save money and have a game that is not different to its predecessor or succesor. The current cost of FM11 should be the cost of all new editions. I can also assure you that the argument "how will the company make money then?" is flawed.

So, in general, not a bad new edition. Hopefully next year the company will be in a position to seriously reduce the tactical engine and start adding some realism.

Whilst I don't necessarily disagree that a manager's personality is an important factor in their success, I do disagree about it being implemented in the game. As others have pointed out elsewhere, there is a big difference between adding features that make the game more realistic and adding features that make the game more fun. I would argue that, for me, player interaction and media interaction are not fun. That said, I've been playing the demo and have pre-ordered the game so still expect to enjoy it despite my interaction based quibbles.

There's no reason it shouldn't be fun as long as it adheres to an element of realism. I'm one of those rare people that actually like the fact that players have slowly been given personalities of the years of development and you are now able to chat with them to boost morale, so I guess it wouldn't be too big of a step if you were able to incorporate your personality as a manager into the game.

Not sure what new features this would mean though?

Perhaps the OP had something in mind??

It seems that there are two types of players playing FM:

- The hard core tactics theorists. They equate football management with team tactics and are fully educated, possibly hold PhDs, on the subject. They have read the books and possibly have written a number of them. A sub-category are players who have not read the books and do not have big beards, but enjoy the gamey aspect of changing sliders to "win".

- The pragmatists. They understand what real life day to day football management is. They are interested in the challenges and rewards of managing a team of people.

Both categories argue that the game is more fun their way. This "fun" bit is really down to the individual and difficult to grasp.

The manufacturer seems to believe that more and more players are leaning towards category B and so more and more people-management pieces are introduced. I think they are changes that have brought a freshness to the game, although obviously not everyone agrees.

However, they are changes that would be unimaginable a few years ago, when the beloved tactics professors "ruled" in SIs decision making committees.

I would love the ability to interact with players in a complex way, but I don't think the game can ever get that right. Conversations have to be simplified enough to be programmable, and it is that simplification that makes them repetitive and annoying.

Bottom line: Stockpiling talent is the best way to ensure success in most sports, and I think this game gets that part right.

A couple of years ago, I discussed one very simple thing:

I real life the personality of the manager is the most important reason for his success or failure. That is not reflected in the game FM.

Of course it is not easy to build such game and I imagine it was a lot more difficult when they started back in the day. Thus, the game evolved purely on the tactics side with the eventual addition of some small, if not gimmicky, elements of "morale".

Having played the demo, I realised that FM not only understand how important personality is but also try to enhance it. It is a step forward.

However there are still two problems:

a) Because of FMs history and the amount of effort that has been put into creating this monster of tactical engine, it is hard to scrap 75% of it and make room for other elements that will add realism. I have worked with companies in the past that needed a fundamental change and I can tell you it wasn't easy.

b) The consecutive annual editions are priced as a new game. I didn't buy FM11 last year but I might buy it this year. I will save money and have a game that is not different to its predecessor or succesor. The current cost of FM11 should be the cost of all new editions. I can also assure you that the argument "how will the company make money then?" is flawed.

So, in general, not a bad new edition. Hopefully next year the company will be in a position to seriously reduce the tactical engine and start adding some realism.

Can you please explain why "How will the company make money then?" is a flawed question?

I fail to see how they can continue to hire the same number of staff, and thus provide the current level of content annually, if they only get paid by newcomers and not existing players. I also fail to see how removing us as a financial concern benefits an existing customer, other than in the strictest financial sense.

I thought you create your own personality with the way in with you manage your club.

If you want you personality to be strict, you fine poor performances and sending offs, you transfer list players that disagree with you etc.

If you want to be a Media friendly boss you attend every press conference answer everything that you need to respond to etc.

If you want to be a tinker man just keep changing your squad

If you want to be a slave driver train your players hard etc.

Thats my view on it maybe wrong.

I thought you create your own personality with the way in with you manage your club.

If you want you personality to be strict, you fine poor performances and sending offs, you transfer list players that disagree with you etc.

If you want to be a Media friendly boss you attend every press conference answer everything that you need to respond to etc.

If you want to be a tinker man just keep changing your squad

If you want to be a slave driver train your players hard etc.

Thats my view on it maybe wrong.

True, but I think the OP wants it to be a bit more complex than that. Not sure what you would add to the game to achieve that though.

It may reflect on my playing style, but i've personally found the single most important element of gameplay to be the transfer market. If you are deft enough in this regard you can run rings around the AI. I've heard the FM12 demo is more difficult in this regard, but previously I was consistantly able to improve the quality of the squad, reduce the wage bill and turn a 60-100%+ profit on transfers.

Next up I would say is managing morale and fostering a team spirit. I would actually say that the least important element is getting your tactics right.

This man speaks the truth. A bunch of good players, feeling confident and loved, will win in all but the most ludicrous 1-1-8 style formations (you know, the ones you make the other team play in when you're destroying them).

If it was possible to play against your own team, I'd wager my first born son that the happy team with a plain tactic will beat the miserable but heavily tweaked tactic guys every time*.

* Assuming we don't discover a game-breaking Diablo.

Some very good points indeed. Stuffing your team with talent is a very rewarding and satisfying aspect of the game.

Regarding the price of an annual edition: Setting the product's price by calculating the cost and adding your profit is fine. However, there is a better way. Start with the price and adjust your cost to achieve a good profit. Many companies have done it with amazing results.

It is true, I am not a technical or creative person so I cannot suggest how to add more of the manager's personality into the game. It is the most important aspect of the real game though and it is severely missing from FM.

I am satisfied that SI are addressing this issue, despite the protestations by hard-core tacticiand when I suggested it a few years back.

I still believe the real change will occur when SI decides to scrap 50-75% of the unreasonable tactics engine complexity and make room for other development.