My theory on why the game will be too big for CD

I was thinking about different modes, then it struck me.

A challenge mode that sees you take control of a team from sometime in the PAST.

You would have the database that corresponds to that point in time.

For instance, you could control Man Utd on their treble winning season and see if you could do as well, You could go back further and control England the season of their 1966 world cup triumph. You could even go back ridiculously far and see if you could help Cardiff City to their FA Cup victory of 1927.

Just think, there could be about 5 different Databases to choose from. Each with a completly different set of players.

A 1927 database (Cardiff FA Cup Challenge)

A 1966 database (England World Cup Challenge)

A 1996's database (Euro '96 Challenge)

A 1999 database (Man Utd Treble Challenge)

A present Database

Of course the past databases wouldnt be complete and would only really have the first teams of the english league teams but I think it would be interesting to try to manage teams from the past.

You could see how your actions on the Past FM world could change the current world, the possibilities are endless!

SO yeah, that's why I think it will need alot more space, Multiple databases.

Good idea?

Licensing becomes an issue with past data bases. You would need to track down every retired player and get their permission to use their name, otherwise you have teams filled with ST #9 or GK #1 and stuff like that. This is how EA Sports makes NCAA games due to NCAA Amateur Athlete laws and stuff.

It's nothing that an editor can't change, but that is a lot of players to sort through and match name to number.

Nice idea.

Doubt it'll happen.

More likely the space is taken up by 3D graphics or just oodles more players or more in-depth stats/development, or even a new tactical model. Or all of them.

I dont think there will be extra databases included.

Interesting idea but I doubt it. I think the developers said that FM2008 only just squeezed onto CD, so I think its only natural that they are contemplating having to move onto a larger medium for FM2009, even then I don't think it's definite yet.

I think the whole thing with managing past teams etc, like I said is an interesting one but wouldn't appeal to everyone (probably not me) - but may be an interesting exercise for a third party who might want to develop "historic" DBs, available for download or whatever, depending on the demand?

It's a nice idea and probably soemthing I would try, but I definately don't want it added to the cd/game, i'd rather download the ones I wanted and making them available for download would make more sense.

I could see individual challenges with very restricted databases happening in the future, but full databases based on the past aren't likely to be a reality.

SI have already said this wouldn't be able to happen because they only have the licenses for that season and then they expire and they need to get them again for the next season, so all the past licenses have expired. This is why they can not re release games as platinum etc

Thinking about it, even old CM databases (from games that have been re-released) probably belong to Eidos now.

I mentioned a similar idea a long time ago, but my idea was basically a scenario/custom database editor to enable user created leagues, scenario's etc.

It is a very good idea,

But i doubt SI would consider it, what with all the licensing problems has Harper said

More likely to be a revolution to the main game, rather than adding extra modes and challenges I would imagine.

What about all the data from before the CM series began? Someone would have to research all those players, as well as rules of the various competitions of the time. Plus, someone would have to set the attributes of these players. Fine if you're talking about George Best, but not if you're talking about some minor player who no one can really remember ever seeing play. So, beyond the start of the CM series, it would seem unfeasible to me.

It couldn't be that hard to create a database for a specific league in a specific season, but it would be no use for anything more than 2-3 years. I have a book called 'Manchester United: Player by Player', which would be perfect for this purpose, and every club must have something similar.

What everybody is forgetting is that the database only has the details of the players.

The competition rules are hard coded into the game and a new database will not alter them.

So, for instance taking the 1927 Cardiff example, off the top of my head I can think of the following that would not be properly simulated:

2 points for a win

Goal average

FA Cup replays until a result (ie no penalty shoot-outs)

No League Cup

No World Cup

No European competitions

No back-pass rule

Different offside Law

Third Division North and South

22-team First Division

22-team Second Division

Only two teams relegated from First Division to Second, and from Second to Third Divisions

Virtually no midweek games (ie no floodlights)

Definitely no Sunday games

No television money

Maximum wage

No freedom of contract

No Bosman transfers.

And that's with just a couple of minutes thought.