Suggestion - Earn Your Coaching Badges

I'm not going to go into loads of detail, because there really is no point and it's a simple enough idea.

There has been a lot of talk about how difficult tactics have become in 09 and how many of us are struggling to come to terms with the tactical adjustments from 08. There has also been mention of difficulty levels, but few suggestions on how to implement these.

My idea is, that we have the option when starting the game to take a tutorial and earn our coaching badges before taking over a team. It would be relatively basic, and would provide us with insight into how each each slider works with each other slider in order to produce the type of football we want.

I think this feature would work, because it is essentially a difficulty module, but it will not affect anything else in the game.

Good idea

not a bad idea. they need to do something because i'm sure i'm not alone in thinking fm09 is almost unplayable

But what if you already know all this information & then decide to skip... do you miss out on the badges?

But what if you already know all this information & then decide to skip... do you miss out on the badges?

No, the coaching badges have no effect on the game and you don't need them to be able to play the game. It'd just a fancy name for a tactical tutorial at the start of the game.

not a bad idea. they need to do something because i'm sure i'm not alone in thinking fm09 is almost unplayable

You might not be alone, but you are certainly in the minority.

Good idea, I like it, think that it would help newcomers especially but also some of us veterans who get confused from time to time

No, the coaching badges have no effect on the game and you don't need them to be able to play the game. It'd just a fancy name for a tactical tutorial at the start of the game.

Ah alright i get you now, so just a tuturial, but with a fancy name. i still think its a good idea.

It would help so many players, so this is a deffinate for me.

I like that idea although I am one of these who if a tactic isnt working I will tweak until I find a soloution.

I like that idea although I am one of these who if a tactic isnt working I will tweak until I find a soloution.

Surely if this was introducted it wont set tactics for yo, just show you how the sliders work and all the improved aspects of the tactical nous.

Surely if this was introducted it wont set tactics for yo, just show you how the sliders work and all the improved aspects of the tactical nous.

Yeah its a great idea bud, but I think a lot of people like tweaking so would be an ideal route for the split majority

I like that idea although I am one of these who if a tactic isnt working I will tweak until I find a soloution.

That's fair enough, but there are a lot of people who don't seem to have the time or inclination to spend too long tweaking tactics and this feature would give them a heads up and those who didn't use it would still be able to carry on with their tweaking.

Surely if this was introducted it wont set tactics for yo, just show you how the sliders work and all the improved aspects of the tactical nous.

i agree there is defiantly a need for some sort of tutorial for the tactics and sliders and im not jumping on the band wagon but theres quite a few people struggling with this side of the game from all the threads and posts on this issue its a very good idea

Oh im not denying that some people do struggle with the tactics of the game, its bound to happen with anything, me on the other hand likes to get stuck in and go through trial and error (like a manly man )

Others on the other hand like to know all the relative information before hand & go into the game knowing what they can do, and i think this tuturial would be a great help.

Good idea Nomis!

This, coupled with another brilliant suggestion from this thread (http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=76215) should bring FM's tactical presentation into the new decade (FM2010 onwards).

I am no hater of the sliders system mind you, but I do agree with its detractors when they accuse it of being non-intuitive. Hence, having a clever interactive tutorial as well as simple-to-understand visual aids should go a long way in increasing the ease in the process of introducing new players to this game. Or even to encourage seasoned players to experiment more with the tactical system themselves instead of merely using the preset tactics ingame or downloading 'sure-win' tactics.

That's fair enough, but there are a lot of people who don't seem to have the time or inclination to spend too long tweaking tactics and this feature would give them a heads up and those who didn't use it would still be able to carry on with their tweaking.

Dont get me wrong its a bloody great idea though!

Excellent idea really think this could work,

It would surley go along with your experience setting of some sort.... but would you do it 6 months before the season started before you have a job, thats the only stumbling block i can see as to when you would do this (time line wise)

Again though think this should really be given consideration.

Interesting to Know SI views on this.

Oh no, I wasn't saying it like that, I was just promoting the point that it's a difficulty module that won't affect the game in any way

I don't think it should have anything to do with in game time i.e. you start it and if it takes you 2 or 7 hours at the end of it, you start on the league start date.

LIke the idea, would be nice for me since I am still struggeling to get a nice decent tactic to work for my team.

LIke the idea, would be nice for me since I am still struggeling to get a nice decent tactic to work for my team.

I don't think it should be so good that we come out of it and immediately know how to create a successful tactic, but it should go some way towards giving us an idea of what we have to do to create such a tactic. We would have to fill in the gaps.

I dare say, you could possibly package wwfan and millie's TT&F into an interactive tutorial module to be included ingame in a pinch if SI does not want to spend hours writing up new material for this to work.

The difference between that and what we have now (i.e. just reading it on the forums) would be:

- It is packaged ingame, therefore no excuses for those who complain that why should they have to trawl through the net to learn how to play the game

- Possibility of having the tutorial done with textual, visual and audio elements to enhance the experience

- There is also the value-addedness of having yet more authenticity added onto an already very credible series

I don't think it should be so good that we come out of it and immediately know how to create a successful tactic, but it should go some way towards giving us an idea of what we have to do to create such a tactic. We would have to fill in the gaps.

but it would give you some confidence that your getting to grip with the tactics side of things at the moment and i am being totally honest here my teams been very successful but its by pure chance not down to my tactic knowledge its just been trial and error i still don't know what some of the sliders do in relation to other ones having your idea would go a long way of giving me some know how

It could be like the microsoft office assistant:

"I see you're trying to get your winger to cut inside"

With a little picture of Miles with a lightbulb over his head.

You might not be alone, but you are certainly in the minority.

I'm fairly sure that this isn't true this year, so many people are having problems getting their strikers to play half decently that it's unbelievable.

Anyway, to the idea.

I like it, I think this would be an excellent way to make a tutorial more relevant to the game. I agre with you that something needs to be done as the tactical side of the game is far too complex and confusing in this edition.

You could also possibly go onto do advanced coaching badges at any time in the game, so the initial ones just give you the skills you need to start getting somewhere and then, once you've learned that, the advanced ones will be more akin to the Tactical Theorems and Frameworks thread in the Tactics forum.

The big plus would also be that those who didn't want to use it wouldn't have to, but those who were struggling would have some tools provided with the game that they could use.

No, the coaching badges have no effect on the game and you don't need them to be able to play the game. It'd just a fancy name for a tactical tutorial at the start of the game.

i like this idea alot. think it would be a very nice cosmetic touch to have coaching badges plus it would help alot of people out understanding the sliders alot more. if it can be done lke you described it then i think it would be a good addition. or if it helps you get a better position when starting out unemployed. as im sure even a lower league club would want to see a manager with no experience with coaching badges.

Thread clearly needs tagging.

I think this would work as some sort of prologue. There is already a sort of tutorial there, but it is in the form of pop ups, nice ideo Nomis.

Why are people saying the tactics are confusing? I dont see anything confusing so please explain.

I like the idea but there is so much about tactics, TT&F for example is what, 4 million pages long?

I don't think they could squeeze it all in. If it's for difficulty, I think one of two things has to happen.

1) The tactics system need to be less complicated

2) The AM feedback needs to actually give us some insight into altering tactics

Maybe both of these things need to happen.

Why are people saying the tactics are confusing? I dont see anything confusing so please explain.

They're way too complex and getting them to do what you want is harder than it should be.

If you have played FM a lot you have grown with the gradual changes, imagine someone picking up this game for the first time, it may be overwhelming for them, so they ignore the tactics and wonder why they aren't winning.

If you have played FM a lot you have grown with the gradual changes, imagine someone picking up this game for the first time, it may be overwhelming for them, so they ignore the tactics and wonder why they aren't winning.

i've owned every fm game since the original cm release on the amiga and owned pretty mucd every football management sim since the original spectrum fm by the fat bloke with the beard, kevin something in 1983 and always had reasonable success. never had any of the problems with any of them until this one which i find unplayable

I don't think they could squeeze it all in. If it's for difficulty, I think one of two things has to happen.

1) The tactics system need to be less complicated

2) The AM feedback needs to actually give us some insight into altering tactics

Maybe both of these things need to happen.

I agree with both points. However, in the difficulty threads that I have read so far, any change to the actual game has come in for criticism and seems to be considered a backwards step. Changing the tactics system or ass man system, imo is the way to go, but they are both game changing whereas the tutorial function means the game can remain as is.

I think the tactics are overly complicated, but that's not to say that if I spent a good amount of time on them I wouldn't be able to work something out. The problem is that I don't have the time and don't want to spend the time working them out. I fell in love with CM/FM playing 97/98, aged 14ish and i've always thought of myself as a decent gamer, but if I was 14 now and picked up FM09 I wouldn't have a clue where to start.

This is a fantastic idea. It could begin by explaining the sliders and move towards some practical scenarios (e.g. opposition are playing 5-4-1, defending deep, you have 15 minutes to break them down).

It's a very good idea, but it must be implemented well with instructions and examples.

Maybe even with some test (like Gran Turismo) to see if you learn something or you haven't understand anything.

I like the idea, it would add a sense of realism to the game .

Surely if this was introducted it wont set tactics for yo, just show you how the sliders work and all the improved aspects of the tactical nous.

Yeah should work like this. But if you already think you know the stuff or have previously read it you could choose "no, i already have these coaching badges"

Maybe?

Would the badges be shiny?

I like shiny things.

Of course

Fantastic Idea.

I've gone off Fm over the past couple of years, i still buy them, but find myself playing on them less. Mainly because i dont know where to start with tactics, training etc... And im a bit too lazy to read a massive article on how to do this.

So id be really chuffed if i saw this kind of thing in the next release as i would pay more attention!

As long as it wouldnt affect your game if you didnt bother getting the 'Badges' then i think everyone would be happy with it.

I think this is a great idea, as through the name alone users won't just think of it as just another boring tutorial, but something optional yet useful in the game.

I'd certainly welcome it for FM10

can't we just download a tactic off a forum

I just want some gamer to like put in the work for my

4-2-3-1

refining it making sure all the corner and set pieces are set up well

and then letting me have it to make magic

I also loved the Gung Ho that someone created on the First Manager that used an actual simulator I remember struggling for Champions League position in the French League with PSG and then all of a sudden I was beating teams by 3-4 goals Ronaldinho was topping the goal and assist charts. I was overtaking Lyon at the top of the league....

can't we just download a tactic off a forum

I just want some gamer to like put in the work for my

4-2-3-1

refining it making sure all the corner and set pieces are set up well

and then letting me have it to make magic

I also loved the Gung Ho that someone created on the First Manager that used an actual simulator I remember struggling for Champions League position in the French League with PSG and then all of a sudden I was beating teams by 3-4 goals Ronaldinho was topping the goal and assist charts. I was overtaking Lyon at the top of the league....

Are you sure you posted this in the right thread? From what I can see it has absolutely nothing to do with the coaching badges idea, or anything else that's been posted in here for that matter :confused:

This is quite possibly the most unique and, going out on a limb here, best idea that I have read in all of my many hours scouring these forums. Well done! Definitely something SI should look into! :thup: (Just in case you didn't get my thoughts from the text )

Are you sure you posted this in the right thread? From what I can see it has absolutely nothing to do with the coaching badges idea, or anything else that's been posted in here for that matter :confused:

He might be referring to my post where I mention having such a tutorial module will "encourage seasoned players to experiment more with the tactical system themselves instead of merely using the preset tactics ingame or downloading 'sure-win' tactics".

Now I do not mean to insinuate that such behaviour is necessarily bad. What I hope to convey is that the tactical system is 'complicated' for a reason. It has a myriad of options so as to make designing formations and tactics more engaging for us gamers. Failure brings about understandable frustration, but success will be all the more sweet and rewarding.

Implementing this tutorial module suggestion should cut down a lot on the failure and frustration bit since it aims to ease the gradient of the steep learning curve currently associated with the tactical system (i.e. the criticism of how gamers have to read up wordy articles on the forums to get a better understanding of the way the sliders work).

However, those gamers who truly have no wish to immerse themselves in the tactical aspects of the game should not feel in any way obligated to force themselves to.

Having this tutorial module optional as suggested, will present a gamer the choice of whether he wants to learn more about how the various sliders and tick-boxes in the tactical menu work and combine together to form coherent tactical frameworks.

If he chooses not to undergo the tutorial, or even after giving it a go and coming out at the end of it still feeling overwhelmed, he may go back to retrieving 'tried-and-tested' tactics from the FM community online. Since that in itself promotes interaction between us gamers, it is definitely not something to be frowned upon.

My personal view though, is that it is simply a pity when someone decides not to try to design tactics of his own because he is intimidated by the sheer variety and volume of options laid out before him. Hence why I believe that this suggestion should be considered very seriously by SI.

Most games have detailed walk-through tutorials too, especially since games nowadays are striving for high degrees of sophistication to distinguish themselves from the competition and gamers (especially first-timers to a particular genre) can get easily lost and overwhelmed at the start.

good call Nomis, personally I struggle with tactics, but perversely I enjoy the struggle, however I'm sure most of us could learn something from a feature like this.

Maybe we could have the 3d engine show us the likely player movements of the settings we've chosen and then its up to us to blend them to create a cohesive unit

I like this idea but it's basically a rehashing of what is said about the sliders in the manual, which everyone has had access to for quite a while.

I like this idea but it's basically a rehashing of what is said about the sliders in the manual, which everyone has had access to for quite a while.

I hope it will be more detailed than that if it were to be taken aboard and implemented. As I mentioned in a previous post here, I am thinking of something along the lines of wwfan and millie's TT&F thread being incorporated into an interactive tutorial. Hopefully that is what nomis have in mind too.

In addition, having visual aids in the formation screen as suggested by nappis in this thread: http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=76215, both while the tutorial is ongoing as well as during actual gameplay itself.

Those stuff are clearly not in the manual.

I am thinking of something along the lines of wwfan and millie's TT&F thread being incorporated into an interactive tutorial. Hopefully that is what nomis have in mind too.

That's precisely what I had in mind actually. I've read that thread and the attachments and tbh I couldn't make sense of most of it, if there was a visual guide of the same thing, I think I would understand it better.

Gr8 idea.......

I like this idea but it's basically a rehashing of what is said about the sliders in the manual, which everyone has had access to for quite a while.

i also find the idea of it saying you have the badges more realistic. and it could be cosmetic feature were you will always start with the badges wheather you take the tutorial or not. i hope SI look into that.