Somebody may want to check this.....

Ten quid sez it's crap.

I was more thinking of the copyright of FM.

Yeah, on the surface, it looks a lot like FM. Thanks for raising it.

Not a scratch on FM IMo,more in depth the game goes you will probably find that it pretty rubbish.Copyright stuff should be investigated though i reckon.Seems like they could be stealing ideas from the FM guys.

How else are you supposed to make a management game without most of the stuff in FM? I'm not saying that they haven't stolen ideas but really, are SI the only company who is allowed to make football management games?

Not sure if you've even checked the content on this game above.. but nothing in it is original, it is specifically designed to look like fm...

There are plenty of ways to do management games without using FM's ideas, style and content.. as demonstrated by most other football management games.

First view of the game's interface...I'd say it's a massive ripoff of FM. There are football games on facebook that even incorporate elements of FM, but this one just looks like they slapped another name on a FM skin.

Yeah I have played many different football management games where the interface and features are far different to FM.

Looking at those screenshots I would have to say it looks like a lot of it is a blatant copy of FM, and some just look like FM with a custom skin.

Obviously it could be absolute toilet, but it looked as though the ME might actually have some substance (nothing compared to FM I imagine, but serviceable). Given it seems to fill a hole that FML left behind, they could actually have some success.

Then they decide to completely rip off FMs interface. I just don't understand why you'd do it. They're very unlikely to get away with it - it's not "inspired by", it's "copying" - so why not just add a bit more imagination and present things a little differently?

EDIT: Some fun quotes in that product description

That's why we started from a blank canvas 4 years ago and designed from the ground up

We see ourselves as innovators and pioneers

Clearly the blank canvas was filled in a little by just putting "FM" under the interface section.

Its nothing like FM, they called theirs MF for one

To be honest, I hope its good, clearly a monoploy on the market is not a good thing. I think SI could do with some competition to give them a much needed shake up. Not saying this is it though. Not sure how its going to work, it says its a skill based game. It looks like a complete rippoff, it looks almost identical.

Its nothing like FM, they called theirs MF for one

To be honest, I hope its good, clearly a monoploy on the market is not a good thing. I think SI could do with some competition to give them a much needed shake up. Not saying this is it though. Not sure how its going to work, it says its a skill based game. It looks like a complete rippoff, it looks almost identical.

Considering it markets itself as MMO, it's actually not the same as FM. Though whether it's ripping off aspects to create that is another thing. So wouldn't shake things up, not that SI need it.

The competition argument is a bit of a fallacy when it's usually put forward, but to be honest this doesn't really look like a direct competitor anyway. If FML was still a thing, it would be, but not for traditional FM. At least by how it looks and how they're describing it.

Having said that, there is a huge gap in the market for something like this. There's loads of free to play games, but if one could take a few steps ahead of all the others, they'd be unopposed. Which is why it's so baffling and disappointing that they'd decide to sabotage that by completely copying another game.

The competition argument is a bit of a fallacy when it's usually put forward, but to be honest this doesn't really look like a direct competitor anyway. If FML was still a thing, it would be, but not for traditional FM. At least by how it looks and how they're describing it.

Having said that, there is a huge gap in the market for something like this. There's loads of free to play games, but if one could take a few steps ahead of all the others, they'd be unopposed. Which is why it's so baffling and disappointing that they'd decide to sabotage that by completely copying another game.

Indeed. One for legal I suspect.

Hopefully this game will be forbidden. I hope the best for the devs but not in this manner.

There are clearly stolen assets/graphics at play here.

There are clearly stolen assets/graphics at play here.

Is there? Or is it just a complete copy of the layout? The parts that are the same as FM are pretty generic, so don't think they've gone to those lengths. It's still a clear copy though.

It's a shame, like I said, because they really seem like they've put a lot of effort into the other areas of the game. They talk a good game, and are saying the right things, but then when they've put zero effort into how it looks beyond pointing to FM and saying "like that", it's pretty disappointing. Especially because FM's interface is hardly perfect as it is - given this is probably going to be slightly simpler in terms of features, it was a chance to really streamline things and have something a little cleaner. But no, that'd be work, just copy it.

I am going to play it!

One of the areas that's probably quite easy to check is to identify (even though they have fake names) if players are the same as their real life counter-parts and then compare attributes to those same players in FM.

I regularly browse these forums and have come across this, and feel inspired to add something to this conversation as I've been testing this game in question for the past 4 months committing many hundreds of hours.

This game is there to fill a void for those like myself (who feel that the play experience of competing in a world with only 1 real person is ultimately not a very fulfilling one). If you don't feel this void whilst playing FM, then this game certainly is not for you - FM is the best single player game there ever will be - full stop!

I loved FML and when SI cancelled it I was left devastated. I've tried every single online Football Management game I could find (Top Eleven, Trophy Manager, Hattrick, Soccer Manager, Pitchside Manager, Goal United, Striker Manager, Manager League and more). But these games just left me feeling somewhere between bored to outright infuriated. For me, I'm really happy I've found this game, it is the only online Football Management game since FML I've been able to enjoy. This despite the game being in a relatively early stage of development and being an unfinished game.

Marc Duffy has been testing this game as well, who I was very pleasantly surprised to see in the game, and he said in public chat that he can see a lot of hard work has gone into this game and that he is really glad to see that all the X-FML'ers finally have a decent online football management game to play. Fair play to him, he's a good guy.

Each to their own would be my piece of advice here. But personally I love this game, and I love FM too. I also love FIFA. And I'm able to play and enjoy all these games because they all offer completely different types of gaming experiences.

As for the UI - it plays totally differently from FM, for starters the entire thing is able to be customised by the user. There are plenty of other games that have a UI that includes a Menu system, title bars, and data (personally I don't really see how it is possible to make a serious Football Management game without these elements). Soccer Manager which is also on Steam is a good example here, it is much more alike FM in my personal opinion (or FM is much more alike SM depending on which side of the fence you happen to be sitting on).

For those who are offering free and completely misleading legal advice on matters, I don't believe they hold a basic understanding of neither the law nor the history of the Football Manager series itself. It is a well documented fact that when SI split from Eidos, that Eidos got to keep the rights to both the Championship Manager name and the 'look and feel' and the UI of the game. Just some food for thought.

While I can appreciate the message you are saying...

Claiming that the game hasn't blatantly ripped or copied FM is a complete non starter...

Do I really need to explain this screenshot and what it contains?

It's just a shame they went down this route as it looks like it has potential and is obviously different to fm being an MMO...

(p.s .. I will explain it if I need to...)

I may not know legal matters, but that doesn't make me blind. When almost every screenshot looks near to exactly like the game I spend 2000+ hours on every version, it's hard not to notice.

The ME etc won't be a patch on it and cannot just be copied, but the UI is a blatant copy.

I seriously doubt that SI could claim IP rights to much or indeed any of the presentation methods used in FM as much of what is used is or has been seen in other sports games & can be viewed as a common method of display due to the nature of what is being presented. Things like grading players in a star system isn't unique to SI & neither is having a player's position listed as GK, DR, ST, etc, etc or an average rating to 2 decimal places.

I'm sure that SEGA & SI will keep a close eye on hints that any under the hood code has been used but working on the basis that the makers of this potential new entrant would not be that stupid I personally wish them all the luck in the world, making a football management sim work as an MMO & be commercially viable is very difficult, something I'm sure Duffy would confirm

I seriously doubt that SI could claim IP rights to much or indeed any of the presentation methods used in FM as much of what is used is or has been seen in other sports games & can be viewed as a common method of display due to the nature of what is being presented. Things like grading players in a star system isn't unique to SI & neither is having a player's position listed as GK, DR, ST, etc, etc or an average rating to 2 decimal places.

I'm sure that SEGA & SI will keep a close eye on hints that any under the hood code has been used but working on the basis that the makers of this potential new entrant would not be that stupid I personally wish them all the luck in the world, making a football management sim work as an MMO & be commercially viable is very difficult unless, something I'm sure Duffy would confirm

That's why I mentioned the database, I know the database certainly is some very important and protected IP. The attributes are almost identical to FM attributes (positioning replaced with reading the game, stamina with endurance) the screenshots available are seemingly quite careful not to show any current players if they are included in the game.

Yeh, you can't claim the right to a star rating system. You'd definitely be in trouble if the code to generate the stars was identical, or not different enough.

Same with the average rating, every tabloid rates players 1-10 on how they did on a match - you can't claim that, but you can claim the code that generates this information.

Forward and back buttons, look at images on FilckR - the same arrows (just larger) to navigate between photos. It's common to UI.

The game itself looks interesting, but it's not for me. FM is a fantastic one player game, and when I get a chance I spend days playing the game, watching movies and drinking beer. It's great to string a few days together with.

I couldn't do that with a MMO - plus building "online friends" to rendezvous with to play matches etc. It's just not for me.

This game appears to be a social event going up against other players and their teams etc. There doesn't seem to be a legitimately named team or player in the screenshots.

I've looked at other Football Manager simulation games, and a lot have similar layouts and graphics. Although - got to hand it to them, they managed to do a tabbed layout, which SI users have been screaming for for years lol!

Now if FM starts doing tabbed layouts, are they copying them? Absolutely not.

That's why I mentioned the database, I know the database certainly is some very important and protected IP. The attributes are almost identical to FM attributes (positioning replaced with reading the game, stamina with endurance) the screenshots available are seemingly quite careful not to show any current players if they are included in the game.

Disclaimer: I have no idea if they have licensed out the database.

Nowhere am I, or have I, suggested that any legal issues are here... only that claiming they haven't taken fm's layout, colour scheme, buttons, and overall ui is ludicrous...

Yes, other games have back an forward buttons as does every browser.. it's not the functionality I'm questioning, only that it's lifted from fm.. blatantly..

Which is a shame for a game that could obviously become huge and needs it's own IP.

I'm in the same position, but Prozone have access to the database (or did it was around 2014 this was announced) as part of their recruiter package and I think it was last summers transfer window when Sky Sports began making use of information from the database as well. I imagine getting access to it for something of a rival product (the demographics would certainly overlap) it would be quite pricey. It even has injury proneness, but has it visible whereas in FM that attribute is kept hidden. Although if you did have FM's database licensed for use, I'd imagine you'd make a big song & dance of it due to its general high-regard.

It's very similar, and it's a thin line - but that's up to SI to argue with them. We won't solve that here.

It's just a bit too similar really, and there are more than enough management games that are close, but not that close to claim it can't be done.

Even outside football, look at EHM v FHM, both hockey games, but very different in layout.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/penguin-wins-its-suit-as-puffin-gets-the-crumbs-in-battle-of-the-biscuits-1273690.html

"Asda, the supermarket chain, may have to p-p-pick up a bill for damages after the judge in the great chocolate biscuit case ruled that its Puffin brand was a copy of the famous Penguin."

F...f...f...f...football manager.

I regularly browse these forums and have come across this, and feel inspired to add something to this conversation as I've been testing this game in question for the past 4 months committing many hundreds of hours.

This game is there to fill a void for those like myself (who feel that the play experience of competing in a world with only 1 real person is ultimately not a very fulfilling one). If you don't feel this void whilst playing FM, then this game certainly is not for you - FM is the best single player game there ever will be - full stop!

I loved FML and when SI cancelled it I was left devastated. I've tried every single online Football Management game I could find (Top Eleven, Trophy Manager, Hattrick, Soccer Manager, Pitchside Manager, Goal United, Striker Manager, Manager League and more). But these games just left me feeling somewhere between bored to outright infuriated. For me, I'm really happy I've found this game, it is the only online Football Management game since FML I've been able to enjoy. This despite the game being in a relatively early stage of development and being an unfinished game.

Marc Duffy has been testing this game as well, who I was very pleasantly surprised to see in the game, and he said in public chat that he can see a lot of hard work has gone into this game and that he is really glad to see that all the X-FML'ers finally have a decent online football management game to play. Fair play to him, he's a good guy.

Each to their own would be my piece of advice here. But personally I love this game, and I love FM too. I also love FIFA. And I'm able to play and enjoy all these games because they all offer completely different types of gaming experiences.

As for the UI - it plays totally differently from FM, for starters the entire thing is able to be customised by the user. There are plenty of other games that have a UI that includes a Menu system, title bars, and data (personally I don't really see how it is possible to make a serious Football Management game without these elements). Soccer Manager which is also on Steam is a good example here, it is much more alike FM in my personal opinion (or FM is much more alike SM depending on which side of the fence you happen to be sitting on).

For those who are offering free and completely misleading legal advice on matters, I don't believe they hold a basic understanding of neither the law nor the history of the Football Manager series itself. It is a well documented fact that when SI split from Eidos, that Eidos got to keep the rights to both the Championship Manager name and the 'look and feel' and the UI of the game. Just some food for thought.

Would've given your post more cred if you had admitted that you have something to do with 90MF. Clearly. Come on.