Is there far too much meaningless interaction in FM?

[Marius_R]

The whole interaction (media and player) needs a revamp imo, it`s boring, repetitive and sometimes utterly ridiculous. Whilst I do like it being in the game, as it does add more immersion to the whole manager role, I find it annoying so many times, that I would like a big "off" button for it. Currently playing in Romania and the top division has a similar format to the Scottish Premier League, 14 teams, they play each other twice, then the league gets split into two, top 6 teams enter the Champions Playoff, bottom 8 enter the Relegation Group, points are halved and again they play each other twice. 2nd season after my promotion (2020-2021) I enter the Champions Playoff after finishing 5th at the end of the season. 4 games remaining and we`re 3rd, and before a game I get asked if I have faith that we can stay up. Really? There`s absolutely no way we can relegate, but I`m asked this question? Three weeks later, before the end of the season, I get asked the same question. For real? Like someone else has mentioned above, the lack of attention to details is disappointing to say the least. 

And don`t get me started on player interaction, and I`m going to give one example: I had a 5-star potential DC come up through my youth team, and since I was on a budget for most of the time, I gave him a chance in the first team quite early. After making around 15 first team appearances, he comes to me saying he feels he`s outgrown the club and wants to leave.  And what I hate the most about player interaction is not being able to give the player the obvious answer, like transfer listing a player that says he wants to leave, offering him to club, but no one makes an offer, only for him to screw half you team because you haven`t kept your promise. Or a player asking for more first team football, then getting injured for 3 months, and again being angry because you didn`t keep your promise. You were in crutches ffs, how did you wanted me to play you? What`s even more annoying though is that these glitches have been around for a couple of years now and they still haven`t been fixed.

 

 

[Showerman]

6 hours ago, FrazT said:

I had a terrific question in FM 17- just took my team to its first ever CL final and at the pre-game press conference, after the initial questions about the "so-called feud" with the other manager that I had never played before, I was asked how pleased was I about my player x signing a new contract?. Who?  I stopped and checked my player lists and the guy was the 4/5th choice 18-year-old keeper, currently on loan in division 2, whose contract had been renewed by my HOYD!  Here was my team in the biggest game in the club's history and I was being asked about a player that I had hardly heard of?  Could you guys not have found a more relevant question for your readers?

Similar thing happened to me but it was about another manager transfer listing a useless player

[djpdavey]

I think it's unrealistic to have so much media interest in a Vanarama league team. Until you get out of the Minos into League One or very least the championship, you shouldn't get so many questions. How many times do you think people search youtube for the manager of Chelsea, Man United, Man City or Liverpools manager press conference compared with a lower league team. Yes they have a lot more fans but it should probably be tied in with your reputation and your league reputation.

[Neil Brock]

39 minutes ago, djpdavey said:

I think it's unrealistic to have so much media interest in a Vanarama league team. Until you get out of the Minos into League One or very least the championship, you shouldn't get so many questions. How many times do you think people search youtube for the manager of Chelsea, Man United, Man City or Liverpools manager press conference compared with a lower league team. Yes they have a lot more fans but it should probably be tied in with your reputation and your league reputation.

You barely get any at that level. 

[Neil Brock]

I personally voted I want to see more - but would agree done so in a way that improves the game, not just more text/interaction for the sake of it. As a few people have already commented within this thread it's not an easy thing to get right. I can understand some of the frustrations with repetition, but quite often in football the same questions are asked week in week out which can definitely hinder the enjoyment of press conferences. 

We're trying to make it so there's more engagement with the gameworld, more engagement with your players and more of a feeling that the players are people too, with career mindsets of their own. Realistically the days of a player being happy at their club for an entire career are simply gone - and we have to try and reflect that in game. It's just not realistic for the user manager to be the only deciding factor of how long a player stays at a club. Player interaction is 100% vital to being a football manager. Keeping your players happy and the dynamics system is definitely a huge part of that. 

Going back to this thread specifically, Barside was right mentioning earlier that in some instances (certainly with press conferences) it's not the easiest module to reproduce issues and fix them. We often need a save game prior to the press conference and question being generated and unfortunately due to the nature of the game they won't always reproduce from the earlier saves. Some examples in this thread are simply bugs - I agree the user shouldn't necessarily be bugged with questions about a very poor 17 year old having a contract that expires in 12 months, but it is a limited system in the sense we can't give away a real journalist (or the AI or a real journalist) with the game. Think of huge titles which have a conversation system with NPCs in game - I can't think of any which is perfect and the whole industry is striving towards something whereby the user has as much choice as possible. But even on linear games this is extremely difficult - nearly all titles are plagued with questions or scenarios the user doesn't buy into. 

And personally I would also like to see the entire press conference system content refreshed - but that is thousands of lines of text then translated into multiple languages. For a module of the game some people argue that a lot of people just click [Ask Assistant] for anyway. It's certainly area that needs consideration of how we can make it the most engaging and relevant for the game, so would always point people towards the feature request forums for suggestions to help with that..

As some people have also said, if you want an experience without press conferences and player interaction it may well be worth considering FMT. It does strip away some of the more detailed areas of the game for a more streamlined experience.  

[Cal585]

The media badgering is the main thing preventing me from taking the step across from FMT. I really should try again with it delegated to my Assistant but I worry about relinquishing control of things that may impact my team.

[Gojira]

5 hours ago, Marius_R said:

And don`t get me started on player interaction, and I`m going to give one example: I had a 5-star potential DC come up through my youth team, and since I was on a budget for most of the time, I gave him a chance in the first team quite early. After making around 15 first team appearances, he comes to me saying he feels he`s outgrown the club and wants to leave.  And what I hate the most about player interaction is not being able to give the player the obvious answer, like transfer listing a player that says he wants to leave, offering him to club, but no one makes an offer, only for him to screw half you team because you haven`t kept your promise. Or a player asking for more first team football, then getting injured for 3 months, and again being angry because you didn`t keep your promise. You were in crutches ffs, how did you wanted me to play you? What`s even more annoying though is that these glitches have been around for a couple of years now and they still haven`t been fixed.

4

Don't get me started... I'm playing Sampdoria, I've managed to get out of CL groups each year, and most of the times beat first knock-off, but get beaten in quarterfinals. Last season, I was during the group stage, my world class defender wants to join PSG because he wants to win CL. He gets utterly upset. Comes the quarterfinal, Sampdoria vs PSG. We win the first round, home, 4-2. My CD still upset. We get beaten in the next round as he gives away a penalty and gets a red card too. 
It's really weird, he's upset as he wants to win CL, but he eliminates his team from competition. In a real-life scenario, that player would have his contract nullified, he would have to pay a good share of his transfer fee, and also some 

This season, same thing, but with different players. Even weirder. The winger that I've paid $40M for 5 months ago, wants to join another team, as he feels that ours is not good enough. This interaction was right after we destroyed the group stage and we had a pretty nice draw for the first round. 

[..Valhalla..]

@Neil Brock - I would be happy with more as well, so long as it made sense/had some genuine bearing on the game. There are so many questions that are just... nonsense. And so many opportunities missed where our lives could have been made so much easier, and much more realistic. And I'm not just talking about media questions, I know myself that in real life they ask the same boring questions over and over, it's the entire interaction side of FM.

• I sold that player because he wanted to leave - it baffles me why I cannot say this given how often players complain when you sell a teammate.
• The sheer number of times players ask for a new contract.
• Backup GK complaining about being a backup GK.
• The mythical "war of words" issue.
• Players wanting to jump ship to a bigger club while flying high on the cusp of a league title (while their target club is struggling).
• I see you're a suit and tie man  
• We want to remind you of your long term obligations and hope that celebrations are handled accordingly.
• Asking me about the rain every time it's raining. While managing in sunny England.
• Asking me about every 18yr old nobody signing a new contract.
• "I'll get going then, I'm sure you'll want me for something else soon..." (wide-eyed youngster to strict disciplinarian, legendary manager me).

And so on. It really needs updating because at present it's nothing but a chore.

PS - I know that board comment isn't actually something we can "interact" with, but it infuriates me so I added it anyway  

Edited September 10, 2018 by ..Valhalla..

[Heywood JaBlowme]

Why is it when I'm facing one of my former clubs, it's assumed at the pre match press conference that I left that club on bad terms? I don't much care for any of the choices when responding to these questions. I wish there was an option to say something like " I have nothing but fond memories during my time at 'Insert team here'. 

[RBKalle]

It's pretty clear the press conferences are a chore and the repetitiveness, the irrelevance and, often, the potential detrimental effects of some answers make them a boring but unavoidable necessity.

I understand media interactions are a daily feature for most managers in real life, but for entertainment's sake, some of the realistic stuff should be kept out of FM, which, after all, is still a game.

Contextual questions need to be much better: it's absurd to keep receiving questions about Player of the Year when you're the newly appointed manager in Finnish 2nd division... Or, for that matter, to get long and tedious press conferences as if you were a top EPL manager.

The whole "war of words" is probably the worst of the worst, as it's completely random and, again, it ignores the context. Hughton or Wagner wouldn't really rant about Mourinho or Pep, much less with a consistently losing record against top clubs. In FM instead you can have a "rival manager" insist he's still the better manager and that you got lucky, even though you've just thrashed his side 5-0, you're a CL winner while his only silverware is his grandma's cutlery set.

 

Then there's the horrific players interaction part... Players get upset a lot, by trivial stuff that usually shouldn't lead to huge falling-outs... I mean, if Beckham survived being hit by a football cleat, if Balotelli (of all people) can still work with Mancini after they had a physical altercation, I'm sure my LB can just live with the fact I dared slamming the team following a weak home draw against a relegation candidate.
Instead the thing escalates to the point I don't have a viable way out, so he's alienated and will even accept a mutual termination!

Same for fining a DM who got himself sent off early on during a key CL game... He's outraged and asks for an explaination...

And the best new addition to FM18... Players being upset I'm not offering a fringe player a new contract for no apparent reason. Or players siding with rivals for their own position. Or the core group being mad at me because I've decided we didn't need a 6th striker.
Again, all those conflicts should rarely, if ever, become big deals requiring a team meeting or else... Instead FM revels in the opportunity to "spice things up", no matter how forced those situations feel.

Sure, in older games it was too easy to keep everybody happy (like "I want a new challenge", "No, stay here", "Fine!") but as it has often been the case, SI overmedicated it and now players are more unstable and moody than an angsty teenage girl...

[grade]

19 hours ago, Neil Brock said:

I personally voted I want to see more - but would agree done so in a way that improves the game, not just more text/interaction for the sake of it. As a few people have already commented within this thread it's not an easy thing to get right. I can understand some of the frustrations with repetition, but quite often in football the same questions are asked week in week out which can definitely hinder the enjoyment of press conferences. 

We're trying to make it so there's more engagement with the gameworld, more engagement with your players and more of a feeling that the players are people too, with career mindsets of their own. Realistically the days of a player being happy at their club for an entire career are simply gone - and we have to try and reflect that in game. It's just not realistic for the user manager to be the only deciding factor of how long a player stays at a club. Player interaction is 100% vital to being a football manager. Keeping your players happy and the dynamics system is definitely a huge part of that. 

Going back to this thread specifically, Barside was right mentioning earlier that in some instances (certainly with press conferences) it's not the easiest module to reproduce issues and fix them. We often need a save game prior to the press conference and question being generated and unfortunately due to the nature of the game they won't always reproduce from the earlier saves. Some examples in this thread are simply bugs - I agree the user shouldn't necessarily be bugged with questions about a very poor 17 year old having a contract that expires in 12 months, but it is a limited system in the sense we can't give away a real journalist (or the AI or a real journalist) with the game. Think of huge titles which have a conversation system with NPCs in game - I can't think of any which is perfect and the whole industry is striving towards something whereby the user has as much choice as possible. But even on linear games this is extremely difficult - nearly all titles are plagued with questions or scenarios the user doesn't buy into. 

And personally I would also like to see the entire press conference system content refreshed - but that is thousands of lines of text then translated into multiple languages. For a module of the game some people argue that a lot of people just click [Ask Assistant] for anyway. It's certainly area that needs consideration of how we can make it the most engaging and relevant for the game, so would always point people towards the feature request forums for suggestions to help with that..

As some people have also said, if you want an experience without press conferences and player interaction it may well be worth considering FMT. It does strip away some of the more detailed areas of the game for a more streamlined experience.  

While I value what you want for Football Manager, but here is the question, where is the borderline between game and simulation feeling like a job? Where is, okay, that is a bit too far, the game feels like a day job? I for one think the FAT FM, feels like a day job, one that have your boss constantly nagging on your ears. Which is why I prefer FM Touch, but can't play that unless SI decide to bring an editor to FM Touch.

What I'm saying and what others are saying, we also want players to have their career mindsets, it makes it a challenge and the game far more interesting. However the lack of detail of the interactions and the examples above where question show up, when in first place shouldn't show is what we have a problem with (people are ignoring by sending their AM). Also It kind feels that a lot of players at this point are more inclined to be a version of Balotelli or have a double personality that breaks the immersion of the game. Also there is times questions that in some way, we as users can't defend of like players saying you broke your promise of selling me to another club, when there was no offers for him. That question shouldn't arise in those conditions. For me its this lack of detail in the interactions, that I avoid like a plague. I hope FM19 address that a bit.

But if it is such a limited system, why do you guys feel compelled to give such importance? I mean, the real survey for FMers is who of them, watching football match on the TV or the net, stay to watch the Press Conference? Of my group of friends, none give importance to Press Conferences. They are simply a reason to quote mangers to sell news and newspapers and change their meaning to create a war of words. I don't know if others are the same, but it is survey of who watches the Press Conferences in real life, that I wish to find the results, but not only here in these forums, I'm talking about all players.

Other titles like Mass Effect or Detroit, when done right can be amazing games, but again they add extra attention to detail and they build the games with that functionality in mind. In FM is different beast and while value I want to strive for that, if the attention to detail is there. At this point it isn't there.

I prefer the Press Conferences and tunnel interviews to be toned down to be more meaningful in key situations (like a Final match or relegation battle). Unless SI finally complies with a lot of user's request and give us an FM Touch Editor (yes, I will continue to be annoying with that).

For your last phrase, that is all swell and all of that, but I like to play with fantasy leagues, so... No FM Touch Editor, I have to continue with FAT FM. At this point I'm on a weighing scale, at one end is my patience in weight and on the other the total weight of FAT FM and FAT FM is getting fatter with each release, my patience getting smaller. I hope FM19, with change of image, things change for the better and putting FAT FM on diet. :P Only 1 to 2 weeks until late September.

Edited September 11, 2018 by grade

[shirajzl]

On a relatively side note, I've moved to FMT three years ago precisely because I think player and media interaction are horribly implemented, but I'm still stunned at how many people seem to absolutely require editor in order to play the game. 

The amount of times I've seen "can't move to FMT because of no editor" is frankly shocking to me.

[Lucas]

20 minutes ago, shirajzl said:

"can't move to FMT because of no editor"

It doesn't surprise me. Gamers these days expect being able to customise to some extent their gameplay. 

They don't want the editor at all, it's not about that I don't think. The actual people who want to use the editor for FMT specific stuff is very small, there is a Challenges Editor that very few people have shared content with.

It's just about being able to use editor files, and being able to edit stuff within save games most likely (people like to be able to edit things in general they don't agree with).

It does surprise me that people won't even give it a chance though. It has to be different enough to FM and have different selling points otherwise you're just playing the same game and the entire thing is a waste of time. 

[WhyMe]

I generally quite like the interaction though I do agree that it can get a bit much when you get asked the same question constantly game after game.  However, the thing I would most like to see improved is the AI behind the questions being asked.  Why on earth would a journalist ask a manager who's team has won the league 5 years straight if he things he has a good chance of qualifying for Europe this year?  Surely he would ask him if he thinks he has a good chance at retaining the title instead.  Similarly, but even more ridiculously, asking a manager who has already won the league title if he thinks he can win it this year or like someone mentioned before asking if you think you can avoid relegation when you are mid-table 19 points clear with 5 games to go.  I guess really I am just agreeing with what has already been said but it is the logic behind the questions that really needs tweaking for me.

[GerdMuller]

Of course interaction is always a nice bonus and over the years the community rightly so has been asking for it, but in general FM in some places has become a micromangment nightmare and clickfest.  In the player interation and media department its not that in itself that totally turns one of but it being so dull and repititive, you always have the feeling every game just choosing amomg the dame options again and again that have very little meaning to the game in itself. Leaving it to the FM always leaves a feeling of: Oh he will jsut chosse random answers more or less and screw it up, and i have no control at all. The interviews etc dont seem light highlights or real interation, basically you think of a spreadsheet next to the PC that culd tell you all teh effects the always sam answers have.

So the problem isnt the interation per se, but the system, i remember Anstoss/Off the Ball long ago, the interviews, of course they were in real life way less back then too, aways felt like a highlight in big games and you had the feelingsomeone is really asking you a question and the game world will respond a bit to it. Just a nice picture of  reporter in the background or a press conference or the manager with the reporter in a big stadium before the kickoff gets you in another mood, sometimes its the little things. Why not sit an intenr down for a few days and work out lots of different questions and answers, trees of conversation, sometimes even a few varieties of text for the same effect maybe. So less and better and more varied is what we really want i guess.

My personal unrealistic dream has always been an editor sort of wehere you get an interface that shows Ffrst the question and the circumstances it can show up, the text that should show, then the possible answers, There you can insert vi drag and drop which player it should effect, or opinion ect, again drag and drop a player, an event etc and how ingame numbers should be changed. Via another drag and drop menu you could then build whole trees of interaction. The huge communtiy could create a neraly endless file of interaction between manager and media and player and finetune it , it would be so awesome an basically get you to a huge feeling of immersion where every question is interesting and rather new , and every answers feels less calculated but natural.

 

That would be so awesome and from a programming standpoint it would be work of course to make such an editor with easy drag and drop to create circumstances, players and manager s that interact and the changing of ingame numbers then. But if it woudl eb in palce it would be such a greta platform for the community to work with and could always be made bigger and better by including new ingame numbers to affect. Even if nothing culd be changed via it and the basic consequences would be in place just a community being able to change the texts and offer a little more variety would be a nice start. But yes i had this dream very long now of such an editor and will always have it.

 

I just read on Meistertrainer forum SI actually used their work for the german localization language files . Also their file for 7th LIga Germany was awesome for 2017. Give such a great communtiy acces to such a powerfull tool and you revolutionize the media interaction in this genre and move from boring to an absolute highlight of the game. As i said when SI sees the qualtity of the content the community would create with this it could always incorporate it inot the "out of the box" game then. I know every passionate FM player woudl love to sink his creativity in such a tool and it would create awesome content. 

Edited September 11, 2018 by GerdMuller

[grade]

2 hours ago, shirajzl said:

On a relatively side note, I've moved to FMT three years ago precisely because I think player and media interaction are horribly implemented, but I'm still stunned at how many people seem to absolutely require editor in order to play the game. 

The amount of times I've seen "can't move to FMT because of no editor" is frankly shocking to me.

When you get use to play FM a certain way, with a certain leagues, it is hard to let go. For exemple since I played Dallan's Club world cup like it is Champions League, I don't want anything else. It is required to have that. Playing FMT without it, the game looses fun for me because I want to play against teams I never heard of. 

2 hours ago, Lucas said:

It doesn't surprise me. Gamers these days expect being able to customise to some extent their gameplay. 

They don't want the editor at all, it's not about that I don't think. The actual people who want to use the editor for FMT specific stuff is very small, there is a Challenges Editor that very few people have shared content with.

It's just about being able to use editor files, and being able to edit stuff within save games most likely (people like to be able to edit things in general they don't agree with).

It does surprise me that people won't even give it a chance though. It has to be different enough to FM and have different selling points otherwise you're just playing the same game and the entire thing is a waste of time. 

There are games, that now is requirement to do so. The Total War series, is one of those games. If Paradox releases Cities Skylines 2 it needs to allow mods or can alienate their fan base that came rely on mods to play. FM is one of those games. An Editor is requirement for most people.

I cannot talk for others, but if my thread (bellow) is any indication, you miss the mark of why people want FMT editor, your response clearly shows that. "...use the editor for FMT specific stuff is very small..." "...to edit stuff within save games most likely..." Way to go to be dismiss about the editor! Here for certain what people want for an editor. People want to play with custom leagues (fantasy like world leagues or pro/rel MLS) or leagues that aren't supported in game. A lot of other want to make small edits, like make corrections of players stats or teams. Others want to edit team kits. Other want to add lower leagues, because of the challenge or play the team they support. Others want to add legends players. Others want to create their own team and put it in any league they want. Those shows small part of what people want from an editor, they may be very small, unimportant stuff for you. For me, all of those reasons, are equal reasons to have an editor in FMT no matter how dismiss you are of them. I respect there is people don't use the editor. But don't be dismiss of people who want it and for them is essential to play fm.

 

 

I gave a try for FMT and I like it. In fact i think it would bring a lot of people to FMT. I don't play it because I just got use of using the editor, that is hard to let go. So for me the editor is essential to play FM, I prefer to continue be annoyed by the FAT FM, then play FMT without it. So yes, i will continue to say I want FMT editor to you Lucas, I will be much more annoying about it, every time you dismiss it. I will be so annoying that starting at one point you and people at SI twill see in every dark corner a Wookie saying "I want an FMT Editor!". :P 

 

Edited September 11, 2018 by grade

[russell9]

Same here, would happily switch to FMT if loading editor file is supported.

[isignedupfornorealreason]

On 10/09/2018 at 20:00, ..Valhalla.. said:

Players wanting to jump ship to a bigger club while flying high on the cusp of a league title (while their target club is struggling).

Jesse Lingard, leaving Manchester United (1st) for Arsenal (12th) to play in the Champions League.

I sold him because he became a drama queen, but was forced that route as there was no way to say 'You're being a berk, look at the positions', and he rejected the usual 'wait till the end of the season' lines. What can you do? 

[..Valhalla..]

3 hours ago, isignedupfornorealreason said:

Jesse Lingard, leaving Manchester United (1st) for Arsenal (12th) to play in the Champions League.

I sold him because he became a drama queen, but was forced that route as there was no way to say 'You're being a berk, look at the positions', and he rejected the usual 'wait till the end of the season' lines. What can you do? 

Those are the situations that drive me crazy. We're hamstrung by the game simply because the most basic of options aren't added for these kind of interactions.

"Jesse [or any other player], look at the league table; Arsenal aren't even going to qualify this year, but we're gonna be champions!" (Ok boss, I'll at least wait until the end of the season)

And as I've mentioned many many times before; not being able to simply say to a player "I sold (that player) because he wanted to leave" GRINDS my gears. It's as if whoever is in charge of this module intentionally left that out just to make our lives as managers that little bit more difficult/frustrating. It's so blatantly obvious and should've been one of the first options added for that kind of interaction. Sometimes the player you're talking to won't even accept your explanation of "he didn't fit in with my tactical approach..." so now you have a player annoyed at you because you have no way to tell him the bloody truth 

And there's another element of depth missed out on there as well - you could lie and say he wanted to leave, but the player you're currently talking to would know he (the player you sold) did not actually want to leave, so he's justifiably annoyed at you for lying.

Edited September 12, 2018 by ..Valhalla..

[GoldenGoal]

On 10/09/2018 at 12:06, Neil Brock said:

As some people have also said, if you want an experience without press conferences and player interaction it may well be worth considering FMT. It does strip away some of the more detailed areas of the game for a more streamlined experience.  

Why does FMT strips away the editor? Why removing the editor provides a more "streamlined experience"?

On 11/09/2018 at 08:27, Lucas said:

It doesn't surprise me. Gamers these days expect being able to customise to some extent their gameplay. 

They don't want the editor at all, it's not about that I don't think. The actual people who want to use the editor for FMT specific stuff is very small, there is a Challenges Editor that very few people have shared content with.

It's just about being able to use editor files, and being able to edit stuff within save games most likely (people like to be able to edit things in general they don't agree with).

It does surprise me that people won't even give it a chance though. It has to be different enough to FM and have different selling points otherwise you're just playing the same game and the entire thing is a waste of time. 

My most fun saves were starting in unknown African and Asian leagues before moving to Europe and another save where I made many changes to re-create the Soviet Union. I can't do that without the editor. Fixing the nation youth ratings for FM is also essential for me.

[Cal585]

39 minutes ago, GoldenGoal said:

Why does FMT strips away the editor? Why removing the editor provides a more "streamlined experience"?

My most fun saves were starting in unknown African and Asian leagues before moving to Europe and another save where I made many changes to re-create the Soviet Union. I can't do that without the editor. Fixing the nation youth ratings for FM is also essential for me.

Simply becomes they're building FMT for tablets. Anything that can't be made to work on tablets won't be included for the PC version. It's a bit of a kick in the teeth to PC only users but at least the rest of the FMT experience is in a fairly good place otherwise and is the main version I play.

[DeathReborn]

It may do something under the hood but to the end user most of it is repetitive and superfluous.  My dad hates it, always has.  His biggest pet peeve is that the options you get are never what you want to say or are so bland/similar it's pointless even doing it.

FMT (for those evangelists) has more limitations for me than the full game has annoying functions to me, tried it every year it's been there hoping it would satisfy but it always fails.

[russell9]

Why not just add an option to disable player interactions and etc in the full FM? Let the user choose what they want.
From software engineering standpoint it should not be difficult to add such options.

[..Valhalla..]

46 minutes ago, russell9 said:

Why not just add an option to disable player interactions and etc in the full FM? Let the user choose what they want.
From software engineering standpoint it should not be difficult to add such options.

This is my dream scenario IF the current interaction remains as it is. 

[Neil Brock]

2 hours ago, russell9 said:

Why not just add an option to disable player interactions and etc in the full FM? Let the user choose what they want.
From software engineering standpoint it should not be difficult to add such options.

In doing so you'd have to consider disabling all happiness modules in game as well because you'd have no way of talking to the player to stop unhappiness. Or we could go back to an archaic system whereby if a player became unhappy you'd just be forced to sell them. 

And from a software engineering point it's not just a case of asking someone to turn it off. 

[Butlee]

But Neil, have you tried turning it off and on again?

I hear that always works.

[forameuss]

If people had their way, the game would have a screen where 500 options had toggle switches.  Seems the goto answer, just have a toggle and then you can use it if you want.  Great to say, not so easy in practice.

The module isn't perfect by any means.  For years now I've rarely dealt with any of the interactions, only cherry-picking certain player examples and pretty much clicking the same options anyway.  It's largely tedious, and has been for a few editions.  However, the answer is never just to rip it out.  Not only would that probably be a nightmare with the modules that touch the now missing code, it's also a very backwards way of looking at things.  The correct way is to improve it to the point where it stops being tedious (which is obviously easier said than done).  

[..Valhalla..]

1 hour ago, Neil Brock said:

In doing so you'd have to consider disabling all happiness modules in game as well because you'd have no way of talking to the player to stop unhappiness. Or we could go back to an archaic system whereby if a player became unhappy you'd just be forced to sell them. 

And from a software engineering point it's not just a case of asking someone to turn it off. 

Fair point. Improving the current system to a more logical way of working is definitely a more sensible approach.

1 hour ago, forameuss said:

If people had their way, the game would have a screen where 500 options had toggle switches.  Seems the goto answer, just have a toggle and then you can use it if you want.  Great to say, not so easy in practice.

The module isn't perfect by any means.  For years now I've rarely dealt with any of the interactions, only cherry-picking certain player examples and pretty much clicking the same options anyway.  It's largely tedious, and has been for a few editions.  However, the answer is never just to rip it out.  Not only would that probably be a nightmare with the modules that touch the now missing code, it's also a very backwards way of looking at things.  The correct way is to improve it to the point where it stops being tedious (which is obviously easier said than done).  

Ditto.

[Nacaw]

Too much meaningless interaction, no. Too much interaction where you can gain nothing but risk losing something, yes. One mistake can get amplified to a degree that's often not realistic, and that's where most of the annoyance comes from. 

[westy8chimp]

Im sure there's some irony here... That someone moaning about irrelevant questions having no correct answer... Has set up with a poll missing several answers! 

Personally, havent attended a press conference since they were first introduced and i found they could be delegated to assistant. It doesnt really bother me. 

I dont like social media or press conferences but if they were massively improved i could see them having a use... Certainly in multiplayer games.

I hate the avatar setup when creating a new save tho! 

[jase19]

I just popped on to see what's the story on the new FM, haven't really played since FM 16.

I did get this one for the cheap discount bit that was going on, and I can say that I answer all the media questions the same way I have answered all the media questions for the last 5 or so years of FM.  If not more.  I hardly pay attention to the question, or the answer... I just quickly get through with an obvious good answer and my squad never gets angry.  For anyone who has been playing for longer than that (I have been playing since 99 until recently because this game is getting … broken? pointless?) it becomes difficult to keep answering the same media questions over and over to no point really.  True time waster. 

Edited September 13, 2018 by jase19

[scass]

Yes. In particular I find the lack of interaction with staff very frustrating - the asst mgr "analysis" and "tactical advice" is exactly the same as it was with the first one, and it's usually totally unhelpful - removing tactics that have worked for season after season, advising young players who are playing well being moved to the u-23s. And in-match recommending that the team be more direct in every game.  And "while we are not connecting with many of our crosses we are winning most of our headers". I'm sure someone has an explanation of how these are meant to work, but they seem irrelevant to me.

Personally, I'd like to see less of the "team dynamic" which seems unrealistic, with yo-yoing morale and performances that either stellar or Sunday league, and more meaningful interaction at half time.  And some sense that your dialogue with the assistant manager and scouting team  is actually meaningful. Having said that, what I'm suggesting is a massive undertaking, and I don't imagine that it is something that is practical.

[..Valhalla..]

1 hour ago, westy8chimp said:

Im sure there's some irony here... That someone moaning about irrelevant questions having no correct answer... Has set up with a poll missing several answers!

Care to tell me what more I could have added?

Essentially the options are:

• Too much. Don't like it.
• Too much. I deal with it.
• Fine as it is.
• Not enough.

Surely that covers everything? 

[westy8chimp]

7 minutes ago, ..Valhalla.. said:

Care to tell me what more I could have added?

Essentially the options are:

• Too much. Don't like it.
• Too much. I deal with it.
• Fine as it is.
• Not enough.

Surely that covers everything? 

All of the above wrapped into one... Like yeh theres too much i dont like, but i deal with it... Dont care if there was more or not...but could think of some additions... What we have needs improving. 

[WizbaII]

What I don't understand is how people who make this game, and then play it, would continue to leave the media interactions as it is. Don't they themselves realize how useless it is? I don't mean that to sound insulting, I'm just genuinely confused about this. And don't tell me it's hard to code. It's nowhere near as difficult as coding, say, the match engine. Clearly it's just not receiving the proper attention. Why is it not getting the proper attention? I would like to think it's because whoever is doing it has a lot of stuff on their plate other than this. As OP said, I wouldn't mind doing it if it was fewer questions but higher quality. But it's one of those things that, if not done right, you should just remove it. It's not a crucial part of the game like picking a line-up, for example.

I mean the social media Twitter stuff I can tolerate because, even though it's somewhat repetitive, you are not required to give input into it. You either read it or don't read it. And I do occasionally look at it with interest. But, of course, like many people, I leave the tunnel interview, press conferences, etc, to the AssMan. What I find interesting about the tunnel interviews, for example, is that they sometimes ask me questions about stuff I don't even know the answer to. Guess what? If I'm the manager and I don't know the answer to something, then that's because that thing is not important to me. Maybe for a 12-year old this repetitive stuff is immersion. And maybe if you are playing FM 8 hours a day then having some repetitive, pointless questions feels like a breath of fresh air. But I'm an adult and immersion to me means getting to the part that matters. I care about the players, transfers, tactics, training, that's it. And don't ask me to use FMT. I'm not trying to play faster, I'm trying to play the stuff that's worth playing. If I wanted to be a real manager and answer pointless questions, I'd go and start a real course. Of course IRL these press conferences can affect player performances but I'm pretty sure press conferences is not how Guardiola became arguably the best manager in the world.

[russell9]

1 hour ago, WizbaII said:

What I don't understand is how people who make this game, and then play it, would continue to leave the media interactions as it is. Don't they themselves realize how useless it is? I don't mean that to sound insulting, I'm just genuinely confused about this. And don't tell me it's hard to code. It's nowhere near as difficult as coding, say, the match engine. Clearly it's just not receiving the proper attention. Why is it not getting the proper attention? I would like to think it's because whoever is doing it has a lot of stuff on their plate other than this. As OP said, I wouldn't mind doing it if it was fewer questions but higher quality. But it's one of those things that, if not done right, you should just remove it. It's not a crucial part of the game like picking a line-up, for example.

I mean the social media Twitter stuff I can tolerate because, even though it's somewhat repetitive, you are not required to give input into it. You either read it or don't read it. And I do occasionally look at it with interest. But, of course, like many people, I leave the tunnel interview, press conferences, etc, to the AssMan. What I find interesting about the tunnel interviews, for example, is that they sometimes ask me questions about stuff I don't even know the answer to. Guess what? If I'm the manager and I don't know the answer to something, then that's because that thing is not important to me. Maybe for a 12-year old this repetitive stuff is immersion. And maybe if you are playing FM 8 hours a day then having some repetitive, pointless questions feels like a breath of fresh air. But I'm an adult and immersion to me means getting to the part that matters. I care about the players, transfers, tactics, training, that's it. And don't ask me to use FMT. I'm not trying to play faster, I'm trying to play the stuff that's worth playing. If I wanted to be a real manager and answer pointless questions, I'd go and start a real course. Of course IRL these press conferences can affect player performances but I'm pretty sure press conferences is not how Guardiola became arguably the best manager in the world.

I agree, this is the kind of feature that does not add any fun to the game but frustrations and we are forced to participate.

[KingCanary]

18 hours ago, scass said:

Yes. In particular I find the lack of interaction with staff very frustrating - the asst mgr "analysis" and "tactical advice" is exactly the same as it was with the first one, and it's usually totally unhelpful - removing tactics that have worked for season after season, advising young players who are playing well being moved to the u-23s. And in-match recommending that the team be more direct in every game.  And "while we are not connecting with many of our crosses we are winning most of our headers". I'm sure someone has an explanation of how these are meant to work, but they seem irrelevant to me.

This is one of my major bugbears in the game- the assistant should be really useful tool and help fill in the blanks if you're watching a game on highlights yet they are useless.

Pre match they want me to blow my entire tactic up despite in great form, during the match they just state the obvious. 'We're being outnumbered in midfield' is a particularly annoying example.

I'd love for feedback such as 'winger x seems to have the beating of their full back- maybe we should exploit that' or 'the opposition are trying to exploit our high line with balls over the top.' Something that you can't see unless you're watching full games. 

[FrazT]

10 minutes ago, KingCanary said:

This is one of my major bugbears in the game- the assistant should be really useful tool and help fill in the blanks if you're watching a game on highlights yet they are useless.

Pre match they want me to blow my entire tactic up despite in great form, during the match they just state the obvious. 'We're being outnumbered in midfield' is a particularly annoying example.

I'd love for feedback such as 'winger x seems to have the beating of their full back- maybe we should exploit that' or 'the opposition are trying to exploit our high line with balls over the top.' Something that you can't see unless you're watching full games. 

This area definitely needs some attention

In-game advice- "we should be using s short passing game"- 5 minutes later " we should be using a long passing game".  Having used all your subs, what use is telling us that player x is looking exhausted?  When you are winning 4-0, you don't need to know that we are being outnumbered in midfield. What are we supposed to do about the message that player x is being skinned far too often?

[scass]

27 minutes ago, KingCanary said:

This is one of my major bugbears in the game- the assistant should be really useful tool and help fill in the blanks if you're watching a game on highlights yet they are useless.

Pre match they want me to blow my entire tactic up despite in great form, during the match they just state the obvious. 'We're being outnumbered in midfield' is a particularly annoying example.

I'd love for feedback such as 'winger x seems to have the beating of their full back- maybe we should exploit that' or 'the opposition are trying to exploit our high line with balls over the top.' Something that you can't see unless you're watching full games. 

My experience of “being outnumbered in midfield “ is that if you are playing with two in the middle and an AM behind the striker, it doesn’t happen. But put three in midfield and BINGO! there it is. And yes, the pre-tactics briefing never changes, never helps. And the frequent judgements that a player has gone from world class to “only” a leading player are irrelevant. 

[KingCanary]

1 minute ago, scass said:

My experience of “being outnumbered in midfield “ is that if you are playing with two in the middle and an AM behind the striker, it doesn’t happen. But put three in midfield and BINGO! there it is. And yes, the pre-tactics briefing never changes, never helps. And the frequent judgements that a player has gone from world class to “only” a leading player are irrelevant. 

The outnumbered in midfield thing is such an obvious point which is my issue- the opposition is set up 4-5-1, I'm set up 4-4-2, I know I'm outnumbered in midfield- I'm not stupid. I've accounted for it.

It might be useful if the AM pointed out the opposition changing formation but that isn't how it seems to work.

[..Valhalla..]

1 hour ago, KingCanary said:

This is one of my major bugbears in the game- the assistant should be really useful tool and help fill in the blanks if you're watching a game on highlights yet they are useless.

Pre match they want me to blow my entire tactic up despite in great form, during the match they just state the obvious. 'We're being outnumbered in midfield' is a particularly annoying example.

I'd love for feedback such as 'winger x seems to have the beating of their full back- maybe we should exploit that' or 'the opposition are trying to exploit our high line with balls over the top.' Something that you can't see unless you're watching full games. 

 

1 hour ago, FrazT said:

This area definitely needs some attention

In-game advice- "we should be using s short passing game"- 5 minutes later " we should be using a long passing game".  Having used all your subs, what use is telling us that player x is looking exhausted?  When you are winning 4-0, you don't need to know that we are being outnumbered in midfield. What are we supposed to do about the message that player x is being skinned far too often?

 

This right here, another meaningless part of the game. If I honestly listened to my assistant manager I would be changing my tactics constantly during the matches. He's just saying the same thing, every game, no matter how it is going. 
Him saying we are "being seriously overrun in midfield" while having 60% possession and being 3-0 up says it all; absolute nonsense.

I'm into season 7 with Liverpool, never once changed from 4-4-2 on attack mentality, won countless titles and major trophies, yet every single pre-match "tactical advice" I'm told:

4-4-2 > 4-2-3-1 would be more suitable for our upcoming match.

Attack > Control would give us a better chance of winning

And so on… just meaningless changes for no reason other than to justify that part's own existence.

[HUNT3R]

50 minutes ago, ..Valhalla.. said:

Attack > Control would give us a better chance of winning

This is something I reported when it was added to the game. It's pointless telling me that x, y and z "would give us a better chance of winning". WHY? I can't consider the advice if I don't know why I'm being told it 

[..Valhalla..]

36 minutes ago, HUNT3R said:

This is something I reported when it was added to the game. It's pointless telling me that x, y and z "would give us a better chance of winning". WHY? I can't consider the advice if I don't know why I'm being told it 

My ass man tells me to change virtually every tactical instruction before each match. Formation, mentality, duties, shape, instructions (I think? - not on the game at the minute), and as you say there is no reason whatsoever for doing so, just CHANGE them damn you  

My opinion is that these things (ass man advice & feedback) are added so that we have more "new features", but since SI are already on a very tight timescale they are only superficial for now.

[SD]

If anything, interactions are grossly overpowered. I play slow and methodically, I take the time to comment on training performance every month, offer praise or criticism after every match, comment on form every couple of matches, and in less than 6 months every player in all three squads is close or very close with me. And I'm not exaggerating, every single player, on loan or at the club, from the U18, reserves and first team.

This turns team talks into easy mode, it's not uncommon to get all green reactions from the pre-match talk and have 8-9 players showing motivated body language 15 minutes into the game.

Additionally, managing player complaints becomes a breeze and so does keeping them at the club.

As for press conferences, I would not be so quick to call them useless either. If you've ever taken a look at team talk feedback in the Tactics section, the game mentions changes in focus or motivation, which leads me to believe that beyond the player variables visible in the foreground, such as morale, fitness and condition, there are short term variables at work in the background. This is all supposition, but I would not be surprised if features that apparently do nothing, such as press conferences or tactics briefings, act on these background variables. Take for instance the tip that warns against praising players to guard against complacency, or something along those lines. Either the game tip is entirely made up and a blatant lie, or it hints one of these mechanics at work in the background.

Does any of the above make the difference between winning or losing a match? On their own, I'd say no, but then again I can't think of many other things who do. FM is generally a game of small edges, as long as a good handling of these interactions give me a 10% edge averaged across the season, I'd say they are 5 minutes per match well spent and a well implemented feature.

 

Edited September 14, 2018 by SD

[..Valhalla..]

4 minutes ago, SD said:

If anything, interactions are grossly overpowered. I play slow and methodically, I take the time to comment on training performance every month, offer praise or criticism after every match, comment on form every couple of matches, and in less than 6 months every player in all three squads is close or very close with me. And I'm not exaggerating, every single player, on loan or at the club, from the U18, reserves and first team.

 

There aren't many who would have the time to dedicate to playing this way.

[SD]

14 minutes ago, ..Valhalla.. said:

There aren't many who would have the time to dedicate to playing this way.

Some of it it's tedious, I'll give you that, but it's not so much about the time, but more about the expectations, that I am content with going through a match or two per playing session.

One possible solution, is just the way team talks lose effectiveness to more you say one things, to have interactions lose impact to more you talk. It makes sense come to think of it, it's unrealistic that a player still gets exhilarated when I tell them they did well in training, when I said the same thing, every month for the past 6 months to everyone of the 60 players at the club.

[talhak]

4 hours ago, FrazT said:

In-game advice- "we should be using s short passing game"- 5 minutes later " we should be using a long passing game". 

After I have experienced that, I highly doubt the effectiveness of my assistant manager's feedback despite he is a top assistant manager in term of his attributes.

[itay.bing]

regarding assistant advice: i was "outnumbered" with 3 central, one attacking and one defensive midfielders. also, the least useful one is the one regarding "winning most of the headers". my CBs dominance in the air does not make my 5 JR striker more worthy of a targetman, and what am i supposed to do with "despite not connecting many crosses, we are winning most of our headers"? instruct my players to head towards goal from the halfline, where they do win the headers? also, if it is triggered by some threshold of headers won, i am fairly confident that it's counting goalkeeper catches too.

[Guest]

The best thing anyone can do with AssMan advice is switch it off as soon as they load their first save, it is an utterly worthless feature & does make you wonder if the AI managers are making in match tactical changes based on similar logic.

[Fosse]

You can push me for an answer all you like but I'm going to keep repeating the same thing