Key attributes for positions, FM 14-FM 19

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Hello, everyone-

I noticed something interesting when I was comparing FM 19 to some of the older editions of the game.  The key attributes for some of the positions/roles appear to have changed over time.  

One quick example:  In FM 19, Aggression, Anticipation,  Bravery, and Pace are given as key attributes for a Central Defender on Defend duty.  They appear to be "second tier" attributes, rather than "core" attributes like Marking, Tackling, and Strength.  In FM 14, Aggression, Anticipation, Bravery, and Pace didn't show up as key attributes for CD (D).  Determination was considered a key attribute for that role.  In FM 14, the key attributes weren't indicated with different colors.

What brought about these changes?  Were the roles coded differently in the match engine, placing different emphasis on the relevant attributes?  In other words, is it more important to have fast central defenders in FM 19 than it was in FM 14, while the level of their Determination doesn't matter as much?   And, do all the key attributes play a similar role in determining a player's performance in FM 14, or is it the case that some key attributes are more "key" than others?

I hope that  made sense.  Any insight some of you could provide would be appreciated.  Thanks!

[Jack Joyce]

We went through all the key/preferred attributes for FM19 and updated them to most accurately reflect our opinion of the most important attributes for those roles. That's not to say that unhighlighted attributes have no effect, pretty much every attribute is likely to be used at some point in a match. We don't use key attributes to judge a player's performance, their performance is judged purely on how well they do in the match. The highlighting is just a recommendation/guide.

Determination in particular is an attribute that is useful to have for any role, so we decided not to highlight it for any rather than highlight it for every single one.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

That makes sense.  I started thinking about this issue as I was coming up with a way to evaluate players' suitability for the roles I've chosen for my tactics, so I could choose transfer targets for my team or develop my own players more effectively. 

For example, I'd always prefer a more determined player over a less determined one.  All other things being equal, I'd prefer him to have more pace, rather than less.  I wondered if the changing recommendations reflected changes in the match engine that, for example, made Pace more important for center backs in FM 19 than it had been in FM 14.

[Jack Joyce]

No I wouldn't say it's based on ME changes, more just a full review of all the key/preferred attributes to make sure they accurately reflect the modern real-life game. Most differences would likely be down to a difference in opinion between whoever initially set the highlighting and the people that reviewed/changed them. Personally I think the key/preferred attributes highlighted for FM19 are the most accurate/reliable they've ever been.

Hopefully you should be seeing more accurate recommended roles this year for your players as a result.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Thanks for your feedback.  I thought the highlighted attributes seemed to make even more sense this year, and now I know why.

[phnompenhandy]

Useful posts chaps - that's an interesting observation that hadn't been raised before, and excellent clarification.