Football Manager Early Access Beta *Official* Feedback Thread - 18.0.3

[Wavelberry]

I will also add my voice to those who dislike the all caps headers on each page for players etc.

[dafuge]

3 minutes ago, Wavelberry said:

I will also add my voice to those who dislike the all caps headers on each page for players etc.

I AGREE

[sammiller14]

15 minutes ago, michaeltmurrayuk said:

This is the 2D Classic view in FM18;

At the top right (where I have circled in yellow) is the widget menu, click that to get a list of widgets, pick the one that you want to display.

- Grab the title area of the widget and you can grab it.
- When you grab it icons will appear in the corners of the screen, drag it to one of these icons and an outline of a box will appear let go and the widget will now dock in said corner.
- Select the pin icon in the dock area and it will now pin the docked area, so the pitch only goes upto it.
- You can now drag this panel to resize it, like you could with the split view.

You can also get another docked panel;

- First you need to click the X to close the panel you have already docked.
- Now select the other widget you want to display and repeat the above steps to dock it in a different corner.
- Now re-enable the first widget and you should get two docked panels you can resize, like the below screenshot, you can also dock several widgets in each dock);

 

Thank you for confirming this.

However, this means I can only see the suite of information I want during a highlight.

Otherwise, we are stuck with the oversized player ratings and some limited match stats. When there's a highlight that's all I want to see, but now that's the only time I can have my 'split screen' information that I want.

[Mystique]

10 minutes ago, michaeltmurrayuk said:

This is the 2D Classic view in FM18;

At the top right (where I have circled in yellow) is the widget menu, click that to get a list of widgets, pick the one that you want to display.

- Grab the title area of the widget and you can grab it.
- When you grab it icons will appear in the corners of the screen, drag it to one of these icons and an outline of a box will appear let go and the widget will now dock in said corner.
- Select the pin icon in the dock area and it will now pin the docked area, so the pitch only goes upto it.
- You can now drag this panel to resize it, like you could with the split view.

You can also get another docked panel;

- First you need to click the X to close the panel you have already docked.
- Now select the other widget you want to display and repeat the above steps to dock it in a different corner.
- Now re-enable the first widget and you should get two docked panels you can resize, like the below screenshot, you can also dock several widgets in each dock);

 

Thanks very much for the help. 

However, I can confirm though that no icons appear in the corners of my screen.  I can move the widgets around anywhere on the screen and I can leave the widget anywhere I want to, but no 'docking' seems to take place (not 100% sure what is meant to happen when it 'docks' though).   And there is still no Pin Icon.  And it looks terrible.

Why not just put the 'Split Screen' button back though?  It was a one click option and worked well.

[sammiller14]

1 minute ago, sammiller14 said:

Thank you for confirming this.

However, this means I can only see the suite of information I want during a highlight.

Otherwise, we are stuck with the oversized player ratings and some limited match stats. When there's a highlight that's all I want to see, but now that's the only time I can have my 'split screen' information that I want.

For reference, it's this screen I don't like:

 

[s1111]

The new in match UI is a disaster and in not one way better than FM17. Important basic information like player condition is hidden away on one widget. The old team stats screen that held all the individual player stats on one screen has been removed. The new buttons for subs, tactics etc are too small and don't display your mentality, tactic, team shape without clicking on them so you can no longer see at a glance how you are set up. The analysis section is too clunky to be used regularly in match but this is where most information is held so you are forced to have to use it.

Don't mess with things that weren't broken. And getting rid of the old 2D is a mistake as well. As much as Miles likes to sneer at people on Twitter for using it, it's better than the new 2D. Many people liked using it, for me simply because you can actually identify individual players using their squad number. 

[Cougar2010]

I actually don't mind the caps as it can make some player's names easier to read.  That said I'm sure someone said you could alter it in the preferences.

Anyway I've played my first match and have to say fairly disappointed with the layout.

For years I've used the main stand camera which has disappeared and I'm struggling to find a good alternative.  I don't like the sideline or vertical cam while the data analyst doesn't zoom far enough in and I can't get a good balance between height & zoom on the TV cam.  That just left the director one which changes views and thats possibly the best of the options for me atm.

Also really disappointed that you've taken out the radar widget.  It is/was the key widget for me as you got an overview while also viewing the match from a closer camera angle.

I see what others mean by the graphics being a bit jerky but I think that happened last year as well and got cleaned up for release.

[michaeltmurrayuk]

10 minutes ago, sammiller14 said:

For reference, it's this screen I don't like:

 

You can turn that screen off - from the cog on the top right untick the show in-between highlights panel, turning that off should leave you on the pitch screen with your widgets when their is no highlights.

[michaeltmurrayuk]

14 minutes ago, Mystique said:

Thanks very much for the help. 

However, I can confirm though that no icons appear in the corners of my screen.  I can move the widgets around anywhere on the screen and I can leave the widget anywhere I want to, but no 'docking' seems to take place (not 100% sure what is meant to happen when it 'docks' though).   And there is still no Pin Icon.  And it looks terrible.

Why not just put the 'Split Screen' button back though?  It was a one click option and worked well.

If you aren't getting the option to pin the widgets then raise the issue in the bugs forum as it will be a bug.

[luigiluigi]

59 minutes ago, jamessmith010101 said:

 

the briefing thing is just pointless, first game of the season and your about to brief your team and your team are not listening and dis interested apparently? on the first day ? little bit unrealistic 

 

Great points

[LolloViola]

it's funny how you try to force people to embrace the 3D solutions using the "new" classic 2D and the "data analyst" one, advising to "give it a try" when it's clearly enormously different from what we were used to.

I think that almost 50% of old players (my first game was a floppy 92/93 edition and I didn't jump a single year...!) absolutely loved the simple, essential, perfect 2D that we had until last edition and now its loss won't absolutely be rewarded by scouting, medical centre etc. etc. etc; did you refuse to mention it in the promotional videos because you were somehow aware of the disappointment you were going to cause?

As you said: FM's focus is mainly the match day and, for a lot of us, the match day was absolutely perfect with our beloved "OLD" 2D.

(...and the capital letters on the top of each screen are definitely terrible).

My hype for the day-one collapsed, for the first time in almost 20 years.

Edited October 27, 2017 by LolloViola

[MBarbaric]

19 minutes ago, themadsheep2001 said:

If you had watched the 2008 final, you’d know they played a much deeper formational setup with and entirely different defensive style, almost man to man. The lopsided shape was built on three things : Ronaldo’s often lack of tracking back, freeing Ronaldo to isolate his man, and creating the best opportunity for a counter attacking involving him. You can bet, but I actually watched them during those games. So it’s more than a little frustrating to see some who didn’t avidly watch United those years say they played a style that’s didn’t work, when it did in a most spectacular way. Either way I don’t expect SI to change that and rightly so. That’s the last on from me as it’s  off topic. 

I didn't say what they played worked or didn't work. what I was saying is that they didn't defend within that shape attaching the screenshots that clearly show that. They might have attacked using roughly that shape but that is irrelevant as the formation in FM is a defensive shape so that asymmetrical shape shouldn't be in the game in the first place. or, it should be, but then the formation in FM isn't the defensive shape. don't see how is that off topic. it all happens within fm 18 beta.

[PhilT]

Maybe in time i'll get to like it........maybe. At the mo, I hate it. Over-produced, over-complicated....I could go on but I won't. For now, uninstalled & back to '17

[MeMyself2k13]

Very disappointed with the decision to remove the option to completely disable the 3D engine. Football Manager was never about graphics for me and it never will be, no matter how much you guys are proud of your new "fancy" animations, that whether you want it or not, still look very clunky for the most part. 3D views completely ruin my immersion and you guys seem to be trying to shove it down everyone's throats.

It's also worth adding that there's a lot of FM players that do not have gaming PCs and will struggle a lot with not being able to choose between the GPU Supported or the Software shaders. Because all of a sudden, graphics matter in FM. I hope that you guys aren't just looking to maximize your profits with appealing to the broadest audience possible, which means focusing on the looks. Because this is what most 12 year old's care about.

[Chris21]

Finally had a proper session and really enjoying the game. One or two issues that aren't perfect but on the whole for a Beta version I'm impressed.

The one bug or design flaw that I can't deal with is how bad the ball is in 3D. Funny because I kinda stuck up for SI earlier about this but I'm gonna have to eat my words. How on earth did that get through testing  Honestly I'd genuinely love a response from SI on that? Like the amount of testers that must have played the game in recent weeks and months and nobody spotted it's virtually impossible to follow the ball? Baffling.

Everything else though is fine for me. Sure the CAPS aren't great and one or two things are taking time to get used to but I think once most people get their head around it then it'll be fine. The ball though damn, actually making me laugh to myself.

[mandella]

Just played for 2 hours and ehh... For the last few years I got the impression they change the UI just to for the sake of it, so they can somehow show that it is new version of FM. New UI is ugly, badly optimized and on top of it all they removed 2D Classic, lol. Also, I got 60fps in the match engine and still the animation, ball movement feels jerky It shapes up to be the worst FM in years.

[Guest El Payaso]

20 minutes ago, Mystique said:

 

Why not just put the 'Split Screen' button back though?  It was a one click option and worked well.

Exactly. Was so disappointed with the fact that I now have to be watching the whole airport runway instead of a small pitch that makes the engine look a lot better. Awful decision if you ask me.

[Mystique]

2 minutes ago, michaeltmurrayuk said:

If you aren't getting the option to pin the widgets then raise the issue in the bugs forum as it will be a bug.

Nah! it's probably just me being thick and I've lost interest in trying to get this to work after trying for several hours.  Hopefully common sense will prevail and the split screen option will be reinstated when the full game is released.

[sammiller14]

7 minutes ago, michaeltmurrayuk said:

You can turn that screen off - from the cog on the top right untick the show in-between highlights panel, turning that off should leave you on the pitch screen with your widgets when their is no highlights.

Thank you.

My issue is that the only way to get the split screen set up that I loved is to sacrifice being able to see the pitch during highlights. 

It's a real sticking point for me currently, as I don't feel I have access to the information I want mid match without ruining highlights. 

It's such a shame, I'm desperate to get into this game but the bread and butter (matches) is ruining it for me.

[kandersson]

After a bit of playing here's my feedback:

+ ME looks promising, players look generally more intelligent when defending and covering for teammates, while offensive play seems more versatile than last games

+ more fluid animations, players don't look heavy on the ball as in FM17

+ tactical analysis/grid is potentially a great feature

+ dynamics and medical center are nice and useful additions

- pre-match briefing seems totally redundant to me

- some screens look a bit cluttered and chaotic, UI during match day is particularly disappointing and hard to customize (at least for me!)

- what's with the non-stop scouting meetings?

- might be my tactics, but long shots are (still) the devil

- yeah, those caps...

 

all in all the game shows a lot of promise, can't wait to start a long term save!

 

Edited October 27, 2017 by kandersson

[themadsheep2001]

20 minutes ago, s1111 said:

The new in match UI is a disaster and in not one way better than FM17. Important basic information like player condition is hidden away on one widget. The old team stats screen that held all the individual player stats on one screen has been removed. The new buttons for subs, tactics etc are too small and don't display your mentality, tactic, team shape without clicking on them so you can no longer see at a glance how you are set up. The analysis section is too clunky to be used regularly in match but this is where most information is held so you are forced to have to use it.

Don't mess with things that weren't broken. And getting rid of the old 2D is a mistake as well. As much as Miles likes to sneer at people on Twitter for using it, it's better than the new 2D. Many people liked using it, for me simply because you can actually identify individual players using their squad number. 

Agree on this. Really liked the old match screen. Gonna take some getting used to. Also not gett scouting reports in your inbox is a real annoyance 

[sammiller14]

4 minutes ago, Mystique said:

Nah! it's probably just me being thick and I've lost interest in trying to get this to work after trying for several hours.  Hopefully common sense will prevail and the split screen option will be reinstated when the full game is released.

My thoughts exactly. I find it pretty much unplayable currently. I'm barely bothering with subs as it feels too messy (button too small), my player ratings/match stats widgets are hiding the net from view and the tactics screen (mid match) feels clunky and uncomfortable.

Think this game wasn't designed for players like me - feel I've been left behind for a new type of player. 

[Karnack]

+ Love the match engine so far

+ Medical centre, dynamics and tactics screen are excellent

+ Don't mind the new scouting at all, only annoyance is that filters are behind an extra set of buttons

- Nothing really stands out except the slow menus that most likely will be fixed by the first patch.

[s1111]

26 minutes ago, s1111 said:

 The old team stats screen that held all the individual player stats on one screen has been removed. 

I'll take some of this bit back. It's still there, under the Analysis tab then Match Stats then Team Stats. So 3 clicks away from the Pitch, then there are several different tabs for different stats rather than displaying it all one 1 screen. So 4 clicks to get what you want v 2 on FM17.

[PHITSO]

5 minutes ago, s1111 said:

I'll take some of this bit back. It's still there, under the Analysis tab then Match Stats then Team Stats. So 3 clicks away from the Pitch, then there are several different tabs for different stats rather than displaying it all one 1 screen. So 4 clicks to get what you want v 2 on FM17.

i second this. it’s so tedious. fm17 was so simple. simple is best.

[stoned_assasin]

1 minute ago, PHITSO said:

i second this. it’s so tedious. fm17 was so simple. simple is best.

Same with the team talks really, they added more clicks when it hasn't added any reason that i notice atleast for these extra clicks to be there.

[CJG21]

The match UI is awful. People have mentioned most things already, but when you want to minimise widgets that you have put on the screen, they don't automatically go to the top/bottom of the page anymore, and are just stuck floating and in the way. See Images. It worked perfectly fine on FM17, and for some reason doesn't work on this version. So many backwards steps have been taken, the interface is so much worse than it was.

FM18

FM17

On FM18 when you maximise the widget, it just opens below the screen, it's a complete mess. 

Edited October 27, 2017 by CJG21

[Karnack]

9 minutes ago, CJG21 said:

The match UI is awful. People have mentioned most things already, but when you want to minimise widgets that you have put on the screen, they don't automatically go to the top/bottom of the page anymore, and are just stuck floating and in the way. See Images. It worked perfectly fine on FM17, and for some reason doesn't work on this version. So many backwards steps have been taken, the interface is so much worse than it was.

FM18

FM17

On FM18 when you maximise the widget, it just opens below the screen, it's a complete mess. 

Heard of beta and bugs? That might be just that.

[Neil Brock]

Yeah would very much appreciate when people find issues they consider bugs, they also take the time to raise them in the bugs forum.

Thanks. 

[kandersson]

how do I get tactic screen to look like this (seen in another thread)? I can only expand or reduce the right part (i.e. the pitch) to make it very big or very small, but for my life can't have two equal halves...

 

[CJG21]

2 minutes ago, Neil Brock said:

Yeah would very much appreciate when people find issues they consider bugs, they also take the time to raise them in the bugs forum.

Thanks. 

My apologies, it's sometimes hard to tell what's a bug and what's deliberate.

[styluz_05]

I want my 2D back

[Dagenham_Dave]

1 hour ago, themadsheep2001 said:

 Also not gett scouting reports in your inbox is a real annoyance 

You do in FMT, that's the most annoying part. Each one of those 'white report cards' shows up in a different email on that version, meaning you don't lose it the minute you select one of the options below. 

[Dagenham_Dave]

This was Miles's response when I tweeted him earlier about the poor 2D camera this year...

 

[Pompey1978]

2 hours ago, jamessmith010101 said:

the briefing thing is just pointless, first game of the season and your about to brief your team and your team are not listening and dis interested apparently? on the first day ? little bit unrealistic 

 

I wonder if this is a reputation-related thing - I'll be interested to see how this changes further into the game, when joining a new club after having won a few promotions/trophies/whatever, will the players be more invested in what you have to say?

[threelionsUK]

Ok so only a few hours played so very early impressions.

One of the biggest things about designing a UI is limiting the amount of clicks a user needs to get the information they want or to carry out the task they want to perform.  The new UI seems to need me to click several more times than FM17 to get the same information. This is bad design.

Why are my scout reports not in my inbox? Everything I need should be in one place, now that can then link me to a more detailed report in the scouting centre or medical centre etc but I shouldn't have to go from checking one screen in FM17 to having to check several in FM18.

The UI looks flashy but it's very difficult to see the information you want due to that flashyness. Keep it simple and easy to read.

Haven't worked out scouting at all, really dislike the changes so far. I just want to be able to sort players in a simple easy fashion. I haven't even found how to sort by skills yet that should be obvious and not hidden away. Maybe I just haven't noticed it yet as I say only a few hours in.

So far overall it seems like there's too many changes simply for the sake of change itself.

 

Really dislike the match UI, lots of little buttons without obvious uses and again having to click many more times to do something that took very few clicks in FM17.

 

I think for now FM18 is going back on the shelf until I see some changes. I get this is a beta and I'm expecting lots of bugs but so far it's not bugs that are stopping me playing but the UI that is just ugly, confounding and awkward.

Edited October 27, 2017 by threelionsUK

[themadsheep2001]

16 minutes ago, Dagenham_Dave said:

You do in FMT, that's the most annoying part. Each one of those 'white report cards' shows up in a different email on that version, meaning you don't lose it the minute you select one of the options below. 

Irritating, because the rest of the game is fabulous 

[KUBI]

23 minutes ago, Dagenham_Dave said:

You do in FMT, that's the most annoying part. Each one of those 'white report cards' shows up in a different email on that version, meaning you don't lose it the minute you select one of the options below. 

Report it as a bug, not in the feedback thread.

[KUBI]

24 minutes ago, Dagenham_Dave said:

This was Miles's response when I tweeted him earlier about the poor 2D camera this year...

 

There are also comments from SI that they are working to improve the 2D view until the game is released.

[Dagenham_Dave]

7 minutes ago, themadsheep2001 said:

Irritating, because the rest of the game is fabulous 

It's got the potential to be very good when the (many) annoyances are ironed out. 

[Dagenham_Dave]

1 minute ago, KUBI said:

Report it as a bug, not in the feedback thread.

It's not a bug though, it's the design of it. 

[KUBI]

1 minute ago, Dagenham_Dave said:

It's not a bug though, it's the design of it. 

If you don't report it, you can't expect any improvements.

[Armistice]

Ok, few more things I managed to get through while playing.

 

+ I like the ME. Both 3D & 2D.

+ Interesting player roles & IWB slightly tweaked. Good stuff here.

- Menu is lagging. It's worrying honestly, one of the things I really don't like.

- It takes ages to load long shots/blocked shots/whatever in Team Analysis after the game.

[footy1]

1 hour ago, kandersson said:

how do I get tactic screen to look like this (seen in another thread)? I can only expand or reduce the right part (i.e. the pitch) to make it very big or very small, but for my life can't have two equal halves...

 

Use the 'Pin' button on the top right hand corner of the green pitch.

[smgers]

I really think it's poor show from SI to not mention that they have done away with the old 2D match view pre release.  It would at least give people who used that view due to preference or system requirements the chance to reassess whether they wanted to continue with the purchase of FM18 or continue with an older version.

From the response so far I do get why it has been done and that it will allow with the long term development of the match engine.  I don't get though why this did not warrant any mentioning at all in the build up to the beta release.

Also to say the new 2D view or the 'data analyst' view is the 'same 'as the older 2D view is wrong - it looks and feels totally different.  In fact it feels 'cartoonish' and looks more like something suited to a mobile game.

For what it's worth I am enjoying the game and am not posting this to rant at SI as I know this decision was probably a difficult one to make - I just feel this could have been communicated as part of the build up to release.

[ChelseaSince86]

Still enjoying it to be honest, the player profile lag seems to have kinda gone, although the entire UI could do with optimizing, or something to get it smooth and snappy. Calendar is proper bugged out but I knew that from the beta notes.

 

One thing i wish would be changed is when on 2D classic, still get 3D in the background during team talks etc until you kick off.  That should definitely be removed... that background only makes sense if I am playing in 3D, surely?

 

Otherwise, love it

[Snorlax]

Have to say sorting your set piece takers out is a nightmare, thought it was poor in FM17 but with more boxes now it is even worse in this version. Also why do you have to do it individually with each tactic? Why can't it be like captains and penalties which cover all your tactics?

Also don't find substitutions as smooth as FM17, where it was pretty easy to change player and give him his team talk, this version seems a bit more long winded, either that or I haven't got used to the new lay out

[PHITSO]

26 minutes ago, ChelseaSince86 said:

Still enjoying it to be honest, the player profile lag seems to have kinda gone, although the entire UI could do with optimizing, or something to get it smooth and snappy. Calendar is proper bugged out but I knew that from the beta notes.

 

One thing i wish would be changed is when on 2D classic, still get 3D in the background during team talks etc until you kick off.  That should definitely be removed... that background only makes sense if I am playing in 3D, surely?

 

Otherwise, love it

completely agree. i hope the 3D background is removed from 2D.

[phnompenhandy]

I've downloaded the beta but haven't got time to play yet. From the comments here however, wouldn't some of the issues such as the capital letters be easily resolved by the early skinners? I never stick with the default skins personally.

[Dagenham_Dave]

I've been highly critical of many aspects of the game since yesterday, which is unusual for me, I usually love the game straight away. 

However, credit it where it's due, the new tactical interface, particularly the tactics pitch analysis is dynamite. I started a save (on FMT) tonight with Fortuna Sittard in Holland, and took the time to construct a tactic, trying to work it so there were no 'brown' areas on the pitch. What I've come up with is an asymmetrical shape, something I have NEVER considered on previous FMs as it just looked a bit, well, silly. 

First league game, won 2-0 playing some absolutely lovely football. The 2nd goal alone was a joy to watch. Still early days of course, and it might require tweaking later, but the tools are properly there now for me to make better sense of it. 

My biggest gripe with it though, is there's no way to see that tactical analysis view 'in-game', meaning if I have to change the shape of the team during a match, there's nothing visual to show any potential weaknesses. I know this is the first time we've had this, but now it's here, it should be available in-game as well as pre-game. Otherwise though, it's - for me at least - the single best new feature in the game this year.