Football Manager 2021 - New Headline Features

[MrPompey]

Feature Peak - Its a bit like a strip tease, Im sure the best will be saved until last

[destmez]

2 hours ago, upthetoon said:

i'm surprise no one has mentioned Euro Truck Simulator 2 which is very similar to what we having with FM. It's a very niche market. The developers got it spot in the development concept of the game.
Though the game was released in 2012, they have been slowly working under the hood to bring in the latest graphical improvement & advancement into the game (e.g DX11 support, advance truck physics etc). The community at large provides the cosmetics that adds to immersion like roads, signs & city details that is quite simply too much for the small time development to handle. The community has done a brilliant job even replicating an entire city 1:1 scale which is impossible for the developer to do.

SI with the FM franchise as so much more potential if perhaps they can emulate that approach. Concepts like stadium designs & press/player interactions & in-game social media tweets can be left to the community. SI should find a way to develop the interactions such that the community can edit and create their own responses. Just imagine a update that adds over 1,000 unique lines in press conferences & player interactions and over 5,000 unique social media tweets. SI simply needs to work on the AI & logic that prompts the questions and answers. Everything else can be left to the community who are more than willing to assist in this!

This is the way forward, instead of focusing on opening of arms & throwing bottles and considering that a 'headline feature.'

If SI can leave the aesthetics to the community, they can dedicate all their resources to the Match Engine & AI & trying to bring the latest graphics advancement into their engine, just imagine how far this game can go. 

This is the model system uses by Konami they know they can't use licences but they give freedom to customize your game as you want 

[JordanMilly]

56 minutes ago, KingCanary said:

I do feel like SI could head off a lot of these issues by also just putting out a youtube video of the match engine in action- just 20 minutes or so of game time played in 'full game mode.'

I don't care if I can hug a player or throw a water bottle, but if you show me a match engine where wide players square the ball or pull it back instead of shooting from stupid angles then I'll make my preorder today.

And they almost certainly will do, they do most years. Remember that not all feature reveals are for the long-term fans, but also new players, casuals, etc.

[saihtam]

1 hour ago, wkdsoul said:

Pretty sure they have, and Miles has on twitter.   Licensing, and cost-effectiveness (having to render/create every/more types of stand in the 3D engine) prob the most obvious.

It is interesting topic that needs a bit more info or clarification as it feels too easy explanation. Are they then saying that stadiums are precious to clubs that they need to look exactly as they are? Then lock top league stadiums and let lower league ones to be changed.

Modelling stuff is not that hard to do and in theory not affect the ME on the pitch at all. Fans creating 3d models is very basic thing we see in modding world.
Then maybe optimizatsion is the issue and background images could hinder the ME logic and processing power.

[wkdsoul]

13 minutes ago, saihtam said:

It is interesting topic that needs a bit more info or clarification as it feels too easy explanation. Are they then saying that stadiums are precious to clubs that they need to look exactly as they are? Then lock top league stadiums and let lower league ones to be changed.

Modelling stuff is not that hard to do and in theory not affect the ME on the pitch at all. Fans creating 3d models is very basic thing we see in modding world.
Then maybe optimizatsion is the issue and background images could hinder the ME logic and processing power.

we only have access to add images at the min, we cant render or create anything in the 3d engine. I presume they dont wanna allow access to the models etc. itself.  (purely a guess)

[BuryBlade]

3 hours ago, FairyTailed said:

I watch a lot of Inter Milan. Since the start of the season Conte has been deploying a 3-4-1-2 system that uses overlapping BPD's at times. We know Conte likes to create overloads on one side of the pitch. In his previous 3-5-2 that was done by having one side with a Mezzala on it (with the other two roles being anything similar to Regista and BBM - alterations like DLP (sup) and Carrilero and others are possible). In the 3-4-1-2 that mezzala player moves into an attacking midfielder role. I'm not quite sure what role it really is (Something like an AP(A), but it's not always possible for that role to help with overloads on a side. The mezzala is always in the width, the AM isn't always. It might have to drop deep to help or consider staying centrally for multiple reasons. This is why Conte started using overlapping BPD's to create the extra overload and width. And do you know what happens to the two Central Midfielders when a BPD overlaps? The one on the side of the overlapping BPD will drop into the BPD's slot in defense. A kind of reversed halfback where they drop down in build-up rather than in defense - and sometimes they move up again once the attack is fully ongoing. Half-Midfielder role incoming on defend and support duty?

I know this is kind of off-topic, but it's just to confirm your dreams are so close to reality! Let's hope they put it in.

Sheffield United have been using overlapping centre backs for 4 years. I know Cleon has previously requested this to be implemented in game. Getting it to look/work right in the ME is probably quite difficult.

[Christmas]

3 hours ago, forameuss said:

And there you have it, the problem you've created for yourself.

Complete total myth argument. Nonsensical. Like everything you put in this thread.

SI don't change game because 5million sales instead 5million and 1. 

They clearly don't aim the game towards players but to new lightweight ones on twitter. It seems to work for them and SEGA.

We are powerless. Boycotting the game is powerless. 

[forameuss]

2 minutes ago, Christmas said:

Complete total myth argument. Nonsensical. Like everything you put in this thread.

SI don't change game because 5million sales instead 5million and 1. 

They clearly don't aim the game towards players but to new lightweight ones on twitter. It seems to work for them and SEGA.

We are powerless. Boycotting the game is powerless. 

Oh right, I completely forgot that it's a perfectly rational decision to not just buy something, but actually pre-order it while admitting that you hate yourself for said decision.  Yup.

[MrPompey]

1 minute ago, Christmas said:

Complete total myth argument. Nonsensical. Like everything you put in this thread.

SI don't change game because 5million sales instead 5million and 1. 

They clearly don't aim the game towards players but to new lightweight ones on twitter. It seems to work for them and SEGA.

We are powerless. Boycotting the game is powerless. 

The game is for players - people still buy it so it can't be all that bad can it?

If enough people constructively inform SI through either bugs or new features then of course it will be considered but you cant expect changes to happen at the drop of a hat. This forum alone proves people do have a voice to SI.

I find in life that there are complainers who add nothing not even trying to improve the situation by offering suggestion etc, and there are people who offer constructive criticism and want to be part of the process to change things. Which type of person would you rather listen to?

[grade]

1 hour ago, MrPompey said:

Personally the Stadium issue is unfortunate and does take away from game immersion but I would rather the bulk of the SI effort spent on bug fixing existing issues but most importantly the ME being updated which of course will not be a small undertaking

 

Oh I agree, i prefer SI employees to spent on creating FMT editor or editor bug fixing, then adding any new features... see what i did there? This kind of phrases are preferences, which in turn is your own opinion, like my phrase is my opinion. I value different things then you. Also neither of us don't know what are the priorities of the SI team and for one would like these kind of phrases to be dropout, since they add little to discussion.

Comparing FM to FIFA or PES, is like comparing Oranges and Tangerines same family different things. Since FM has no completion in this niche market, lets use a game which a Simulation Game, like FM. the game is OOTP... WAIT one second, before you go bonkers, yes I know football and baseball are two completely different sports, but the FM and OOTP games have the same premise manage a sports team and lead it to success. And OOTP Developments and SI are probably considered small studios, compared to others like EA or Activision or even Paradox. the OOTP Developments release early this year the OOTP21, like SI they announce over thousand new features and add a bunch of stuff to their game, including a 3D Ballpark Construction Kit.

So if a rather small studio, that produces like OOTP can create a thousand new features and a 3D ballpark construction Kit, so can SI. It is not in their interest in doing so. I'm okay with that, but don't agree with it.

Those that want something like 3D ballpark construction kit for FM, have to come to terms it is not part of SI plans to do so, in the next few years. I even say, that SI in the future will do away with modding, the trending in the new FM releases and stuff like "we can't discuss that in these forums", kind of stuff, is slowing growing bigger in these forums. And if i'm wrong, Neil or any of SI team can easily do so, I for one be happy if they do so.

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by grade

[KingCanary]

1 hour ago, JordanMillward_1 said:

And they almost certainly will do, they do most years. Remember that not all feature reveals are for the long-term fans, but also new players, casuals, etc.

I know- I'm not suggesting they do this instead of headline features, I'm suggesting they do it along with it.

Out of interest do they usually release an extended video of the match engine in action? Can't say I've seen one but I've also never really looked for one.

[FairyTailed]

41 minutes ago, BuryBlade said:

Sheffield United have been using overlapping centre backs for 4 years. I know Cleon has previously requested this to be implemented in game. Getting it to look/work right in the ME is probably quite difficult.

That is true! I've heard many times of Sheffield United deploying this system and saw a video about it on Tifo as well. However, I haven't watched many Sheffield United games so I don't have much experience with how they setup the tactic. Though iirc, they also use a 3 men at the back system.

I think the biggest problem with implementing it might be deciding at what point the BPD should look for an overlap and at what point he should not. Generally (for Inter Milan) the overlap starts in build-up, and very rarely it happens when the box is already being attacked. If Sheffield United do it the same way, this approach could be used.

[BuryBlade]

1 minute ago, FairyTailed said:

That is true! I've heard many times of Sheffield United deploying this system and saw a video about it on Tifo as well. However, I haven't watched many Sheffield United games so I don't have much experience with how they setup the tactic. Though iirc, they also use a 3 men at the back system.

I think the biggest problem with implementing it might be deciding at what point the BPD should look for an overlap and at what point he should not. Generally (for Inter Milan) the overlap starts in build-up, and very rarely it happens when the box is already being attacked. If Sheffield United do it the same way, this approach could be used.

Sounds like both teams use a similar set up (3 at the back, 2 wingbacks)

Sheff Utd usually have the outside CB overlap the wing back, while the mezzala supports to create a triangle overload down the wing. The CB can often end up as the furthest forward and inside the opponent’s box! 
 

Sadly, Jack O’Connell is badly injured and he was the best at this role. His replacements aren’t capable of doing it anywhere near as well. I imagine with the quality of players Inter have, this system could be great to watch with them.

[CEVR1996]

6 minutos atrás, MrPompey disse:

The game is for players - people still buy it so it can't be all that bad can it?

If enough people constructively inform SI through either bugs or new features then of course it will be considered but you cant expect changes to happen at the drop of a hat. This forum alone proves people do have a voice to SI.

I find in life that there are complainers who add nothing not even trying to improve the situation by offering suggestion etc, and there are people who offer constructive criticism and want to be part of the process to change things. Which type of person would you rather listen to?

There's no other game within the football management genre that comes anywhere near the level of detail and complexity FM offers which is most likely why this series remains such a hit on the market despite it's numerous existing flaws. As I said before, if a comprehensive football management game with an extensive database that allows you to take almost any team to glory and create your own unique storyline is something you can't get by without in life, FM is the only legitimately viable option for you out there.

 

On the other hand yes, only constructive criticism is going to help this franchise improve in the future since no devs, as open minded as they might be, will be able to come up with any meaningful changes for the game based upon insult driven feedback.

[autohoratio]

10 minutes ago, KingCanary said:

I know- I'm not suggesting they do this instead of headline features, I'm suggesting they do it along with it.

Out of interest do they usually release an extended video of the match engine in action? Can't say I've seen one but I've also never really looked for one.

They've done livestreams of gameplay for the past few years, usually around 2 or 3 hours long with a few matches at various highlight lengths, cameras (2D/3D) etc.

[emil_sbn]

When will the news release today? 

[Vali184]

1 minute ago, emil_sbn said:

When will the news release today? 

In the extra time.

[grade]

6 minutes ago, Vali184 said:

In the extra time.

That means?

[gunner86]

Last announce was 6pm UK time so I’d expect the same today

[grade]

7 minutes ago, gunner86 said:

Last announce was 6pm UK time so I’d expect the same today

Thank you.

[Mars_Blackmon]

55 minutes ago, grade said:

Oh I agree, i prefer SI employees to spent on creating FMT editor or editor bug fixing, then adding any new features... see what i did there? This kind of phrases are preferences, which in turn is your own opinion, like my phrase is my opinion. I value different things then you. Also neither of us don't know what are the priorities of the SI team and for one would like these kind of phrases to be dropout, since they add little to discussion.

Comparing FM to FIFA or PES, is like comparing Oranges and Tangerines same family different things. Since FM has no completion in this niche market, lets use a game which a Simulation Game, like FM. the game is OOTP... WAIT one second, before you go bonkers, yes I know football and baseball are two completely different sports, but the FM and OOTP games have the same premise manage a sports team and lead it to success. And OOTP Developments and SI are probably considered small studios, compared to others like EA or Activision or even Paradox. the OOTP Developments release early this year the OOTP21, like SI they announce over thousand new features and add a bunch of stuff to their game, including a 3D Ballpark Construction Kit.

So if a rather small studio, that produces like OOTP can create a thousand new features and a 3D ballpark construction Kit, so can SI. It is not in their interest in doing so. I'm okay with that, but don't agree with it.

Those that want something like 3D ballpark construction kit for FM, have to come to terms it is not part of SI plans to do so, in the next few years. I even say, that SI in the future will do away with modding, the trending in the new FM releases and stuff like "we can't discuss that in these forums", kind of stuff, is slowing growing bigger in these forums. And if i'm wrong, Neil or any of SI team can easily do so, I for one be happy if they do so.

 

Funny you mentioned OOTP because a lot of the new players want stuff like press and interactions. It’s definitely a balancing act and what the company want for its game.

[autohoratio]

One of my biggest gripes about FM's interaction system is that it often feels like the game doesn't want you to interact with players, or media, coaches, or other managers. If one of your players has been putting in 6.3 training ratings for a couple of weeks, and you criticise them for it one time too many, they'll say "I'm not prepared to go over this again", become unhappy and maybe develop concerns that they "fEeL tHe MaNaGeR hAs TrEaTeD tHeM hArShLy". Where's the interaction option to tell them, for example, "$OtherPlayer in the same playing position as you has been putting in consistent 8/8.5/9 ratings in training, if you don't get your act together then he will take your place in the first team."? Why is there the option in a press conference to reply with "$OppositionTeam'sManager is one of my friends in the game and I'm looking forward to chatting with them after the game", but there are absolutely zero ways to actually talk to that manager? The only interactions with other managers are via journalists asking you questions like "what do you think about their tactical style?", or the sole, rare direct dialogue being asking the manager of a player you've sent on loan why they aren't getting any playing time. And every single time I've talked to a manager of a player I've sent on loan, they either promise to play them more but never do, or say they're getting plenty of playing time as is (with a grand total of zero appearances, being consigned to the substitute bench for the entirety of the loan) or don't deserve any further playing time. Telling that manager you'll have to consider not loaning any players to them in the future only yields a response of "I'm busy so this convo is over, bye" without any further consequences.

It would be nice if you could talk to your Personal Assistant after that fruitless interaction to say "I'd like you to send an email/whatsapp message/etc to other managers (or Heads of Youth Development/Loan Managers) in this league/the leagues above/below to inform them that $LoanedPlayer'sManager has consistently broken promises to play $LoanedPlayer as an Important Player/Regular Starter/etc and refused to discuss their plans for giving them the promised playing time. Please warn those managers/HOYD/Loan Managers against sending players to that club on loan, as least as long as $LoanedPlayer'sManager is in charge." That could even then have a consequence of a team like Chelsea, with their loan player army, deciding not to loan players to that club anymore, and $LoanedPlayer'sManager even developing a grudge against you.

I really hope FM21's interaction "overhaul" isn't just replacing Assertive/Passionate/Calm/Cautious with Gestures - that wouldn't really enrich the interaction experience within the game, it'd just be a sideways step, considering the dialogue options shown in the trailer so far appear to be the same. If interactions haven't been actually *expanded upon*, I would honestly be really disappointed - it's supposed to be a Headline Feature, after all.

[Rullom]

10 minutes ago, Mars_Blackmon said:

Funny you mentioned OOTP because a lot of the new players want stuff like press and interactions. It’s definitely a balancing act and what the company want for its game.

Seems to mostly be people on this forum, that wants that. This is simply not a fact on a multitude on other forums across the globe. And how about the big silent crowd? What do they want? I just don't see or understand how you come to this conclusion.

[gunner86]

3 minutes ago, Rullom said:

Seems to mostly be people on this forum, that wants that. This is simply not a fact on a multitude on other forums across the globe. And how about the big silent crowd? What do they want? I just don't see or understand how you come to this conclusion.

He’s talking about a different game

[Neil Brock]

Part of my job is absolutely to amplify your voice within our studio. I never want our community to feel like they're shouting into the wind and nothing gets through - that is absolutely not the case. Our feature request forums and bug forums both show plenty of examples of features which have been implemented and bugs which have been fixed. 

However at the same time, users on these forums have to remember they're only a part of our audience. An extremely important part (for me especially considering I interact with you almost every day ) but a part nevertheless. We don't publicly reveal all our sales figures, but know Miles said in May (long before the Epic giveaway) that 1.5 million people played FM20 - https://twitter.com/milessi/status/1267089578038566913

The January/February FM20 feedback thread had 416 different posters (including Mods and SI Staff) over eight months. So whilst this forum is extremely important for getting an idea of what certain elements of our core audience want, it's not the be all and end all. We have to hear sentiment and opinions across the board from multiple different avenues, from the 10,000 hours gamer who just hammers continue to the player who takes 8 months to finish a season and uses every single feature of the game. So remember whilst you may believe something from the bottom of your heart is absolutely the way FM needs to go in the future, it's impossible to speak for everyone. We listen to you all and engage where we can. But given sometimes even Miles and I don't personally agree on a specific direction or feature in game, please don't expect we're always going to be able to agree with you.

And yes, before you ask. Miles definitely has more sway in the direction the game goes than me!  

[Icy]

Just curious @Neil Brock, do you get any feedback other than from this forum? or is that other feedback just that 1.5M people buy the game and play it for many hours? Because if you look mainly at sales figures and hours played, streamers, etc then yes, this is a lost cause as we the hardcore fans writing here can't make up for these numbers the same way FUT took over FIFA as it's the main money maker and the career mode players no longer interest as customers.

But don't forget either that maybe these 1.5M buy and play the game because this game was/is somewhat shaped by the hardcore players/old timers here so at some point, the cycle could be inverted.

Anyway at my 45 years old I'm starting to asume we "grognards/strategy/managers" players are a dying breed, and that the young "casual low attention span" streaming generation is taking over and shaping the gaming industry.

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by Icy

[Seb Wassell]

9 minutes ago, Icy said:

Anyway at my 45 years old I'm starting to asume we "grognards/strategy/managers" players are a dying breed, and that the young "casual low attention span" streaming generation is taking over and shaping the gaming industry.

I'm sure you don't believe that such a complex, diverse industry can be summated in such a stereotypically binary fashion?

For me, one of the brilliant things about games is they can be so many different things to so many different people.

[Neil Brock]

14 minutes ago, Icy said:

Just curious @Neil Brock, do you get any feedback other than from this forum? or is that other feedback just that 1.5M people buy the game and play it for many hours? Because if you look mainly at sales figures and hours played, streamers, etc then yes, this is a lost cause as we the hardcore fans writing here can't make up for these numbers the same way FUT took over FIFA as it's the main money maker and the career mode players no longer interest as customers.

But don't forget either that maybe these 1.5M buy and play the game because this game was/is somewhat shaped by the hardcore players/old times here so at some point, the cycle could be inverted.

Anyway at my 45 years old I'm starting to asume we "grognards/strategy/managers" players are a dying breed, and that the young "casual low attention span" streaming generation is taking over and shaping the gaming industry.

Absolutely, we collect data in a bunch of different ways and are looking to try and expand that further to make sure no stone is left unturned.

I'll always fight the fight for the core because fundamentally I certainly see myself as part of that. I want the game to be the best it can be and it's why I've worked here for as long as I have, to have that opportunity. There's countless other people in the studio who feel exactly the same way, whether they've been here 15 years or 15 days. But we have to be switched on enough to consider whether we're doing enough for everyone, old and new, core or casual.

As much as people would like to say that say the "most important" areas are say the match and squad building, there are some people who swear by the 'Instant Result' button or use their DOF for all transfers. But those areas will always get dedicated attention for every version regardless. But try telling say our in-house research team that another area is more important than their area - everyone is passionate about what they work on!

[saihtam]

4 minutes ago, Seb Wassell said:

I'm sure you don't believe that such a complex, diverse industry can be summated in such a stereotypically binary fashion?

For me, one of the brilliant things about games is they can be so many different things to so many different people.

This hole can of worms that we dont want to open. I agree that there so much variety in the gaming industry. But we cant denay the fact that some genres and games( Even specific sport games) are more directed to quick play + cash in for companies (microtransactions).

But yes, there so much art and storys told in gaming it is fasinating, there is reason why indie games have gotten so much popular. But this is not a topic to this thread.

[Christmas]

Thank you for interesting comments.

I completely agree that perspective provide a useful foil for some complaints. Yes. For every one person on this forum who wants detail realism and challenge there are hundreds on twitter who want to be man City and win every game and SI must to cater at that. 

But where are the people on twitter who want orange crowd shirts and a massive tunnel every five seat columns? 

[Lempicka]

9 minutes ago, Icy said:

 

Anyway at my 45 years old I'm starting to asume we "grognards/strategy/managers" players are a dying breed, and that the young "casual low attention span" streaming generation is taking over and shaping the gaming industry.

 

My 16 year old son and some of his friends got into FM in a big way a couple of years back and continue to play. As a former grassroots coach, you find a lot of the kids, once they hit 14 start showing an interest in it. 

In saying that, my lad was quite underwhelmed when he saw the new headline features. 
 

[ChelseaSince86]

5 minutes ago, Neil Brock said:

Absolutely, we collect data in a bunch of different ways and are looking to try and expand that further to make sure no stone is left unturned.

I'll always fight the fight for the core because fundamentally I certainly see myself as part of that. I want the game to be the best it can be and it's why I've worked here for as long as I have, to have that opportunity. There's countless other people in the studio who feel exactly the same way, whether they've been here 15 years or 15 days. But we have to be switched on enough to consider whether we're doing enough for everyone, old and new, core or casual.

As much as people would like to say that say the "most important" areas are say the match and squad building, there are some people who swear by the 'Instant Result' button or use their DOF for all transfers. But those areas will always get dedicated attention for every version regardless. But try telling say our in-house research team that another area is more important than their area - everyone is passionate about what they work on!

That right there should be banned from every single management game.  Makes me shudder

[HUNT3R]

8 minutes ago, Lempicka said:

In saying that, my lad was quite underwhelmed when he saw the new headline features. 
 

Hopefully you told him to wait for the detailed news. The headlines didn't grab me either, but I am keen to see more details about the headline features as well as the core of the game in the transfer market and the matches themselves, AI and ME. Some of the headline features should affect the transfer market especially, so keen to see what the plans are for it.

[XaW]

More details released now:

https://www.footballmanager.com/features

[saihtam]

2 minutes ago, XaW said:

More details released now:

https://www.footballmanager.com/features

Details on headline features or new announcement?

[XaW]

1 minute ago, saihtam said:

Details on headline features or new announcement?

Details on the released features. I haven't seen any new things. Still reading, mind.

[saihtam]

Quote

Recruitment also sees updates to the transfer market that managers operate in. Due to real-life changes within an ever-adapting game, FM21 introduces these refinements to react to the financial uncertainty in today’s transfer marketplace world and new behaviours that are developing as a result – there will be more details about this in a future “in-game Covid effects” blog.

Something we can talk about today is one of the ways that loans are changing in FM21. Now you'll be able to agree future loan deals outside of transfer windows meaning that you can get those short-term deals signed and sealed well ahead of schedule. Of course, you'll need to wait for the transfer window to open before the loan player can link up with your squad but you'll have plenty of time to plan out how you're going to utilise them before they get there.

Real interested in the first paragraph. Hope more variety seeing in market and financial aspects that wont let player dominate that easy.

[akm.91]

Damn, nothing new then? Still showing off these “headline features” 😂😭

[themadsheep2001]

Looking forwards to the improved AI interactions, based on that read. Anything that helps me go prime Mourinho is always a win in my book 

[Sherkey]

Reading about press conferences, and I actually like some of the new developments. It's minor, but I like controlling conferences, and again, it'll help immersion. I'd like it to have an impact on the team and on future conferences, where I'm showing my frustration in a press conference. If it doesn't have game implications, then it's a waste of time. If it does, that makes for some fun, especially after I've lost/won a match. 

[Nikopol]

Just reading the Interactions-blog has me very hyped. The new press interactions seem much closer to reality. Multi-person chat might mix things up quite a bit, make it more difficult to appease players etc. And the gestures system, while the variety seems a bit limited for a beginning, seems to expand on meaningful roleplaying.

All in all, like training or squad dynamics, a very strong foundation for future games, but i'm also not sure how much influence this will have in this game aside from the general novelty. I'm thinking particularly of the press officer, as often SI seems to be a bit tame on making their features matter, like injuries being lower than in real life, as to not alienate beginners from the game.  This is part of my frustration with the large audience that SI has to feed. FM has a really strong foundation to be very, very realistic, but it sometimes doesn't go all the way. Squad status was an immense improvement last year, but i don't think in over 500hours i ever had to sell a player due to him demanding more play time.  etc.

Nonetheless, looks better than expected!

Edited October 19, 2020 by Nikopol

[saihtam]

About stadium from the article.

Quote

Stadium environments look better now too. For starters, we’ve added more in the way of pitchside furniture, so you’ll see new camera types including jib cranes, seated cameras and steadie cams on the sideline that reflect that big match environment. There’s more variation in the type of dugouts in the game as well and, in larger stadiums where the corners have not been filled, there are now new buildings that you will see in those corner sections.

For those of you with high end graphics cards we’ve added support for HDR and our graphics have been optimised for lower-end configs as well.

 

[HUNT3R]

I'm liking the mention of the improved transfer market. And being able to approach agents first.

[MrManagerMan]

I like the layout on the match day screen I must admit and being able to tap on a players name at the bottom dugout section to give instructions is great for on the fly decisions. 
 

I hope the lighting and animations really are better that’s all. The screenshot says otherwise in my opinion. 

[ChelseaSince86]

Quite pleased with how they have changed media interaction and the transfer market tbh.

[Sherkey]

I'm also looking forward for more agent interactions. I know they can't capture RL agents in-game, but surely, their behaviour can be captured? Especially since now agents can be part of the meetings you have with players about first team minutes etc - surely their role increases?

They always had the behaviour present - touts player to clubs etc. Maybe this can expand into interactions - if you've told the player to wait his turn, his agent may get pissed (and if his nature is to tout his player) may look to get clubs bidding on him soon. That should make for some interesting scenarios, although, if present, a balance needs to be maintained.

[saihtam]

Just now, ChelseaSince86 said:

Quite pleased with how they have changed media interaction and the transfer market tbh.

This needs to be seen. A better finances is long needed in the game. Mostly on lower club level etc. Lets start with transfer market and move on from there. Positive look on this for sure, but needs to seen in long term.

[He can't believe he's missed it]

XG will only be a welcome addition if it's the real life model and the ME actually improves.

For me the ME in FM 20 resulted in a lack of proper defending so the goal numbers were artificially deflated by nerfing certain situations otherwise there could've been 10+ goals a game, so if the XG is the real life model then it's going to show crazy numbers that are mainly meaningless.

If it's aligned to what the ME thinks is a goalscoring chance rather than what the model uses IRL then it might be more useful as an in game feature, but that can just turn into helping the user trying to exploit situations that result in the most goals in game, which again is a total step away from realism.

It all comes down to ME improvements 

[themadsheep2001]

1 minute ago, He can't believe he's missed it said:

XG will only be a welcome addition if it's the real life model and the ME actually improves.

For me the ME in FM 20 resulted in a lack of proper defending so the goal numbers were artificially deflated by nerfing certain situations otherwise there could've been 10+ goals a game, so if the XG is the real life model then it's going to show crazy numbers that are mainly meaningless.

If it's aligned to what the ME thinks is a goalscoring chance rather than what the model uses IRL then it might be more useful as an in game feature, but that can just turn into helping the user trying to exploit situations that result in the most goals in game, which again is a total step away from realism.

It all comes down to ME improvements 

There's more than one XG model, there's no real life standard. There's no issue of a real life/FM comparison since their model is built to FM

[He can't believe he's missed it]

7 minutes ago, themadsheep2001 said:

There's more than one XG model, there's no real life standard. There's no issue of a real life/FM comparison since their model is built to FM

Interesting I just assumed it was one standard that everything was plotted against!