Become a beta tester for SI

[Donners]

I would be willing to assist with testing of future versions.

I have purchased versions of FM/CM regularly since 1994, and was somewhat concerned about the issues I encountered in the demo of FM 09. They are outlined at http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=86600 in a constructive manner.

I am particularly concerned about the in-game tactical suggestions being quite unintuitive and frustrating. I am not a huge follower of the real-life game and do not normally go in-depth with tactics, which I think would be representative of a substantial part of Football Manager's potential market. I think that the media section needs to feature either fewer questions open to various interpretations, or a greater range of responses rather than the limited "strongly agree" to "strongly disagee" options These sort of issues are quite likely to turn away prospective buyers - as they did for me - and I am quite anxious to see them rectified.

I think that a 25+ season game, which I have spent hundreds of hours outlining in the FM Stories forum at http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=36273 is a fair indication that I have a substantial interest and investment in the FM series - not to mention demonstrating that if given the opportunity, I will give the game a comprehensive run!

[Donkeykwong]

I would like to be a beta tester for SI because i believe i can contribute to making subsequent editions of football manager better than the already high standards set with the current editions. I feel that as someone who starts off the game in the lower leagues (with leeds united) i have a more in depth view on the nuances of lower league action and also how the game will play out in the long term (because i always play well on until i am able to win the premier league). Also being australian, i keep an eye out on how australian players are portrayed in the game and how they have changed from year to year.

One of the biggest problems i think the current version of the game has is that on my laptop it chews through too much memory. My laptop has 1.5gb of ram and it is always at 90%+ memory use when running the game with no other programs running. Also little things like protracted board take overs resulting in me being locked out of the summer transfer window. While I have not been an active participant in forums, I read quite a lot of posts though. I have been playing CM/FM since 98/99 so I feel that I am quite the veteran now.

[phnompenhandy]

I'm absolutely thrilled to see PaulC making such a move and so promptly, before beginning development on FM10.

I'm not in fact putting myself forward as a beta-tester since, although I was one before, I'm not in a position to know how much time I'll have to spare when the testers are needed.

However, what I'd like to contribute is this thought: SI, please actively approach that small cohort of posters who have a record of outstanding analysis of problems and thoroughly thought-out realistic solutions. I'm sure many are onboard anyway, but there are others.

Off the top of my head, as well as the tacticians such as wwfan who have already collaborated with you on TT&F, we have Amaroq who has many great ideas, especially in the field of human manager-AI interaction, Hawshiels and others who have found deep flaws in the training coding, and others whose names I forget who have found major issues after long-term testing of regen development.

[Shiraz]

I would like to put my name forward as I am interested in Beta testing for Sports Interactive. The reasons being that I play FM for the most part of my day everyday and I feel that because I play the game as much as I do, I will be able to make a huge contribution to Beta testing by probably finding bugs as well as contributing new and intuitive ideas. This might not be apparent from my posts as I have not been an active member of the forums for very long but I am a committed FM player who has been playing this game since 1995 and it would be an honor to contribute to the betterment of the game. One gripe I have with FM09 is the fact that we cannot cancel tactical changes or substitutions during the period between when the changes have been confirmed and they are actually made as at times I change my mind due to scoring or conceding a goal.

[baker.simon]

I would like to Beta test for you guys. I have been playing CM/FM for years (since 95/96 i think!) and think i know what to help in looking for. My biggest gripe with FM2009 so far is the tactics side of things, and by that i mean the sliders mainly. I just dont feel that to the amateur/beginner they are intuitive enough, and while i can understand them (just, through reading TT&F), some newer people that come to the series may/have struggled. There are far too many permutations with the current slider system so would like to aid in the development of this area and others for future FM's to come. After all, we all want a better FM year on year dont we?

Thanks for your consideration.

[Celts1888]

Hi Paul, I am going to put my name forward for this as I have thought about this before http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=52569 I think that I would be useful as I have great knowledge of the game over the years from back in the days of the Amiga, I have also seen the game grow over the years and I understand what SI are trying to do with the FM series, I also pay great attention to detail which is probably why it takes me ages to do 1 season as I play on the slowest speed and watch full match all the time I notice every detail of whats right and wrong and what can be improved.

My biggest gripe with this years version are Press Conferences as they could be improved by giving better answers and also more precise questions.

I would love to be a part of the team to help make this great game better for all of us.

Also I play about 10+ hours a day.

[TopToffee]

I'll throw my hat in the ring too.

I've been playing CM/FM for pretty much half my lifetime now (god that's worrying), and I actually worked with you guys at the Islington office a few years back, doing in house testing, which gave me a decent knowledge and insight into the "mechanics" of testing. I've also just acquired a new system based on the Core i7 processor, which isn't exactly in widespread circulation - and testing on as wide a range of hardware as possible is I'm sure a plus. I can also test on Mac OS X if required.

As for my biggest issue... Until the patch the biggest problems I was having were generally related to the match engine - certain things just didn't "ring true" - goalkeepers ending up with lots of assists being one. *SINCE* 9.2.0, a lot of issues have been ironed out, but the game still doesn't feel as "snappy" as maybe it could - especially in relation to the UI responsiveness. Clicks don't register on occasion - particularly noticable when trying to pause the game, and sometimes the same happens in dropdown menus.

Thanks for the consideration, and I'll keep my fingers crossed.

[Nomis07]

I'll put my name forward, but i'm not going to give any reasons why I would be a good candidate. SI supposedly check the forums out all the time so they should have a good idea of who would make a good tester and who wouldn't, just check peoples post history,

[Trikstahz]

I will throw myself at this chance too.

I would like to be given the opportunity to test the game. I have been playing FM for 3 years now.. and I would like to be part of the team that helps make it. I am ready and willing to help SI games in anyway I can in order to be given an opportunity. I have seen the progressive nature of the Football Manager series and would like to be able to pay back the SI games community because of the time and work they took to produce this game. I have a passion for football (games and the game itself) so I can be an asset towards your beta testing.

If given the opportunity I will undoubtedly take the chance seriously and give it my all to ensure that FM2010 is made into a game that not only I will enjoy but the world as well.

Thank you for your time.

[backpackant]

I would like to be considered as a beta tester. I have played the game since CM01/02 so am familiar with the setup and evolution of the game. You will see on these forums I am neither fanboy nor ranting naysayer, but am willing to acknowledge the faults with the game whilst looking for solutions, and often finding them. For example, when the forums were erupting with anger over the 9.1 patch ("I had 127 effing shots on effing goal and the opposition had 1, and I effing lost 1-0") I acknowledged it was statistically unrealistic in terms of the amount of games in which this happened but also offered advice regarding the tempo of the game, which was the tactical issue 99% of the time.

This latter point I believe will be particularly useful in testing. Although there may be an issue, with the ME for example, yes it needs fixing but an "unrealistic" workaround will a) help point the programmers in the right direction for a fix and b) help programmers to prioritise their workload, ie, a bug with a tactical workaround would be lower than a bug where half your squad is injured in pre-season.

My biggest issue with FM09 was the injuries when it first came out. 9.1 fixed it a bit, but you had to set up new training regimes immediately to avoid the problem coming back. 9.2 seemed to fix it further and so far I've had no issues.

The biggest issue not related to myself was of course activation, of which I had no problems personally. If I was new to this series I would not buy the game again had I encountered this issue, which I suppose is more of a commercial concern than a beta test.

[stvndysn]

i would like to put myself forward as a beta-tester.

i also have played cm/fm since the very beginning. so i have seen the growth/evolution of fm throughout the years. I have previously beta tested fm live, and also apps for another game from LionHead Studios.

my bugbear is the fact that i want to get my own stadia into game, maybe not a bug per say but its something ive wanted in fm for many years.

i may be in my 40's but that surely makes me wiser and more dedicated.

[mufc-paton]

I would love to, tested BETA for about 8 months I think and have every game from 1999 which is ok when I was 9 lol. I have a lot of time to devote to it.

Obviously because I play the game every day, I want to make it as good s possible

Press conferences could be more in depth and stadium expansion like in FML could be introduced. Another thing is that in real life, some players have an injury that is expected to be out for a month or so but something happens and it keeps getting put back because the player ain't quite ready. I would like to see that in FM for realism, maybe not a popular one but something a bit different

[Gazzaroon]

Although I have no previous experience of testing a game, I do play the game everyday and it's always on my computer so I would like to apply.

Having played the game for many years I have seen the game develop into what it is today. I would love to see the press side of things improved into a more realistic part of the game, connecting more with the players and what is actually happening in the game.

Anyway, if I can be of any help making the game better I am happy to help.

[jasewood]

Hi,

I would like to have the oppurtunity to become a beta tester for the FM series. I have been playing since CM2(97/98) so I have a good attention to detail when it comes to the games, I would be able to dedicate a lot of time to testing possibly 7 hrs a day.

My one main issue with the game is the "one on one" bug which I think everyone is looking at the wrong way round, I think there are too many 1 v 1 chances being created as you may only get 1 or 2 of these per game in my opinion.

I am 23 years old and I have been registered here for a good while now in terms of browsing the site but tend not to post too much as I feel there is a decent amount of knowledge about and I would only be reproducing some one elses post.

I love Football Manager.

[9sublime]

I would like to put myself foward also. I have played since 99/00, and have been a huge fan of every game. I love playing lower league managment all the way up to the Premier Divison, or simply starting with one of the world's greatest clubs and anywhere inbetween. I'm a frequent "viewer" of this forum and am posting more and more.

I like to make the game as realistic as possible for myself (as a real life football fan) so that I am totally immersed in it when I play, and so the bugs are really quite unenjoyable in a what still regard as the best PC game out there. If I can do anything to make it better I will do.

I'm also over 18 and beta-tested FM live!

Jack.

[ab328]

Hi i'd like to throw my hat into the ring for the role as a tester. I have played the game in its various forms since FM05 and instantly fell in love with the game. Over the years i feel i have built up a good understanding of the game and what, in particular, makes the game 'tick'.

As a geography undergraduate i feel i have been trained to look at things in a different light (somewhat more analytical) not only problem-spotting but also problem-solving. My education has also allowed me to communicate both in verbal and written form in a clear and concise manner. In my personal opinion this eye for detail is what is required for this role.

My biggest issue with the current game would be player stats. I completely understand the difficulties involved with this however there seems a lack of consistency in regards to standards between teams-some are over-rated whilst others (of a similar standard in real life) are relatively under-rated this point could indeed be raised when talking about certain countries stats as well.

I do believe however, that these issues can be fixed and i have no doubt that the team at SI will continue to produce the best football management game on the market and that, hopefully, i could play a small part in contributing to this enduring success.

[Matt Anderson]

I believe that I would be suitible for your position for beta testing your upcoming releases because I have experience in both the Football Manager series and product testing of games. Both of these attributes I believe are key to making a good beta tester. The first game I brought was CM01/02 and I fell in love with the series from there. I found that the game combined my love for RTS games and football. Down the years I've always been here on the forums to offer my opinion on the current game or my ideas for the next game.

I also have previously beta tested your FML game for several months. In that time I offered feedback on the game within the forums and even became an organiser within the game. Moreover, a couple of years ago I also had the chance to test a MMORPG called Face of Mankind and because of this key experience I feel I would be ideal for your testing role.

Finally, I am 18 and I currently work from home as a web designer so I have ample time to test.

Kind Regards,

Matt Anderson

[Dan Baker]

Along with the other users in this thread, I would be interested in becoming a Beta tester.

Now, I have in the past been critical of Football Manager, and FM07 in particular raised many concerns for me - so much so that, after playing the FM08 patch, I didn't see improvements in the issues I had to warrant buying the game. However, I continued to play FM07, and ended up having a very successful and enjoyable long-term save that I still play now!

Upon the release of FM09, I thought I would give things a go - and was pleasantly surprised. Some of the major issues I saw in FM07 and FM08 seemed to be fixed, and the game is much more fluid this year - I'm happy enough to believe that, unlike some previous releases, more attention has been spent on correcting existing flaws than on superficial new features. That's not to say that there aren't still some concerns from my point of view - but things are moving in the right direction.

I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so I'm always more likely to pick up on small issues than some other would - but I'm also prepared to address them, and to give constructive criticism. When I first played CM back in 1994, the game had its issues - but it was much simpler back then, and you could easily brush over them by having Micky Hazard and Giggsy bombing down the wings! However, as the game has become more challenging, in-depth and demanding, the players have responded accordingly - and the ever-expanding userbase here are more than happy to say what they think is wrong (often without offering any possible solutions).

As others have pointed out, one thing a lot of people want is for the game to play more like 'real life' - it does seem like the science of the game is taking over, particularly when it's heavily suggested that things like having the right distance between mentality sliders is all-important. The casual gamer is feeling more and more alienated, because it is getting harder and harder to play on instinct.

I know of other users who are, or have been testers, and I can't see that I would offer any less than they have; it is frustrating at times when you have an issue and know that, if you were to raise it here, it would never be addressed properly due to the volume of irrelevant and nonsensical posts that offer nothing to the game's development.

As someone who has been playing CM/FM for over 15 years, I am keen that I continue to enjoy it for many years to come. As an intelligent and articulate person, I am more than confident that my contribution to the testing process would be of benefit to both you as the developers, and me as a gamer.

I hope to hear from you soon - good luck in the recruitment process!

Best Wishes,

Dan Baker

[kroblues]

Hi, I would like to be considered for this testing role. My first Football Manager game was FM06 but I have also played a few of the older ones. I would estimate I have played over 200 seasons in various long term games, mostly in FM07 which I feel was the easiest to get into in terms of long term games. I am very interested in the finer details of football and I have recently spent time researching famous tactics such as Catenaccio and Metodo, and it gives me great interest when such a tactic works as it should in the game. I would like to think that I am fairly perceptive when it comes to spotting problems, and the scientific nature of my education helps me to notice small things that others may not have picked up on.

My biggest "issue" with the game at the moment comes in the field of International management. I have been playing through Ter's San Marino challenge and despite improving the ranking of the national team to around the top 75, the game still seems to treat my ranking as it originally was. As an example, I am currently ranked 86th in the world, and yet in the UEFA Qualifying seedings the team is seeded 6th, below Kazakhstan who are currently ranked 207th. I am aware this is probably not the only thing that decides the rankings but I would imagine there is a reputation issue, as the game reports that I should be happy with a draw against 187th ranked Azerbaijan. I think that is probably not what the manager of a team ranked 100 places higher would think about this sort of result.

Thanks,

Simon

[hursty2]

Hi there,

I am posting here on the behalf of myself and the rest of the Football Manager Community.

I see this as a great opportunity to get new ideas across but also to improve the vast amounts of features the game already has to offer.

I'm not going to mention how many past versions of the game I have played as i feel that it is not about the past in this industry, it is about the future thus this the reason I feel that I will be able to be a beta tester as I have an eye for the future of this series.

My biggest gripe with this game would be the lack of questions in the Press Conferences, this is a great new feature and with expansion the game will become even more realistic and take us one step closer to real life managing and truly make it 'The Greatest Job On Earth'.

So to finalise my application I wish everyone luck and hope that the best Beta tester's are picked because it will make the game better for myself and the FM community.

Thanks,

Liam

[VonBlade]

I hope that I tick all the boxes necessary to be accepted. I shall be brief because you probably know if I'm the man for you already.

I've played every version of the game from the Domark days to now and so am able to spot both small refinements and wholesale changes in approach to certain aspects of the game.

Having been previously successful in the beta test application in addition to the volumnous bug reports I have provided for the last two releases I hope my body of work stands up as being capable of not only identifying bugs, but reporting them in a clear and concise manner.

As is patently obvious from my posting history I will not use this opportunity to just be sycophantic or gleeful that I am ahead of the game, rather use my exacting standards to assist you in making the product the best it can be, without compromise.

My biggest issue is probably the speed of the game. However the area I am most interested in, the one that I devote most time to is the media. Wording, frequency and influence upon the players are all elements I feel need improvement.

Finally, because I'm unemployable for mental health reasons, which I accept could count against me, I have hours every day available to devote to the task.

VB

[VMX]

Well, I'll definately want to appoint for this one.

I've written several posts in these forums in the past regarding different possible suggestions/improvements for the game that you can check, and I think I have a good understanding of how the game works and what it should be like (been playing since CM03-04). Although not my 'usual' job (I'm finishing my telecommunications degree), I'm an experienced programmer and I can usually understand why bugs may be happening when I find them (i.e.: not only seeing the bug, but also part of the possible cause behind it), which I believe is an important thing for a beta tester.

Also, I speak both Spanish and English fluently (I'm Spanish), so I could help in pointing out any translation errors in the Spanish language, just as I've done for the 9.2 patch (some things from the tactics screen where changed from 9.1 to 9.2 after my feedback in the translation bugs forum ). I'm also currently working on the translation of the TT&F'09 guide to Spanish, that you can check out here (about half-way through it, I'll carry on again after Christmas ).

For me, the main gripe about FM09 is, on one hand, the 'little' bugs in the ME (ridiculous amount of shots hitting the posts, for example), and on the other the insane slowness that I suffer with a new and fast computer when advancing between turns... I'm a really patient person, but this is about x5 slower than FM08 in this same machine with the same exact settings... awful. There are other things, like the need for a more intuitive and easy-going tactical interface, but those are not bugs, but rather long-term suggestions that have been properly explained in their corresponding long threads. But if we talk about expanding the game, the media would be one area that I'd be able give ideas about and point out errors. Also, the 'dynamics' of the player market is something I'm very interested in. This means the chances of player X moving to team Y, the amounts that would realistically be paid for those players, different clauses that exist in real life and could be added, etc., all to make the signings more realistic. Along with that, there are things about the rules of the Spanish league that need to be improved, and that I believe I would be able to help with as well.

If it's of any importance, I was already picked to beta-test a previous FM version, the one with the famous "leak" that basically messed everything up. But, in that occasion, I wasn't able to help much, mainly because my old PC suffered a complete collapse the same month of the beta release... so before I could even get my hands on it, beta was pretty much over due to the leak and I couldn't give any feedback. However, I have a new, fast and stable computer now

All in all, I believe I'm a very good observer and also a good and clear communicator, which you can also see if you read any of my previous posts. I'm the 'perfectionist' kind, always paying attention to the little things here and there. Even though I don't design skins, I'm the kind of guy that gets ****ed off by the fact that those two lines of text in the UI are not properly aligned, up to the point of opening up the .xml files and editing what's needed to make things look as they should. Just the same way that I can't take typos in in-game texts. I usually get very annoyed when I see bugs in the game that I believe to be really really obvious, and I find myself wondering how could a beta tester let that one pass unnoticed when I already can't stand it after playing the game for 5 minutes. I end up telling to myself that they must be really busy and that it's probably harder than it seems to find all that stuff. But yeah, I've always thought that if I was there to help, I could definately be of some use and there are determined bugs that wouldn't make it to the final game.

And yes, I'm over 18 (23 years old) and, except the periods where I'm heavily loaded with exams at university, I usually have plenty of time to play the game.

So that's all. Good luck with the selection proccess, and I hope that you find what you're looking for, regardless of me being in that group or not

Cheers.

P.S.: I forgot to add that I tend to play lower league games (Spanish Segunda B precisely), so I could be helpful if you need more people to test such a 'minoritary' area, as most people tend to play up the league with the stronger teams and many bugs go unnoticed because of that. In higher divisions, there's so much going on at the same time that you sometimes miss important stuff that would jump into your face while managing a team in lower leagues. All the small things become much more important.

[Herbie]

Firstly - this is a great idea - people can put their money where their mouths were on the release dates!

Secondly I would jump at the opportunity to Beta test FM games and patches - trying to find fault (and positives) with a game as indepth as FM would be an enjoyable challenge and one that is vital to the continued success of the series.

I've played these games since CM2 and even have a CM1 XP version on my desktop so have grown up with the developments - some forward and some backwards - over the last 15 years. I'm now 29 with a professional career in enforcement (not police!) so I am used to pressure, analysis and working things out so believe I would offer a different approach to my testing and communication of findings.

My biggest concern is that the series is moving away from what got us all hooked in the first place - the fun of football, the fun of winning a league on the last day of the season after one of your u-18s comes on to score the winner.

The future of the series depends on appealing to two types of player - those with a 15 minute slot to boot it up and knock out a couple of games and those with hours to spend cross referencing the views of a little known Mexican scout against their mate Dave's from the Dog & Duck.

I would ensure that I test the gameplay as well as the technical issues - if the game isn't enjoyable then it doesn't matter that there are zero bugs or a million.

I've long thought that there needs to be more player control to allow them to set the ingame options depending on either how they play it (the fun of the games vs. the fun of building sides and statistics) or the length of time they have available to play it.

I know I am not a huge poster - that is more down to the fractured nature of the forum rather than anything else - but am a mature and responsible poster (and ex-mod) on the one other forum of which I am a member (www.arsenal-land.co.uk).

Thank you for considering my application and good luck to whomever gets the roles on offer.

Best regards

Herbie

[LuciferM]

I would love to become a beta tester for Football Manager and I will use the following criticism I wrote after the 2009 demo was released. I sent it via PM to a member of the SI team but received no reply. This is the kind of in-depth constructive criticism I can keep producing and also shows my ability to come up with new ideas. This was written for 9.0.0 and a couple of the issues have been ironed out.

Ever since Football Manager 2006, I’ve felt that the new version of the game was nothing more than an updated player database with a few things added on here and there which didn’t really make a colossal difference to the way the game is played. There was the scout system added 1 year, but again, that didn’t really make a huge impact to the way the game was played, at least from my perspective.

It’s great that SI wanted to add a big feature to FM09, but I just feel that they’ve gone down completely the wrong path in adding a 3D match engine. Something like LMA 2000 on the Playstation was brilliant with the 3D highlights and Alan Hansen & Gary Lineker voice-over and I would have been much more accepting and appreciative of a similar system, where you have the choice of watching the highlights, and I almost always would, because every goal was different, loads of different comments came from the voice-over and it was a well put together feature.

That was new at the time. It hadn’t been done before, but 8 years down the line FM09 has the feature and it falls way below par, way below the standard it should be. I won’t go into the problems because you’ve all seen the forums posts.

The 3D match engine defines what FM09 is, so if you take that away, like so many forum members have had to do because their graphics cards aren’t good enough, what is there to grab the player into buying the game?

Granted, there are a few nice touches. However, after having played the demo for 12 hours or so, the only big one I can actually remember after not having played it for a couple of hours is the Press Conference add-on, which actually becomes seriously tedious after 3 or 4 times. There are nice things like messages about the history of the club, added fields into the information about the club, etc, but they’re basically just Wikipedia pages put into the game. Retiring shirt numbers is a nice idea, but how often will such a thing actually be used? Arsenal have only ever retired 1 shirt number in their entire history – over 110 years – so unless the game player wants to have a squad full of players numbered 15 and upwards within 20 seasons or so, it’s really a nice but useless feature.

There is nothing substantially new about FM2009 other than the 3D engine, rendered almost useless by its high-spec demand. The new transfer system interested people, but nothing there has really changed. I didn’t notice anything wrong with the FM08 system in terms of selling players, except for the endless offers with low upfront payments and full of clauses, but many others had problems with it. However, the amount of money needed to buy some players was nothing short of farcical. £20m for a player valued at £1m? It just doesn’t happen.

But even with the ‘new’ system in FM09, you get the exact same things happening, minus the offers with low upfront payments and full of clauses. £29m for a player worth £5m? It’s just silly. I understand that it’s a really different thing to perfect, a good and realistic transfer system, but it’s something that has to be done to continue this game series. LMA 2008 was too obvious – bid double the players’ valuation and you get your offer accepted, but in some ways, I appreciate that more than paying 6 times a players’ value. Ok, in most cases in favours the player over the computer, but at least you know where you stood. For example, £10m is much more realistic for a player like Kuzmanovic. Look at Robinho. Worth roughly £16m in FM 2008 – moved to Man City for £32m. And both of Shawn Wright-Phillips moves have been for roughly double what he’s worth. It’s a far more reliable system.

Transfer rumours are a nice thing to have, but I’d like to see them come up as a message every week. It’s quite hard to access them where they are and as such, I don’t think many players will bother looking.

I find the player database a bit silly as well. It was great at first – you could search for every player in the entire world, look at stats, value, etc. It was all instant. But people like me who have been playing the series for a long time find it very easy I think. It’s far too easy to find summer targets. It’s usually a simple filtered search, taking into account the position, your budget, age and you’re there. Other management games like Premier Manager and FIFA Manager make you scout your targets before you can see stats, preferred positions, etc. It’s a much, much more realistic system. Managers can’t just search a database in real life and automatically see stats. It takes time, effort and scouts to find out about the player. But at the same time, I wouldn’t want to ruin it for other players who like to have all the stats already there in a database, so perhaps you could offer people a choice of having a hidden database or not at the start. If people want to look at the database and then start a hidden database game, so be it, but I think many players would appreciate the challenge of having to scout maybe as many as 10 players to find the ideal player for their squad. I certainly would.

Perhaps also there could be set challenges already in the game. We see them all over the forums already; Start unemployed and see how long it takes you to win the Champions League, take over a team lying bottom of the Premiership in January with just a £3m budget and try and save them, take over Man Utd in April before the Champions League semis and in amongst a tight title race with Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez all injured and see if you can win anything, etc, and then add an online feature to upload your final score.

Maybe with Press Conferences you could have a maximum of 20 opportunities in the season to have your Assistant Manager do them for you. Force the player to do them and have more depth in answers and questions. Obviously I’ve just played a demo so I don’t know how much the press conferences affect your board’s confidence in you, but storming out of conferences could perhaps make your job unstable. Maybe in unique or really high pressure situations, rather than just answering a question, you could give a really motivational speech or something, a la Mike Bassett in the film when he recites Rudyard Kipling’s poem ‘If’ before a World Cup game. Make them more interesting, because I did just 4 conferences before I got really bored of them.

Make the G14, UEFA, FA and FIFA play a bigger part in the game. For example, the managers of the G14 clubs could come together and propose a European Super League, taking 2, 3 or 4 clubs from the major 6 leagues. Ok, maybe that’s completely unrealistic in terms of coding it, as there are just so many clubs in the game and it’d difficult with the teams that don’t make it into the Super League, but it’s a suggestion none-the-less.

Have more freedom of speech. We should be allowed to criticise referees over their performance in a game, not just over penalty decisions. Give us the ability to do something with the money we earn as a manager. Reach £100,000 and you can choose your club’s sponsorship deal. Reach £500,000 and you can become an International Manager as well. Reach £1 million and you can choose a language course to go on to help with the integration of players. Reach £5 million and you can name your club’s next stadium. Reach £10 million and you can design your club’s next kit. Reach £20 million and you can become a Chairman. Give us something else to aim for other than trophies. All Manager games make us aim at purely trophies, so give us that extra dimension and goal.

Have the ability to send your players on language courses, have deeper player interaction – particularly with ‘quirky’ players like Gallas, Berbatov, Cassano, Ronaldo, etc. Be able to issue them ultimatums, motivate them, etc. Also when I declare interest in a player at a smaller club, it doesn’t really make a big difference. Micah Richards has Arsenal as a favoured club, yet if I say I’ll do my upmost to sign him and I rate him really highly, all it does it unsettle him for a week or so. You never get transfer requests coming out of those kind of comments.

Why not let us try and tap up players? Arrange secret meetings and then perhaps that player will inform his club who’ll then inform UEFA. UEFA can take action against the club and the manager. Have agents making more impact. Make us pay agents’ fees taking money out of the transfer budget. Have ‘Come and Get Me’ pleas as well, and then if that player issues a come and get me plea, have the opportunity to try and convince him to stay. Give players a confidence meter in their profile. You can’t see how much confidence a player is playing with and that annoys me. If a player has a dual-nationality and is uncapped, have the national managers talk to them to let them know how big a part they’ll play in the country’s team. Convince them to choose Italy over Spain, Argentina over France, etc. Maybe include player deaths. Maybe it’s a very sensitive subject, but it’s a part of the real life game.

You need to make this game feel new again, because like I said, the last few years have basically felt like database updates. I’m obviously more than willing to help and maybe come up with more ideas. I’ll see what I can think of. Thanks for reading and good luck with the first patch.

Thanks, Jack

p.s. A really tiny thing that I would absolutely love in the patch. When selecting the value of your bid/sale price, it goes £5m, £7.5m, £10m, £20m, £30, etc. Would it be possible to get £15m and £25m in there as well? Would be very helpful.

I've also been a huge contributor on the Arsenal thread in the Good Player section.

Thank you very much for your consideration and good luck to all those successful.

[BlackTiger]

I would like to confirm my application for the role of beta tester for any future patches/releases of FM.

I have been playing FM and previously CM since the days of CM2, therefore i have over 10 years of CM/FM playing experience and i feel i am in a good position to notice when problems are present in the game.

My biggest gripe with FM09 is simply the amount of major flaws that were present on release of the game. I feel that a lot of issues could and should have been spotted prior to release and i also believe that some of the issues could be spotted after playing on the game for a very short period of time which makes me wonder about the current testing process. As each version of FM that is released seems to need at least 2 or 3 patches each year, i think i could contribute in minimizing the amount of patches required for future releases.

My nature as a perfectionist makes me an ideal candidate for a tester as i cannot be happy with something until i feel it is as good as it can be.

Thank you for taking the time to read my application.

[Guest]

I'd definately like to throw my hat in the ring.

As one of those 'LLM' types I do spend a great deal of time dissecting the game, trying to find out what works & what aspect of the game isn't worth my time or trouble.

The way I play the game would definately help in picking up on the finer details that often get overlooked or thought of as unimportant, add the fact that I work in a field that requires an eye for detail & a need to think about the potential outcomes/consequences of any decision or action taken I would like to think I can transfer these skills to testing & fine tuning a product that has been part of my gaming life for nearly 15 years.

[ham_aka_stam]

I would like to apply for the above role as beta-tester for Sports Interactive. It goes without saying that my interest in this game is very high, but I am also very keen to find out more about how the software works, and even more keen to contribute to its continued success. I feel beta testing any future releases from SI will be an enjoyable challenge for me, and I feel it would suit me perfectly.

I would be very useful to the team due to my attention to detail, and my interest in the field. I work in IT support for a customer who also requires a high degree of security (this can be discussed in more depth elsewhere if need be), and as such I have a broad knowledge of computer systems. In addition I am currently testing a new piece of software for the customer on top of my usual roles and responsibilities which seems to have uncovered an interest and a talent in the area. I am therefore familiar with the stages of development which new software goes through, and the factors which must be taken into account in testing it. One of my skills which has helped me in my experience, is my ability to communicate information accurately, such as situations where any problems arise, and the nature of the problems themselves.

I studied my honours degree in Sport and Exercise Science, giving me an indepth understanding of sport and how the body and mind works during physical activity. My communication skills are also important to me, and I feel they too would help to make me an asset to the testing team.

My main problem with the original release of the current game (including first "release date" patch) was the playability: even ignoring the software/hardware discrepancies, I feel many problems were missed in testing which made the game seem a far less superior product than it really was. Post-patch however I feel the main weakness is the lack of variation in media and player interaction, for example: there are more options when interacting with another manager between games, than there are for interacting with your own players during team talks. I also feel the training side of the game is beginning to look dated, and is far from a realistic representation of the way a football team is trained. Finally, I would like to mention an issue I have with player attributes and how these are perceived by managers. I feel there are discrepancies with how much we should know about the players (our own, and others), and how much a real manager would know. An ideal example is the area of mental attributes and personality, should these gradually become more and more visible to us the more we get to know a player?

I hope you will consider this application and please do not hesitate to contact me with regards this role or any other way in which I can help.

[Mr.Shakur]

i would like to become a beta tester for si.

first off im 25 years old.

i know my post count is'nt very high but im here since 2004 but never registered. i know shame on me.

so im playing this game since 2004 and love it to death and i play it with a passion.i would love to become a beta tester cause i want to be a part of the game and i want help to make it better.i've done this before for 2 different games as well, dunno if i can name them here but it was fun to test them and help to find some annyoing bugs.

my biggest issue with fm09 is the 3d engine and i still dont know why cause i have a nvidia 9800 gt and i can play the newest ego shooters on high detail without any stutters, lags etc.

i hope ill get a positive answer from you.

thank you for your time.

[bollekewol]

I too wish to participate as Beta-tester.

I can write about how much I like the football-world in all of its aspects and how much I love the game; but I won't do that because everyone on the forum has that same passion.

I've followed Football Manager since 97/98 when a friend of mine got the game and I haven't missed a single game since... considering I'm a student (so my only income is from birthdays and some holidays), I can say that my money is always set aside so I'm able to buy the next FM game. I followed SI from CM to FM because I knew it was their expertise and huge database that made the game so great.

Well, I know this isn't much of an application... I'm sure that many others are better qualified because of their job, age, or whatever. I'm just a simple Belgian (and there are a lot of simple Belgians) who absolutely loves this game and can only give it a rest when I've played at least 30 seasons... before starting another game with another (lowranked) team of course!

The only things I can imaging that I can give as an extra is that since I live in Belgium, England is only a Eurostar away. Also, because of the country I live in, I think getting a beta-tester from a European country but in a "lesser" league (a league which has always been included in the game), is definitly a positive thing. I'm always trying to get things perfect, I'm not pleased with an adequate or good result: I always strife for perfection and will put a lot of energy in reaching this goal. I feel that this mentality would be beneficial for a beta-tester.

Yeah, I've not been on the forums for a long time. I never felt the need to participate much in this... I never saw the use of downloading trainings, shortlists, ... others made. The fun is in figuring it out yourself!

What I didn't like about FM09? Well, one of the new and improved features were the conferences where reporters would ask you questions about all sorts of things, right? Unfortunatly, I'm now one among many who just send their assistant manager to attend these meetings as the questions and answers are repetative. I once suggested, though, that the "additional comment" line could be used to improve this: with an active internet connection players can fill in their lines and send the answer to SI who then can use them to give more colour to the pressconferences.

[rocky0]

I would like to be a part of the beat testing for FM. I have long been a fan of this series since the CM days. I was also part of the open beta last year before it was sadly compromised. One reason I think I could be of benefit is that I am in the US where football is not as popular as in the European side. For that reason, I think I can see different sides of all features within the game. I have been involved in beta tests for several other games as well although there were in different genres.

My post count is low for the time I have been on the boards but I try to be of help when I do post. I have a solid understanding of the PC platform both with hardware and software. Many, many years of gaming as well.

The CM series is what started my interest in Football and I am continually gaining more knowledge because of this series. Because of this, I would appreciate the chance to give back to a fine series as a way to say thanks for my learning and the enjoyment of European football

[mackemforever]

I wish to apply for a position as a beta tester.

First, a little bit about me. I am 18, living in england and currently in my final year of college. One of my main strengths has always been the ability to communicate well, both written and verbally, and that I am perfectly happy repeating something over and over again until I get the desired result.

I have not been a follower of the CM/FM games for that long, I started back on CM4, however it has been the only series that has kept me coming back for more year after year.

The one thing that has always frustrated me about the series however are the small bugs and data errors always seem to be present. In the past I attempted to solve a number of these myself (well, the data errors atleast) and can remember spending weeks on end editing the CM4 database to get everything correct.

With FM2009 I feel the series has taken a huge step forwards but there are still a number of problems that exist within the game. The main one of these, in my opinion, is the match engine. On the whole it works well however there are still fairly serious errors that exist, mainly surrounding player positioning and their actions when the ball is near, things such as defenders running for the ball and then suddenly stopping 5 yards from it. Media interaction also seems a bit too lacklustre at the moment, the main problem being when there are no suitable answers to a media question or when the answers available simply do not make sense. There are a number of other small bugs or inadequacies that exist within the game which I will not write about here due to the sheer number that I believe exist.

The only major problem I feel that exists with the current game are the problems with hardware. So many people are having a problem with the game running too slowly, random slowdowns and a juddery match engine. I run a small company building custom PCs and as such have a lot of different hardware combinations being built in my house, it would be very simple for me to test the game on these PCs before I ship them out allowing the game to be tested on a wide number of hardware combinations and could potentially show if there is a problematic graphics card or processor type that is causing the game to run slowly.

I am not going to do what a number of other people have done and list a lot of new things that should be implemented into the game as that is not what the position that is on offer requires. There are not going to be a lot of new features introduced with a patch and as such I don't believe that there is any point stating a lot of new features that should be introduced.

Thank you for considering my application.

[rancer890]

I would like to volunteer for beta-testing. I am 17 years old. I have been a new fan of football, since 2005 when the team support, Toronto FC of MLS, was founded. I got hooked on the FM07 demo, and bought FM08 and WWSM09. My love for football has grown since I became actively involved in the SI Forums, specifically in the Challenges, Signups, and Experiments forum, where I was nominated in the 2008 CSE awards as a candidate for the 'User of the Future'. I am still an active contributor of that specific forum, and in addition to the challenge as seen through my location, I also have a big FM project which combines all three aspects of the forum into one, titled 'FM09 A New World', a co-op CSE I am doing with roberto922, which will commence in the next few days.

The main issue I have got about FM09 is the playability of MLS. As SI have made a game specifically tailored for the North American market in the form of WWSM, I think there are some outstanding issues leftover from FM08 that needs to be resolved. Highly skilled players or high potential players are still being released. Teams still pick up players from waivers and then immediately waive them. This issues need to be resolved as this has made the MLS unplayable. Although the only drawback maybe that I'm Canadian, and live in a different timezone from everyone else, fixing these issues with MLS can attract more sales. Canada and the US have great support for soccer, Toronto FC have sold out every game since they started playing (and I'm still on the waiting list for season tickets!!!). I have even seen ads on Football Manager at mlsnet.com, the official site of Major League Soccer, so I'm sure you are trying your very best to crack into the North American market. There are many soccer fans here and I'm sure they would love this game if it was more playable.

Thank you SI for creating a great game and for giving me the opportunity through this application to be considered.

[AFC Liverpool]

I would like to be put faward if at all possible. I have played all FM games from the original Champ Man right through to 2008 and now 09 as well as FM Live and various other management games.

I would like to get feedback into you guys well before the games released as opposed to having issues on release and having to get my 10cents worth in then.

Sick of hearing that you/other devs on other titles had no feedback on some big issues like on FML for instance during the beta testing then everyone whom joined the full version highlighted pretty big issues that were not picked up on or reported on.

Seems that some people get on these betas just to boast they are on and to play early version of the game rather than ever give any feedback on any issues when realy they have a unique oppertunity to do so.

They soon complain when its the full game they paid for is full of bugs :/

I have no major issue with Fm09 only some minor issues I have had when my 3d match engine would not work and when my key would not work but this seems to have rectified itself since updating everything on my p.c.

Other game related issues i had were rectified with the latest patch, if i come accross any issues i will keep you updated of coarse : )

[Rams_]

I would like to apply, will keep this short and sweet.

- I have played nearly every CM since 96/97 bar a couple.

- I support Derby County

- I have contributed many times to the bugs forum to report issues, upload saves and contribute my own personal experiance/opinion.

- I am 22, not long out of uni which a significant chunk of my education coming from FM/CM

My main priority for accuracy is the match engine, whilst it will never truly represent football I look to pick up on the fundemental flaws that if improved would make a big difference. Defenders being the current one.

Having said that, I've probably reported more bugs in other areas like contracts, transfers, board interaction, that kind of thing. I can spot the simple logic bugs fairly quickly.

I tend to start unemployed too, so see the lower levels of the game more frequently than most.

I look forward to hearing from you

Chris

[watsonsclarets]

Well SI I would like to put my name down I’m quite controversial and if things are wrong there is no doubt I will tell you. My cm/fm days started with Kellogg’s cornflake box were I cut out 11 players and made stands out of cardboard I then rolled a dice and depending on the number the player did accordingly. My first game on FM was 2001 when I bought my first laptop since then I haven’t looked back. I don’t do what most do I play 2 different solo games as well as a online game. I play my first solo game as real-time as possible playing every game on full. The second solo game is just research to see how and why goals are scored to better understand the game play on fm.

I would love the chance to join the team as like both the understanding of the match engine and how the data is conceived into playing objectives

All the best

DAVE

[NeilUK]

Hi,

I'd be very interested in helping out with Beta Testing for you, I have been involved in the FML and I have done Beta Testing for other companies in the recent past (AOL and Microsoft mainly)

I have been a player of CM/FM from the first game and I hope that I have helped out on here in the past when posting about possible bugs in the game.

I honestly think I can help out alot , I'm not someone who will see something I think is wrong and instantly report it, I understand that sometimes things need more thought.

I spend most of my spare time playing your games and have done since the first version and I am sure I can be a benefit to you.

Thanks

Neil

[Guest]

Hello

Like many I would also like to apply.

Also like many I have played every version of CM/FM since the very first incarnation. I have previously been a public beta tester on FML and FM07 and was a beta tester on Title Bout Championship Boxing, a strategic boxing sim. I am also the first reserve to be the Everton researcher (at least that's what Dean Gripton has told me!!).

My biggest gripe with FM09 is the team talks; they are too limited and not detailed or varied enough and have been like this for the last two years. That said I do feel FM09 to be the best version of FM yet.

I spend most of my leisure time playing, thinking about or reading about FM and feel I have much to offer should I be accepted.

Thanks for the opportunity

Regards

Rob

[s33r]

Time to throw my hat in to the ring and the best place to start is why I think I should be considered.

Firstly I have, as many others, played FM since its early days beginning with CM on the Amiga, boy am I thankful that the days of seperate disks and versions if I wanted to manage in Italy. I have also been a part of the beta testers for FML and think my experience there along with experience beta testing for Sony for the online aspect for the PS2 which gives me an understanding of the type of feedback and dedication need to properly test commerical games & systems. I also have access to Intel based Macs (iMac and Macbook) and a Vista based laptop giving me a chance and ability to test FM over different key platforms for the game.

My main gripe with FM09 is the ambiguity of the training system. I place a key emphasis when I play FM on bringing through youth players as well as improving the skills of those in my first team. The current system is ambiguous and too general to really feel that what I change on the sliders has any impact at all to the players. Furthermore its generality and ambiguity means most casual players, possibly even some hardcore players, overlook this intrinsic part of being a football manager.

Thank you in advance for the opportunity.

[20LEGEND]

I would rather like to apply to be a beta tester. I have played every CM/FM since 97/98 and hence know the product extremely well and would like to give any help I can on the development of the game.

My biggest gripe with the game is the tactics module. The overblown slider system makes it almost impossible for casual gamers to pick up and play with any sort of success. I believe myself to have a good understanding of football and put hours upon ours into the game yet still at times feel lost with tactics in the game. Something which has been discussed before and I feel could have promise is a PPM style system, where you can tell you winger to 'hug touchline' or 'try cutting inside' for example, which is more true to life with regards to how football managers actually work. I don't think Sir Alex Ferguson tells his team 'today I would like you to play with width, on a scale of 1-20, of 12'.

That is obviously something that would be a huge development in FM. On a smaller scale there are many small gripes I have with the game. One is that the game runs very slowly on my machine during matchdays (I use 2D so it isn't down to 3D), a machine which should run the game comfortably. Hopefully as a beta tester I could help with the hardware issues that many players are having that cause the game to run slowly for some reason or other.

[RDXCougar8173]

I would like to be consdered for Football manager beta testing as i helped beta test Football Manager live for over a year but have always played CHampionship manager and now Football manager since it started and help out where i can in different parts of the forum about any issues or problems people are having with the game and would love to help out beta testing any future patches or releases to do with FM as i think it`s only right the inpt and help when you make them should come from as many people who play the games as possible was it them who play the games then critisise and slg off all at SI if there are bugs and other problems with the games or patches.

My biggest concern with FM09 is the team talk are too limited and you can get asked the same question more than once which is the most annoying thing about them

[hunterhunter]

My brother and I both play Football Manager religiously and as a result have to share the one computer FM09 works on. I feel I could give detailed feedback on any aspects of the game you were planning on changing.

The biggest bugbear for me in FM09 is the unrealistic expectations of very young players by the fans and the board. I'm a Wengeresque manager buying young potential and having my job become less stable because of the signing of a player who I play irregularly is unfair in my eyes. It hurts the most when they describe my signing as an aberration, hurts right in the heart.

I play on a mac, so I would be able to give more help towards the mac side.

Thanks

[gregdfc]

I would like to be considered for Beta testing as i have helped alot of people this year to get there FM 09 working on there computers.

For more info about myself please ask.

[brindlefly]

I would like to be considered for testing the game, as I feel I know what to look for in the case of bugs, crashes etc, due to the fact I program my own games and help beta test all of the games released on my site, going through a strict process to do so. I have also been a fan of championship/football manager since Blackburn won the league *yup, a long time ago!* and still play it for many hours a day. One of the main problems I have with Football Manager 2009 is the media system, as it is very repetitive, especially when you get asked every match whether a drop in morale could be around the corner etc.

Edit: I also beta tester FML

[Dan00r]

As a beta-tester for more then just FML I have been participating in several closed beta-testing.

Due to this and the determination I have, I believe I'm up for the job in making Football Manager releases a more stable, enjoyable product.

I have been playing the FM Series for a couple of years now and still feel like the gab between players and their manager is way too big.

I would like to see more depth and occasions in which me as manager can interact with my players, which then will be reflected in media as well as on the pitch.

I will start my sucking-up actions ONLY after being accepted

[coldpost22]

I would like to be considered to play a part in beta testing for the FM series. I feel I am qualified due to the fact that through excessive (and i mean excessive...... i have lost jobs and relationships have suffered down to my addiction for this game) playing of this edition and in fact since the start of the championship manager series......

If i cast my mind back i can remember not ever being able to buy any of the so called "big name foreigners"....... in them days it was always Didier Deschamps, Gazza and David Platt in their Italian days....... obviously i discovered a young lad by the name of Nii Lamptey which then spurred me onto looking into youth stars.

What I am trying to put across is that I have been a fan since the beginning and would love an oppurtunity to contribute.

Errrrr....... dont really have a gripe as such other than agreeing with the media overhaul, far to repetative!!!

As with previous versions of the game in a couple of months time everybody will be enjoying it and will not be so bothered about the little problems which seem so big now.

Thanks

[BillyMysterio]

I'd also like to be considered as a possible Beta Tester for future FM patches and games.

I have played the FM and CM series pretty much forever and that's not much of an exaggeration. I may be young but my family got a PC way back in the day when they weren't common household objects so I have had a lot of time to play!

I don't really have a big overall problem with FM09 and I don't think the problems I have with it make it any less enjoyable, just when they crop up I groan and sigh and think, why now?, why this game?

One of my problems is the Transfer Centre which seems to have messed up on mine and transfers that never went through for whatever reason remain sometimes, one such transfer was from the about March 2009 and is still there in October 2013.

There's a few other little things but I reckon these are just FM showing the little cracks that exist when such a big project is undertaken. The little problems that arise because FM is loved too much in my opinion, you wouldn't care if it was other games!

FM takes up a lot of my time in terms of game-play and with a few friends taht are addicts themselves it is in coversations often, especially in Maths with possibly the next biggest addict next to me!

I would like to be a Beta tester because I want the best for FM because I know that I will be playing it forever more and if it can be improved then I will enjoy it more and in knowing that others will enjoy it more my work will be worth it.

[Ginger]

Similarly to everyone who is on this thread I have been playing the game for years too. (Since CM2). I guess the bigger issues that I have found in FM09 include the levels of detail in training as you never really feel in control of player development, its more luck that these players progress and also the contact with other clubs and managers. The press conferences are a great idea, but need much more detail to really add positively to the experience.

I have been involved in beta testing for FM Live and enjoyed the experience, and feel I could contribute a few things to the testing of future releases.

I have also been heavily involved in The Bootroom (fanzine), for which I have been designer and writer. So I feel I can offer a more critical view on the features and workings within the game.

(Also, if it helps - I went to school with Dave Kempshall!!)

Happy New Year!

[croatianfan]

Hello,

I would like to be considered as part of the Beta testing team. So here is my "CV" is:

-playing this "simulation of real world" from CM 97/98 :=

-I'm preety good football player, tacticly well suited.

-I'm watching 95% of Milan games during seasons (including friendlies)

-I have attender numerous of soccer academy in Croatia (guest was Slaven Bilic, Davor Suker and Robert Prosinecki)

-My profession is Software engenieer (web development plus Autodesk third party developing)

-I have written over 100.000 lines of HTML/JavaScript/C++/C# code in past three years

-I'm enjoing working with database's

-I'm allways online

-My hobby is Triathlon (running is my strongest sport, so my stamina is 21 )

-I'm 25

-I'm from Croatia

ProZone has some good stuff and basicly FM engine could generate some interesting post match reports

As software developer/engenieer I'm aware that good feedback is crucial. I'm capable of writing good and constructive bug reports.

And that's it. Hope to become member of your testing team, looking forward to it.

Forza Milan!

[Moonshine]

I would like the privilage of becoming a beta-tester for SI.

I have played Football Manager since FM05, and have followed it's progress with a keen eye. As a younger gamer (16 years old), I represent a demographic that is smaller, yet louder, than most on these forums. I have spent my time on these boards mainly in LLM and have, as such, developed a methodical way of playing, whereby I notice faults whilst I dissect the game.

I have an eye for detail, and am able of capably communicating to others both clearly and concisely, though going into detail when needed. Though I have an infraction on these forums, I hope that this will not detract from me too much - a moment of stupidity, that was completely my fault.

I am an active member of the forums, and an active player of Fottball Manager - I play almost every day, and I log in just as much.

With regards to FM09, the features that I have the most problems with are Tactics and Training, and their unrealistic nature, and also the limited nature of Press Conferences.

With T&T, the nature of sliders, though providing ease of use to the most experienced on Football Managers, are far too clunky and hard to interpret for the majority of players, and are thus the most unrealistic aspect of a game that prides itself (quite rightly) on realism.

With Press Conferences, I find that I can't reply with enough scope with four (five if you include a 'No Comment' middle answer, that is already covered by the 'No Comment' tickbox on the general options - Answer Question, No Comment and Storm Out), and often wish to answer the media with more accurate representations of my views.

[alvinghammariner]

I would like to be considered for Beta Testing. Although i don't post much on these forums i am a regular reader of them and a huge fan of the FM series. I feel that i would be suitable for the testing because i am comitted and thorough in everything i do. I have a wide knowledge of the lower leagues of english football and i would like to contribute to the improvement of the game in the future. One thing I think should be improved in the game is the variance of questions and responses in the press conferences.

Thank You

Henry