In this crazy, mixed up world of sports sim games, you can be boiled down to be one of two types of gamer. You’re either FIFA or you’re PES. Now let me stop just for a second before carrying on – whatever you think of soccer (or Football as it’s known in the real world), you cannot deny that it is without a doubt the most popular sport in the world. Enjoyed by pretty much every nation in the world, soccer enjoys a global appeal that no other sport really comes close to. Which is why when it comes to sporting gamers, you’re generally either FIFA or PES.
Me? If you’re so interested, I’m FIFA. But I’ve always appreciated the skill and craft that goes into PES. And this years PES looks like a great new addition and the first time in years that it looks to be running FIFA close. SegmentNext recently interviewed Adam Bhatti, the PES Global Product & Brand Manager, about a range of topics starting off with the way Pro Evolution has…erm…evolved.
“On paper, it would be easy to think that changes to any football game are minimal, but this is not the case. After the PS3 editions of PES, we knew we had to create a defined strategy and make key choices. We went after realism, and this is what drives us still.
“Each PES does offer more than the last, and it can be seen in the way we evolve things like first touch, the way we are constantly improving the individuality of players and their playing styles, and the way goal keepers are getting progressively better.”
To be honest this could appear to be the same carbon-copied bluster from every sports sim developer who release an annual instalment. But with the transition from the last gen to the current, there usually are pretty sizeable changes, however these usually come along a couple of years after the present gen is here, so the changes being made are probably quite significant. There was also a thinly veiled dig at FIFA 17‘s new Story Mode, taking a swipe at where EA focus their efforts, then completely contradicting themselves.
“Our focus is on the pitch, to be honest. People buy a football game to play it, so it is of optimum importance that the fundamentals are of the highest quality. That said, we have offered a wealth of modes for years, and all these have been hugely improved in PES 2017.”
OK, all good so far – telling us where the focus is. Then…
“Fans of Master League will be delighted as more realistic ideas are implemented, with transfers, training and the general nature of how the business side of football is determined are all greatly improved. Similarly, myClub continues to go from strength to strength, so we are making a lot of key changes to this, too. Streamlining agents, adding new options for recruitment and team development and generally keeping it fresh. These modes are hugely popular and cover a great deal of what can be found in a story option, but on a greater scale.”
So Konami’s focus is on the pitch…apart from this absolute shed-load of features like the “business side of football” and “Streamlining agents”. Good job Konami! Speaking of their good job, they were questioned on their recent performances against FIFA in the gaming market…
“We lost a lot of ground in the PS3 era and the licenses really work in EA’s favor, but PES is growing all the time. Revenue from myClub is growing at a fantastic rate, and more and more people have got into PES via the F2P version we introduced last year. The EURO game also got people into PES, too, with strong sales during the summer. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but we have tremendous faith in PES as a series and Japan is backing us to the hilt.”
They also have future plans to introduce women’s football in future instalments, but they are busy getting things right for now.
“…we need to retain focus on getting everything working first. We will absolutely look to implement the stunning advances of women’s’ football in the future but are not ready to do so at the moment.”
PES is undoubtedly on the rise again, and PES 17 looks to be the most impressive instalment from Konami for years, but will it all be enough to catch up with FIFA? Time will tell I suppose.
What do you think about PES 17? Are you more FIFA or PES? Can they catch up again? Let us know in the comments below or in the RGM Forums.
