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Pro Evo 2011 Soccergaming playtest

Written by Ian on Wednesday, 4 August 201013 Comments

PES2011 - Shaping up nicely.

 

 

A matter of weeks ago I was given the opportunity to playtest PES2011. Unfortunately, due to some sort of press embargo, I’ve been unable to comment until today. Having had plenty of time to consider my thoughts, this is my report.

So, I arrived at Voltage PR at about half ten in the morning on Friday the 23rd of July, for a solid four hours of intense Pro Evo action. Sharing the playtest with me was Dougiedonut (from hereon Dougie) from pesgaming, a fellow PES fanatic who shares my passion for the game. Some of his accurate insights will have found their way into this article, so many thanks to him.

The first thing that I’m going to say is that the game is, well… really good. Massive improvements have been made, and many of the glaring faults with PES 2010 have been ironed out or completely eradicated. Naturally though, there are improvements still to be made, but Dougie and I were informed that the version we were playing was only seventy percent complete. Even so, it seemed to be considerably better than last year’s effort.

I’d also like to point out that Dougie put together his own review, which I must say is remarkably well detailed. That said, he spelt my surname incorrectly. GRRR! You can check out his write up at http://www.pesgaming.com/blog/pes-matters/850/pro-evolution-soccer-2011-the-playtest/. I’ve also put this link at the bottom of my post. Dougie’s a knowledgeable and enthusiastic PES fan, and I’d recommend taking a look at what he has to say.

On the pitch

It’s hard to know where to start on this preview, but the first major point I’ll make is that it’s very difficult to run around an entire team with one player. Yes, Lionel Messi and co are still head and shoulders above many players (metaphorically), but they can be handled if you’re a good defender. Defenders will gather around greedy players, and will pounce if you’re not quick on the ball. No more ridiculous one-man shows, unless you’re lucky, or much better than your opposition.

This goes hand in hand with the fact that physical contact has gotten more realistic. Tussles for the ball feel a lot more like individual battles, and the mechanics of the game are greatly improved. Shoulder to shoulder play is more realistic, and players wont simply give up half a yard without a fight.

On a different tangent, the introduction of the power gauge is worthwhile. Passes need to be played with a fair amount of precision, as Dougie and I found out to our dismay on several occasions. I often felt that the game would pick out the wrong pass when I was trying something clever, though I have a sneaking suspicion that I may have been at fault for some of these errors.

On the plus side, the crosses seemed to be quite sharp, and looked purposeful rather than generic and similar. Crosses actually seemed like a viable method for regular goal scoring, rather than a plan B option that was mainly included in the game because the AI was incapable of scoring a well-worked goal through the centre of the park.

Another new addition to this year’s game is the option to link tricks and feints. Alongside this, tricks and feints have been made easier to pull off, and are intended to be effective and not just flashy. Having seen this in action, I must say that it works well, and provides more dedicated players with the opportunity to master the game and distinguish themselves from weaker gamers.

Dougie embarrassed me once or twice with these new moves. A decent percentage of his rainbow flicks and stepovers, made my defenders look foolish. That said, there were numerous occasions when I gratefully picked up a loose trick and methodically X passed my way towards the eighteen-yard box. As many of you will have guessed, I’m the kind of guy that loves a good cutback. I’m unrepentant about this.

One of the best things about the demo was that the game was far less arcadey than PES2010. The speed of the game can even be adjusted to taste, so most people should be able to find a setting that suits them. The game has been slowed down a little, and logic plays a larger part in constructing an effective attack. It was also noticeable that players control the ball on whatever foot the ball naturally falls to. At times the mechanics of the game matched real football fairly well, and this can’t be a bad thing.

Goalkeepers

A little better than usual, thank God. Keepers still weren’t perfect, but seemed to be more lifelike than in previous editions of Pro Evo. That said, goal kicks still felt repetitive and aimless, which is an area that needs work. Whilst a few goalkeeping features came to the fore, I only had four hours to play the game, and couldn’t fully assess the extent of the improvements and drawbacks, so I can’t say that things will be that much different than what we’re all used to.

Referees

Last year’s referees were appalling, and it seemed nigh on impossible to win a penalty, even if you attempted the most outrageous career-ending challenge possible. This time around it seemed as if the refs were more responsive to fouls, and the yellow and red cards that were dished out during the playtest were fair enough. However, some free kicks were given for no apparent reason, though these incidents were few and far between. For what it’s worth, linesmen were as razor sharp as ever.

Off the pitch

The management side of things has changed vastly, at least in terms of the interface. On the team management menu, players can be switched and moved with a drag and drop system, and substitutions can be made easily. This system works well, but did highlight something of a problem. In one of the friendlies I played against Dougie my side had a right back and a midfielder playing out of position in the starting line-up. Not such a problem, until I realised that their stats had been scaled down considerably as a result. The players had overall ratings of 26 and 28 in their wrong positions, and played terribly until I realised the problem and swapped them promptly. Whilst players are obviously weaker when playing out of position, the difference in performance was drastic, and a little ridiculous. Still, this is a problem that can be worked around.

Game modes

We didn’t have enough time to properly check out all of the game modes, though Master League looks like it’s undergone some neat changes. Become a Legend, so we were told, has been radically overhauled, and should be far more involving. The introduction of the Copa Libertadores mode is also a nice touch, and adds a little something extra to the game. One small moan was that it was impossible to pit the Copa Libertadores teams against European teams in friendly mode. This could surely be sorted out easily, though I guess it wouldn’t be Pro Evo if there weren’t any inexplicable weaknesses with certain features. Though we couldn’t try it out, Dougie and I were assured that the online modes have been worked on extensively.

Features

One feature that really stood out was the stadium editor. This was far more expansive than I’d predicted and allowed you to create your own stadiums from scratch. It should be possible to make several stadiums, as the game will no longer be using save slots for data. Your only restriction from now on will be how much space you have on your hard drive.

The edit modes seemed to be pretty decent, yet no major advancements from last year. Again, I can’t say that I had long enough to make a proper assessment. Whilst I was searching through the editors, I couldn’t help but notice that Fernando Torres had once again been stupidly underrated. For about the fourth year running he’s been giving a top speed stat of eighty-four. This might not bother many people, but as a Liverpool fan I’m sick of seeing my supposed star player get outpaced by people that he would skin with ease in real life. More to the point, it’s hard to take the game seriously if the player attributes are way off of the mark.

Graphics

Graphics were sharp as usual, though it was the animations that made things look better. Players are more lifelike than before, and a few of the goals and tackles looked fantastic. The graphical side of things had never been a major drawback in the Pro Evo series, and the playtest suggested that Konami have kept on top of things. The crowd animations were poor, but then again, the game still isn’t finished.

The Verdict

All in all, the game appears to have come on in leaps and bounds. The developers, to their credit, have clearly listened to the more than vocal PES community. The pace of the game was far more realistic, the animations were improved, and the game in general was rather refreshing considering that PES2010 was arcadey, and in my opinion, very poor. I still don’t think that the current generation of consoles has had a truly great PES game, though this year’s version might change that.

Unfortunately, I think that it’s only right that this message comes with a disclaimer. I’ve played the game for four hours, and from experience, every PES game has seemed great during the first few hours of play. Over time I’d be able to work out the irritating faults in the AI, shooting hotspots, refereeing howlers and gameplay glitches, but I’ve not had the privilege of playing in-depth just yet.

Ultimately, the little that I’ve seen of the game was pretty impressive, and I’m fairly confident that this season’s PES will be a success. The features and game modes have been worked on, the presentation of the game is neat, and far more importantly, the in-game physics and dynamics have been tweaked considerably. So, no promises just yet, but things are looking good.

For an in-depth overview of the game from someone far less cynical than myself, then check out Dougie’s post at http://www.pesgaming.com/blog/pes-matters/850/pro-evolution-soccer-2011-the-playtest/.

13 Comments »

  • the sloth said:

    I mentioned this on PESgaming and got no response, so I’ll ask here. Konami were braggin a while back about a new stamina system that would keep players and the computer from overusing the sprint button, making the game more about positioning rather than running all over the place, has this been incorporated into the game and how does it work?

    - 4 August 2010 at 9:34 pm
  • Ian (author) said:

    That’s a good question, and something I missed out (too busy ranting about Torres’s appalling stats). The stamina bars are in the game, and can be made visible or invisible depending on your preference. I didn’t spot much of a difference with individual players on the fatigue front though.
    Positional play is more important though. Players will hold their position, and you’ll typically get put to the sword if you try too much with one player. This is more to do with the improved AI than anything else though.
    What I would say about the fatigue bar was that it was barely visible. It’s located just above players’ heads when you’ve got it switched on, but it’s green for most of the game and blends in with the pitch. Hats off to Konami for trying to add a new feature, but it seems like a work in progress. Maybe it will be better in the finished game.

    - 4 August 2010 at 10:24 pm
  • Dennis Bergkamp10 said:

    Just afew quick questions:

    Will be able to create our own playlist for the in game menus?
    Any idea who is going to be the other licensed english team?
    Are there any manager reactions or subs warming up on the touchline?

    - 5 August 2010 at 4:41 am
  • Ian (author) said:

    1. Little (and by that I mean nothing) was revealed about the track listing within the game, so I can’t really answer that question. I think Konami need to make playlists an option though, hopefully we can suggest it to them before the game comes out. For the time being I wouldn’t get your hopes up.

    2. The only nugget of information provided about the other licensed English team was that it wont be Liverpool (that’s not me trying to make a jokey hint that it will be Liverpool by the way). Besides that we were told nothing.

    3. I didn’t notice any manager or sub reactions, and I don’t know if there are plans to add these at a later date.

    Thanks for the questions, and by all means keep ‘em coming.

    - 5 August 2010 at 10:47 am
  • Bigmouth said:

    Hi, great preview thanks. Could you please answer a question - was the preview code played on PS3? I am assuming it was since Dougie mentioned not knowing the equivalent button for x on an Xbox controller. I’m just a bit confused as there are lots of preview videos on youtube that all appear to be on 360 since the 360 controller buttons appear during menu sections. Either way, are you able to give me any insight into which platform PES 2011 is developed on? I know previously they were developed on PS2 then ported to the original xbox, is it the other way round this generation? Thanks in advance. By the way, i’m feeling pretty postitive this year about PES. WHilst I admit that FIFA has taken the lead over the last couple of years in terms of progression, there’s still something missing on the latest FIFA games. Its hard to put our finger on but I think it misses the magic of the glory days of PES. The only way I can describe it is that, when I play FIFA 10 against the AI I’m pretty sure I know whats going to happen and what the outcome will be, and also the type of goals I’ll score. With PES, I was always surprised, which used to be a great thing.

    - 5 August 2010 at 9:35 pm
  • Stormrider said:

    Good article Ian I thoroughly enjoyed reading that but I don’t understand the obsession with Fernando Torres’ speed. He’s plenty quick in the game already, amongst the quickest natural CF. All his other attributes are great and combine to make him a lethal goal machine so I don’t understand all this underrated talk.

    In reality he’s not in the top echelon of speedsters. He’s not even the fastest at Anfield as that title goes to Ryan Babel. As for 2nd fastest it’s very debatable and he’s certainly not the clear cut favourite.

    But I do understand where you’re coming from in regards to players like him being out paced by these supposedly slower defenders. It has everything to do with a CPU cheat which boosts the defenders’ speed and pretty much has nothing to do with his actual attribute as IMO it’s well represented. I’m not blindly defending Konami here as there are always far too many players with very wrong attributes and positions in every edition of Pes but every now and then they hit the nail on the head in this department and IMO Torres is one such case.

    This speed cheat that’s been bugging the series for a few years has got to go and hopefully the CPU in Pes 2011 has received more TLC this year so that it doesn’t have to rely on cheap tricks to give us a challenge. If you think about it, Torres’ top speed of 84 is plenty enough to beat 95% of the EPL center backs whom fall in the 65-78 top speed range. Wouldn’t you agree?

    - 7 August 2010 at 12:02 am
  • anonymous said:

    just a question please..
    What options are available under General Settings, when you are about to start a match? or is it the same stuff?(weather-sunny, rainy, time-day, night..etc.)

    - 7 August 2010 at 12:10 am
  • Ian (author) said:

    @ Bigmouth- The code was played on PS3, though that’s as much as I can tell you. I’ve no idea what console the game’s been developed on (though I’d assume PS3).
    I agree with you about FIFA, they’ve taken huge steps, and I personally think that they released the better game last year. But… it’s not PES. FIFA definitely lacks a special quality that PES has; take the shooting system for instance. FIFA often feels scripted and slow, and PES has always managed to avoid that. This year’s edition seems much better than last year’s FIFA, though I’m reserving judgement for the final release.
    @ Stormrider- I wish these comments were like the ones on sky sports. Then I’d be able to see ‘(Man United fan)’ next to your name.
    In all seriousness though, you may have a point, I don’t have stats to back my opinion up. On the other hand, the one thing I’ve always noticed about Torres is his pace over ten yards, and this is the source of much of his success. He’s regularly deemed to be slower than (for example) Rooney on PES, and I can’t say I agree with it.
    Your Ryan Babel comment baffles me, though it wouldn’t surprise me if your assertion is accurate. I remember reading a few years ago that Dennis Rommedahl was the fastest player in the Premier League, but he never seemed that quick on the pitch.
    I agree with you 100% about the rest of your comment. Speed has been too much of a factor in PES at times. It should be a powerful tool, but not one that overrides strength, technique and positioning so much.
    @ Anonymous- I think the usual options are available under general settings. I don’t remember seeing anything out of the ordinary. I seem to remember there being an orange ball for snowy matches though.

    - 7 August 2010 at 11:05 pm
  • Bigmouth said:

    @Ian, thanks for the reply. It just seems odd that these playtests are taking place on the PS3 but all videos hint at 360. Still, it was just curiosity really, theres never much between the versions except controller preference I think.

    I agree with you that the shooting system is one thing that sets PES & FIFA apart. When I miss in PES i feel partly to blame, or its because a player’s stats mean he’s not good on his weaker foot, or from long range for example. There’s usually a tangible reason for success or failure. In FIFA I always feel like misses are either due to a scripted occurrence (such as always hitting side netting from not very tight angles) or its too random (such as hitting a shot way wide with a player who is supposed to have good shooting ability. Sure, there are factors in FIFA that obviously impede shooting success, such as having back to goal, but I think PES has always lead to more satisfaction when shooting, whether it goes in or goes wide. FIFA’s shooting feels a bit….empty?? Again, its hard to rationalise.

    Thats not to say I havent thoroughly enjoyed FIFA 10, in fact, its hard to fault in many areas, and it provides a well grounded game of footy. I’ve just missed good old PES and the excitement that it brings.

    - 9 August 2010 at 5:08 pm
  • anonymous said:

    ”Become a Legend, so we were told, has been radically overhauled, and should be far more involving”

    I love the become a legend mode!! but its not very addictive, so sometimes i play just one season, get a move to a big club, and get fed up. It should be more difficult, and more involving(issue already being addressed).

    I am very happy to hear this!

    please Ian, were you told anything further about the become a legend mode, or are we in for a suprise???

    - 9 August 2010 at 9:51 pm
  • Ian (author) said:

    @Bigmouth- Couldn’t agree more, the shooting on FIFA mars an otherwise solid game. I wish I could tell you more about the preview code, but there was only so much I could glean from four hours with the game. I should probably have probed a bit further.

    @Anonymous- We didn’t have enough time to give the ‘Become a Legend’ mode a proper going over, but we were told that it would be improved. I quite enjoyed BAL last time around, especially with classic players turned on; nothing quite beats linking up with Eric Cantona.
    I can’t give you any specifics unfortunately, we were primarily trying to see how the game played on exhibition mode, just to examine the gameplay updates. I’m sad to say that we’ll have to wait a while longer before more gets revealed about ‘Become a Legend’.

    - 9 August 2010 at 10:34 pm
  • villa7 said:

    give me the stats of david villa on pes 2011

    - 10 August 2010 at 1:38 pm
  • LoranM said:

    I agree with stormrider. Torres speed is fare, because he fast but not the fastest, he is still faster than the majority of the defenders. But the thing with torres as has been foreteld already is his speed the first four meters. That attribute is called acceleration. Didi u IAN notice the number on this attribute?

    And I’m a LFC fan since boyhood.

    - 5 September 2010 at 9:37 am

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