BackGaming Review: PES 2015
After a long wait, a football game that is in the same league as EA's 'Fifa' franchise
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For a few years now, Pro Evolution Soccer (PES) by Konami has been trying to match the brilliance of EA Sports’ Fifa franchise. It has always finished second, owing to some rough edges and missing elements. The casual gamer took to it—popular matches between friends would include Real Madrid versus Barcelona or Manchester United versus Liverpool. Fifa games appeal to the serious football fans, the kind who spend hours analysing their club’s form and fortunes.
PES 2015 has now launched a serious game, one that you must play for the long haul.
The Uefa Champions League, Europa League (exclusive to PES), Spanish La Liga and Copa Libertadores are some of the big licences that PES has, apart from some smaller Asian and European leagues. Licensing allows game developers to use real player and club names, and replicate the identity of the club in the game. Strangely enough, the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga licensing aren’t complete, with Manchester United seemingly the only properly replicated team. Easier said than done, but don’t be shocked when West Midlands Village (Aston Villa) turn up to play Merseyside Red (Liverpool).
This is perhaps the only real problem, particularly because the Premier League is the most popular football league in the world as far as viewership and fan-base outside England go. And a surprise too, because Bayern Munich’s star Mario Götze has been the face of PES 2015 in all the pre-launch promotions. But let’s not hold the game developers responsible for the complicated licensing mechanisms.
The on-screen menu is neatly laid out, and even though there are a lot of modes, it’s not overwhelming. It isn’t as glamorous as Fifa 15, but it gets the job done. Compared to PES 2014, the players’ faces look a lot closer to their real-world counterparts, in terms of the hairstyle, facial hair, structure, skin colour, even the unique goal-scoring celebrations. The crowds still feel like flat cut-outs, though there is a slight improvement.
Start playing the game, and you will immediately notice profound improvements in artificial intelligence (AI). Your team may not have possession of the ball, but the player movements are sensible as they close the gaps and press the opposition players. Player movements are replicated as close to the real world as possible. In the game too, Luis Suárez has the habit of creeping up on opposition defenders, and displays the trademark burst of pace that would take him into empty spaces. Cesc Fàbregas’ thoughtful passing style is recreated in detail, and Mario Mandžukic almost always makes a tackle borne out of frustration, with the left leg.
As the clock ticks, the players seem tired and you can see their pace drop visibly. That is when a smart opposition team may introduce a quick centre-forward to take advantage of the exhausted defence. As a player, you will have to pay attention to these elements as well—some players tire more than others—and change tactics during the game. Defending is the most difficult part of the gameplay, and you need to concentrate hard to press and make tackles.
The team sheets before and during the game, and the ability to make changes to the line-up, can improve. At the moment, this process is rustic and bereft of visual appeal.
The myClub mode is similar to Fifa’s Ultimate Team. You create a team, set the strategy, get agents to sign players and get in-game currency by playing matches. The Ultimate Team is a rather neat set-up for anyone who likes to play with online opponents—so in a sense, PES is replicating a tried-and-tested method.
It’s not easy to choose between FIFA 15 and PES 15. Both have their strong points. The Fifa game has a quicker pace, requiring smash-and-grab action. PES 2015 requires patience. Clearly, it has taken a lot of effort to make it this close to the real thing.
PES 2015
Developer: PES Productions
Publisher: Konami
Platforms and price
Sony PlayStation 3: 2,499
Sony PlayStation 4: 3,499
Microsoft Xbox 360: 2,499
Microsoft Xbox One: 3,499
PC: 999
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