FM 2010 Demo

Well, the next iteration of Football Manager is nearly upon us. I've been suckered into buying bought just about every version since I was first seduced by the charms of Championship Manager 2 and, sure enough, the demo of FM 2010 is drawing me in...


...so, what is better about FM 2010? Well, the GUI is the first thing you'll notice, and it does seem to be easier to navigate, although there are still some things like manager options that take some finding. Then there is the speed - difficult to compare, but does seem to be improved. The match engine definitely produces a more realistic game, despite still looking like something from about ten years ago, although the addition of crowds certainly adds to the immersion. I have had the odd pause where the game seems to get 'stuck' for a few seconds and the players dance around on the spot, but hopefully that will be dealt with in the final release, or a patch. The best new feature though (although I've not yet checked out them all) is the post-match analysis, which enables you to check every shot, pass, tackle etc. that every player made. Cool.

My enjoyment of FM is slightly weird given that I've lost almost all interest in the real game in recent years, but somehow it means so much more when that team you are watching is all your own work. I guess that is a testament to the believability of the virtual world that Sports Interactive have created, and FM 2010 definitely seems to have ratcheted it up a notch.

Looks like Sports Interactive will once again be parting me with my money this year...