Many people can’t see the appeal of management games because there is no direct action. You can not see the character yo
Gameplay Taking no active part in the playing of the football match it’s hard to describe the gameplay but I can certainly say that it is addictive. Unlike many of the other managing games when you watch a match the same things do not always happen which (to my knowledge) is a first in such a game. You have the team talk option which plays a large part in the gameplay with a bad team talk leading to your downfall & a good one leading to a fantastic victory. The team talk isn’t completely random however. It is linked with what you have said to your players leasing up to the match & how you’ve presented your team to the media. This brings up the interaction part of the game. Should you take a dislike to your opposing number you can play mind games with them which can completely trip their team up before your next match against them or like me you can just slag them off. For example, everyone who isn’t a Chelsea fan thinks that José Mourinho is a jerk & when talking to the media you can say that “I hope his team crashes & burns” which brings up the subsequent screen in the news section “[Insert your name here] has told skysports.com that he will take much delight in beating Mourinho’s team & he & all the [Insert your clubs name here] fans will revel in them failing in all competitions they participate in.” Which inevitably brought a smile to my face? There are many features that I could have mentioned but I thought this was as good as any, and it is little things like this that sets this game apart from the others & makes the experience all the more fun.
Audio/Visual
As one would expect there is nothing to test the power of your console here as the game focuses on charts & progression & results. But there is a nice sheen to the whole look of the game which is pleasing to the eye. In sound there is again nothing much in the game to produce the sound. When watching the match you can hear the roar of the crowd which is a nice touch but you could live without it.
Multiplayer This seems like a pointless addition to a managing game because all you can do is...well...er...manage your team which isn’t a particularly exciting prospect, but if you want to prove to your mates that you could take your club to the top better than the current manager this might be a bit of fun. You can set up a league against your mates as well which can be a laugh but it’s not a feature that will excite the mind.
Longevity If you like these sort of games you will be only to happy to while away the hours, but looking at statistics, progress reports & transfer lists can become boring so you may only be able to take this game in short bursts but as I said it all falls down to how you react to this sort of game
Achievements In short, don’t bother. You have the relatively easy ones like “Sign a player” which gets you a whopping...1g & there are a few achievements like this. Others are ridiculously hard like “Get a club from the lowest league into the highest league” which takes a long time & is a lot of hard work for a measly 40g. Others you will unlock in time like “win a cup” etc but none that provide a high yield.
Overall A very solid game that I can’t get enough of but others might not really get into the swing of it. Put simply; if you’ve never played give it a go. If you liked the previous ones you’ll love this one & if you didn’t like the previous ones there is nothing here to make you want this one.