[For this guest post, I am once again joined by Kurt Lewin, who previously wrote about Gran Turismo 4. You can find Kurt on twitter as @Angry_Kurt, and on the podcast he co-hosts, @NeverWatchers]
Growing up as a fan of football and video games, the argument was always which was the better football game, FIFA or Pro Evolution Soccer. These were arguments I would often get involved with, but then as I became a teenager with access for the first time to a decent PC, the answer became obvious to me… and it was neither. The real best football game is Football Manager.
Football Manager (FM) is a long running football management series (it even used to be under the name of Championship Manager) from Sports Interactive, helmed by studio director and Watford fan Miles Jacobson OBE. The 2008 iteration was the fourth entry under the FM name. If you are not familiar with FM, it really is what it says on the tin. You play as a football manager who does anything and everything you could imagine a football manager to do. You do basics like pick the team, pick tactics and buy/sell players as you would expect, but you also get involved with aspects of football such as scouting, setting training schedules, youth team development, dealing with players, team talks, contract negotiations, dealing with the board, I could go on! It is an incredibly deep simulation of what it might be like to be the gaffer of any of the 5,000 teams in the game.
People sometimes accuse FM of being a spreadsheet simulator, which is technically accurate as you do spend a lot of time navigating menus, with only the matches introducing anything in the way of graphics via the game’s match engine (still 2D at this point). Navigating menus sounds very dull but I can assure you that it is anything but boring. Google ‘Football Manager’ and you will find numerous stories of players being entranced by FM, such is the grip this game series has on football fans around the globe. It has made stars of football players who haven’t turned out to be that great as players in real life — Freddy Adu and Cherno Samba being famous examples.
The big appeal of FM is how it allows every player to create their own story of glory or despair. For me in my FM2008 save, I of course chose my favourite team Derby County, who I took from the Championship to 8th in the Premier League. It took me many seasons to get there and it might not seem that impressive but let me tell you with the budget I had it was a minor miracle (I sound like a real manager making excuses now)!
Along the way I signed players who would become cult heroes that I still remember to this day despite them never coming to much in real life. There was my midfield Scottish powerhouse duo of Jamie McCluskey and Brian Kerr who provided a stable anchor in midfield to allow the flair players of Clint Dempsey and Steed Malbranque to do their thing in attack. I would become so attached to my players that when I sold one, I would often search for them in the game to see how they were doing at their new club. Had I made a mistake in selling him? I wonder why he’s not getting game time? These were all questions rattling around my head not just whilst playing it but in daily life. I am a keen walker/hiker and would often lose myself in thoughts of tactics, line ups and potential signings. The real sign of a FM nutter is when you are playing out press conferences in your head, any self-respecting FM fan will admit to this!
Each iteration of FM is more of an evolution than revolution on the existing formula, with an annual development cycle this is to be expected. Indeed the last major update came in 2009 with the 3D match engine. So there was little to mark out 2008 as a standout title in the franchise, but I will always hold a special place in my heart for being my first. Whilst it was certainly not my last, I have now gone on a FM hiatus until the time I retire. At which point I think I will be giving Pep Guardiola a run for his money in terms of time spent in the manager’s office and training ground, albeit virtually.
Top of the charts for week ending 20 October 2007:
