ball. This means that PES remains a passing game, which is exactly what good football should be. New systems mean that the game feels a bit more real, but sometimes they can interfere just a little with the action. Tussles, for example, are just far too common. A nice touch added to this year’s game is the ability for players to assign and manually execute specific plays based on key areas of the pitch. It grants the player the feeling of being in control of the whole team, rather than just the footballer on the ball. Unfortunately, the biggest point that detractors of the PES franchise make returns once again this year… the lack of licenses. UEFA, Cope Libertadores and the Asian Champions League are all licensed leagues, but most of the teams and players have been replaced by facsimiles. Here is where FIFA gains the upper hand again, as well as in the areas of
the surrounding the sport, rather than the sport itself. PES is great on the pitch, but actions and activities between matches are decidedly lacklustre. The same can be said for the game that doesn’t show actual games of football. While PES shines during matches, more attention to detail and a more polished approach to interstitial activities would have benefitted the game greatly. There are some pretty big moves made by this year’s PES title, and almost all of them work towards greatly improving the player experience. Konami have done well with this iteration, capitalising on the momentum they gained with PES 2013. But until they refine certain areas of the game and manage to break EA’s iron grip on virtually every licence out there, they will battle to dominate. In this case, fans of either franchise are well justified in arguing their side. It’s a good year for PES. g
AT A GLANCE: Sports
Reviewed on:
PS3
A great step forward for the franchise, PES shines where it matters... on the pitch. Similar to: MaxPlayers Developer: Publisher: Distributer:
PES 2013, FIFA 14 Local
7
Network
Online
2
Konami Konami Ster Kinekor
Parental Advisory
4+ gamecca53
0
Violence Language Sex Drug Use Prejudice
Accessibility Hard-Core Medium Casual
Platforms
Genre:
PC X360 X0 PS3 PS4 Wii U PSV 3DS AND iOS
Score
79 75