32 MCV 04/09/09
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GENRE FOCUS: FOOTBALL GAMES crop up on a seemingly yearly basis (see Football Dynasty), yet today a new football IP is a very rare treat. Ubisoft is the first publisher in a long while that’s attempting to crack the lucrative football market with its Academy of Champions. Instead of going head-to-head with EA and Konami, the firm is developing an entrylevel football game for Wii. “I believe the football genre needs a shake up,” says Ubisoft senior brand manager Phil Brannelly. “A bit of new blood, vision or ideas can never hurt a genre so completely controlled by only two options. Imagine if there were only two options in the FPS market. The opportunity and size of the market is there, all we need to do is
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to match the high quality of their rivals, while also splashing out on official licences, player endorsements, marketing activity and more. GREATEST SPORT IN THE WORLD
The rewards for creating a successful football game can be immense. Millions of people play football video games every year, and there are over two billion fans of the sport worldwide for publishers to tap into. This love and passion for the sport is highly unlikely to change any time soon. “Football is the world’s greatest sport,” adds Meredith. “I can’t think of a more collective and emotional event for a group of people than a football match. Individuals are dedicated to the
Football matters. Watching people playing PES, baiting and goading – you’ll see why there’s so much love for the game. Jon Murphy, Konami
put the fun back in to it, like Sensible Soccer did back in the ‘90s. “Going head-to-head with FIFA and Pro Evo would take immense amounts of investment, not only in the licensing side of things and development costs, but also with the marketing investment that would be needed to drag the fans of those titles away and join your side. It would almost be like trying to get a Man Utd fan to support Man City, and I would guess even the few hundred million pounds of investment City have enjoyed this year probably still wouldn’t work.”
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game and the team that they support. These are never-changing constants in their lives.” Murphy concludes: “Football matters. It can make or spoil a week; tip or raise a mood in a split-second. Watch two people playing PES, baiting and goading each other, and you will see in a nutshell why there is so much love for the game.”
Turn the page for a complete history of football games
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE FOOTBALL GAME? Miles Jacobson Sports Interactive “The original Football Manager on the ZX Spectrum. Without it, I wouldn’t be doing what I do now.” Jon Murphy Konami
“Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 – it is the return of the king!” Roy Meredith Beautiful Games Studios “Sensible World of Soccer – it marked the beginning of a major new rise in football games, and was outstandingly original. It’s legendary. Also, I have to mention Kick Off 2 and Champ Man 2, as I’ve given so much of my life to those two games.” Phill Brannelly Ubisoft “Can I have three? Match Day on my Spectrum 48k for the memories, Sensible Soccer for just sheer postpub fun and FIFA 09 because it’s brilliant!”
MANAGEMENT GENRE
It is also challenging to break into the management genre, as Jacobson explains: “Anyone new coming into the market must compete with very established brands, teams, and code bases. It would be difficult for someone starting from scratch with no experience in the genre – to come in and be able to compete – unless they could bring something very new and innovative to it. But if they could, they’d need to bring something new to football, too!” The football genre is certainly a tough and risky market to enter. Publishers need to spend millions on development
An excited Rooney after scoring his 101st goal, as seen on the cover of FIFA 10