Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 Review

They told us it would be good, they said it would be revolutionary but it was all false hope. Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 was a shambles. The controls were stodgy, the animations were jagged and it felt out-dated in comparison to Fifa. However, if you based your opinions of the game by my review then are probably thinking I'm a hypocrite. I gave PES 2010 a ludicrously high score and I've regretted it ever since. This year, as much as I love PES I played the newest game level minded, no bias; and this year I can assure you, although it's not flawless it sure isn't terrible.

Let's be honest here, football games are never, ever going to be remotely realistic unless they come bundled with a strip of turf. You will never get the atmosphere, the excitement or the mud that you do with the real beautiful game. However, if you want fluidity and how Konami call it: "Engineered for Freedom", then you won't be disappointed. 

Just booting up the game gives you a sense of how much has changed. The menus, the music and all the other visuals have been re-vamped. Most of the older games fell into the same trend of keeping the same boring text and menu setup but this simply isn't the case for 2011.

I wanted to get into a game straight away so I booted up a match within seconds using the exhibition mode. No more long waiting times it's pretty much tap one button and you are surrounded in the stadium aura. One thing I noticed straight from the off was the sheer detail in the stadiums and pitches. It's clear to see that there has been a terrific amount of effort in the design of each stadium where most are almost identical to the real thing.

A big change that I noticed seconds into the first game was the addition of a new co-commentator, Jim Belgin. He's famous for doing some of the commentary for the Olympics and used to play for Ireland back in the day. It's extremely refreshing to hear someone new come onto the commentary team as prior to PES 2011, commentators said the same things over and over making the game age very quickly. This year much like Fifa, PES has focused on getting the commentators more involved with the game. Player names, team names and stadium names are noted a lot more during the game. One problem that I found was that on occasion the commentators layered over each other's speech as well as a lack of commentary i.e. complete silence after goals. It's nothing a simple patch can't fix I'm sure but still the issue is there.

As you start the game it is obvious to see all the changes. Bettering last year by a long shot, PES offers a stunning amount of fluidity. With each pass you make the animations on show are smooth and realistic, although they aren't without their flaws. Watching back on replays exposes the graphical glitches the game suffers with balls merging with player models fairly often. Setting that aside, the 1500+ animations added to the game gives it a streamlined, fluid feel when playing at a regular pace - something that can't be achieved whilst playing competitor titles.

Passes this year are sharp, accurate and realistic. If you hold the button long enough then passes will go astray and they do for the first few occasions but with practice, brilliant defence splitting passes can be achieved. This ease of passing coupled with the new 360-degree dribbling engine makes every pass just as important as the last.

One major gripe I have with the dribbling is the running. Other reviews I have read say that the players look like the run on the spot but in my opinion the running looks really jittery. For example, when a play is running with the ball to the left and right it looks like they are getting sucked towards to ball after every few steps. This action really breaks the fluidity of the game for me, although it may just be my personal opinion.

Holding a strong defence was tricky in PES 2010. The defensive line always let ball through without due care or attention but this year there is a noticeable difference in how the defence works. Instead of the defenders always running towards the ball, they hold the line making it a lot harder for the attacking players to make a simple run into the box, almost always ending in a goal.

Moving onto the game modes, Master League, the most classic of modes is back and better than ever. My experience gave me the feel that the mode seems very management based as opposed to previous versions but this is in no way a downside. This new style of Master League still incorporates all the previous playing aspects of the game just with the new management stuff thrown in. You are needed to help maintain sponsors and various staff throughout your season as well as keeping a strong fan club for the team a lot more than the previous making it vital not to fall back into the financial pits, leaving you nowhere to go.

As well as regular Master League, a new exciting addition to the game is Master League Online. This mode allows you to play out your season against players from around the world as opposed to playing only computer controlled players. As well as this, you can create your own tournaments and team up with fellow players to help them win the tricky season games. The fresh mode adds hours of gameplay as you strive to make your team the best of the best both online and off.

With further additions to the game such as a re-invigorated Become a Legend mode and relighted additions like the PES Store, Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 is a fantastic mix of what was the older, more prestigious Pro Evo and the exciting new Pro Evo, highlighting the new technology and fresh new game mechanics. With a bit of tweaking, the game could be stunning but as it stands Konami could have done a whole lot worse. Series rejuvenated? Just about.