I think this game almost needs a new overhaul.
1. Cutscenes
Watch the opening of a match on PES2010, now if you still have PES6(WEPES2007 for NA members) pop it in. Now you'll get the picture. The funny part is, even though the former has the same entrance scene as the latter, PES6's intro is more detailed as it has cameramen on the pitch. Some matches even showed the starting XI's posing before the match, or a blimp overhead view of the stadium before the match. How was this taken away when the new generation could, nay should have more going on.
I know this isn't gamebreaking, but it's an eyesore and needs to be abolished for the current generation.
The game needs variety, different intro for the NT and club aspects of the game. i.e. A clip of teams national anthems being played before the match begins, showing the captains shake hands and exchange banners before the coin toss. Better yet why not have the coin toss before the game begins as is, I don't know about you but I'm tired of EVERY SINGLE MATCH having the home team start left to right, it gets boring and monotonous. If possible have the players enter the pitch with holding hands with kids like IRL.
The injured player cutscene is another antique, if it's a severe injury have the medical staff come check the player out, show him getting on the stretcher, show him getting treatment on the sidelines, don't just have the player just sitting down like a mindless drone.
Put some real personality into the game, don't make it look and feel so robotic.
2. Animations
Yes new animations have been added but some of the REAL OLD ones are still around lurking in the shadows. Before I get to the fielders animation I want to touch on goalkeepers.
Goalkeeping animations have barely changed since I started playing the PES series, starting with WE8 (PES4 for the Euros). There is NO VARIETY IN GOALIES WHATSOEVER, THEY'RE ALL PRETTY MUCH THE SAME.
Each and every goalkeeper has the same skillset and have the same animations. Just like certain players can only pull off certain maneuvers so should goalies.
First of all reaction, jumping ability and aggressiveness should have a huge affect on goal keepers. Some goalies like to come off their lines more than others during set pieces, 1 on 1's and even PK's i.e. I always hear commentators talk about Spurs goalkeeper Gomes being sort of wild and taking more chances coming off his line which could both have a positive and negative effect for his team.
There needs to be more animations in how goalies scoop up the ball during non-threatening situaions, I'm tired of seeing my goalie dive like he's saving a screamer when I'm lightly heading the ball with my defender or when the opposing teams longball just goes into the penalty area. 2-5 easygoing pick up situations should be made for the keeper.
A sense of urgency, I constantly see VDS rush a throw to one of United's wingbacks or get a quick longball for Rooney(when he's not in the backfield himself) or Berbatov to begin a counter attack when the opposing team has a lot of bodies on one side of the field. This is a real strategy that unfortunately isn't in PES
Goalies attributes cannot be the same as fielders. They need their own ratings and skill set. i.e. Say VDS has a 90 rating for short passes, it should be the equivalent to a fielder with a 60-70 pass rating, instead of having a 30-40 rating and making terrible passes to another player. Same goes for long passing, footwork, etc.
Now onto the rest of the players. I'd like more collision detection within' the game. Yes I know it's the game but it sucks, a player like SWP can get by everyone by sticking his little scrawny arm out and no one is able to get around him. I'll touch more on this later on when I talk about ratings.
This game should literally have hundreds of ball trapping animations, the football is always coming to a player from a different angle, the players position, and his footwork ratings should tie in how he should receive the ball.
Same goes for one-touch passing, crossing, etc.
Shooting animations should be revamped to, many of times I think I have enough time and space to take a shot from 25 yards only for my player to take 8 days to shoot the ball and have it blocked from a defender, there should be some type of awareness rating to kick in where if a player sees or "feels" the defense approaching him, they should rush their shot, of course it would lead to an inaccurate shot but at least he can try to get it out before he's closed down and loses the ball giving the other team a chance to counter attack.
More type of shots would also change the trajectory of the ball, i.e. on volleys, lobs, screamers etc. I'm tired of firing up a 20-25 yarder that goes in a straight line to the keeper, I want to see the ball dive, dip and change directions.
Different types of running strides within the preset running animations, I'm sorry but a players running motion in the beginning of a 60yd run is different at the end. Add some kind of momentum type physics that show players over pursuing a ball, i.e. trapping the ball then slipping, not getting enough acceleration and losing the ball to the sideline/byline, etc.
3. Commentary and crowd sound effects
The less said about them the better.....
4. Presentation
Another doozy. There should be more stat overlays throughout the game. i.e. possession time, shots taken, distance ran by a player, passes completed, total games, goals a player has had with the team or within a past or present season.
Bring back the ability to change the way the camera follows the action, why should I need KitServer to do it for me?
Why did the PS2 versions of the game have a more detailed halftime/fulltime game reports? Why are we not able to see how many passes my LB has made when I pause the game at any given moment. PES is the ONLY sports game I know that doesn't have the current game stats readily available at any moment you pause the game. Maybe I'm just a spoiled Yank but our Baseball, American Football, Basketball and Hockey games have had this feature since I was in grade school.
I guess I'll tie this into presentation as well, players need more accessories. You see players wearing jerseys with 3/4 sleeves, Underarmo(u)r. You see players with either turtlenecks or neck warmers. Players wearing what almost seems like full leggings during winter matches. Tattoos, again why should this be a mod, not all players wear tats and only a few big names have them, throw them in there as well. Sock heights, tape lengths, even kit size, some players uniforms are baggier than others, i.e. Rooney wearing bigger sized shirt and pants compared to Giggs who's uniform is fitted.
Last but not least...
5. Gameplay
Where do I begin?
-Ratings
The player cards were a great and vastly needed addition be we need more player ratings.
Ball trapping, composure, defensive/offensive awareness and influence.
More discrepancy between ratings for players that can play other positions.
-Physics
They should be fair on both sides, as I touched on before, SWP taking an entire team on his own. Meanwhile the same SWP looks at C. Ronaldo the wrong way and he easily loses the ball. WTF is that??
There needs to be real battles and a players weight, height, speed and body balance rating should help it, not whatever the AI decides.
I'll give you an example, Aaron Lennon was taking on Evra and Vidic AT THE SAME TIME!! and I could not for the life of me dislodge the ball from him. On the other side, Tom Huddlestone was consistently catching up to Nani and Valencia like he was Usain Bolt in a fat suit and football boots. Of course there are times where the AI does this to your favor, but ratings and a player/teams defensive awareness should determine this.
Weather and wind should also be more immersed in the game. I don't really have to explain this.
Pitch degradaton, C'mon....
Well this is what I can think of for the moment, there's probably more on my mind that I can't think about at the moment but I will update this post when they pop up.