PES 08 was was the begining of the end, because they started really ramping up this teamvision bolllocks.
Remember this garbage by Konami???
It went something like
"You cant keep doing the same tactics because they AI adapts to your style of play"
When it really was
"We'll just ramp up the AI capabilities above yours+ add scripting so you cant win every game".
Bad news is, this crap is going to be in pes2010, but they reckon they've re done it this time.
hmmmmmmmmm
I remember when I 1st read that, I was LMAO because it made no sense to me. Clearly flawed... How is it possible that you cannot use the same Tactics every time??
Barcelona - do they change their tactics when they play against Man Utd or Chelsea?? No, they always play to their strengths, they always play their game.
Chelsea - do they change their tactic when they play against Barcelona?? Yes, because they know Barcelona is superior at playing Possession Football. So in turn, they change into more Anti-Football tactics. In an effort to intimidate smaller and more skillful players, trying to stop the flow of the play and relying on Long Ball Tactics.
Which is To Date, a huge flaw of PES - the Formation and Strategies determines how your Team plays. There is barely no difference between Barcelona and Chelsea, AC Milan or Man Utd, etc, etc. This is something that should be dictated by each Individual's Stats... in other words each individual's Strengths.
PES needs New Stats and Special Abilities, it's that simple... Perhaps the PS2 could not handle anymore Stats -but- the PS3 certainly can handle more Stats and Special Abilities than PES4.
My suggestion on this matter is...
Konami should implement New Stats and Special Abilities, they need to upgrade their Foundations... they need to get rid of the old and one-dimensional "Arrows System". They should implement an in-game Gauge for Confidence Level and for Stamina.
The Confidence Level will dictate How the Momentum Shifts throughout a game, actively changing (going up and down) throughout the course of a game. Therefore dictating How Your Team moves off-the-ball, which is something that (to date) we have no control of.
We have control of choosing different options, in terms of Strategies. How well your players execute whatever strategy you want to use?? Entirely dictated by the COM.
In addition to this, logically, Konami should implement New Tactical Stats to determine How Good an individual is at moving off-the-ball. Which again is something that (to date) we cannot control.
And in addition to this, some Work Rate Stats to determine how much an individual Runs Off-the-Ball. And also another Stat for Player Demands, to determine how much of a "superstar" an individual is.
The Work Rate and Awareness Stats + Consistency and Mentality Stats + Player Demands Stat -would- be the Key Stats to dictate how the Confidence Level Gauge works for each individual.
How well you move and How much you move -are- completely different things, that we should never determine. Player Demands are also another thing that we cannot determine.
Yes we should have the option of sending more than One player on attacking runs -BUT- we should not "manually" control those runs. It's very easy to have great Awareness if you're seeing every gap from The Wide View Perspective
How well an individual executes your thoughts should be down to Stats and STATS only. Otherwise the game becomes an arcade affair, with barely any differences between Individuals and Teams... everything becomes repetitive very quickly.
Player Demands?? In a Team full of "superstars" everyone wants a piece of the ball; Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Henry, Eto'o. Therefore, if you over-use Leo Messi -this- would result in other Key Players having "Low Confidence" because they are not touching the ball enough.
This is the price of managing Big Teams full of superstars. And it certainly isn't an issue in smaller Teams. No one haves a problem with Antonio Cassano in Sampdoria, he is the big fish in there and his team-mates are fully aware of that.
However in a Team like Real Madrid you have a lot of EGOS and you have to find a way of making those "egoes" work successfully as a unit. Which is not as easy as it looks.
It is also worth mentioning that Player Demands would vary depending on the Role and Stats of each individual.
Riquelme is not flexible with his approach to the game, he plays his game and that's it, you force him into playing in the Wings or as a Second Striker -and- that will not have a positive effect on Riquelme. Therefore Riquelme haves High Player Demands in that he only likes to play One Role.
Ronaldinho would not be "ok" if he was employed in a deeper role that requires Defensive effort, and deprives him from attacking play. etc, etc.
All this together would force us into having a Realistic Balance in the Team.
Bottom Line??
Konami needs to replace their very one-dimensional "Arrows" System -with- a new system that continuously changes in-game. This system could very easily dictate the Momentum Shifts, and should complement with a gauge for Stamina and a stat for Player Demands.
This would add a whole new layer of substance to the gameplay, new elements of Team Chemistry amongst other things... forcing us to play with different players, and avoiding the over-use of players like Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Encouraging Collective Play.
This are the types of gimmicks that Konami should start implementing into their game. And of course, Motion Capture is a must in this day and age. And no comment on the 8-Directional Movement... it obviously needs to be upgraded.
The Random Feel of PES?? Football is random and unpredictable by nature. Even if the game is 100% based on Skill, it would still feel random.
That's my two cents on the whole "Scripting" debate. It happens in real life and should be a part of every Football Sim... but we must have the power of Manipulating how the Momentum Shifts in-game. Which is something we cannot do at the moment.
PS - Apologies to anyone offended or annoyed by long posts.
