Man, after reading all these threads over the past few weeks, I feel really lucky to be a complete newbie to football video games.
All this talk about PES, and how it's lost its way in the current generation, and how FIFA is so much better now, I just don't get it. Perhaps because so few people are posting any specific examples of how FIFA's gameplay is better. It's all vague "PES keepers are crap" and "FIFA is more sim" comments, with nothing to back it up. And I'm not trying to be confrontational. I honestly am just too new to these games, and to the sport of football in general, to get where you're coming from, based on such unspecific remarks.
Here's what I know: I know that after downloading the FIFA 09 demo last year, and spending several hours with it, I walked away feeling as if the sport of football was just inscrutable to me. I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to be doing at any given moment, beyond the obvious "get the ball into the other teams net whilst keeping the other team from getting it into mine." Fast-forward to a few weeks ago, and I download the FIFA 10 demo, as well as the PES 2010 demo, to determine which game (if any) I'm going to buy. I play FIFA first. Looks great, if a little sterile. Animations are impressive. Pitch is nice. Commentary is convincing. I play several matches, and although I do manage to score some goals, I still have nearly no idea what I'm fundamentally supposed to be doing.
Then I switch to the PES demo. The first thing I notice is that the animations aren't nearly as smooth as FIFA's. Then I notice that the controls aren't quite as responsive. But there's something about it that I can't put my finger on, so I keep playing. After the first match, I play another. I begin to get used to the controls. Then I realize that something interesting is happening. I'm finally beginning to get it. I'm beginning to understand the flow of the game, how to move the ball around to create space. I also clearly begin to see which players stand out.
Now, maybe I'm talking out of my ass, but I think that says a lot about the quality of gameplay in PES versus that of FIFA. The PES demo has, in effect, succeeded in teaching me how to play football (albeit on a very basic level) where FIFA failed. I feel as though I understand the sport much better now because of the the AI in PES. That to me is enough to make up my mind on which game to buy. That, plus the fact that PES is just a lot of fun. Whereas I was able to score a goal within my first 3 matches of the FIFA demo, it took me about a dozen matches of the PES demo to score my first goal. But I was never frustrated, and I never wanted to quit playing, because I was still having fun. And that first PES goal felt so satisfying.
So, anyone who would like to educate me on why my thinking is wrong; anyone who wants to explain to me why my opinions are naive and ignorant, please feel free. I'm being serious. Please, explain to me, in terms that I'll be able to understand, why you think FIFA plays a better game of football than PES.
