Soccer Gaming Catch-All

Loaded the demo up, took a few tutorials, started a demo quick-start with Arsenal and was so overwhelmed with inbox decisions, coaching decisions, etc that I had to quickly exit for sanity purposes. How do I tackle this beast?

What I normally do when I load up a new game of FM is

1) Put everybody on a pre season training scheme (basically fitness) and sort out what my basic training schemes are going to be when the season starts. Auto assign coaches.

2) Flick through the team to see where it needs strengthening

3) Send out scouts

4) Flick through the transfer market for potentional signings including free agents

5) Sort out a basic formation and tactics

Once you have done all that on the first day, it only really needs tweaking every now and then

I don't plan on playing it right now but $13.39 (currently $29.99 on Steam on sale) for FM2013 was too good to pass up. Should be a similar markdown for UK/Europe. Key takes about 10 minutes to get into your library.
http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-FM2013/...

maxox wrote:

I don't plan on playing it right now but $13.39 (currently $29.99 on Steam on sale) for FM2013 was too good to pass up. Should be a similar markdown for UK/Europe. Key takes about 10 minutes to get into your library.
http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-FM2013/...

Showing as $44.97 for me

anyone willing to gift me a copy at $13.39 I'm GWJ-Prozac on GamersGate and I can paypal you, just pm me the paypal details.

Sadly it shows as £14.97, so nowhere near the $13.39. Sorry I can't help ya.

The Gamers Gate price is now up to $19.97 US which still beats the Steam price by $10.

FM2013 is also $19.99 on Amazon today (and just went up as a Flash Sale at Steam for the same price).

Treated myself to a Christmas present as I'm anxious to see what Football Manager Classic is all about. Now I just have to download updated face packs, logos, and kits.

Once again, big thanks to Psych you amazing man, with the gift of FM13!

Downloading now.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but facepacks from 2012 should work fine with 13?

Yep.

Prozac wrote:

Once again, big thanks to Psych you amazing man, with the gift of FM13!

Downloading now.

Those Australian prices are ridiculous.

FM13 from $19.99 from GMG ... 30% coupon should make it ~$14 US?
http://www.greenmangaming.com/s/us/e...

Coupon is GMG30-DPLIM-DN831

Looks like I've picked the wrong year to not buy FM
How is the game itself this year? Decent improvements in regular (not-Classic) mode?

Initially I found it very unresponsive to my tactics, which turned out to be not just my (undoubted) failings, but a common complaint on the forums - which was not helped by SI's response was that it was primarily due to people using rubbish tactics. The game has since been patched twice, and seems to be considerably more user-friendly.

I've not tried the new mode yet, but even the full game feels a little quicker to run through. Media interactions and team selections are pretty much as was, though I still find some of the functions (like searching for new players by position rather than going to their club sides) a little non-intuitive - though I may say this every year. Match engine in 3d...still not a huge fan, the ball is tiny and it's sometimes difficult to see, and although I have it set to 'key' moments, I sometimes only get 3 or 4 a game when I am having 20 shots on target.

I'm currently playing as PSG, the team are in second after 11 games, but I'm not sure about some of the stats - Ibrahimovich hasn't scored yet and he's constantly being described as looking nervous...Christ, if there is anyone who believes in himself more than that guy, I've not seen him on a football pitch.

Does anyone else start with a lower league club and fight their way to the top league/a top club? I've found that the most rewarding way to play in recent editions of FM. In FM11 (I skipped 12) I started Unemployed, Sunday League experience, and by mid-October I had a job offer from Thurrock (who?) in the English Blue Square South league (so, two leagues below League 2, 5th teir overall). In 8 seasons I was in the Premier league with a team I had built without spending any transfer fees at all. Amazing what can be done purely in the free-transfer market.

Playing this way I find allows me to concentrate on building a team with cheap players, who can play above that level. It also means you don't need to pay all that much attention to training, or advanced tactics. 4-4-2 is fine, pace is key at this level. A striker can have 8 in shooting, but rip the league apart if he has pace and acceleration to burn. I tend to start with 1 stiker, 1 Central Defender and 1 Goalkeeper as my 'big budget' signings (free transfers, and we're talking a whopping £150-£200 per week wage).

This year in FM13, same start out settings as above, I was hired by Stalybridge Celtic, this time in the Blue Square North (again, 5th teir). Promotion in the first season through the playoffs after a fantastic run-in to the end of season. Expectations were low, so the board were pretty chuffed with the result, and tend to whine a bit less the following season when I'm over the wage budget by trying to cement a solid mid-table finish, ready for a promotion push next year.

Anyway, I digress. Anyone else play this way? Even after the above, I'm not brave enough to try a career with my local team, Stirling Albion, in the Scottish 3rd Division. We're talking 0 transfer and 0 wage budget. players on £50 p/w etc. Maybe one day I'll get to grips with the absolute lowest of the low!

omnipherous wrote:

Does anyone else start with a lower league club and fight their way to the top league/a top club?

This is how I always play. Been playing since Championship manager 93 and top flight just doesn't interest me anymore. Thanks to Psych's awesome gift of FM2013 I started unemployed and am currently managing a bunch of semi-professional losers in the Korean N League. I usually play a journeyman career game travelling around the globe slowly building up my reputation. My long term goal will be to see Blyth promoted back up to Blue Square North (english 6th division) so I can take them over then build them up to the Premiership. I've set them as my favourite team and hopefully by the time they are back up in a playable league I'll have enough reputation that they'd take me on.

CM93 - noob

IMAGE(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/32/Championship_Manager_Coverart.png)

That's where it was at - when my Amiga took 45 minutes to setup a new game, and that was just 4 English divisions, random players, no international transfer market etc.

IMAGE(http://www.lemonamiga.com/games/screenshots/full/championship_manager_italia_95_01.png)

That's me

edit: but one CM related graphic I remember the most has to be that CM3 background screen:

IMAGE(http://cdn4.spong.com/screen-shot/c/h/championsh36454/_-Championship-Manager-3-PC-_.jpg)

I've still got the CM 97/98 disk on my bookshelf - I loved that version.

You can tell when you are getting old when the players you used to buy in CM are now entering careers as managers. I lost count of the number of times I bought people like Eddie Howe or Neil 'Goal Machine' Lennon.

Think I started with CHampionship Manager Italia - back when they sold entire games per country, which looks like it was also '93.

Also, Prozac - are you running any of the user-created leagues to get even lower divisions available? Or are you just hoping that the game gets Blyth promoted?

davet010 wrote:

You can tell when you are getting old when the players you used to buy in CM are now entering careers as managers. I lost count of the number of times I bought people like Eddie Howe or Neil 'Goal Machine' Lennon.

When I first discovered CM back in the late 90s, my goalie of choice was Neil Sullivan. I remember acquiring him from Wimbledon for my Blackburn squad that eventually took Europe by storm. I was shocked to discover that he is still playing at the age of 42, recently loaned by Doncaster to AFC Wimbledon. Full circle in a way.

I came into CM with 01/02. I still remember Julius Aghahowa being a ludicrously great buy, along with Ibrahim Said and Ricardo Quaresma. I think it was CM4 where Freddy Guarin had like a 200 PA for whatever reason, and was something like $1.5M to buy.

omnipherous wrote:

Think I started with CHampionship Manager Italia - back when they sold entire games per country, which looks like it was also '93.

Also, Prozac - are you running any of the user-created leagues to get even lower divisions available? Or are you just hoping that the game gets Blyth promoted?

just hoping

Of course there are lots of leagues across a lot of nations I can play a career in until then.

Any links to these mods for lower divisions?

Reading this thread made me nostalgic, so I just dug out CM00/01 box and I'm browsing through the manual. Amazingly, 90% of player attributes (along with the hidden ones) are the same as in FM 2013.

It makes me wish they were doing a bit more with tactics and player characteristics.

Prozac wrote:

Any links to these mods for lower divisions?

Absolutely, check here.

omnipherous wrote:
Prozac wrote:

Any links to these mods for lower divisions?

Absolutely, check here.

Jesus, once you get that low, what are the player ratings like?

"Oh yeah, I just signed this new striker. He's got a 3 finishing and 4 pace, he's just DESTROYING everyone right now."

SIDENOTE: Got PES 13 from GameFly. Enjoying it.

yeah, it'll probably be about that! Otherwise the whole club-reputation mechanic wouldn't function correctly. Wonder what the wage budget is

Even in the BSN/S levels, I've had players that contracts expired, but they continued to hang around, getting £5 per week. They literally wouldn't go away, even when the club turned full time, they remained on their non contract fiver.

omnipherous wrote:
Prozac wrote:

Any links to these mods for lower divisions?

Absolutely, check here.

Hrrrmmm. Downside to that being I'd need to scrap my current game to fire up that new database. Don't get me wrong I'm downloading it, with plans of playing some extreme LLM in hte future, but I think I'll hope Blyth yo-yo's back up.

ahh, I presume it can't be included in the 'adding/removing leagues' that they introduced in recent versions then.. gutted.

Having said that, In the grand scheme of an FM career, you're still in the early stages on your current game

Yeah, after picking up 6 points in my first two games I went in for some mind games that backfired horribly and I've been on a losing run with some pretty horrendous margins.

Luckily There's no relegation from the Korean N League and the Board's expectations are that I enjoy the experience of competing in the N League, so finishing last shouldn't get me the sack since I came in mid season 2nd from the bottom.

I really dislike the team-talks/pre-match meetings. They can have a HUGE impact on the next number of matches, even if you chose an option that you think should get people fired up, you get 'appeared to switch off'.. I'm sure if a Man U player 'switched off' during a team talk, Fergie would rip them a new one.

I don't think you can have such seemingly large impact mechanics at play when there are only a few options to choose from (granted, there are more options this time, but still not many). I also DON'T want to comment on each and every manager before and after every game to 'build a relationship' with them. They're an AI representation of a manager, why would I want to have a relationship with them?

I guess that's why they've introduced the 'Classic' mode, I just can't force myself to select it as I'll feel like I'm missing out on something. Yes, I do want to have my cake, and eat it.