Reviews// Pro Evolution Soccer 2011

The flaws don't stop there either. Teams seem out of date, not only in terms of the starting 11 but even the kits. It's a bit of a let down when the box boasts that PES 2011 is the official video game of the England team to see the official England team are playing in the old home kit. You could argue that it was too late to add these finer details but when its main competitor is released a week earlier with the latest squads, stats and kits out of the box, you can't forgive it.

Now comes a personal gripe: the lack of licences. When I was first into the PES series I didn't mind as much. At the time EA's FIFA was so far behind it in terms of gameplay that I was just happy I was playing a video game that reflected the sport so well. However, now that EA's offering plays a fantastic game of footy with the added bonus of featuring every football club in the English league, you'll question yourself about why you're bothering with games like London FC v Man Blue. Suddenly you're left with two very good games, but only one with the authentic feel of every football club that matters, and many that don't.

Master League
Despite all this, Master League still shines through as one of my favourite footy game modes of all time. The feeling of building up your unknown players from nothing to a fully functional unit is something that will never get old. You'll soon pick out your favourite players and stick with them replacing the 'Lazy ones', and completely forgetting that you're controlling them all in the first place.

It can get frustrating at times though, with the mode constantly flinging information at you in an uninspiring way. Blocks of texts next to silly little cartoon characters of your staff put you into zombie mode and leave you bashing the 'A' button in order to get to the next match.

Online
Online works a treat this time round, with even the lower rated connections playing a relatively lag free game. I've also witnessed a far more laid back community than FIFA, with less quitting out and more friendly messages after games. It would seem that the dickheads follow the masses leaving behind genuinely nice gamers.

It's just a shame then that it's let down by the presentation and licensing. At pitch level there is so much to love. Whether it is better than FIFA or not is now a matter of opinion and not out-and-out fact. It feels a little more organic, free flowing and even realistic. But once the game moves away from the turf you're left missing that EA sheen. The clever commentary, the official licenses and the vast amount of options that PES have never even tried to compete with.

It's a matter of falling behind. While Team FIFA have had the chance to build on a good game over time, PES have had to be working on trying to make a football game that doesn't feel dated. With less time spent on experimenting it's no wonder that Konami haven't cracked 10 vs 10 online yet, and seeing how far ahead the competition is, it really feels like you're getting only half the package that you can get elsewhere.

Conclusion
PES 2011 is a huge step forward for the series and will delight fans. If you've never really got on with FIFA or are just out and out tired of it, then you finally have a decent alternative. The good news is that Konami can now focus on building on a great engine, adding and improving over time, much like EA have done over the past four years.

The bad news is that the first step in the right direction is never the biggest, and although it's a fantastic sign for the future, it still has a lot of work to do to catch up.

SPOnG Score: 78%