Winning Eleven or Pro Evolution,
call it what you will, but soccer fans know it as EA’s FIFA franchise’s largest
rival. Konami’s soccer game has long been an overseas best-seller, doing Madden
numbers in Europe and elsewhere and providing some stiff competition to EA’s
offering. The series was quite viable on the PS2 and Xbox, but has struggled to
find its legs on current high-def systems.
Last year’s entry to the PES
franchise sold extremely well, but many would find it to be one of the weakest
additions to the series in several years, with lousy graphics and weak gameplay
bogging it down while EA’s rival FIFA series continues to gain steam both
critically and commercially. This year’s PES title, Pro Evolution Soccer 2009,
takes steps to fix some of the issues of its predecessor, adding in some cool
new modes and features. However, the franchise still has a long uphill battle if
it wants to depose FIFA as the number one soccer game, as the improvements made
to PES 2009 don’t quite have what it takes to make this the soccer game to
get this year, as the graphics and gameplay still have a ways to go.
The fundamentals of PES 2009 are
basically the same as they are in previous iterations of the franchise. The
gameplay is slower and more deliberate than FIFA, with a pretty fluid pace that
allows skilled players to pull of some complex strategies and great looking
shots. While the game’s fundamentals are solid and what fans of the series have
come to appreciate, anyone expecting a revolution will be disappointed.
PES 2009 adds some pretty compelling
new features for the hardcore fans of the series. The game now has Champions
League licensing, making for the first actual such license to be featured in the
franchise. The Champions League allows you to play as 13 teams from this year’s
tournament, and features some key sponsorships to add that authentic feel. This
mode really gets the royal treatment in the game, with a TV-style presentation
that makes a fine attempt to catch the look and the feel of the event.
Another new element is the Become A
Legend mode. Obviously an attempt to take on FIFA’s Be A Pro feature, Become A
Legend puts you in the shoes of a single player during a match, creating them
and deciding on their team and position. While this is a nice touch to the
game’s formula, there are some issues that prevent it from really being a
competitor to FIFA’s mode. For starters, you cannot actually get points for
performing your position well as you can in FIFA 09, only moving up to better
teams in a way of succeeding. Your character stays pretty stagnant through the
mode, which makes it feel like a largely uninspired attempt.
On the plus side, the game’s edit
mode is pretty deep and complex. The game lets you create your own teams,
players and even stadiums, and offers robust customization features to let you
get just what you want. You can also edit the teams within the game, allowing
you to update them how you see fit. PES 2009 also supports the Xbox LIVE Vision
Camera, letting you import your own face onto a player or create and import your
own club logos for custom teams.
Graphically, PES 2009 is an
improvement from last year’s disappointing looker, but still doesn’t look nearly
as good as FIFA 09. The game’s framerate has been cleaned up quite a bit, as the
bouts of slowdown that plagued last year’s game have been fixed. However, the
character models still look pretty lousy and the crowds are decidedly last-gen.
The animation is also quite disappointing.
Soundwise, the game is also pretty
disappointing. The menu music feels very generic and lacking, and the commentary
is just plain awful, many times completely missing the mark in terms of the
on-screen action and feeling phoned in on the part of John Champion and Mark
Lawrenson.
Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 adds some
nice features for fans of the series, but feels very dated. If you’re a fan of
the PES franchise’s core mechanics and don’t mind playing a game that largely
feels like it did last year, then you should enjoy PES 2009, but everyone else
will probably want to give FIFA 09 a try.
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Gameplay: 7.5
The core gameplay elements are pretty much the same as they were last year.
The new Champions League mode is nicely implemented, but the Become A Legend
feature feels tacked on.
Graphics: 7.0
The game moves at a smoother pace than PES 2008, but the lousy player
models, weak animation and bad looking crowds have returned.
Sound: 6.0
The menu music sounds generic and the commentary is uninspired and poorly
implemented.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept: 7.0
The new Champions League feature is a nice addition, but the core mechanics
are the same as last year and the Become A Legend mode feels tacked on and
uninspired.
Multiplayer: 6.5
The Become A Legend mode is playable online with 3 other players (only
against an AI opponent), and there are one-on-one matches, but the overall feel
can get pretty laggy and frustrating.
Overall: 7.0
PES 2009 is an improvement over last year’s game, albeit a very minor one.
If the PES franchise wants to stay competitive against FIFA, they certainly have
their work cutout for them.
