FIFA/EASFC and PES/eFootball: Contrast & Compare

Rather than compare the games its better to compare the players.
There are several types

PES apologist who will find any way to defend the game no matter how many videos there are of issues - the most recent one today where the striker misses from 10mm from goal.
The FIFA haters - always have to comment on how bad FIFA is weather they've played it or not - normally refer to it as "the other game" - Typically it goes like "yeah PES is bad this year at shooting...but still better than the other game..its shit!"
The PES dreamers - still convinced PES 6 is the best football game ever made
The neutrals - the people who just play which game they think is better after giving both games a fair go - a months solid play as a minimum.
I put myself in the neutral camp, enjoying FIFA this year, last year it was PES.
 
hitmanuk said:
I put myself in the neutral camp, enjoying FIFA this year, last year it was PES.
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This is me this year. FIFA this year, PES last. Everytime I try to give PES a fair shot, there is a moment of "oh ok, this is good" followed by 3 moments of "da***n you ***" Its just not for me this year. Thankfully FIFA provide sliders that I can suite to my gameplay difficulty (on PES im stuck between pro, too easy; TP, good games followed by a scripting mess)
 
Let's try to keep to the topic and keep an open mind without insults or stirring, please. You know who you are.

On-topic, and talking of "neutrals"... I spent four hours of my life last night playing football games. FIFA 17, PES 17, FIFA 18, PES 18.

My honest opinion - and I've spent hundreds, if not thousands, of gameplay across all of them (50/50 after playing more PES last year and more FIFA this year)... I just can't enjoy any of them any more (and Football Manager doesn't replace them).

FIFA 17 on Professional is a pretty balanced game with the right sliders - and the AI has more realistic patterns of play. But it's too easy, Legendary removes any illusion of variety between matches, and there's something missing compared to 18 (it feels more stiff in comparison).

FIFA 18's AI defenders are absolute arseholes. In-fact, nothing in FIFA has ever pissed me off as much as the blatant cheating/scripting in older PES games (hence why I ever gave FIFA a chance) - until now. I'm playing a 2vAI career with a friend, on Professional, and it's stupid.

I could write paragraphs about it, but in football you see so many moments where a player in a tight situation has the touch to squeeze past a defender and get himself a 1-on-1. In FIFA 18, a ball to feet anywhere close to a defender will be won by the defender. (By which I mean AI - human defending is IMPOSSIBLE.)

I feel like my players are on drugs (and I don't mean steroids, I mean sleeping pills). They'll win the ball off the AI, stabbing it away, but they never get possession back because they can't run with - or hold off - the other player. Defending is a nightmare anyway, but even when you do win the ball, all you're doing is delaying the AI's attack for a few seconds, because they re-win the ball back half the time.

As for the AI - look. It's terrible. Every team does the same thing - in the first two-thirds, it's "immediately pass forwards QUICK QUICK QUICK". Like a Sunday League team (gifted with incredible accuracy), every team just goes route one.

But in the final third, suddenly they turn into Barcelona. Triangle-passing, tiki-taka nonsense until they can set up a tap-in. Why? Because the AI knows the holes in the code and that's how to win. Diabolical code.

All of this being said...

PES 2017 and 2018 both rely on a system I really don't like, which is pass accuracy being perfect and the only loss of possession being caused by a defender intercepting a pass when his attributes outweigh the passer's.

I liked 2017 regardless because of the importance of the individual, and yet tactics made a massive difference too. 2018 is just first-time passes galore, a footballing masterclass from the likes of Brighton and Bolton. For me, it's the worse game.

But 2017 was rigid, and I ended up quitting because of one Europa League match I had that exhibited the absolute worst of the game. Every time I played it, I could feel how stiff and slow-to-respond my players were, because that's just how the game interprets attributes. A better team than you = your team become useless. When you witness that, I don't know how you then go back to playing it, because you know it's pointless.

PES 2018 though - for me, it's further away from football than ever. If you love Barcelona and that kind of football I can see why you'd love the game, but any kind of variety and genuine interpretation of different styles has gone, in my eyes. Super-fast, flowing, first-time-passing, backheeling nonsense. Shooting is so watered down that I don't feel like I'm taking a risk shooting with one guy opposed to any other (e.g. a defender instead of a world-class striker).

TL;dr: if you think either game is perfect, or close to perfect, you're dismissing real problems. Nothing wrong with preferring one to the other (I still prefer FIFA because I think it simulates more), but at the end of the day, you like it because it's different. Not better.
 
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guru83 said:
Both games are terrible this year.

PES: A lack of in depth career mode (again), simplistic shooting mechanics, lack of matchmaking options in multiplayer, it still looks and feels like a PS3 game. PES has no depth anymore, it's propped up by a small group of die hards that refuse to buy it's competitor because PES was so good back in the day. But those days are long gone.

FIFA: It's still too fast and always will be because EA are weirdos that think football actually flows like that. Game is still ridiculously easy with and without sliders, full time scores are laughable, the ball doesn't look or feel right (too small for a start, it's like a Size 4 not a 5), it still lacks midfield play and is all about tricks, flicks and Ronaldo.

Both games being so bad have actually been a good thing for me though. I've gone back to 'proper' gaming and I am having a blast. Playing lots of multiplayer team oriented games and not feeling stressed out or depressed like I do whenever I play Pro Evo and FIFA.

We desperately need a new company to come along and make a football game with a deep career mode, which isn't concerned about micro transactions in silly fantasy card games and doesn't pander to its crowd of 15 year olds that are desperate for up-to-date player faces over a realistic, playable football game. But that will never happen.

It's over, for now.
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I don't think they are terrible, but both games are way behind what they could achieve in 2018 on Ps4 and Xbox One.

The fact is Pes is totally irrilevant to Fifa and EA, so EA can keep tweaking the same gameplay over and over and people with sliders are even happy they can somehow customize the gameplay even if at basic level it's barely changed.

Pes, well, Pes is stalling so much since Pes 2015. Here too, some tweaks here and there but dev team should revolutionize the game, to give a shock to the series and to make EA fear its return. This way even Fifa will advance at a much quicker way.

It seems now EA and KONAMI are happy with their games though, and we are losing as customers.
 
bluewomble88 said:
Me too in general. Guru just bashing these games constantly looking for people to agree with him. If he hates them so much, why is he wasting so much time here?
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It’s just his opinion.

Some come in here and hate FIFA but love PES and get slaughtered.

Some come in here and hate PES but love FIFA and get slaughtered.

Some hate both and get slaughtered.

I’m sure Guru would much prefer to love both games. Sometimes its just a case of letting off steam.

I played FIFA the other day because i am reading some positive posts. Playing a CM full manual on professional but it is still not clicking for some reason.

Then i read some positive posts about PES. Seeing videos of a manager getting sacked. So i joined PESUniverse to download their option file. I havent had a chance to play yet but having read a lot of the negative posts about the over powered shooting again. It reminded me of why i dont play the new PES. So i probably won’t bother.

I think some of us that have loved PES and FIFA for so long are so frustrated because both games are not up to scratch. So we come in here to let off some steam. I’m genuinly pleased that people love both or one or the other. I really wish i could enjoy one of them and ignore the faults. I keep trying, but i cannot.
 
Honestly I'm having a great fun with both games modded.
You could argue that by modding a game it kinda become something else, but in 2014-15-16 I hated with a fueled passion all the Pes and no mod saved the games. So there must be something good in the base after all..

Anyway, yes we had way worst editions for both games years ago. I think objectively this year isn't as bad as it sounds, it's just that people is expecting one of the two games to finally make a major qualitative step up, to realize some big revolution.. I can't really blame you as I'm always hoping for the same, but unless something in the market changes, it's not going to happen unfortunately, not in the measure we'd love..
 
Madmac79 said:
Honestly I'm having a great fun with both games modded.
You could argue that by modding a game it kinda become something else, but in 2014-15-16 I hated with a fueled passion all the Pes and no mod saved the games. So there must be something good in the base after all..

Anyway, yes we had way worst editions for both games years ago. I think objectively this year isn't as bad as it sounds, it's just that people is expecting one of the two games to finally make a major qualitative step up, to realize some big revolution.. I can't really blame you as I'm always hoping for the same, but unless something in the market changes, it's not going to happen unfortunately, not in the measure we'd love..
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That word in bold makes a big difference ;)
 
Madmac79 said:
True, but I think no mod could really save a total, complete mess of a base. I'm also not really sure that who hates the games on console would enjoy play the modded versions on pc.
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I haven't played the pc versions but i read PES threads regarding a patch that makes less scripting, or the FIFA threads which mention patches that bring extra fouls. Things like that would make a difference to myself personally.

The scripting (and shooting) puts me off PES, so if that could be toned down a little on console then i would give it a bash. And when i first played FIFA i was one of the ones saying that the free kick count was fine. But in recent games i hardly get any free kicks now.

Anything that would change the games slightly i am willing to give a go. I used the word “hate” but that is too strong. I should have said “dislike”. :)
 
@Madmac79, i just read your post in the PES2018 PC thread saying that stats now matter and there is more freedom with the patch and mod you are using. I am slightly jealous :(
 
geeeeee said:
@Madmac79, i just read your post in the PES2018 PC thread saying that stats now matter and there is more freedom with the patch and mod you are using. I am slightly jealous :(
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I don't know man, I've been playing this patch since yesterday and it really is blowing my mind. It changes stuff here and there that end up making an enormous difference at least for me. Stamina on top of that all, it varies the dynamics of the match in a way that didn't seem possible to me before.
Stats to me used to matter even before by the way, but with the patch making the game a bit more free and random, and the stamina being influent, now they are a bit more evident indeed..

I'm truly sorry, by the way, that passionate guys like you can't have this possibilities on console.. that's also why I'd love a more customizable game by default for everybody.. the same could be said for Fifa of course..
 
Madmac79 said:
I don't know man, I've been playing this patch since yesterday and it really is blowing my mind. It changes stuff here and there that end up making an enormous difference at least for me. Stamina on top of that all, it varies the dynamics of the match in a way that didn't seem possible to me before.
Stats to me used to matter even before by the way, but with the patch making the game a bit more free and random, and the stamina being influent, now they are a bit more evident indeed..

I'm truly sorry, by the way, that passionate guys like you can't have this possibilities on console.. that's also why I'd love a more customizable game by default for everybody.. the same could be said for Fifa of course..
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I second and third that.
 
Can't really understand that in my opinion,yes my opinion,not yours,that gameplay wise,both games have taken a step back.
I think FIFA 17 is a very good game,also enjoyed Pes 17 to bits
Both had flaws of course.
But Pes 18 and it's bad CPU setup (Def/off) and insane spacing is really bad,maybe the path sorted it,don't know,haven't played it for a while.
And at the same time,they have so many other things sorted.
Strange!

Fifas horrible AI "get the ball up to the strikers asap" is absolutely a game breaker for me,and CPU defenders suddenly sliding in front of you.
On the other hand,looks stunning,your team that you're controlling plays very well
So in my opinion,yes mine,don't have to agree,it's taken a step back.
I see a healthy competition in the NBA live/NBA 2k,making both games better and better.
Not really the case here,sadly
 
sold my copy of pes, was extremely disappointed with the game, the latest update was very disappointing, they stuffed up manual passing made it more easier, and easy to pass ball to the feet over long distances which to me lost the individuality when comparing a Coutinho to a Henderson, and don’t get me started on shooting, im over it, anyways bought fifa again after giving that away after the first month of release, but decided to get it again after watching a few videos with the latest update, despite its annoyances which I can’t be bothered repeating myself, the individuality with the recent patch feels more pronounced and manual which was broken on release is so much better now linked with the stats. This year by far individuality goes to FIFA. Pes for me is a mess, konamis top bosses have made a mess of the game which I once loved, bhatti has the right vision but not the investors, for now fifa is good enough for me to play all year till the next round of games come through, still a disappointing year for me for both games.
 
gabe.paul.logan said:
is it just me or in both games players are too small and have too much space on the field? also overpowered shooting in both games this year?
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I also think there's some truth to this. However it's not significant enough for me to ruin my enjoyment.

Been having such a blast recently with Matt's sliders. Started a new career with AFC Wimbledon and it all feels so good.
 
As for the future we all know that FIFA yearly is a hit or miss for a while in all department of gameplay. So thats good and bad as well.

As for PES its kind of the same regarding the fundamentals since PES2014. And thats something concerns me. Talking about shooting, passing, positioning, Master League, stats, injuries, playerforms, fouls.

PES did a great job in the past years tho with online, gamepace, dribbling, keepers, graphics, live updates, dlc contents, gamepace, presentation, marketing.

Just it seems to me they left the fundamentals as they are as no one complains enough about them and started developing other areas.
 
Going round and round in circles with these games. One minute i’m starting a CM on FIFA 18 and posting videos then i got a bit bored and went back to PES2017 (dont touch 2018) and started a new ML and posting videos etc...

In PES, after enjoying the first 5 games, the sluggish players kicked in. No matter what i did i could not win. I restarted about 4 times and the CPU were doing the usual “take ball to right wing cut inside shoot or pass” which 99% led to a goal. If i held on then the CPU team would go all out attack in the 60th minute mark (its a cup game) and would eventually score.

What i find about PES2017 is that the ball always goes to a player and is always perfectly controlled (either by me or CPU). It never goes into open space when cleared from defence or goes through a persons legs or something because of miscontrol. You very rarely get those 50/50’s with 2 players chasing after the ball that has been cleared into space.

So i thought i would give FIFA18 another go and this time i notched it up to Legendary. I had been avoiding it because i thought it would be too difficult. I played full manual with OP sliders. Even though i lost 4-1 it was quite even until i pressed for an equaliser and they hit me on the break. I found that the CPU is not as attack attack attack on Legendary as it is on World Class. Also it was refreshing (after coming from PES2017) to see balls miscontrolled from clearances, players chasing after loose balls, midfield scrambles etc...

I know it is only one game on Legendary but i’m thinking about starting off ANOTHER CM and see how it goes.
 
geeeeee said:
So i thought i would give FIFA18 another go and this time i notched it up to Legendary. I had been avoiding it because i thought it would be too difficult. I played full manual with OP sliders. Even though i lost 4-1 it was quite even until i pressed for an equaliser and they hit me on the break. I found that the CPU is not as attack attack attack on Legendary as it is on World Class. Also it was refreshing (after coming from PES2017) to see balls miscontrolled from clearances, players chasing after loose balls, midfield scrambles etc...

I know it is only one game on Legendary but i’m thinking about starting off ANOTHER CM and see how it goes.
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I'm thinking about jumping to fifa '18 or reinstalling pes'17. how's it holding in legendary with the op sliders? im interested in knowing if the ai is still making errors and not just pass pass pass forward forward forward
 
el niche said:
I'm thinking about jumping to fifa '18 or reinstalling pes'17. how's it holding in legendary with the op sliders? im interested in knowing if the ai is still making errors and not just pass pass pass forward forward forward
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I had been enjoying the game. Quite a bit of variety. I’m having a break now though from the new games but if i was to go back it would be FIFA2018. :)
 
gabe.paul.logan said:
As for the future we all know that FIFA yearly is a hit or miss for a while in all department of gameplay. So thats good and bad as well.

As for PES its kind of the same regarding the fundamentals since PES2014. And thats something concerns me. Talking about shooting, passing, positioning, Master League, stats, injuries, playerforms, fouls.

PES did a great job in the past years tho with online, gamepace, dribbling, keepers, graphics, live updates, dlc contents, gamepace, presentation, marketing.

Just it seems to me they left the fundamentals as they are as no one complains enough about them and started developing other areas.
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they do complain, just that adam bhatti blocks all those people from twitter including myself, i never once attacked him verbally, all i talked about was the faults of the game, and cos of his actions iv gone back to playing fifa, seems like he doesnt like hearing input from people on how to improve the game to play abit more like a sim.
 
hitmanuk said:
Adam is part of the problem not the solution. Every year he denies glaring.issues,that are being discussed on various forums, exist
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Was it you replying to Adam's tweet about that article of Alan's from WENB?

I have a great deal of respect for Alan, truly, he's a decent poster and a decent guy too. But that article, which says the game needs to strike a balance between casual and "sim", I totally disagree with. FIFA literally exists for the casual - it may as well be called "Mass-Market Sports Title #1" - and PES used to be more of a simulation (not entirely so, but a lot closer to that than an arcade experience).

If anything, the game is already more casual now than ever before (by which I mean, assisted settings are becoming more assisted - and a player's stats can only be demonstrated to their fullest when you're playing with assistance, otherwise you'd be able to make any defender pass like Beckham with enough practice).

(If it wasn't you, completely disregard this message... :D)
 
no it wasn't me, the last time i communicated with Adam was on twitter a couple of years ago where he denied there was an issue with fouls.I posted some screen shots showing zero fouls and asked him to do the same which he refused..also in 2016 i think with the constant low shot bottom corner goals by the AI, he denied that also.
 
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