Lami's PES 2012 Playtest - Q&A

Lami

Lami

Niche Football
28 May 2007
Sydney
Man Utd, Juve
Just done with the playtest about 3 hours ago. Must say I'm quite impressed with what I've seen. Its not a different game by any means. Like it has already been mentioned, it looks almost similar to PES 2011. Imo, it is an improved PES 2011. Actually no, it is the fixed, properly screwed and bolted version that we should have been playing the past year. This is the proper version that should've been released last year. I'm not putting down 2011 by any means, 2011 is a good game, but 2012 will be the one that will last me a year of sleepless nights. To me, it brings back old memories, the good ones, coupled with next-gen goodies, bar animations, which I think still need attention even though its been improved on. But hey, this is just my opinion.

Since both Romagnoli and Rodelero have already put out their amazing impressions, I thought I'd just go ahead and get straight to the point with a Q&A.

For now, I'll post half of it since its done and will post the rest soon.

Hope this suffices and answers your questions.

Watch this space, boyos.

I would like to sincerely thank Mr.Guy of Konami Australia's marketing and PR who has given me and Evo-web this great opportunity to test PES 2012 and bring it to you, creme de la creme.
 
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- How does strategy/tactics changes influence the new active ai aggresiveness ?
Pretty well. With the 4 newly introduced preset tactics, you can switch formation, strategy and tactics on the fly. It’s a great new addition and tactical minded people will definitely benefit from this.

- Do you feel too repetitive ai movement regarding new active ai routine that can make a boring situation ?
Nope, not at all. I’m the type of player who likes variety in every match and what I’ve seen suits me very well. Player movements open up different opportunities for you.

- If one thing you want Konami to get it more polished the most in the final version, what is that ?
More animations and shooting, just the power though, as the ball feels a bit slow most of the time.

- The overall animation is looking fluid enough, though from videos shown sometimes the transition from passing to jogging/running is quite deliberate hence slightly unnatural/not smooth. Also for "heading to stumbling" animation. Please, ask them to polish it a lil bit more, it is almost there.
Noted.

- Would you ask Konami to pay a bit more attention to make sleek & stylish design of default scoreboard, also for pre-match/HT/FT match,score info boards, please. " . It seems some of us need a sleek refresh lami. We're playing with an lcd/plasma nowadays. Old scoreboard is for box tv. They can nail it with CL scoreboard for example, why not the rest?
True that. Noted.

- Is the ball a free entity now?
Well, I can’t really say it is 100% “free”, but it is the best I’ve seen in any PES version. The way it bobbles along the lush green grass and the various outcomes when shooting gives you that good feeling.

- Are injuries changed at all in the new game?
Not from what I’ve seen.

- I feel the amount of injuries in PES2011 was just about right in-match, also the Injury Prone settings were spot on. However in ML, there could have been a few more injuries picked up in the post-match screen or in training. How common are injuries in general?
Can’t really tell now mate. No FL in this code and I’ve only encountered one post match so far in my exhibition matches.

- Also, more injuries leading to long-term absences are definitely hoped for from me at least, are there more of these?
Sorry mate can’t really tell now as FL isn’t playable.

- How is shooting?
Shooting has improved over previous PES versions and found myself trying a few shots in different situations, resulting in different outcomes. I actually like that the ball sometimes hits the ground too early in some shots.

- How's the shot feint with Square + X? Similar to old times, or is it more like the current one?
Just like it used to be in the good old times.

- Lofted through-balls (L1 + triangle), do they work better than 2011?
I can’t say they’re better, but what I can say is that when timed right it can certainly unlock defenses.

- If you do get to play 2-player co-op, how's the player switching?
I’ve found player switching with L1 quite improved. It was an ache in PES 2011 at times.

- Passing settings, how do they affect the accuracy and ease of getting the ball where we want to?
Tbh, I’ve played 2 games on assist and the rest on manual and I can’t say that manual affects accuracy, it’s more to do with the power of the pass. Accuracy will have to be checked when using manual passing, that is L2+pass. And I can say it is pretty good, but I don’t use it much.

- Player movement, how is it? 2011 sometimes felt a bit clumsy, I guess.
It is improved due to more animations and probably syncing them together for smoother results. It’s not perfect though, but certainly better than 2011.

- R2 shooting?
It is good, but not that extra curl you’re looking for, if you are.

- How's the "off-the-ball controls" in FKs and CKs that have been talked about? Are they a gimmick, a cool thing, or maybe something that could be easily exploited?
I was a bit doubtful when I first read about it but after trying it I think it’s a welcome addition. You can choose to use it or not. And don’t think it can be exploited. It’s all up to you and the opposition to detect your movements.

- How's passing in FKs and GKs? Can we now pass anywhere - and if so, how?
With set-pieces, you use the right stick to flick through your players and press X or O to pass.

- How's CPU pressure in highest difficulty? Absurdly high, even to our defenders sometimes getting swamped by 2 opponents, or is it more reasonable?
From playing exhibition matches I’ve rarely seen that happen, if ever, even close towards the end. Think this is better tested in tournaments though, cups/leagues/ML, to have a better judgment.

- Are there glitches you can exploit to easily score? Like in pes 2011 three tap circle makes an almost undefendable cross
Not that I know of.

- How is player movement when we are in ball possession? Sluggish like in pes 2011 or more fluid and responsive?
Oh very fluid and responsive in a realistic manner. At times I’d thought I was going to lose the ball due to player’s sluggishness, because of the PES 2011 mentality, but to my surprise he pulled through quite nicely.

- What about goalkeepers? Are they reliable and quickly react to shoots or they still are slow and make cheap saves?
I think they’re reliable but nothing superhuman. I don’t think I’ve seen any of that belly landing stuff really. I’m not saying it isn’t there though, I’m just telling you what I’ve experienced.

- How is the pace of the game? Slow, fast, too fast, normal?
Thought it was slow and had to up it up to +2 when playing with slower teams. +1 or 0 with quicker teams. Definitely not arcady though, definitely.

- How is the ball trajectory? In PES gone by there are too few variances in the height that passes in particular get. Knee to shoulder height are the most under utilised areas in PES
I think it’s still the same really, but improved a bit with ball being more organic.

- Is there a difference in the ball physics when passing a ball with the instep our outside of the foot. In real life the ball has a definite curve when it moves unlike PES where it is very straight
It isn’t as straight as it used to be now. It curls nicely from what I’ve seen.

- Does it still take an eternity to bring a ball down. I use long balls pretty often and sometimes suffer from an opponent that applies pressure while the ball has barley touched my player.
Nope, it is better now like it should be. Easily move and bring the ball down in a direction, but it still depends on player ball control stat.

- Are low crosses, cutbacks and chipped throuballs from kick off still exploitable?
Not that I know of. I’ve tried doing a few of them but none worked.

- Is it possible to hold the ball up with a targetman through shielding?
I haven’t tried this one mate, sorry.

- Can you burn someone just using pace?
Yes you can to an extent. No more catch-up bug like in 2011 but it doesn’t mean harassing the sprint button will get you anywhere, which is a good thing as it means that people who use the sprint button a lot online won’t benefit much from it when playing against people who know how to defend. Passing is the way to go in this game.

- Do you notice any differences of movement between players? (i.e. Goal poacher more lively in the box)
I’ve noticed players utilizing space like they should, opening up opportunities, and strikers sprinting towards the box positioning themselves well for a cross.

- Any changes to the formation/tactics screen?
Just a few really, most notably the 4 new presets though, which has all the strategy/tactics in it.

- How fast can you turn player with the ball or make a circle with the ball comparing to PES2011? because for me in 2011 it was too clunky, like turning with a car, is it faster?
Yes it is. It is faster in a good way, nothing exaggerated.

- Are player cards still in or are player arrows in tactics menu back?
Player cards still in.

- Can you control AI behavior ie. how often player will make overlapping runs, dummy runs etc?
You can to an extent, using strategy and also depending on player cards and ability.

- Any new trick moves, animations you spotted?
I’ve been using the stepovers a lot using the right stick only, and shoulder feint sometimes using L2 +R. That’s about it for me. Noticed an animation when a player receives a ball and turns, he plays it between his legs and turns swiftly. Also another one when pressing the cross button, O, when a player is about to receive a long ball, jumps and kicks it in a cool way.

- How good is diving this year? it's L3+R3+L2+R2 in this version according to leaked controls pic, test it please
Sorry mate, forgot to try it. Haven’t ever tried this in any PES game, probably why I forgot about it.

- Penalties, tell me everything about them, and controls especially
It’s easier than last year’s. You press the shoot button first, hold it for elevation and pick the direction with the Left stick. I’ve tried hitting it wide but it wasn’t happening for me. I can only hit off-target if I over hit, as in hold the shoot button for long.

- When through ball is played and you are controlling a defender, is it hard to intercept such pass? do you have to use supercancel to get the ball? in PES2011 defenders got stuck and often missed a ball by half inch or behaved like the ball is not there and they were missing it like dumb goats - are defenders still idiots?
Nope! Haven’t had to use the supercancel here really. Thank God that awful thing hasn’t happened to me. One thing has happened to me though, not from a through ball, but the CPU passed a long ball to a striker and I tried to clear it, but for some odd reason my defender was just holding back. It just happened once, but I hope I don’t see this again though.

- (If you can play vs CPU match) how good is CPU? can they actually threaten my goal? are they any good
Well maybe it’s just me playing a new game but I’ve been hammered by the Ozzies and lost 0-2. They were pretty good from what I saw, and weren’t predictable. Actually I’ve lost all my games so far. But again maybe I’m just bad, and maybe I was busy testing things.

- Neymar, Aguero, Ronaldo and Messi overall stats please
Couldn’t take pictures mate sorry.

- Is the shooting still as sensitive as in PES2011? Do you still need a crazily tiny tap of the button to hit a slow shot?
I think it’s pretty good the way it is now. Not too sensitive, just about right.

- How does the new off the ball movement in set pieces work in reality? Do defenders still try and mark you when moving a player?
It’s a nice addition and opposition players do track you of course. You can choose to use it or just send the ball in as always.

- Do you now have proper control over the keeper when he has the ball? It's been bugging me for years!
Yep.

- Have replay camera angles been improved?
If you mean in-game then they’re still the same, plus a new camera called pitch-side, which I’ve been hammering. I wish they bring back angles 1-9 though. Miss angle 9 dearly.

- How does the through pass work this year? Does it still move in the same way and is it able to bypass tons of players on its way through? (I hope not!).
You’ll have to time it right from what I’ve tried. Observe the running the player and get the right pass in, if you can. About ground through passes should be intercepted if a cpu player is close enough.

- Does the AI still try and use crazy formations mid-match? (PES2011 would switch to seven at the back if winning for example, or go five up front with 20 minutes to go).
I haven’t noticed that happening in exhibition matches. I’ve noticed Australia parking the bus in the 2nd half after going 2-0 in the first half though. Just the way they play I guess.

- Has that 'staggering' animation when you get run off the ball now gone? I heard it has but would be good to know for sure.
Yep. CPU constantly tries to push me off the ball but my player kept trying to gain balance.

- How is the in-match audio - crowds, not commentary, that's a given that it'll be poor
Can’t say much here as I was playing on very low volume.

- I would also like to ask if body positioning seems to affect connecting with the ball cleanly/accuracy of passes, shooting and crossing.
I had different outcomes every time I shot at goal, of course depending on the situation I’m in, whether standing still, running, pressured from behind, front, or side. Not quite sure about the passes and crosses.

- My question would be about the advantage rule/bookings. Is it fixed?
Yep advantage rule pretty much improved, not sure if its 100% fixed though.

- Are off the ball challenges punished?
Sometimes yes, and sometimes not. Not sure how its calculated.

- Do we have a higher variety of trajectories for shots? Especially when they're taken from outside the box
Yes more trajectories definitely. They’re mostly backspin as usual, but I’ve seen topspin as well which is new to me.

- Has the ball control changed specially when a player is running and trying to trap a high pass ?
I think this one depends on a player’s ball control stats really.

- Are there too many replays ? Do shots who hit the woodwork get replays ? Basically have replays changed and if so how ?
Maybe I’m just used to 2011 I quickly hit the start button and didn’t notice :LOL: Sorry about that mate. Replays still look the same.

- Does fatigue actually impact players and their technical/physical attributes ?
I haven’t played any league/cup games to accumulate fatigue.

- Is still too long to launch a counterattack from keepers (slow bastards) when he catches a ball in his penalty box?
No, I’ve done quite a few quick counters using the GK. Not all are quick and not all are slow, but you definitely can.

- Is the CPU still too fucking good at free kicks ?
Nope, not from what I’ve experienced.

- How is the new 1v1 system from an attacking and defending point of view ?
I’ve noticed my GK coming out and blocking better than 2011. Haven’t been blessed with 1v1 situations myself though, I remember just once and failed miserably.
 
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- I understand from the videos that you take control of the player but how does the kick taking work? Do you still have to get the power right or is it a guaranteed method of getting the ball to the player that is selected or does the AI itself take it?
If you’re going to use off the ball movement in FKs, you pick the player you want with the right stick and move him about to try and brush off defenders then hit the ground or cross pass which the AI will play to you. It doesn’t mean you’ll easily get the ball though, most of the time defenders cleared it.

- Is it possible to win headers from the goal kick?
Yep.

- Is D2 League on ML still only 18 teams?
I think it is yes as the D2 teams in exhibition mode are still the same number.

- Injury Animations? I used to like seeing players being stretchered off, stuff like that :p
I’ve seen one happen and it’s the same as 2011.

- Have they finally fixed the audio problems under Vista & 7 affecting DirectSound?
No idea mate, they don’t know much about this yet.

- How is CPU attacking in highest difficulty, are they lethal on counters and are they able to create space/scoring opportunities without any mistake by your defense?
Yep. I’ve seen their different ways of scoring and surely was unpredictable.

- Do the keepers hold on to the ball more when saving?
Wouldn’t say hold on to it more. I’ve seen this and parries. It depended on the situation. A few times I thought he should’ve caught the ball though instead of punching it away.

- How are free kicks now, as in shooting and hitting the target does it still feel too sensitive?
I’ve hit the target quite a few times and this is my first test, so I’m pretty sure it’s ok now. And it was Messi.

- How does fully manual feel if selected on the slider?
I found it made the passing better for me. I’m comparing it to 2011 though, where sometimes you barely press the pass button and your player sends it far away. It’s much better now, power it up like you want and it should go the distance intended.

- Will there be more camera angles or, better, customizable camera?
Don’t think so.

- Will there be more options for stadium edition, like editing sideline banners?
From what I’ve seen they’re still the same.

- Will there be a 2nd division for all leagues, or at least for the non full-licensed leagues?
Nope.

- Will we be able to play exibithion with libertadores teams?
Only Libertadores v Libertadores.

- Any south american league in the game this year?
Not in this code mate.

- Any feature from previous PS2 version is back? (like kit parts choosing, referee choosing, stadium attendence choosing)
Well Training Challenge is back, but none of the things you mention.

- How is the rain effect this year? Does it affect gameplay more than in 2011? Is the rain more realistic?
Haven’t noticed mate.

- Customize camera?
Camera still the same.

- Edit LED adboards?
Don’t know.

- No BLES version?
BLES is the same as last year I guess.

- Boot editor?
No.

- Does the keeper still dive and miss the ball when a deflected shot trundles towards him?
Never happened once for me. GKs reacted well to the deflected shots I’ve seen.

- Is it still too easy to win aerial challenges in the middle of the park eg from goal kicks by doing absolutely nothing?
Not that I know of.

- Are free kicks given more regularly like in PES2011 demo?
Oh yes. Milan has absolutely crunched my players’ ankles, and the ref had to step in almost every time!

- Are the silly acrobatic volley animations slowed down
Yes.

- Do net styles vary at different stadia?
They all looked the same to me in exhibition mode.

- Do keepers still walk through the nets?
Nothing that I’ve seen.
 
- The new video shows a lot of different types of off-ball-movement (overlap/dummy run/diagonal run). Can these run types be turned on/off on specific players? Or are they completely automatic?
If you mean your players’ off the ball movement then yes, some of them are automatic like dummy run and diagonal run (mazing run I think its called). Overlap I think depends on player attributes, team strategy and tactics, skill card.

- Most of these runs types are forward/attacking runs, are there different ones where you can ask forward players to drift back for support (for possession game or triangulation)?
What I think you can do in this case is use on the fly defensive preset to make them switch and run back.

- Does the AI do a good job at bringing players back for support, once they engage in dummy runs up the field?
Yes. And you can use the only the fly tactics/strategy thing too.

- What is the "change preset tactics(select+circle)" here (see top right)?
I used the D-pad for changing preset tactics. You can use select+circle when you’re using both D-pad and L for player movement. I changed my player movement to L only. Much more convenient.

- Are link feints still limited to front/back/L/R? (would prefer diagonal directions actually...more intuitive for some moves)
Yep.

- Is the manual pass modifier (L2+X) still available?
Yep.

- Are short passes still unreasonably quick and accurate when a passer tap X with their back facing the recipient of the pass?
I’m not sure I remember this one very well, since most of the time I make sure I’m almost facing the direction I’m passing to. I always aim to play realistically. I do remember happening a couple times though, most probably in crowded areas, panicking etc.

- Will the new features relating to A.I. be influenced by tactics options (e.g. do you need to set your tactics up with high player support and wide build ups to see what the video's showed or will adjusting those sliders increase/decrease the effect of the new A.I.)?
I’ve tried a few presets and it does make a difference yes.

- Is it still possible to totally snuff out patient attacking play by just mashing the pressure buttons and swamping the player on the ball? (Please say no.)
I tried doing that to test this and got about 3 ganging up on the cpu player but wasn’t easy taking the ball off him that way. Auto-pressing the cpu isn’t fruitful imo. I’ve always used R2 to jockey in 2011 and it still works a charm here. What I like about the cpu now is that they don’t pressure me as much as they did in 2011. Sometimes I’d pass the ball about in my half and they’d approach me slowly and cautiously.

- Also, add me to the list of people wanting to know about the stamina / fatigue. If people sprint-press your team for 45 minutes, while you patiently stroke the ball around, are they any more tired than you are in the second half?
They should be more tired. With all the different teams I’ve played, the players I’ve used most were the ones to have their stamina depleted first. Also their stamina stat plays a role. For example, Bilbao’s players were almost flat at around the 75th min bar one, a striker with 86 stamina, where Barca were still going even at the 85th minute, since most of their players have high stamina apart from Messi.

-There will be J league licensed?
Don’t think so.

-There is a proper way to direct swerve?
Just the left analogue stick or d-pad as usual.

-Can we move team from a league without replacing it?
Not sure you can do that.

-How many stadiums can we create? Is there anymore parts?
Haven’t checked that and I think parts are the same.

-Are there 32 directions to move?
I don’t know how many directions exactly but they’re definitely pretty good.

-Are there animations for tired players?
Not anything I’ve noticed.

-Are there different goalposts?
Nope.

- Do the players still run automatic towards the ball even if we don’t want them 2 do we need 2 use super-cancel every time this happens
Not sure I’ve noticed any of this mate. Can’t remember myself using super-cancel at all.

- If u do a 1-2 pass in pes2012 will the player who gives the pass run on rails like 2011 and u can’t control him until he stops?
The player will always run if you do a 1-2 pass and when passed back he should be under your control.

- How are the R2 shots, in pes2011 its way 2 easy 2 score with r2 shot
I’ve tried shooting in many different ways really and the GKs reacted just the same to all of them. I’ve tried testing R2 in training mode though and some would go wide, in, or saved by GK.

- Can u test manual keeper
Didn’t get the chance to do this, sorry.

- Do the keepers still have that invisible wall around them (players cant come close 2 keeper with lose balls)
Not as obvious. I’ve come very close to nicking the ball off the keeper once which was closer to him than my player but I kept dashing at it full pelt but he just got to it before me. I wish we can get in contact with the GK leading to a foul or injury for example.

- Freekicks again is the invisibile wall still there
Not sure about this one.

- Slide tackles are way 2 powerful in pes2011 is this changed
Well you do try slide and nick it off him but players’ responses are quicker so they can turn away and leave you flat or maybe even win a foul. Personally I think it needs better timing,

- Does the kickoff trick work
Didn’t work for me.

- How are triple tap low crosses, do players still run in their own goal?
It is better now but I’ve experienced once Abidal running back, clearing the ball and hitting his own bar. Shouldn’t be a problem if it happens rarely, since football is an unpredictable game eh.

- Are they going to alter freekicks so that they are based on player skill rather than luck?
I’ve only had a few mate and hit the target with a skilled player too.

- Also is there any chance of a scenario mode in the near future?
No idea mate, sorry.

- Do goalkeepers outstretch their arms when diving to attempt a save?
Yep.

- How is the chip shot this year, does the ball still loop too low like in PES 2011?
It is low for my liking yes. I wanted it to loop higher but it wasn’t working for me. Maybe I’m bad at it though? Shouldn’t be rocket science.

- Is there more variance with the height of the lofted through ball? (L1 + :triangle: )
Not sure there’s that much variety in it. I’ve only seen it use the same height every time.

- How are first touches this year? Hopefully they aren't all perfect
Very good. It all depends on the ball control stat.

- How is the tackling. Is pressure effective in relevance to stamina and how easy or difficult it is to tackle?
The more you’d pressure the opposition, the more you’d use up stamina. Tackle is a matter of timing it right. Well I’ve only been using the jockey button.

- How fluid are the tricks?
They’re pretty fluid.

- Any new tactic settings? New strategies?
Just the 4 presets from what I’ve seen.

- How are the crowds this year? Is there a Crowd attendance selector like back in the PS2 days? IS the crowd at 100% full attendance every game like in 2010, 2011? Do the crowd wave huge flags and are banners scattered around the stadium in mass. More so than in PES 2011?
Stadium was always full in exhibition mode. Haven’t noticed the crowd’s flags and banners really.

- Weather. Is snowy conditions back in the game?
Haven’t seen it.

- Where would you say the responsiveness fits compared to the PES/WE games we hold dearly(PES5/6WE9). The same question for the defensive AI where would you rank it.(we9 was the best in my opinion).
Well, in relation to next-gen visuals, physics, animations, angles, I think it is pretty responsive now. Can’t compare it to last-gen really, as I don’t think it’s really fair. Defensive AI is an improvement over 2011, but I’ll need much more time to fully judge it.

- Are longballs useful, do they give your player an advantage when u spotted the opening and executed the pass pefectly.i don't just mean for crosses in the box.
Yep. I’ve used it quite a lot and every time my eye spots a free player in the radar I’d quickly try to home it to him, Scholesy style.

- Could you feel the difference in players when passing even if you selected manual passing or shooting do their stats still matter.
Of course stats will always matter.

- Are the midfield battles more intense and noticeable when using the improved zonal defense system and the response time.
Yep.

- How are the one on one battles does it require more skill and timing or just knowing the buttons.
I’ve always tried to observe, anticipate, and get the timing right. Stepovers are quite handy as well.

- What was the part that stood out which made you think OMG how did they put this in the game.
Nothing specifically “OMG’d” me. I’m impressed with the overall package so far, specially the passing.

- How does the first touch feel, can u skin a player with it by paying attention to his positioning.
Hell yes, and it feels good.

- Also, I read about players slowing up as they approach the ball from those lads in Germany who had a playtest... no mention of it from the WENB guys though - can you check that out?
Haven’t noticed any mate.

- In the tactics menu, can you play without a striker (CF,SS) ala 4-6-0 formation?
Nope. I tried to drag out all strikers to midfield but it wouldn’t let me.

- Also in the tactics menu, if you play with an actual DM (the Mascherano type) but set up your team to be offensive, does your DM sit or does he bomb forward and ignore his duties?
When playing with Barca, I’m pretty sure I had never seen Busquets leave his position much.

- Have the chest passes (certain players) returned?
Think I’ve seen one but I ain’t 100% sure.

- Compared to 2011, do you feel a difference with the crossing?
Oh definitely. Better pace, swerve, height, animation.

- Can you give away quite a few free kicks and see if the CPU freekick bug (CPU taking a freekick and just kicking it past all the players and out for a goalkick) has been fixed?
Yep. Not seen any of it from cpu, and I’m happy. I’ve done it myself though and was close to scoring when it brushed off my player’s head and just went past the post. At least it looked good here!

- Maybe you could try doing step overs and see if they're still sluggish and you have to wait for the full animation to play through. Or if it's more like in FIFA where the animations blend better and make it more responsive so you can step over and change direction more realistically. Also see how the AI reacts to feints/tricks, because in 2011 you can use the flip-ball-up-diagonally and the AI just stops and let you pass, a lot of feints are like that, making it feel like you are cheating when using them.
I can safely say I’ve harassed the stepovers in this game because I’ve enjoyed it a lot. Very fluid yet very responsive when you need to switch from stepover to moving diagonally away from cpu. Sometimes I’m through, sometimes I’m fouled, and sometimes the cpu wins the ball.

- Also perhaps give feedback about more movement in the box on corner kicks (the latest videos shows everyone just stands pretty much still).
I’m not 100% on everyone in the box since I was moving around player and all concentration on him. Sorry mate.

- Also against AI, how they cope with opposition close to them. In WE9 they're really clever, twisting and turning in tight spaces, getting out of trouble and passing the ball away. In PES 2011 they just run straight into each other and it just looks horrible when the ball bounce around while the AI seems completely retarded.
I can safely say they were trying to out-smart me in tight situations. Trying to dribble between 2 players at times, pass it to another teammate, unpredictable stuff.

- If playing against the AI. Look if it hits any high through balls, they don't in 2011, only lob/cross button high passes but never high and long through balls for someone to run at. I don't know why hardly anyone has noticed this bug in 2011 (at least I have never seen anyone write about it), but I guess it's because everyone plays online these days.
Yep they do. Robinho hit one to Ibra and he lobbed my GK. I was shattered.

- Do players still take ages to respond to an L1+Triangle pass? Sometimes when you use this to take the ball over the defence (mainly through the middle) and the striker is close to the goal he will take a long time to respond giving the keeper enough time to collect it.
I don’t think it is as bad as 2011 but noticed the player does tend to wait for it to come down for a good shot. If you choose to run straight at it though it shouldn’t be a problem.

- Also, do players still use the scissor-kick in an exaggerated manner? Especially from outside the box, this happens often when a volley would have sufficed.
Nope! Thank God.

- How "individual" do the players feel, compared to 2011?
I’ll talk about Barca here, since they’re the ones I was testing the most. Messi’s ball control and agility was second to none, Dani Alves’ stamina was monstrous, Busquests was always sniffing about. These are the ones I remember the most.

- What are the gameplay settings when it comes to manual play? The same or something added (manual crosses without extra button press what I would most like)
No manual crosses without extra button press. You’ll have to use L2+pass for manual passing. You can set passing assistance to manual. Here’s a few things you can set under “Player Assistance” as well:
Pass – On/Off (Players on your team who are not under your direct control will pass the ball around)
Shoot – On/Off (Players on your team who are not under your direct control will attempt shots)
Clear – On/Off (Players on your team who are not under your direct control will attempt to clear the ball)
Auto Sliding – Off/Normal/Hard (Players on your team will not/occasionally/frequently attempt sliding tackles when trying to win the ball back)

- Can you still barge the ball of the other team simply by running alongside them without any additional button input?
Yes.

- Is "hold up defense" (I hope I remember that right) better implemented? Because I for one never used it and I have played hundreds of PES 2011 hours.
I never use it as well. So can’t really tell here. All I use is jockey, R2.
 
- 1st thing is passes out wide to wingers where the winger doesnt seem to register that the ball is coming towards him and it usually goes out for a throw
Never happened to me today.

- Next thing is similiar, this time the ball is caught between 2 players with the intended target not knowing that the ball is arriving
Never happened as well.

- Next up is automatic ai control whereby the ai takes over controlling your player in different situations,in this one the player im in control of(diego) heads the cross into the goal without me pressing a button
This can be set under player assistance that I’ve mentioned above. Best thing is to set all to Off.

- Now to the kick out bug that ive noticed,if the opposing teams takes a kick out or free kick from their goal area and you can position your midfieder in front of the ai midfielder you will win the ball 100% of the time by holding the R2 trap button,even players like xavi can win the ball against someone like fellaini
I know what you mean. I’ve tried doing that but can’t remember it working for me as it did in 2011.

- Now onto goalkeepers,couple of things ive noticed is this bad save animation
Haven’t seen any of this today mate.

- And this animation where the keeper dives out of the way before the ball has been kicked,looks like some scripting on this clip
Nope, not this one too.

- The usual suspects with the next few clips, thers ai auto clearances
You can set it to Off under player assistance mate, as stated above.

- AI free kicks to nowhere, this one annoys me
Haven’t seen any of this too.

- And finally the defensive ai not attacking the ball when there is danger present
I can’t say that all my players were doing the right thing, but noticed few of them, specially the defensive minded ones were doing what should be done.

- Some misc things now we all know about,sami hyppia here beating mario gotze in a foot race despite gotze having a head start
Nope, no more of that from what I’ve seen. Skin a very slow player with a very quick one and you’re off.

- The dreaded stumble animation
Gone with the wind. Your player will try to balance himself.

- Your own players getting in the way of passes to other players
Passing was wonderful today. None of that 2011 stuff happened. Players always finding space and opening up opportunities without getting into each other’s way.

- And last but not least here is bakary sagna freezing on me to let drogba in to score an easy goal,dodgy player switching i couldnt change to the man on the line until it was too late
Player switching improved and can’t remember complaining at all, and I’ve been using L1.

- Some pics here now, some of the ai formations you play against in ML are strange here is one i came across, also the arrow system in the ML is crap that most of the time your players are purple and blue even though in my case my team was going well in the league and had the best fitness coach
Wouldn’t know much there mate, sorry. FL locked.

- Also from corners sometimes players dont attack the penalty area
Players always made sure they made their presence in the box.

- I'd like to know Lami if there is still an issue with Player Switching when you play a Manual long pass.
Nope. Nothing I noticed at all mate.

- Does the game use rumble? If not, can you ask them why they don't make use if it, cheers.
Haven’t noticed any rumble, no. He wouldn’t know much about it, but I’ll try to get that point across.

- What's the percentage of situations when the keeper lands on his belly after a save?
I’m not exaggerating here, but I’ve not seen one at all. Maybe I’m just lucky!

- How are the passing animations?
They’re an improvement over 2011, but I think animations do need a face-lift.

- Does it still happen for one player to use his interior of the foot for a pass that can't be done like that in real life? (sort of unnatural way of passing and unnantural ball direction - this was in pes 2011, sometimes).
All the passes I’ve seen today with that part of the foot felt very natural. Passing truly felt like the best thing today.

- Medium,long ground pass. Lami, if you look at supposedly long/medium ground pass situation in E3 code of PESrankings' vid, there is a common occasion where the ball does slighlty fly from a player and bounce once just exactly before/near the receiving players foot.i thought it will brings some concern on the game flow.
I’ve seen that video yes, but I can’t remember that pass happening for me today. I’ve only been spraying about ground and long passes really, and first touch control among different players was obvious.

- Keeper animation. In 2011, in penalty, when he got cheated he still make a complete dive/save as if the ball is sent to the direction where he goes to. In PES 6 we can see, "being cheated dives" where we can tell that the keeper is aware that he jumps to the wrong way. Which one is the case in your playtest ? and would you ask them to go back to PES 6 "being cheated dives" if that is not the case ?
Still in mate. GK takes a dive like his life depended on it, even in the wrong direction. They should bring it back, yes.

- I just want to know if the game feels more fluid and if dribbling is the same.
Game is very fluid compared to 2011 and dribbling much more intuitive and responsive.

- Also, do players take up better positions in the box when you have the ball out wide?
Yep.

- I forgot that it needs on the fly tactics,ie when you move a player from say RM to LM the ball has to go out of play before the player will switch position. maybe theyve fixed it so that the players will move positions automatically. this also is a problem with changing formations as everything only changes once the balls goes out of play,could you check this in the playtest
Ah, sorry haven’t tested this. All my games I haven’t subbed anyone or changed positions at all. I was more concerned with testing stamina and other things.

- Can my friend control the cpu team in cups/ml etc?
Not in this code no. But Murphy said it will be available.

- Has the infuriating sliding shooting animation been removed?
Nope. But I think I know what you’re on about. If it’s the one where the player pokes it in then no. The player slides and laces it in. I think it looks very good.

- Also can you look out for the types of players that take up a position in the box when you have a corner.
Strikers and defenders I’ve set to attack during set-pieces.

- Do defenders still go out of their way to clear the ball out for a corner, even if you trying to clear it up the pitch?
All I remember is my players clearing the ball where I wanted it to be cleared. Hopefully that is always the case.

- Also, are Goalkeepers still unresponive when they are holding the ball (before you decide to dropkick, throw or drop the ball at feet)?
Sometimes they are, but most of the time they’re quick to get up and ready to roll.

- Is there any improves for manual goalkeeper? I mean, something like a proper button asingning: one for pick the ball (even if the ball is comming from a team mate, passed with the feet, leading to a ref whistle); another button to kick the ball, other one to hit it with the fist.
Haven’t touched manual GK mate, sorry.

- When you have a corner kick and you select a certain player with your right stick in order to play a short corner with him, can you look if the AI opponent will follow you to the point where he's really close to the corner kick taker too?
Yep, he’d follow me up to a point and stop. Weird thing is though, my player can’t get too close to the CK taker, close but not too close. There’s some kind of invisible force-field there too.

- I'd like to know about the speed settings, if they are the same as 2011 and how the speeds compare to it (generally slower, faster, about the same). Speed settings for 2011 were brilliant but I felt the + ones were absurdly fast and fairly pointless.
Felt 0 was slow really compared to 2011. +1 felt the best. +2 for slow teams and definitely for more power on shooting, since it feels slow. Can’t imagine myself using -1 or -2 at all.

- Also, how the crossing is in relation to which way a player faces, sometimes it seems to easy to make a good cross even facing away from goal.
I agree on this one. Also felt it is too easy to just hit the cross button and send it in.

- IS THE INCREDIBLY ANNOYING CARD 'SPEED MERCHANT' STILL PRESENT THAT LETS PLAYERS SLALOM AT FULL PACE THROUGH DEFENDERS UNOPPOSED?
Well…. Yes. Don’t think it’s as effective though.

- Please tell me if the game plays as arcadish as it looks?
Oh hell no. It’s slow, if anything.

- Try some different shots please:
- with momentum hit a shot outside the box, near post or far post. Looking to see if it swerves, bounces or dips.
Yep I tried all that. Some bounce, some dip in with back spin and top spin.

- See what kind of error is there if you hit a shot under pressure. Is it scuffed or wide rather being "floaty" like it is now.
I’ve hit quite a few while under pressure that went wide.

- R2 shots. Do they curl?? Are they different when hit with a player carrying momentum vs a player hitting it off one step (think Villa in this year's champions league final).
They do curl, but not that much of a curl. I’ve definitely seen more curl in real life that I’d love to see in PES.

- Hope you try to abuse the off-the-ball control system as much as you can mate. That way we can see whether or not the system will hinder online experience.
Don’t think it will hinder anything really. It looks like a good addition imo. As long as you’re tracking players down then it shouldn’t be a problem.

- And do please clarify what happens to the trick system now.(Right analog stick or back to L2+movement)
You still do use the L2+movement, but I’ve been using the right stick only mostly for stepovers.

- I'd like you to test the levels of pass assitance support and also the assisted and manual teammates, and then tell us what your thoughts about them (of course).
Haven’t tried the assisted and manual teammates mate, sorry. About passing assistance, I found it better set to manual. I think all of us will find it better this way.

- Any news of Bundesliga?
Not much known here, sorry.

- Are the playing-styles and individuality of the teams and its players reflected realistically in game?
I think so, yes. Australia played like I’d expect them to. Buggers going 2-0 up first half then park the bus the 2nd half. Milan going all out at me, yet closing gaps always and committing that many fouls.

- How are weaker teams made weaker?
I’m not sure how they’re “made” weaker, but it depends on their stats and strategies I guess.

- One more thing, the bug when after you score a goal the cpu or other player can waltz through your defense and score straight away without your players reacting properly,jimmy can explain this better
Nope, none of that today.

- Please please find out if we can switch between clubs in ML
No FL at all. Locked here. Wish I knew.
 
- How about with curving the ball from corners/FK? Is this still to small, don't giving chance to shot directly from corner?
I don’t know if this suffices but I think it curls quite nicely in CKs, not sure about scoring from there though, haven’t tried that.

- Can I move GK during penalty before the shot?
Haven’t tried been the GK mate, sorry.

- Are GKs more responsive (I mean after catch the ball)? Can he kick/throw wherever we want? Do I have press R1 if I want GK to put the ball to the ground (one second later is too long and he kicks the ball himself)?
Yes, most of the time they are, and you can throw it where you want. No need to press R1.

- Is 4-way assisted settings implemented only to passing or also crossing/long pass/through pass (with L1 too)?
All I know is that its implemented to passing. I can only guess passing should mean covering anything passing related, but I’m not sure.

- Is the pass gauge still too sensitive?
It’s as it’s supposed to be now, depending on how long you hold the button. Use manual pass and you should be just fine.

- Are the crosses fully manual?
Only if you use manual pass.

- Can I release the ball ahead whenever and wherever I want (from first touch and from ball going from the air too - as in FIFA by right stick)?
I guess you can do that by flicking the left stick to the desired direction plus the R2 and/or dash button.

- Can I do the tricks with first touch?
Hmm, not sure how really as I think most feints and tricks are done when in control of the ball. You can try and improvise with the left stick I guess, since it’s quite responsive now.

- KONAMI how about Add New LEAGUE function in EDIT MODE?! It shouldnt be illegal, as we want to make another fake D2 League
Noted.

- Is the custom replay (from the pause menu) the same as PES 2011? or is it good as PES 2010?, because PES 2011's replay cam was very limited to pan, zoom, angles etc.
Its still the same and needs improvement, imo.

- How good is the player's off the ball movement when it comes to counter attacks?
No exaggeration here; simply amazing! This is how it used to be and should be. So much more space created with intelligent player runs and movements, especially when needed in tight spaces.

- Are the Copa Libertadores teams playable in other game modes?
No.

- The defender (pique i guess) is falling quite realistic but seems it takes him quite long to get up. In the mean time, the team is being attacked and he is in quite crucial area inside the box. So yeah, do you find this occassion will disadvantage you ( a player ) to some extent.
Haven’t happened for me mate. I’m quite lucky I guess.

- Ball clearance of CPU defender . In 2011, they would mostly kick it out of the sideline where under light pressure even if they have team mate in free space to pass, unaware of his team mate. How is it being improved in 2012.
I think this has improved so far. Haven’t seen much sideline clearances in such situations. AI is clearly improved overall.

- Ball rebound of CPU attacker. Sometimes in 2011, when ball rebound from cpu attacker, another player of theirs is chasing the rebound ball with his back to our goal and suddenly launch a 180 degree shot. It is not good, because they don't think what angles they are shooting and unaware of his team mate. How is it being improved in 2012.
From what I’ve tested so far I haven’t seen any. Not sure if it shows up with more play time though.

- How has the fatigue/stamina-system improved compared to the broken version in PES 2011? Does it now measure the individual action of every player on the pitch and calculates stamina/fatigue correctly depending on stats?
Yes. Playing with Athletico Bilbao and 74 mins in I have only one player in the red, David Lopez. Even though his stamina is 78 and Llorente’s 77, he’s in the red and Llorente’s still in the green, most probably because I’ve used Lopez much more than Llorente. 77 mins in, most in the red bar two. 88 minutes in, all in the red apart from Toquero, who has a stamina of 86, the highest in the team. Most of Bilbao’s stamina are in the 70’s. Playing with Barca, about 86mins in and only Messi in the red. Barca’s stamina mostly in the 80’s and few 90s, apart from Messi. It also does depend on you're style I guess, whether you pressure the opposition all the time or just sit back, or a bit of both.

- What is football-life?
No answer yet.

-How realistic is gamespeed and gamepace?
I think it’s pretty slow at the moment, had to up it up to +2 at one point!

- How good are the goalkeepers and referees?
Gk’s are good but still need a few screws here and there. Much better dives though

- Auto tackle still on by default?
Can be found under player assistance. I think it is On by default. But once you switch it off then it always will be.

- Do opposition players commit to taking the ball off you when pressuring?
Yes.

- Shot fake in?
Yep!

- No more always volleying after clearing the ball from a corner?
Yes! Finally we don’t have to see the inevitable always occurring volley after each and every CK.

And Finally, just little thing I’ve noticed and not seen mentioned, is that every time you switch preset tactics you see a neat little window on the bottom left with the manager making gestures.


I want to note that I am not trying to hype anything here. These are just my honest experiences from today's playtest. Also, some of these questions cannot really be answered with only 10-15 games, specially exhibition matches. Some of the things you guys are looking for need to be tested thoroughly in cups/leagues for longer periods. I hope you always keep that in mind.

I hope this suffices. And again I would like to thank you all for reading, thank you Evo-web for giving me this chance, and thank you Guy for this wonderful opportunity.

Enjoy!
 
Nice stuff, Lami.

:TU:

Thanks a lot, i guess you answered all the questions?!?!?! Those are really a lot! Guess you had fun playing and the game really is as good as i am expecting!

Thanks again, mate!

:APPLAUD:

Only lows are no south american leagues and no libertadores teams on exibithions :(
 
Thx Lami. New PES gets more promising each day. Glad to hear some improvement on my rage with PES 2011 :APPLAUD: .

Honome_WEC said:
Nice stuff, Lami.

:TU:

Thanks a lot, i guess you answered all the questions?!?!?! Those are really a lot! Guess you had fun playing and the game really is as good as i am expecting!

Thanks again, mate!

:APPLAUD:

Only lows are no south american leagues and no libertadores teams on exibithions :(
Click to expand...

Yeah.. even though PC version can manipulate it, but it is so sad so far can not be done from default. I'd like to replay Chivas vs Barca so much :SMUG:
 
Very nice read and nice effort answering all these questions.

Looks very promising to me so far.

A bit frustrated tho that most curled shots are backspin yet again... most shots in real life are topspin ffs why can't KONAMI fix this already, backspins "usually" only happen with low technique players that misshit the ball often under pressure.
 
Lami said:
How has the fatigue/stamina-system improved compared to the broken version in PES 2011? Does it now measure the individual action of every player on the pitch and calculates stamina/fatigue correctly depending on stats?

Yes. Playing with Athletico Bilbao and 74 mins in I have only one player in the red, David Lopez. Even though his stamina is 78 and Llorente’s 77, he’s in the red and Llorente’s still in the green, most probably because I’ve used Lopez much more than Llorente. 77 mins in, most in the red bar two. 88 minutes in, all in the red apart from Toquero, who has a stamina of 86, the highest in the team. Most of Bilbao’s stamina are in the 70’s. Playing with Barca, about 86mins in and only Messi in the red. Barca’s stamina mostly in the 80’s and few 90s, apart from Messi. It also does depend on you're style I guess, whether you pressure the opposition all the time or just sit back, or a bit of both.
Click to expand...

Holy moly, one of my biggest gripes with PES 2011 seems solved!

Sure, it seems like there is no two-tiered-system where shorttime-breath-stamina (ie. a player running around a lot, should need to take a few seconds or minutes to regain his breath) and mid-longterm-fatigue play a role influencing each other, but I can wait for that feature in the next version of PES.

It's great that at least there is a clear difference between those pressuring a lot and those not.

Fantastic Q&A-session, thanks a lot, Lami!

Seems like PES 2012 is an awesome game with all bugs from PES 2011 solved and blessed with awesome new AI and much more responsive control/animation.

The only thing bothering me besides goalkeepers and shooting is this:

Lami said:
- Passing settings, how do they affect the accuracy and ease of getting the ball where we want to?
Tbh, I’ve played 2 games on assist and the rest on manual and I can’t say that manual affects accuracy, it’s more to do with the power of the pass. Accuracy will have to be checked when using manual passing, that is L2+pass. And I can say it is pretty good, but I don’t use it much.
Click to expand...

Why? Why isn't zero-bar fully manual (ie. regarding accuracy and power, of course stat-influenced)? That's a major disapointment right there. I want to play manual, fully manual, for passes and crosses... but I don't to hold the manual-modifier for that. And I thought Konami reacts to feedback, I remember a lot of people asking for that, but on this they let us down.:RANT:
 
Wow! thanks for the info Lami, everything´s looking good.
Too bad the Copa Libertadpres Team issue. :((
 
Lami is a legend.So many questions answered.
I'm positively expecting pes2012 now, I'm not THAT super excited (or giddy like a little girl when she gets a new doll), videogames don't wow me anymore (apart from some exceptions).
Thanks to the likes of Lami,Rom and Rod, we have had as much as a comprehensive preview of the game as we could have hoped for.
 
Thanks Lami!

I don't think I missed anything about this, apologies if I did. How did you feel about fouls being called?

I know you mentioned Milan fouling you alot, I assume this was when you were playing vs the cpu?

Thanks if you can give any information about this. :)
 
That Milan game. They were nasty. I forgot to look at the stats but I don't think I had to. I think they literally fouled me every 5 minutes of PES time. That's crazy. And it became even crazier towards the end, even more fouls. Not sure why they were that aggressive? Maybe I shouldn't tease with stepovers anymore :P

Thanks fellas. I truly hope I did well. Tried my best really. Hopefully they don't make things worse in the final build and I get tomatoes thrown at me :LOL:

I'd also like to note, that I've spoken to Guy about a feedback thread, and he welcomed it. So after 2012 is out, we'll have a feedback thread open hopefully, giving our ideas for 2013.
 
Thanks for answering all questions, including three of mine which all had positive news attached to them. A lot of positives overall which is good. Not very happy about mostly all shots still being backspin spin. When you thought you saw top spin shots, did you check the replay? Like in 2011 when you think it could be top spin, you look at the replay and it's back spin from a shot where you kick up on the ball sweeping motion... horrible.
 
Lami you mentioned the problematic volleying is gone. So does that mean things aren't as context sensitive? The reason for the amount of overhead kick/ bicycle volley attempts was that it tried to shoot as soon as you pressed shoot. It was exactly the same for heading in that people complained about too many diving headers but it was simply because you press the button too early and your player reacts at that moment. Likewise for the abundance of backheel passes which was you pressing pass and a direction when you weren't facing your target.

I mean is it still this way? Personally i didn't mind this. The volleying looked stupid and i'm glad to see that is gone but the backheels and diving headers made sense in a way despite them being arguably as odd looking.
 
no full manual and no full customisable camera = deal breaker..the camera angles are awful on pes 2011 as is the manual trigger you need to press.
Looks like FIFA dynamic camera full manual for me again
 
Lami said:
That Milan game. They were nasty. I forgot to look at the stats but I don't think I had to. I think they literally fouled me every 5 minutes of PES time. That's crazy. And it became even crazier towards the end, even more fouls. Not sure why they were that aggressive? Maybe I shouldn't tease with stepovers anymore :P

Thanks fellas. I truly hope I did well. Tried my best really. Hopefully they don't make things worse in the final build and I get tomatoes thrown at me :LOL:

I'd also like to note, that I've spoken to Guy about a feedback thread, and he welcomed it. So after 2012 is out, we'll have a feedback thread open hopefully, giving our ideas for 2013.
Click to expand...

Thx for asking the guy (is his name guy ? :P). It sounds really good to have official feedback here on Evo-Web.
 
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