Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 Xbox 360

Released on 08/10/2010

• Pro Evolution Soccer series receives 5million Facebook Likes

  
  Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer has achieved a social media milestone after racking up an impressive five million "Likes" on Facebook.

  To celebrate the occasion, PES cover athlete and official spokesperson Cristiano Ronaldo has recorded a special message to the game's five million online fans.

  Gamers who go to the page and view the video will even be able to enter a special competition to win one of five football shirts signed by the Portugal and Real Madrid superstar.

  Ronaldo became the official face of the PES series for its most recent instalment, the popular PES 2012, which was released on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii and PSP last year.

  The game introduced a number of innovative new features to the classic formula, including improved AI and off-the-ball player control, as well as a wide variety of modes and options.

  It has since also been released in an enhanced handheld edition on Nintendo 3DS.

  Published: 31/01/2012

• Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 Review

  New season

  Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 represents a rebirth for the long-running series, which has had to evolve in the face of a stiffer challenge from rival footy franchise FIFA over the past few years, and there's plenty on offer here to delight fans of the beautiful game.

  Lookin' good

  For starters the presentation is much improved, from the crisp, uncluttered menus to the TV-style broadcast camera that relays the action. There are also 1000s of new animations created from some 100 hours of motion capture footage, so players realistically perform pre-match stretches, despair after wasting clear-cut chances, or tumble convincingly after being hacked down by over-zealous tacklers.

  The biggest changes come on the pitch, where PES 2011 puts you in control of the action more than ever before.

  The biggest changes come on the pitch, where PES 2011 puts you in control of the action more than ever before. What's great is that the ball never feels stuck to players or as if it's following a pre-determined flight path when you strike it. Player assistance has been toned down, meaning you have to work hard if you want to look good. It's something that's initially tough to get to grips with, but it looks great in motion and ultimately feels highly rewarding.

  Freedom of control

  PES 2011 features improved 360-degree controls and a new power gauge system which you'll have to master in order to dictate the direction, pace and weight of each stroke of the ball. Get lazy or misjudge the strength of a mid-range pass and it'll end up going astray. You'll definitely miss the odd pass to begin with, but the controls become natural and instinctive after a while on the training pitch and you'll soon find yourself lofting deliberate, defence-splitting through balls. Meanwhile, a neatly reworked skills system moves feints and step-overs to the right stick, and kindly lets you pre-program up to four moves for riding tackles and bamboozling defenders.

  We've yet to score the same goal twice, despite repeated attempts.

  Shooting is another art that doesn't come naturally at first - it takes practice to make the game beautiful, but it's extremely satisfying and feels genuinely unique when you do. The cheap goals scorable in older series entries, where you knew you'd succeed if you approached the opposition's goal from a certain angle, have been eradicated, meaning there are an infinite variety of goals to be scored. In fact, we've yet to score the same goal twice, despite repeated attempts.

  Off the pitch, PES 2011's Master League is still the highlight, and thankfully the successful formula hasn't been tampered with much. It offers a deep level of control over the running and development of your club, from training and tactics to finances and transfers, and the addition of Online Master League adds a whole new competitive dynamic to the much-loved mode.

  Delighted

  We do have a few niggles, such as the lack of some official licenses and the poor in-game commentary, but overall we're delighted with what's on offer in PES 2011. There's a reasonable learning curve in what initially turns out to be one of the franchise's most challenging games to date, but stick with it and it's also the most rewarding, representing a true return to form that will see the game challenging for top spot in the league this season.

  GAME's Verdict

  

  • A major improvement on PES 2010.
  • Master League, online and offline.
  • An massive variety of passes and shots.

  

  • Steepish learning curve.
  • Poor commentary.
  • Lack of many official licenses.

  Review by: Tom 'Fox In The Box' Ivan
  Version Tested: Xbox 360
  Review Published: 07.10.10

  Published: 06/10/2010

• Pro Evolution Soccer 2011: Preview

  Total control

  Freedom of play and total control are the buzz-phrases developer Konami has been kicking around for its upcoming football title and it’s evident they’re more than just marketing slogans as soon as the ref’s whistle blows and your first game of PES 2011 gets underway. The title features improved 360-degree controls and a new power gauge system, which combine to let you dictate the direction, pace and weight of each stroke of the ball.

  The beautiful game

  There’s definitely less computer assistance offered than there was in previous series entries, but the game does allow you some leeway with regards to where you point the analogue stick, meaning you’re unlikely to wildly misplace a ball unless your aim’s completely wonky. That said, it’s by no means generous, meaning sloppily aimed passes will end up at the feet of a team-mate other than the one you intended, or worse still, leave an unattended ball ideally situated for the opposition to snatch control of play.

  Spot an attacker in space and you can loft a through-ball over the top manually, applying your own speed and trajectory for a defence splitting pass.

  It currently seems more important to get the weight of each kick correct, because in this department the game’s less forgiving. It’s great when you get to grips with it, although that won’t happen for a good few matches – expect to over-hit crosses and balloon some shots into the stands during early games.

  When you get the hang of it though it’s a rewarding system, and it’s probably most satisfying in practice when playing through balls. Spot an attacker in space and you can loft a through-ball over the top manually, applying your own speed and trajectory to generate a defence splitting pass.

  Hey good lookin'

  One thing that you’ll instantly appreciate is PES 2011’s much improved graphics. Player likenesses are spot on, while their general behaviour and reactions to refereeing decisions during cut scenes are much more realistic than before. This visual upgrade translates to the in-game animations, which have been impressively reworked, giving more variety to player movements and making gameplay feel more fluid and natural. A new feints and tricks system, which allows you to map fancy turns and flicks to the right stick, makes showboating more accessible and can look great in motion.

  Player likenesses are spot on, while their general behaviour and reactions are much more realistic than before.

  While the gameplay flows very nicely, the commentary fails to so do, meaning you’ll be subjected to some banal words from the robotic sounding men on the microphones. At times it’s laughable and makes you wish you could switch from TV commentary to alternative radio analysis like the BBC lets you do when watching matches. Goalies can still be pretty erratic too, seemingly affected by occasional bouts of keeper craziness, although hopefully this will be ironed out before release.

  Konami seems to be taking a major step in the right direction with PES 2011 and we’re hopeful the title will mark a return to form after a couple of years when the franchise has failed to move with the times as much as rival series FIFA. What we’ve seen so far in terms of gameplay and visual improvements is highly promising, even if some areas still need a bit of fine tuning.

  Kicking off

  What makes the game an even more tantalising prospect is some of the elements we’ve yet to experience first hand. The thing we’re most excited to try out is the new Online Master League mode. This will let you pit your wits and skills against other managers, bidding against each other for the best players as you attempt to build a squad capable of taking on the world’s top gamers online. Needless to say, we’re looking forward to the new season kicking off.

  Preview by: Tom 'No.9' Ivan
  Version Tested: Xbox 360
  Review Published: 12.08.10

  Published: 11/08/2010

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